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The differences between quality assurance representatives and senior quality assurance testers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a quality assurance representative and a senior quality assurance tester. Additionally, a senior quality assurance tester has an average salary of $93,770, which is higher than the $43,867 average annual salary of a quality assurance representative.
The top three skills for a quality assurance representative include maintenance procedures, patients and safety procedures. The most important skills for a senior quality assurance tester are test cases, QA, and regression.
| Quality Assurance Representative | Senior Quality Assurance Tester | |
| Yearly salary | $43,867 | $93,770 |
| Hourly rate | $21.09 | $45.08 |
| Growth rate | 3% | - |
| Number of jobs | 69,120 | 81,916 |
| Job satisfaction | 3 | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 4 |
Quality assurance inspectors are responsible for inspecting, testing, and sampling products, materials, or parts for any defects and deviations from company standards. They are tasks to reject any materials, equipment, and products that don't meet specifications. It is their job to discuss inspection results with personnel responsible for the products, and suggest needed corrective actions. To be qualified as a quality assurance inspector, one should have a high school diploma and a college degree, attentive to detail, and have excellent communication skills.
A senior quality assurance tester manages junior quality assurance staff. They test documents, lead testing procedures, and ensure customer satisfaction. They also work with an engineering development team to make updates to software.
Quality assurance representatives and senior quality assurance testers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Quality Assurance Representative | Senior Quality Assurance Tester | |
| Average salary | $43,867 | $93,770 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $79,000 | Between $73,000 And $118,000 |
| Highest paying City | Lompoc, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | Washington | New Hampshire |
| Best paying company | Eli Lilly and Company | Sagarsoft |
| Best paying industry | Government | Technology |
There are a few differences between a quality assurance representative and a senior quality assurance tester in terms of educational background:
| Quality Assurance Representative | Senior Quality Assurance Tester | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 48% | Bachelor's Degree, 65% |
| Most common major | Business | Computer Science |
| Most common college | Stanford University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between quality assurance representatives' and senior quality assurance testers' demographics:
| Quality Assurance Representative | Senior Quality Assurance Tester | |
| Average age | 44 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 60.8% Female, 39.2% | Male, 56.4% Female, 43.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% | Black or African American, 6.2% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 8.8% Asian, 12.0% White, 67.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.5% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 11% |