Interviewing Questions Flashcards
Tell me about yourself
I’m working in QA for the past __ years, making sure that all works, looks, and feels good
mainly focusing on functional and UI testing, testing both Web and Mobile applications, Making sure that requirements are implemented and reporting issues in Jira. Working with iOS, Android, Windows, and Mac. I have a lot of experience with creating and maintaining QA documentation, using Testrail to create and execute test cases. Working with tools like Chrome Dev Tools, Xcode, Android Studio, ADB and Unix worked closely with Development and Product Management
….Well, that’s pretty much it…
Please feel free to ask if you have any particular questions.
When reporting issues in Jira?
Once I saw a mismatch between actual and expected behavior.
Used ADB and Unix
examples if they ask:
How did you use ADB?
- To install/uninstall apps on android (ADB install/uninstall)
- To create a log file for Android (ADB logcat)
How did you use Linux/Unix?
To search for errors/crashes/exceptions in the log file using “grep”
To run Linux/Unix command that we had in the steps of the test cases
* for example to clear cache and cookies on iOS devices, or to create files and folders on the device)
To make sure all looks good? yes, nothing is overlapped, misaligned, or truncated.
Tell me about yourself: (with recruiter)
Well, I work on Web and mobile applications, testing UI and Functionality,
Doing smoke and regression testing,
using chrome dev tool, ADB, Linux, Android Studio, and Xcode
Testing different browsers and platforms.
Testing iOS, Android, Windows, and mac.
Who exactly you are looking for?
Most important questions (recommended to learn by heart):
- Tell me about yourself
- How do you write a bug report?
- What you do if the developer tells you that it’s not a bug (or as designed)?
- What you do if the dev tells you it’s not reproducible?
- Which ADB commands did you use?
- Which Unix commands did you use?
- What is your weakness?
- Why did you choose to work in QA?
- How do you write test cases?
- Describe bug life cycle at your company
- If you need to complete 80 test cases in 5 days, but after the first day you completed 8 test cases, what will you do?
- How would you test a toaster? (understand the main idea)
- Which latest versions of iOS and Android did you work with ? which devices?
- Which file name was for iOS and Android apps ? (*.ipa/.apk)
- Tell me about your project
Call with a recruiter:
Recruiter: Hi Mr. X how are you doing?
You: Fine thank you, how are you?
Recruiter: Are you available on the market for new opportunities? Do you have a green card? citizenship? work authorization?
You: Yes, I’m looking for new opportunities.
Where is this position located? (remote?) and what is the maximum rate? Full Time or Contract? Is it manual testing or automation?
Recruiter: Yes, in your area. Manual. What’s your rate and availability?
You: I’m available for an interview anytime that works for you and can start the work in 2-3 weeks Notice, my rate is $35-40-45 (or 45-50) per hour if it’s a contract or 80-90K (or 90-100k) per year if it’s full-time.
Recruiter: W2 / corp to corp / 1099?
You: W2/1099, please send me the rate confirmation.
Recruiter: ok, I will send you the job description with rate confirmation (and rights to represent aka RTR), please, confirm the rate with your updated resume attached.
You: OK.
(reply mail with: “Confirmed”, and don’t apply twice [check job id] for the same position with another recruiter)
- I don’t give my personal details like date of birth or ID before the interview
- Regarding SSN tell them that you give SSN last digits only after you pass the onsite interview and receive an offer.
Why do you want to leave your current job and work with us?
Because of the crisis our company is laying off a lot of people and closing the office (I want to find a stable long term opportunity)
Don’t say any negative stuff.
Don’t say that you want more money.
If you need to complete 80 test cases in 5 days, but after the first day you completed 8 test cases, what will you do?
I will work according to the priorities, highest priority tickets first (Highest>High>Medium>low), also I will raise a concern to QA Manager that we might need more time or effort/resources to finish this testing on time if I see that the test cases are complicated and time-consuming.
What do you do if a developer reassigns a bug/ticket back to you and marks it as
“Can’t reproduce?”
I will try to reproduce on the reported device, will make sure that I’m following the right steps, using the right Environment, Device, Platform, Build.
I will try to reproduce on 1 or more other devices to make sure that it’s not device-related.
If not reproducible - I will close the ticket and leave a comment.
If reproducible - I will reopen the ticket and assign it back to the developer with my comment.
For your understanding:
*Don’t mention during the interview: You can let the developer know (using Slack) about it (depends on what is acceptable in your company) and offer to show on your devices. Message Example: “Bug-number, Reproducible on Device/s, Platform, Build” (if he would like he will come to see it on your device) but during the interview don’t mention it because you don’t want to show that you distract developers.
What would you do if a developer reassigns a ticket/bug back to you and marks it as “as-designed” / “not a bug”? (learn it!)
I will double-check the requirements if according to the requirements it’s expected behavior - I will close the bug and leave a comment,
BUT if it’s not expected according to requirements - I will reopen the bug, assign it back to the developer and leave a comment,
if the requirements are not clear or maybe missing, I will ask the product manager for clarifications.
And will close or reopen the ticket based on his answer.
Extra if they ask:
What kind of requirements did you work with?
PRD, Design
Where are the requirements located?
on Google Drive (shared with our team)
If they ask in which format was the document?
- It was a PDF with the PRD. (how all should work)
- And PDF with Design. (How all should look)
How many pages your PRD had? 25!
What kind of comments do you leave once it’s as expected?
“as designed” or “not a bug’
If it’s against the requirement the comment would be for example
“This is a valid bug according to the requirements page 27 line 7”
Reopen means: change the status to Open and assign back to the developer
*in real life if you are told that it’s not a bug you close the ticket and leave it alone;-) (don’t mention it during the interview, it’s for your understanding)
It is pretty often after SQA engineer enters a bug, the bug comes back as “not a bug”
List of reasons:
- As designed, cannot map to the requirement or test case
- Will not fix, the bug is a too low priority (P) and will not be addressed in the near future
- This is a story, not a bug (enhancement request)
- Soon this area is going to be redesigned and completely changed and developers don’t want to waste time on it
How did you write bug tickets? (learn it!)
you must answer very confidently and without going into details
I’m going to Jira. Creating a new ticket.
Choosing the correct project, choosing issue type which is a bug report.
Writing the Title
Description with steps to reproduce, actual and expected behavior,
Environment
Priority,
Attachments of the screenshots, videos and log files
Assignee
—————————————————————————————————————–
*Title - should be short and informative, should show what and where is the problem
*Extra in case you are asked for more: Link, Label
Linking (Link) relevant ticket if there is such (“related to” for example or “duplicate of”)
Label (any name of project/device/team/etc)
Examples when you add attachments:
Screenshot (if UI), (for example: if something is overlapped, misaligned or truncated)
videos (if it will help to better understand the bug)
log files (if for example crash of the app or any functional issue)
What are Bug Report components?
Project: Name
Issue Type: Bug
Title (informative and not long, what & where happens)
Description (Steps, Actual, Expected)
Priority (Highest, High, Medium, Low, Lowest)
Environment (Which device and platform, mac/win chrome/ff/ie, Android, iOS, Browser version)
Attachment (Screenshot, Video recording, Log file)
Assignee
Tell me about your current PROJECT: (examples) (MUST do the internship!)
no need to say the name of the app if they don’t ask
Project 1: (Sidekick)
Our team is developing a desktop and mobile application, it’s a browser that is designed for productivity and team working collaboration. Basically it’s a Chromium based browser with an extension that has a lot of management tools and makes the working process faster.
As a part of the QA team I test different platforms like windows and mac, sometimes I am required to perform testing on Linux. I use such tools as Chrome DevTools and UNIX commands, create and execute test cases in TestRail and file bugs in Jira following up until resolved.
I am always advocating the customers to make sure they get the best user experience.
Project 2: (e-gree)
The product I’m working on right now is a e-signature software. Basically it’s similar to DocuSign. Users can send custom documents to be electronically signed.
This product supports multiple platforms. One platform is web, a website where users can store agreements and share them with other users.
The second platform (our product developed for) is mobile. The application supports two operating systems, iOS and Android. The mobile version has very similar functionality to the web one where users can create, customize and send documents to be signed using their mobile devices.
Project 3: (Anybe)
I am working on a web application called Anybe which is a platform that makes it possible to try any job for a little while. Employers can post job offers which users can accept in order to get new work experience and do something completely different. This platform included two parts: testing it from the user’s side and as an employer.
Project 4: (Etabot)
Etabot is a plugin to JIRA Software. The purpose of this plugin is to predict how people work to help them perform more efficiently by collecting data from a task management system. The product makes planning more efficient, helps with collaboration, and deadline tracking.
Project 5: (NCahoots)
NCahoots is a gifting service platform which helps users create surprises and personalised presents. We have this product available for multiple platforms like WEB and MOBILE.
Based on the user’s input, system gives suggestions for gifting ideas and provides an option to purchase and deliver gifts to family or friends. Our most popular platform at the moment is MOBILE where we test both iOS and Android. We also have a website with very similar functionality.
Project 6: (bookkeeping app Veryfi)
“I am currently working on a software which automates all steps of accounting and bookkeeping for business owners. Our app saves a lot of time and money for our customers. It has both web and mobile applications. This software can scan and record receipts, assign expenses to projects, and even issue expense reimbursement to team members.
I use different tools like Xcode and Android Studio to install and uninstall apps, creating log files.
I’m creating and executing test cases using TestRail, filing bug reports in Jira.
familiar with SQL, ADB and Unix commands.
I’m always advocating for our customers to make sure they get the best user experience.
For other projects, get familiar with the site and app and just tell a similar story about them.
What responsibilities do you have there?
Example 1:
Our team specialized in Development and QA solutions.
As a part of a QA team, I was testing iOS, Android, Windows, and Mac performed mainly Functional and GUI testing on mobile and web app covering basic functional testing, smoke, and regression. Used Xcode and Android Studio.
I also did basic SQL inquiries, and API testing using Postman.
Example 2:
We are using TestRail to write and execute test cases and of course Jira both for filing bugs and testing our platform on. I am responsible for testing out platforms on both mobile and web apps of Jira and I am covering different browsers. I always aim to provide our customers with great user experience and a high quality product.
Example 3:
As a part of the QA team I am performing black-box testing on different platforms like windows and mac and I am working with TestRail and Jira within this project. I use Chrome DevTools and API tools in order to perform the testing. I do my best to make sure our customers get good user experience and we meet all the requirements.
Example 4:
I create test cases and complete test runs in TestRail and write bug tickets on failed results in Jira.
I use different testing tools such as TestFlight, Xcode, ADB to install and uninstall applications and get log files. Familiar with Chrome DevTools and UNIX.
I make sure our customers get a quality product which meets their needs.
What is black-box testing?
Black-box testing is a method of software testing that examines the functionality of an application without peering into its internal structures or workings. (testing without the access to the code)
How did you set a priority?
The priority of the bug is determined by the impact on business and overall user experience. Guidelines around priority set by Product, Business, and Engineering departments.
Highest, High, Medium, Low, Lowest
P0 P1 P2 P3 P4
Priority: P0 Highest Resolve immediately P1 High Resolve right after Highest P2 Medium Resolve right after High P3 Low Minor issue
EXAMPLE:
- Blocker: stops user/customer from using the main functionality
- Critical: Core functionality is broken, but there is a way around
- Severe: Functionality is broken but not affecting core user experience
- Major-Minor: UI issues that are not affecting core functionality, but visually off
What is a Test Case
According to the business requirements.
For every requirement, we need to create test cases.
Requirements could be broken down into flows and each flow then gets broken down into individual pieces with detailed steps to perform the test.
—————————————————————————————————————–
*I was using TestRail (or Google Doc) for writing test cases.
*Jira plugin: Jira Test Management With TestRail
Example:
Requirement: “Buy now” button on the main page should be green
Test case: Verify that the “Buy now” on the main page button is green
Test Case components (test suites/test runs as well):
please learn it
- Test case ID
- Title / Purpose
Test description; Intent; Objective; etc - Pre-conditions
- Instructions (Steps)
How to get an application from base state to an expected result; - Expected result*
Expected application behavior based on requirements - Actual result (only after execution)
Actual application behavior - Pass/Fail (status)
Verification of actual result (application behavior) against expected result (specified in the test case)
What would you do if you don’t know what to do and you’re stuck?
If the answer is not in the documentation (try to investigate for 15-20 min), I will try to search for the answer using google, youtube, confluence page (Knowledge share page). If I’m still stuck then I’ll ask another QA person or a lead for guidance.
If there’s still no answer, then I will ask the QA manager or the developer for help in order to be productive and not wasting time.
Tell me about your day at work
09:00 arrive for work and open your email and Slack to see if there was something urgent
09:15 “Stand-up meeting” (or: “project team meeting”/”scrum meeting” 15 min)
(you will discuss what you are working on today and hear the others)
09:30 going through email and assigned to me test-suites/test-runs
(also sometimes known as “test plans”)
12:00 lunch (+a walk)
12:45 keep doing the test-runs OR work on assigned to you tickets OR write test cases* (if you are done with test suites and tickets)
13:30 raise (created) bugs/defects
14:00 “update and add test cases if necessary”
15:00 going through assigned to me tickets to verify (fixed or not)
17:30 complete daily status report (usually once a week, Friday)
18:00 Go home ;-)
What is a bug life cycle in your company? (learn it!)
OPEN > In Development (In Dev) > In QA > Closed/Done or Reopened
After we open a bug the status is “Open”, then it moves to a developer to fix the bug and the status changes to “In Development”. After the bug is fixed it assigned to QA Engineer, and the status changes to “in QA”, QA Engineer will start testing and will try to reproduce the issue, if not reproducible we close the ticket and status changes to “closed”, if issue is reproducible we reopen the ticket and assign back to developer and leave a comment - status changes to “in Development”, after that it goes back to “in QA” and closed or reopened based on the results.
In case that the bug is still reproducible I will reopen the bug and assign back to the developer with my comment about where it’s reproducible, which device, platform, build.
If it’s not reproducible: “Not reproducible on device, platform, build”
Version 2:
https://www.guru99.com/defect-life-cycle.html
How can a tester be sure that a bug has been fixed?
Try to reproduce it on the new build/version, and verify that it’s no longer reproducible across the supported platforms and devices.
What is a Regression test?
Regression Testing is defined as a type of software testing to confirm that a recent program or code change has not adversely affected existing features
Regression Testing is nothing but a full or partial selection of already executed test cases which are re-executed to ensure existing functionalities work fine.
Describe one big bug that you found in your project? What is your biggest bug?
What is the most interesting bug you have encountered?
I had this time when After a user logged out, you could click back button and it would take back to the logged-in page with private information
I had this time when We had a page with infinite scrolling due to hundreds of items that were loading on the list, this was blocking the user from accessing the “contact us” page and our phone number and email which was located in the footer of the page.
Once I noticed that after signing out of my account, I was still able to see private information which wasn’t supposed to be there in the notifications (a good example for a mobile app)
for example: messages, emails e.t.c
What do you prefer: white or black box testing?
I mostly was focused on black box (Functional, GUI testing) and grey-box (SQL, API, Chrome DevTools) testing. Black bax and Grey box is what i do.
Would love to learn white box testing.
I’m actually starting automation classes with python soon.
(example of your interaction with white box: using grep (Linux) to find crashes, errors, and exceptions inside the log file)
Differences between Mobile and Web testing:
Read this! https://www.nexsoftsys.com/articles/difference-between-mobile-web-software-testing.html
https://www.getzephyr.com/insights/what-difference-between-mobile-and-web-app-testing
“briefly explain ur mobile testing process” ?
We always start from the requirements, to make sure what we are testing and where, which supported device, platform (android/ios?) and build, what are the preconditions, which settings should be turned on or off, is it vertical mode or horizontal mode, we want to test according to the test cases that were created for the requirements, we also want to test interruption of calls and messages during the usage of the app, we want to test install, upgrade and uninstall of the app.
Mobile/Web:
In Mobile, we check Installation, Interruption (calls, messages, notifications, battery charge),
Different Memory size, battery power consumption, portrait/landscape (vertical/horizontal), input method(different keyboard), swiping, navigation, screen size, in the mobile network: 2G, 3G, 4G
Mobile Apps can work without an internet connection;
Device fragmentation(for example: In one company there are many devices and systems, versions)
Web Applications are more vulnerable to the hacks compared to the Mobile Application
Learn the basics.
How would you test a toaster? (or:a vending machine, elevator, pen, a cup, etc.)
*The only answer that you need to talk and bring up as much as possible test cases
First, I will ask for requirements because we always create test cases based on the requirements. If we don’t get any requirements and we are told to test it without requirements (for the interview), I will start from functional positive test cases, will verify that it turns on/off, that we are able to put inside the required amount of slices, that it stops warming it once the expected amount of time is over. Will continue with functional negative testing - what will happen once we do things we shouldn’t do with the toaster, like using it upside down, or in a horizontal way instead of vertical, will continue with UI testing, making sure that it is made from the right materials and it has the required design, warnings, brand name, etc. (Verify that… Verify that…)
You need to show that you don’t just passively sit but you need to show that you always can create new test cases in order to test the product/feature/app from all possible Angles and ways, starting from functional positive, functional negative, UI, Stress, performance, etc.
Toaster test cases: https://onecore.net/sample-test-cases-for-toaster.htm
Example: (Test cases for) How would you test:
Vending machine, pen, elevator, remote control, iPhone
How will you write test cases for LOGIN & PASSWORD functionality, positive and negative testing?
https://www.softwaretestinghelp.com/login-page-test-cases/
(learn 5 positive and 5 negative test cases)
https://www.guru99.com/test-case.html
Guidelines for Testing E-commerce Websites
https://www.testingexcellence.com/testing-e-commerce-websites/
What is the difference between positive and negative testing?
Positive testing aimed at showing software works as intended when the user does correct actions.
Negative testing aimed at showing that software handles properly situations in which the user acts not as the user is supposed to act (invalid inputs, unreasonable selections of settings, etc.)
What you don’t like about QA?
That we are in the bad news reporting business :) but someone needs to do that job - and it’s gonna be me
What do you like about QA?
I always had passion for tech and i like working with smart people, I like to break things, and I like to improve the user’s experience
Where do you see yourself in 3-5 years as a QA engineer?
I see myself as a professional QA Engineer, with deep knowledge of the product and the technology, using new tools and automation
(started learning classes now on udemy.com)
Why did you choose the QA career?
Because I love finding issues and contributing to creating a quality product, also i love to work in IT because new technology has always been my passion and I love to work with smart people.
Why do you want to work for our company?
try to prepare for that based on the company you applied for
Describe a bug
A mismatch between actual and expected behavior
How big is your team?
(12) 3 Android dev (Developers) 2 iOS dev 2 QA (manual) 1 QA Manager 1 Product Manager (PM) 1 UX Designer 1 Front end developer 1 Back end developer
Or
(16) 3 Front end 5 Backend 2 QA Automation 3 QA (Manual) 1 QA Manager 2 Designers
Questions you can ask at the end of the interview:
How big is your QA team?
Which tools you are working with? (they might ask same from you)
No more questions :)
After the interview NEVER ask what are the next steps, just shake hands and say it was a pleasure meeting you.
NEVER ask about them money during interview with hiring manager
How many bugs do you report in one bug report? Why?
One, to ensure each bug is fixed and closed, each kind of issue should have its own bug report, if we have multiple issues of the same kind we can write one bug report which is going to list all of the issues associated with this (same) problem on the page/pages with the links to each of them.
How many bugs did you write on average per day?
It depends, on a regular day it was 5-7 but if we had new features or pages it could also be 10-12.
How many test cases did you execute on average per day?
It depends, 25-30 on average if I didn’t have other tasks to work on.
How many test cases did you write on average per day?
Depends on the day and the tasks, between 0-30.
What do you need to do when you find a bug?
Reproduce the steps across different supported platforms and devices in order to isolate the issue and make sure that it’s not only device-related issue,
if it’s reproducible we want to create a bug report
How do you perform GUI (UI) testing?
According to requirements or Design document or based on GUI standards, to make sure all looks and feels good, nothing is overlapped, misaligned, truncated.
Everything must be aligned, have correct grammar and format (color, size, font).
What kind of issues do you encounter in browser compatibility testing?
UI issues on Internet Explorer (IE), some buttons/elements/images are overlapped, misaligned, and truncated on different browsers.
CSS is often broken in IE older versions.
Which browsers do you like and why?
Chrome, fast, and I love to use chrome developer tools in testing.
When is the best time to do Cross Browser Testing?
Any testing reaps the best benefits when it is done early on. Therefore, the industry recommendation is to start with it as soon as the page designs are available.
Supported browsers of course.
