We all have or had been in this debate even inside ourselves , which is better do everything a software tester can do , and here I mean to do manual , automation , performance , security , and anything else may be related to software testing or being a specialized and here I mean that you’re focusing on one or two of the above categories and be expert / specialized.
I am not discussing here exploration vs exploitation , as here we still within the same field which is software testing.
The reason that drove me to start this article , that I was asking a fellow software tester what she look forward in her career , which track she likes the most and I got the following answer :
I can do anything , I am a fast learner
This answer made me think a lot , this is not an answer , yeah we all started , and let me not say all , most of us started from the same point being a manual software tester. Writing , executing test cases and reporting bugs.
Wether you were testing a web , desktop or mobile application, it was the same starting point.
But by time we start to like a specific track or tracks more than the others and I think this is normal , and here I am not forcing the specialization point of view.
So the question here , am I against the do anything a software tester can do , the answer is no.
but you must be specialized in one of them if not on purpose it will be as you do it frequently.
A software tester who is testing mobile application for years and do other things beside it , can do anything as well but he/she is more experienced in testing mobile applications.
To be honest , being specialized has some pros but off course has a cons as well and from a personal experience it is harder to get a job that satisfies you and fulfill your track when you specialized in one track than being a software tester who can do anything.
The job market now forces some standards ,drive people to learn or practice some aspects of software testing like Automation testing , but does this make you automation testing expert , I think the answer is no.
Let me summarize here , I am not here to judge or to say what is right or what is wrong , I am in the same boat have the same struggles.
But what I can say here and also to myself that , it is okay and also good thing to do anything a software tester can do , but I don’t want to say must but try to be a specialized in one of the software testing tracks , this will give you an edge and confidence in your career path.
Please share your tips, experience, comments, and questions for further enriching this topic of discussion.
The Test Therapist 