Post job

What is a senior quality assurance analyst/lead and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025
4 min read
Quoted expert
Alicia Plemmons
introduction image

As a senior quality assurance analyst/lead, you will be responsible for supervising the quality assurance team. You will be responsible for setting up quality standards, coming up with efficient testing metrics and strategies, and ensuring standards are upheld. You can find work in a variety of industries such as the food production industry, telecommunications, IT, and manufacturing.

The role of a senior quality assurance analyst is such an important one as you are expected to organize a lot of quality assurance testing procedures before the release of a product or service into the market. As a senior officer, remember that you must guide the team and ensure that you've created a safe and conducive working environment.

An average senior quality assurance lead earns $46.52 every hour, which amounts to $96,000 annually. High on the list of employable skills for this position are test scripts, QA, Project Management, Business Process, Selenium, Jira, and User interface. The most commonly required educational qualification is a bachelor's degree.

What general advice would you give to a senior quality assurance analyst/lead?

Alicia PlemmonsAlicia Plemmons LinkedIn profile

Assistant Professor of Economics, Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

Develop mentor relationships. Graduating and moving on to bright and beautiful careers is just the beginning of a lifetime of learning. For the past four years, we have helped you build a strong foundation, but now you must make the metaphorical house. Meet people in positions that you aspire to be in. Invite them to coffee and ask them questions. Have multiple mentors teach you about career ladders, while another may inform you about networking or stress management. Know when it is time to talk and when it is time to listen. You will never know when these mentor relationships may lead to a new job, a unique skill set, or a new friendship. Then, when you eventually make it, when you reach your goals, give back and mentor others.
ScoreSenior Quality Assurance Analyst/LeadUS Average
Salary
7.8

Avg. Salary $108,280

Avg. Salary $59,228

Diversity
4.1
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.51%

Asian 11.99%

Black or African American 6.24%

Hispanic or Latino 8.82%

Unknown 4.70%

White 67.73%

Gender

female 34.09%

male 65.91%

Age - 43
Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 43
Stress level
5.1

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level
6.1

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance
6.0

Work life balance is fair

6.4 - fair

Senior quality assurance analyst/lead career paths

Key steps to become a senior quality assurance analyst/lead

  1. Explore senior quality assurance analyst/lead education requirements

    Most common senior quality assurance analyst/lead degrees

    Bachelor's

    65.8 %

    Master's

    22.7 %

    Associate

    7.2 %
  2. Start to develop specific senior quality assurance analyst/lead skills

    SkillsPercentages
    QA8.01%
    Test Cases6.82%
    Status Reports4.62%
    Regression4.32%
    Java4.28%
  3. Complete relevant senior quality assurance analyst/lead training and internships

    Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New senior quality assurance analyst/leads learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a senior quality assurance analyst/lead based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real senior quality assurance analyst/lead resumes.
  4. Research senior quality assurance analyst/lead duties and responsibilities

    • Develop the scenarios in the cucumber scripts and manage the execution through jerkins jobs.
    • Create automation scripts in Java and involve in creation of automation framework using selenium (open source tool).
    • Automate test cases for Java web-base applications
    • Experience in creating UNIX scripts for file transfer and file manipulation.
  5. Get senior quality assurance analyst/lead experience

    Generally, it takes 2-4 years to become a senior quality assurance analyst/lead. The most common roles before becoming a senior quality assurance analyst/lead include quality assurance lead, quality assurance analyst team lead and senior quality assurance analyst.
  6. Prepare your senior quality assurance analyst/lead resume

    When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your senior quality assurance analyst/lead resume.

    You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a senior quality assurance analyst/lead resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

    Choose from 10+ customizable senior quality assurance analyst/lead resume templates

    Build a professional senior quality assurance analyst/lead resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your senior quality assurance analyst/lead resume.
    Senior Quality Assurance Analyst/Lead Resume
    Senior Quality Assurance Analyst/Lead Resume
    Senior Quality Assurance Analyst/Lead Resume
    Senior Quality Assurance Analyst/Lead Resume
    Senior Quality Assurance Analyst/Lead Resume
    Senior Quality Assurance Analyst/Lead Resume
    Senior Quality Assurance Analyst/Lead Resume
    Senior Quality Assurance Analyst/Lead Resume
    Senior Quality Assurance Analyst/Lead Resume
  7. Apply for senior quality assurance analyst/lead jobs

    Now it's time to start searching for a senior quality assurance analyst/lead job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

    1. Browse job boards for relevant postings
    2. Consult your professional network
    3. Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
    4. Watch out for job scams

How did you land your first senior quality assurance analyst/lead job

Zippi

Are you a senior quality assurance analyst/lead?

Share your story for a free salary report.

Average senior quality assurance analyst/lead salary

The average senior quality assurance analyst/lead salary in the United States is $108,280 per year or $52 per hour. Senior quality assurance analyst/lead salaries range between $83,000 and $140,000 per year.

Average senior quality assurance analyst/lead salary
$108,280 Yearly
$52.06 hourly

What am I worth?

salary-calculator

How do senior quality assurance analyst/leads rate their job?

-/5

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 star

Senior quality assurance analyst/lead reviews

profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Feb 2022
Pros

-interacting with end users or customers - delivering successful products or services


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Dec 2019
Pros

Relationships with good people who are fully invested in solving problems.

Cons

Difficult people.


profile
A zippia user wrote a review on Jul 2019
Pros

New field to work with compassion.

Cons

Low pay structure as compared to the efforts put in.


Working as a senior quality assurance analyst/lead? Share your experience anonymously.
Overall rating*
Career growth
Work/Life balance
Pay/Salary

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Browse computer and mathematical jobs