How to hire an associate tester

How to hire an associate tester, step by step

Here's a step-by-step associate tester hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write an associate tester job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new associate tester
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does an associate tester do?

Post an associate tester job for free, promote it for a fee

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you post your associate tester job, you should take the time to determine what type of worker your business needs. While certain jobs definitely require a full-time employee, it's sometimes better to find an associate tester for hire on a part-time basis or as a contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   An associate tester's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, associate testers from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of associate tester salaries for various roles:

   Type of Associate Tester	Description	Hourly rate
   Associate Tester		$25-49
   Quality Analyst	Pumpers are individuals who take responsibility for setting the pumping system controls for product maximization. Their job requires them to set density, concentration, rate, and pressure... Show more	$26-44
   Test Analyst	The duties of a test analyst depend on one's line of work or industry of employment. In the information technology setting, a test analyst is responsible for testing computer software or hardware to ensure its quality before being released in the market... Show more	$26-42

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Test Results
   • Test Data
   • Java
   • Test Procedures
   • Jira
   • QA
   • Bug Reports
   • Regression
   • PC
   • Functional Specifications
   • User Acceptance
   • RF
   • Web Application
   • Technical Support

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Train and lead a team of 3+ testers in support of compatibility testing.
   • Manage departmental inventory and troubleshoot testing, reporting and inventory issues.
   • Train new hires on testing PC titles for compatibility issues.
   • Analyze defects for AAA gaming software for Xbox and PC.
   • Test on the following platforms: Wii, DS, PS2, PSP, and PS3.
   • Proofread HTML and test merchant sites for reliability.

   More associate tester duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your associate tester job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. An associate tester salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, associate testers' average salary in alaska is 51% less than in new york.
   • Seniority. Entry-level associate testers earn 47% less than senior-level associate testers.
   • Certifications. An associate tester with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in an associate tester's salary.

   Average associate tester salary

   $74,863yearly

   $35.99 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level associate tester salary

   $54,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 20, 2025

   Average associate tester salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$92,695	$45
   2	New York	$92,499	$44
   3	Virginia	$88,163	$42
   4	Delaware	$87,954	$42
   5	Pennsylvania	$84,267	$41
   6	Ohio	$81,588	$39
   7	New Hampshire	$80,468	$39
   8	Texas	$79,398	$38
   9	Georgia	$78,991	$38
   10	Massachusetts	$77,783	$37
   11	Hawaii	$77,572	$37
   12	Arizona	$75,041	$36
   13	Florida	$74,133	$36
   14	Maryland	$73,696	$35
   15	South Carolina	$71,492	$34
   16	Louisiana	$71,367	$34
   17	Arkansas	$71,229	$34
   18	Nevada	$70,335	$34
   19	Washington	$69,359	$33
   20	North Carolina	$69,214	$33

   Average associate tester salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Morgan Stanley	$109,411	$52.60	8
   2	Halliburton	$102,685	$49.37	8
   3	Mandiant	$99,980	$48.07
   4	Eli Lilly and Company	$99,364	$47.77	26
   5	Coalfire Systems Inc.	$96,320	$46.31
   6	J.P. Morgan	$95,365	$45.85
   7	Sdl Plc	$94,514	$45.44
   8	Maxim Integrated	$94,346	$45.36
   9	Santander Private Banking International	$93,726	$45.06	3
   10	FireEye	$93,328	$44.87
   11	Prolifics	$91,701	$44.09
   12	Majesco	$91,483	$43.98
   13	MUFG EMEA	$91,403	$43.94
   14	Aetna	$90,909	$43.71
   15	The MIL Corporation	$90,719	$43.61	1
   16	Ford Motor	$90,031	$43.28	80
   17	First Republic Bank	$87,975	$42.30
   18	Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (finra)	$87,499	$42.07
   19	Aditi Consulting	$87,472	$42.05	1
   20	Honeywell	$87,343	$41.99	12

4. Writing an associate tester job description

   A good associate tester job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of an associate tester job description:

   Associate tester job description example

   Develops and executes comprehensive testing processes for system enhancements and new products and processes encompassing all aspects of customer service including claims, enrollment, provider contracts, and benefits administration.- Responsible for creating and executing defined unit testing processes to provide quality audits for vendor contracts prior to implementation.- Assists with testing simple system enhancements.- Prepares and executes a comprehensive test plan and test scripts to provide quality audits for vendor contracts to ensure quality and accuracy is maintained.-Verifies that system functions according to user requirements and conforms to established guidelines.- Follows standardized best practices for documenting and executing simple to moderately complex testplans.- Validates test results, documents discrepancies, and follows through with resolutions to ensure all issues are resolved.- Reports progress of problem resolution to management.- Communicates test outcomes to end users for sign-off on the results.- Serves as liaison between the system end users and the IT team.- Performs other duties as required.
   Pay Range
   
   The typical pay range for this role is:
   
   Minimum: 17.00
   
   Maximum: 27.16
   
   Please keep in mind that this range represents the pay range for all positions in the job grade within which this position falls. The actual salary offer will take into account a wide range of factors, including location.
   
   Required Qualifications
   
   coordination of benefits, diagnosis coding, and general customer services sources.- 5+ years related experience in a service center claims processing or managed care operational role.- Minimum of one year recent and related system processing, payment, and benefits experience, preferably QNXT managed care.- Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
   
   COVID Requirements
   
   COVID-19 Vaccination Requirement
   
   CVS Health requires certain colleagues to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 (including any booster shots if required), where allowable under the law, unless they are approved for a reasonable accommodation based on disability, medical condition, religious belief, or other legally recognized reasons that prevents them from being vaccinated.
   
   You are required to have received at least one COVID-19 shot prior to your first day of employment and to provide proof of your vaccination status or apply for a reasonable accommodation within the first 10 days of your employment. Please note that in some states and roles, you may be required to provide proof of full vaccination or an approved reasonable accommodation before you can begin to actively work.
   
   Preferred Qualifications
   
   Please see required qualifications
   
   Education
   
   Please see required qualifications
   
   Business Overview
   
   Bring your heart to CVS HealthEvery one of us at CVS Health shares a single, clear purpose: Bringing our heart to every moment of your health. This purpose guides our commitment to deliver enhanced human-centric health care for a rapidly changing world. Anchored in our brand - with heart at its center - our purpose sends a personal message that how we deliver our services is just as important as what we deliver.Our Heart At Work Behaviors™ support this purpose. We want everyone who works at CVS Health to feel empowered by the role they play in transforming our culture and accelerating our ability to innovate and deliver solutions to make health care more personal, convenient and affordable. We strive to promote and sustain a culture of diversity, inclusion and belonging every day. CVS Health is an affirmative action employer, and is an equal opportunity employer, as are the physician-owned businesses for which CVS Health provides management services. We do not discriminate in recruiting, hiring, promotion, or any other personnel action based on race, ethnicity, color, national origin, sex/gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, religion, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find associate testers for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any associate testers they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level associate testers with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your associate tester job on Zippia to find and attract quality associate tester candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as dice, engineering.com, stack overflow, it job pro.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with associate tester candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   You should also ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match the ideal candidate profile you developed earlier. Candidates good enough for the next step can complete the technical interview.

   While interviews are great, you will only sometimes learn enough from a conversation with an associate tester applicant. In those cases, having candidates complete a test project can go a long way in figuring out who's the most likely to succeed in the role. If you aren't a technical person and don't know how to design an appropriate test, you can ask someone else on the team to create it or take a look at these websites to get a few ideas:

   • TestDome
   • CodeSignal
   • Testlify
   • BarRaiser
   • Coderbyte

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new associate tester

   Once you've selected the best associate tester candidate for the job, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, this letter should include details about the benefits and perks you offer the candidate. Ensuring that your offer is competitive is essential, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and you should be open to discussion. After you reach an agreement, the final step is formalizing the agreement with a contract.

   You should also follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that you've filled the position.

   Once that's done, you can draft an onboarding schedule for the new associate tester. Human Resources should complete Employee Action Forms and ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc. They should also ensure that new employee files are created for internal recordkeeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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How much does it cost to hire an associate tester?