How to Make Money Testing Software
There are two main ways to make money testing software: as a freelancer and as a career software testing/quality assurance professional. Freelancing offers flexibility and choice of assignments. A software testing professional career offers stability and upward growth potential. Even if you don't have any formal software training, you can earn extra money testing software, such as websites.
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Instructions
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Freelance Software Testing
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List the types of software or websites you are familiar with and what type of testing you'd like to do. Include types of software you use most such as games, ecommerce sites or social network sites. If you have a technical or scientific background, list those applications, as you may be able to test science application software.
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Register with online services offering to pay for software testers. Use your list to guide you in selecting services and assignments. There are different types of services, each with its own pros and cons. For example, UserTesting.com pays testers $10 to evaluate a website. Testers are selected based on their demographics, so you may not get selected for testing jobs even though you've signed up. Other services, such as Amazon's Mechanical Turk are less selective, but typically pay less than some other services.
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Accept testing opportunities from the freelance services you've signed up with. Perform your testing assignments and complete the test reporting process according to the instructions of the testing service you're working with.
Software Testing as a Career
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Earn a degree needed to be considered for software testing (or software quality assurance) positions. A bachelor's degree in a computer or software-related major, such as computer science, is typically the minimum requirement. You may also be able to get into software testing through other science majors such as engineering, physics and psychology.
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Become certified in a software testing specialty. The American Software Testing Qualifications Board (ASTQB) offers a certification program in software testing. Specialized certifications will help set you apart from other candidates in the job market.
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Get practical experience. During school or the certification process, seek opportunities to gain experience, even through an unpaid internship or shadowing.
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Apply for software testing/quality assurance positions. Once you've earned the required degree and certification, you can begin applying for software testing positions.
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Tips & Warnings
Research which software testing tools are used most frequently in the industry you're pursuing and then learn those tools.
Be sure to emphasize on your resume any certifications and practical experience with specific software testing tools you have, as technical hiring staff and recruiters often use keyword searches to select resumes from resume databases.
References
Resources
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