What Is a Quality Assurance Analyst? 2025 Career Guide

Quality assurance (QA) is vital for selling products, from software to medical devices. Specifically, with the proliferation of software products, the demand for QA professionals capable of assessing workflows and ensuring adherence to international regulatory standards continues to grow. Read on to take a closer look at what QA analysts do, the different career paths you can take, and how to get started.

What is a quality assurance analyst?

Quality assurance analysts are responsible for testing, analysing, and ensuring the quality of software, products, and systems. They confirm that products or services meet the standards set by the company or the industry in which you work. QA has become synonymous with the software development process and technology products. However, jobs in quality assurance are available in various sectors in and out of the tech industry, including manufacturing, food and beverage, and health care.

What do quality assurance analysts do?

In technical QA analyst jobs such as software quality assurance, you’ll develop and implement testing plans, create test cases and test scripts, and document your findings. You’ll also report defects and track resolutions. This may involve focus groups with customers and monitoring ongoing customer feedback to identify product issues. The main goal of quality assurance is to ensure products meet functional requirements before they reach the user.

Quality assurance analyst job description

Daily responsibilities can change depending on the industry or company you work for. Below are a few tasks you can expect to manage in most QA roles:

• Planning and implementing product testing

• Establishing procedures and scenarios for quality control

• Reviewing products for defects and errors

• Regression testing

• Conducting software compatibility tests and software design reviews

• Analysing test results

• Assisting with product designs

• Tracking progress on product issue resolutions

• Ensuring that the final product is fit for its purpose

• Evaluating software for release readiness and reporting defects to software developers

• Driving product improvements

• Analysing competitors and the current market

How much do quality assurance analysts make?

According to Glassdoor [1], the average base salary for a quality assurance analyst in India is ₹6,50,000 per year. The job outlook for this role remains promising. As of July 2024, Naukri lists over 22,000 job openings for QA analysts on its job platform. 

QA analyst degrees and graduate certificates

Most QA analysts have a bachelor’s degree in computer science, information technology, or a related field. However, certain employers may prefer candidates with an advanced degree, which allows for higher pay. Examples of relevant degrees and graduate certificates for QA analysts to pursue include:

• Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from the University of London

• MBA in Business Analytics from the OP Jindal Global University 

Professional Certificates and certifications

Whether you’re looking to transition into a new career or are graduating from college, certifications or certificates are a great way to enhance your resume and increase your earning potential. When considering your certification options, looking at the competencies required in your target jobs is a good idea, as well as determining which certifications best convey those skills. LinkedIn can be a good source of information and for networking.

The following are a few certificates that QA analyst employers may prefer:

• Certified Scrum Master (CSM)

• ISTQB Certified Tester Foundation Level (CTFL)

• Google Project Management Professional Certificate

• Certified Software Tester (CSTE)

• Certified Instrumentation Specialist (CIS)

• Software Testing and Automation Specialisation from the University of Minnesota

• Certified Associate in Project Management (CAPM)

• Certified Software Quality Engineer (CSQE)

• Requirements Engineering: Secure Software Specifications Specialisation from the University of Colorado

QA analyst skills

You can develop various skills that help you perform well in a quality assurance role. Some key skills and traits for QA analysts to master include:

• Expertise in a wide range of software applications as well as hardware and networking

• Extensive experience in quality control

• Strong programming skills

• High regard for safety standards and quality control

• A good understanding of business

• Ability to think abstractly and see how small details relate to the bigger picture

• Creative and innovative thinker

• Interpersonal skills to collaborate with development teams

• Knowledge of operating systems and network environments

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills

• Strong IT skills

• Keen attention to detail

• Diligent and meticulous

• Strong analytical skills

• Problem-solving skills

Is quality assurance a good career?

A career in quality assurance can be rewarding for several reasons. The salary is above average, the job outlook is promising, and QA analysts play an essential role in businesses. Outlined below are five additional factors that underscore the significance of quality assurance:

1. QA helps protect brand reputation. 

Protecting your brand and reputation is the most important reason to invest in quality assurance. If your products or services don't meet customer expectations, it can damage your brand and make it harder to attract new business. Quality assurance can help ensure your products or services meet or exceed customer expectations.

2. QA ensures compliance with ISO standards. 

Complying with the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) is another vital reason to invest in quality assurance. ISO 9001 is the world's most widely used quality management system standard, and compliance can be a requirement for doing business in some sectors. Quality assurance can help you meet all relevant ISO standards, opening partnerships and sales opportunities.

3. QA analysts help identify what customers want. 

Knowing what customers want is key to quality assurance. Understanding customer needs and expectations ensures that your company designs its products or services to meet them, which can improve customer satisfaction and loyalty and help increase sales.

4. QA can enhance productivity and team performance. 

By streamlining processes and eliminating waste, quality assurance can help boost efficiency and productivity levels across your organisation. This can save you time and money and free up resources for other priorities. Quality assurance can also help you develop training programmes, implement process changes, and identify areas where team members need improvement. By improving the performance of your teams, you can improve the quality of your product while reducing costs.

5. Businesses plan more efficiently and realistically with QA analysts. 

By investigating potential risks early in the product or project lifecycle, quality assurance can help you plan more efficiently for contingencies. Having a quality assurance plan, you can help efficiently and realistically allocate your resources to get the best results from your team.

Where do QA analysts work?

QA analysts typically work in various industries, including health care, manufacturing, and software development. You’ll typically work in an office setting but may travel to different locations to conduct inspections or audits.  You may also find work in these types of organisations:

• Independent testing and QA consultancies

• IT departments in large companies

• Software development companies

• Web development agencies

QA career paths

After working in a QA role and learning skills such as attention to detail and problem-solving, you may be able to move on to management positions or find opportunities in consulting or auditing. The following are some related roles and their average annual salaries:

Note: All salary information was sourced from Glassdoor in July 2024. It includes the average base salary and the reported annual additional pay. Additional pay may include profit sharing, bonuses, and commissions.

• Project manager: ₹17,00,000

• DevOps engineer: ₹8,80,000

• Customer experience leader: ₹7,20,500

• Enterprise architect: ₹34,00,000

• IT manager: ₹14,50,000

• Quality engineer: ₹5,80,000

• Quality assurance manager: ₹20,97,698

Alternative titles for quality assurance jobs

Many job titles fall under the term quality assurance, each with its own responsibilities and requirements. Below are some additional QA roles and their average annual salaries: 

Note: All salary information was sourced from Glassdoor in July 2024. It includes the average base salary and the reported annual additional pay. Additional pay may include profit sharing, bonuses, and commissions.

• Quality assurance technician: ₹5,14,100

• Quality auditor: ₹4,63,000

• Quality assurance coordinator: ₹6,32,500

• Quality assurance tester: ₹4,45,000

• Quality control supervisor: ₹9,90,000

• Quality analyst: ₹5,50,000

Advance your quality assurance career with Coursera.

Quality assurance analysts, integral to product development, assess and prioritise trends and methodologies for enhancing product quality. Your skills as a quality assurance analyst directly impact customer satisfaction.

You can start building job-ready skills to enhance your resume today for free. Consider the Information Systems Auditing, Controls, and Assurance course through the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology on Coursera. You can learn about information security (INFOSEC), information technology (IT) management, auditing, risk management, and change management. The Google IT Support Professional Certificate teaches in-demand IT skills that can help lay the foundation for a job as a quality assurance analyst.

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