See All

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
product
post
page
0
< Back to category
Testing Techniques Training Course

The Long-Term Tester Development Programme

Table of Contents

1.  So, You’ve Decided to Become a Tester

Congratulations, you will make a big difference as a professional in a field that is recognised as key to delivering systems that:
  • Underpin your business;
  • Work as intended;
  • Are maintainable;
  • Provide value for money;
  • Enhance your reputation.
Becoming a test specialist is a big deal, particularly as the discipline goes well beyond the common misconception that your role will simply about finding bugs and raising defect reports. Whilst that activity is important, today’s world allows you to do so much more as you embrace the entire life cycle and become engaged where you can be most effective: Requirements, Acceptance Criteria and Pre-Build Stages. When you embark on your career as a professional tester you’ll learn the basics and gain a couple of industry-demanded qualifications, but after that you’ll be offered some choices about the direction you wish to take to help maximise your career potential and return for your employer, and these include:
  • Agile;
  • Automation;
  • Model-Based Testing;
  • Process Improvement;
  • Requirements Engineering;
  • DevOps;
  • Technical Testing;
  • Consulting and Leadership;
  • Test Management;
  • Modelling;
  • Architecture;
  • Security, etc.
Which you choose is up to you, but we thoroughly recommend you get hold of 2 or three key skills that will maximise what you can do whilst giving your employer the flexibility they need from their staff. TSG Training has developed a compelling programme to develop multi-skilled testers, commencing with juniors and apprentices, right through to programme test managers and architects. We take you through four key stages of learning and development, through which you can choose to specialise and develop additional skills that fit your plans and career profile.
  • Stage 1 – For new entrants, apprentices and people with fewer that 2-years’ experience;
  • Stage 2 – to get you up to the role of Senior Test Engineer / Team Leader in your chosen specialism;
  • Stage 3 – To move you to the more serious roles of Test Management; or
  • Stage 4 – where you have made the choice to move into architecture or consultancy
The following page graphically outlines the programme, its stages and how they interlink.
Career pathb 20190219 version 3

2.  Getting on the Ladder

Stage 1 of the programme has been developed to give you the basic skills to be a good tester in any life cycle, whilst also giving a flavour of some of the different specialisms that are important today. You can join the stage at any time, but if you are starting from scratch then the Introduction to Test Engineering is the recommended entrance. If you take the full cycle of courses, we suggest that you set a target of 18-24 months to complete it – anything less and you may lack the necessary day-to-day experience of learning that an employer might be entitled to expect and rely on. Stage 1 is eligible for Government training levy funding if you are:
  • Starting work;
  • New to testing;
  • Switching from an unrelated role that requires you to develop 51% or more new skills.

3. Thinking about Choices

You’ve got yourself and ISTQB Foundation Certificate in Software Testing, so you are now recognised in the industry as a career professional tester. It’s time to get an ISTQB Advanced Test Analyst certificate and make some choices that shape your future. Do want to be:
  • Business centric?
  • A technician specialising in, say, systems integration or infrastructure testing?
  • An automation engineer?
  • A Performance engineer?
  • Running projects and managing people?
  • Specialise in DevOps or Agile?
Stage 2, ‘From Test Engineer to Senior Test Engineer / Test Team Leader’, defines the industry-mandated ISTQB Advanced Test Analyst and 6-optional paths, each of which relies on different skills and way of thinking.
Tester Development programme image 2

4.  Management, Architecture of Consultancy?

You’ve gained a few years’ experience as a Senior Test Engineer or Test Team Leader, so now is the time for the big decision about what you want to do longer-term:
  • Test Management;
  • Architecture;
  • Consultancy.
The choice is yours, but what you decide is entirely dependent on you asking a number of questions:
  • Do I want to lead big test programmes?
  • Do I want to lay the foundation and right platform for big programmes with Test Architecture?
  • Do I want to engage stakeholders as a consultant to deliver key strategies and troubleshoot?

4.1. The Test Management Route

This choice necessitates you obtain an ISTQB Advanced Test Manager certificate, following which you have some choices about technology and development models, as shown in Figure 3, below
Test Engineer to Senior Test Engineer image 3

4.2. Architecture and Consultancy

Many of the courses and capabilities you need go across each function, so we have defined a training programme that allows you develop into either role, as shown in Figure 4, below.
Senior Test Engineer image 4

5. Summary

The first 2 stages will take around 2-years each to graduate from; although Stages 3 & 4 will demand more of your time and increased experience. Don’t be rushed through any stage, as the more time you spend in it them more experience you gain to provide good grounding in the next. Which ever route you take, be comfortable that it matches your skill set and way of thinking. For example, if you are business and process focussed, then the choice of Security Testing might not be the right one for you. You have choices – make them count

Table of Contents

Related Articles

ITIL and test management

How ITIL meets test management with continuous quality

August 22, 2025 No Comments

When you hear the word ITIL, you might think of service desks, incident queues, and change request forms. And when you hear test management, you might picture test cases, defect logs, and sprint cycles. At first glance, these two worlds can feel miles apart one rooted in IT service management, the other in software delivery. However, in

Read More »
Software Testing

The Training Stack: Stack software testing and skills for maximum ROI

August 22, 2025 No Comments

In software development, a technology stack is the carefully chosen set of tools, frameworks, and languages that work together to build and run an application. Each layer plays a role. For example,  the database stores the data, the backend powers the logic, and the frontend delivers the user experience. A good stack is balanced, complementary,

Read More »
IT Service Management

From Service Desk to Strategic Leader: A 12-month career roadmap

August 22, 2025 No Comments

Front-line service‑desk roles are rarely permanent destinations. Many analysts view the desk as a springboard toward service-management leadership, especially now that ITIL 4 emphasises adaptable value streams over rigid processes. Below is a month-by-month plan to help you transition from ticket tamer to strategic service leader, complete with certification milestones, stretch projects, and metrics that

Read More »
7 Steps to Plan Your Next Certification

Skill‑Gap Self‑Audit: 7 Steps to Plan Your Next Certification

August 22, 2025 No Comments

Certification budgets are finite, and the options for training continue to grow. However, without a structured review, you risk chasing fashionable badges that don’t advance your career or your organisation. A skills gap self-audit provides a clear, evidence-based map from your current competence to the next step in certification and career. The seven steps below

Read More »
Pass Protect - save £166 on your exam resit

Save £160!

Pass Protect, offered by TSG Training, is a valuable option for those concerned about the possibility of not passing their exam on the first attempt.

 

It acts like an insurance policy, allowing you to resit your exam at a significantly reduced rate.

 

Pass Protect covers one resit per exam purchased, so you don’t have to worry about the cost of an additional attempt if you don’t pass initially.

 

In summary, by adding the Pass Protect to your order, you save £160 upfront, but keep in mind that it’s only available for resits if you purchase it when you first register for your exam.

 

Enquire Now