Quality assurance (QA) is a cornerstone for manufacturing, ensuring that products meet the rigorous standards of excellence customers need and expect.
A quality assurance engineer is at the heart of this process. If you have ever wondered about exploring this career path and what you might need to succeed in this role, you have come to the right place.
What is a Quality Assurance Engineer?
A quality assurance engineer is a professional responsible for ensuring that products, processes and systems meet predetermined quality standards and specifications. Their primary goal is to identify and resolve potential problems or defects to enhance product reliability, safety and overall improve customer satisfaction. Some of the key responsibilities in this role include:
- Quality Control and Inspection
- Process Improvement
- Documentation and Compliance
- Problem-Solving
- Quality Management Systems
- Collaboration across Teams
- Risk Assessment
- Continuous Improvement
Educational Background and Skills
While specific requirements for a Quality Assurance Engineer may vary based on industry or employer preferences, the educational requirements below are commonly required.
Education
- Engineering Degree – A bachelor’s degree in engineering, be it mechanical, industrial, or chemical engineering.
- Related Disciplines – While an engineering degree is the most common, other fields such as quality engineering, manufacturing engineering, or industrial technology can provide the necessary knowledge for this role.
Soft Skills
In addition to formal education, the following skills are critical to success in any quality assurance engineering role, and are ones you should highlight on your resume.
- Attention to Detail – Focus and precision are key in assuring quality standards are met.
- Analytical Thinking – Analyzing complex data, identifying patterns and drawing meaningful conclusions.
- Problem-Solving Abilities – Investigating root causes of issues, developing effective solutions and implementing preventative measures.
- Strong Communication Skills – Collaborating with various teams across the organization.
- Technical Proficiency – Understanding of quality control tools and techniques, specialized equipment, testing methods and quality analysis software.
- Industry Knowledge – Familiarity with the processes, materials, and common issues of the industry you are entering is crucial.
- Continuous Learning – With the pace of industries and technology evolving, showing a dedication to continuous improvement is a must.
Gaining Experience and Finding a Role
While you may have some of the skills and knowledge outlined above, you may find you are lacking in some areas and in turn are having difficulty finding a quality assurance engineer role.
There are multiple paths to becoming a quality assurance engineer, so you may want to consider either of the following options.
Related Content: 10 Questions to Ask an Engineering Recruiter
Internships and Co-op Programs
Gaining experience through a formal learning program is a great way to break into this field, but does require that this kind of program is available around you or that you can relocate for such a program. These programs can give you real-world exposure, hands-on learning, and help you with networking that will give you a leg up after completing the program when looking for your first quality assurance engineer role.
Entry-Level Positions
Starting in an entry-level position is a common way for many quality assurance engineer s to find their roles. You may want to explore roles such as QA Technician, Inspector, or Quality Control Assistant to help you develop the experience, knowledge, and skills needed to transition to your final goal of quality assurance engineer.
At the end of the day there are multiple paths you can take to find the role for you, and whether you are looking on your own or with the help of a dedicated recruiting agency, following these steps can help you get the best position possible.
Want more job-searching tips? Working with an experienced engineering recruiter like Strom Minnesota can help you prepare for any job interview and take the hard work out of finding positions. Don’t waste your time scouring the internet for job postings or waste time applying with multiple individual employers. Strom Minnesota takes all the hard work out of the job search, so you can find a new position faster.
Strom Minnesota is an engineering and technical recruitment agency that specializes in high-skilled job candidates for highly technical positions. We facilitate contract employment, project staffing, temp-to-perm and direct hire opportunities. Industries served include IT, engineering, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, and manufacturing. We are affiliated with Strom Engineering, a national staffing and recruitment agency.
