Career Levels & Responsibilities
|
Level |
Experience |
Responsibilities |
Leadership Role |
Technical Depth |
Key Focus |
|
Junior Engineer (SDET I / QA I) |
0-2 years |
Executes test cases, writes basic
automation scripts, learns tools & frameworks |
None |
Low |
Basic manual & automation
testing, bug reporting |
|
Mid-Level Engineer (SDET II / QA
II) |
2-5 years |
Develops test automation,
contributes to CI/CD, analyzes test failures |
Limited (mentors juniors) |
Medium |
Test automation, API testing, CI/CD |
|
Senior Engineer (Senior SDET / QA
III) |
5-8 years |
Designs test strategies, improves
test coverage, optimizes frameworks |
Medium (mentors team members) |
High |
Test architecture, performance
testing, AI-driven testing |
|
Lead Engineer (Lead SDET / QA Lead) |
8-12 years |
Leads QA team, defines test
strategies, works with developers & product teams |
High (manages teams) |
High |
Test planning, risk assessment,
automation frameworks |
|
Staff Engineer (Staff SDET / QA
Architect) |
12-15 years |
Defines test architecture, works
across multiple teams, ensures scalability |
Very High (advises org-wide
testing) |
Very High |
Enterprise-wide testing strategies,
CI/CD, performance testing |
|
Principal Engineer (Principal SDET
/ Distinguished QA Engineer) |
15+ years |
Drives innovation, develops
company-wide frameworks, sets QA vision |
Very High (shapes company strategy) |
Expert-Level |
Defines QA standards, AI/ML in
testing, large-scale automation |
|
Expert Engineer (Distinguished
Engineer / Fellow) |
18+ years |
Industry-recognized leader,
patents, research publications, new testing paradigms |
Very High (mentors staff/principal
engineers) |
Expert-Level |
Researching emerging technologies,
AI/ML-driven testing, industry talks |
|
Consultant (QA Consultant /
External Advisor) |
10+ years (varies) |
Works externally or internally
advising companies on best testing practices |
Varies (client/project-based
leadership) |
High-Expert |
Large-scale QA transformation,
compliance audits, advising teams |
Skills Comparison
|
Skills |
Junior |
Mid |
Senior |
Lead |
Staff |
Principal |
Expert |
Consultant |
|
Test Automation |
Medium |
High |
Very High |
High |
High |
Medium |
Low |
Medium |
|
Programming (Python, Java, C#) |
Medium |
High |
Very High |
High |
High |
Medium |
Low |
Low |
|
CI/CD, DevOps, Cloud |
Low |
Medium |
High |
High |
Very High |
Expert |
Expert |
Medium |
|
System Design & Architecture |
Low |
Medium |
Medium |
High |
Very High |
Expert |
Expert |
Expert |
|
AI & ML in Testing |
Low |
Low |
Medium |
High |
High |
Very High |
Expert |
High |
|
Mentoring & Leadership |
None |
Limited |
Medium |
High |
Very High |
Expert |
Expert |
High |
|
Strategy & Decision Making |
Low |
Medium |
Medium |
High |
Very High |
Expert |
Expert |
Expert |
