Rashid Ali

Introduction

We have a set of QA interview questions and answers for freshers, that will help you those who have the required knowledge of QA but they are not performing well in the interview to secure their job. All the questions are conceptual. If you are a junior-level QA engineer or aiming for a mid-level position, this blog will equip you with the knowledge and confidence you need to shine during your interview.

Normally the conversation will start with questions like,

Tell Me About Yourself, What Is Software Testing, and Why Is It Important?

You can answer these questions like:

To begin with, provide a brief overview of your professional background, emphasizing relevant QA experience, skills, and certifications. Additionally, keep it concise and focus on what sets you apart.

Showcase your understanding of software testing by first explaining its significance in delivering high-quality software. Then, highlight how it ensures functionality and minimizes defects, using a few examples to support your points.

QA interview questions for freshers

1. What is the definition of software testing?

Software testing is the process of evaluating a given software to ascertain whether it meets the needs of stakeholders, detects defects and assesses its overall quality, including performance, features, utility, and completeness.

2. Explain quality control and how it differs from quality assurance.

Quality control is product oriented to identify defects and ensure software meets stakeholder requirements, while quality assurance is processe oriented, it focuses to prevents bugs in the system.

3. Define manual software testing and differentiate it from automated software testing.

Manual software testing involves human testers manually executing test cases and generating test reports, while automated testing uses tools like test scripts and code for test execution, simulating end-user interactions.

4. What are the advantages of manual testing? QA interview questions for freshers

Manual testing offers cost-effectiveness; moreover, it provides quick and accurate visual feedback. It is also suitable for testing minor changes, adaptable for ad hoc testing, easy to use without requiring knowledge of automation tools, and ideal for testing user interfaces (UIs).

5. What are the drawbacks of manual testing?

The drawbacks of manual testing include, first of all, susceptibility to human error; furthermore, difficulty in handling some tasks manually; in addition, long-term cost implications; and finally, the inability to record and replicate the testing process.

6. What skills are required for a software tester?

Software testers need problem-solving skills. Additionally, they require excellent communication skills, both written and verbal, as well as attention to detail. Furthermore, the ability to work under pressure is crucial. In addition, collaboration and organizational skills are important, along with related technical skills.

7. Define SDLC (Software Development Life Cycle).

SDLC stands for Software Development Life Cycle, encompassing all stages of software development, including requirement analysis, design, coding, testing, deployment, and maintenance.

8. What is a test case?

A test case is a documented set of conditions, including prerequisites, input values, and expected outcomes, used to verify whether an application complies with its requirements.

9. Explain the test scenario.

A test scenario is derived from a use case and tests an application’s feature end-to-end, often accommodating multiple test cases. It’s particularly useful for time-constrained testing.

10. Define a test plan. – A test plan is, therefore, a formal document that specifies the testing scope, methods, required resources, and estimated time for testing. It is derived from the Software Requirement Specifications.

11. What is test data? – Test data refers to information used to test software with various inputs; consequently, it ensures the resulting output aligns with the intended results and is generated based on company needs.

12. Explain a test script.

A test script is a script used to automate a test case. Specifically, a QA automation engineer creates it by converting the manual actions and verifications into a program.

13. What are the types of manual testing?

Manual testing includes Black Box, White Box, Integration, Unit, System, and Acceptance testing.

14. Define black-box testing and list its various techniques

Black-box testing is employed when the internal architecture or code structure is unknown. Techniques include Equivalence Partitioning and Boundary Value Analysis.

15. What is white-box testing? – White-box testing involves analyzing an application’s internal architecture and code structure, in addition to source code quality.

16. List the techniques used in white-box testing. Specifically, white-box testing techniques include, for example, Statement Coverage and Decision Coverage.

17. Explain the difference between verification and validation. – Verification checks if the software meets expected requirements during development, while validation evaluates if it meets customer requirements after development.

18. What is a testbed?

A testbed is an environment used for testing an application, including both hardware and required software components.

19. Define Sanity testing.

Sanity testing is, therefore, performed at the release level to ensure that the main functionalities work correctly, and it serves as a part of regression testing.

20. When should configuration management procedures be implemented by developers?

Configuration management procedures should be implemented during test planning.

21. List the four different test levels.

The four test levels are Unit/Component/Program/Module testing, followed by Integration testing, then System testing, and finally Acceptance testing.

22. Distinguish between a bug and a defect.

A bug is a fault detected during testing, while a defect is a discrepancy between expected and actual results found by developers after product deployment.

23. Explain the difference between an error and a failure.

An error occurs if a program cannot run or be compiled during development, while a failure is discovered by end-users when the software does not perform as expected.

24. What is GUI testing?

GUI testing evaluates the interface between software and end-users, focusing on the Graphics User Interface.

25. When should testing conclude?

Testing concludes based on criteria such as bug rate, deadlines, budget constraints, percentage of passed test cases, and meeting code/functionality/requirements coverage.

26. What are the different types of Software testing?

Software testing is categorized into Functional and Non-Functional testing.

27. Explain Functional Testing.

Functional testing evaluates whether the software adheres to its functional requirements, focusing on input and output behavior, excluding non-functional characteristics.

28. Explain Non-functional testing.

Non-functional testing assesses non-functional requirements such as performance, security, scalability, and usability.

29. Mention some advantages of Automated testing.

Automated testing not only offers quick test execution but also reduces human errors, furthermore supports Continuous Integration (CI) with tools like Jenkins, and ultimately optimizes resource usage.

30. What is Regression Testing?

Regression Testing, therefore, re-executes a selection of test cases, whether full or partial, in order to ensure that existing functionalities remain intact.

31. What is a Test Harness?

A test harness is a collection of software and test data used to test a software unit under various conditions while monitoring its behavior and outputs.

32. Differentiate between Positive and Negative Testing.

Positive Testing ensures that the software performs as expected with valid data, while Negative Testing checks how the software handles unexpected or invalid input.

33. What is a Critical Bug?

A critical bug severely impacts an application’s functionality, preventing it from delivering to end-users until the team has fixed the issue.

34. What is Test Closure?

Test Closure is a document summarizing all tests conducted during software development, including defects, fixes, and various testing statistics.

35. Explain the defect life cycle.

The defect life cycle outlines the stages a defect goes through, starting from discovery and continuing through to closure, thereby ensuring proper tracking and resolution.

36. What is the pesticide paradox, explain it?

The pesticide paradox suggests that using the same tests repeatedly may, over time, lead to the tests becoming ineffective. Therefore, to address this issue, testers should either create new test cases or incorporate fresh ones into the existing suite.

37. What is API testing?

API testing involves evaluating application programming interfaces (APIs) in order to assess functionality, reliability, performance, and, consequently, security compliance.

38. What is System testing?

System testing examines the entire software system to ensure it complies with business requirements.

39. What is Acceptance testing?

Potential end-users or customers perform Acceptance testing to verify if the software meets business requirements.

40. Differentiate between bug leakage and bug release.

Bug leakage occurs when end-users discover defects in the released software that testing teams overlooked. Bug release involves launching software with known low-priority issues.Integration testing, therefore, verifies interactions between modules.

41. What is Defect Triage?

Defect triage is a process of prioritizing defects based on severity, risk, and the time required for resolution. Moreover, it involves stakeholders to determine the order of fixing defects.

42. What is Integration Testing? What are its types? – Integration testing verifies interactions between modules. Types include Big Bang, Top-down, Bottom-up, and Hybrid Integration Testing.

43. What is a stub?

Stubs are used in top-down integration testing to emulate module behavior when lower-level modules are not available.

44. What is code coverage?

Code coverage measures the extent to which test scripts cover the application’s source code.

45. What is a cause-effect graph?

A cause-effect graph is, in fact, a black-box test design technique that uses a graphical representation to describe the relationships between input (cause) and output (effect) conditions.

46. Explain equivalence class partitioning.

Equivalence class partitioning partitions a set of input data into logically comparable groups to create test cases.

47. What is boundary value analysis?

Boundary value analysis, in turn, uses border values of equivalence class partitions as input for test cases in order to assess how the application handles boundary conditions.

48. How would you handle a severely buggy program?

In such cases, testers should report critical issues promptly, provide documentation as proof, and involve management in resolution.

49. What should be done if an organization’s rapid growth makes standard testing procedures impractical?

Hire skilled personnel, prioritize quality issues, ensure everyone understands quality from the end-user’s perspective, and adapt testing procedures as needed.

50. When can you confirm that the code meets its specifications?

Code can be confirmed to meet its specifications when all test cases pass, indicating that the code satisfies the requirements.”

Conclusion | QA interview questions for freshers

The above set of QA interview questions and answers for freshers will help you in that case if you already have taken updated full training or course related to QA. Also do not memorize the answers to these questions, as they are conceptual questions, you can only answer them if you have a clear understanding of what these questions are?

Remember that successful interviews involve not just knowing the answers but also demonstrating your problem-solving abilities, adaptability, and communication skills.

Good luck with your QA interview and may your journey in the world of software testing be rewarding and fulfilling!