Author: Brit'ny Pinkney

What we accomplished: The curriculum that we made for the QA engineers is already being put to great use. The Systems Analyst Chapter at Fidelity is developing a curriculum to promote cross training and quality assurance is one of the areas they want to focus on. Since we have already developed developed a QA curriculum, they are able to use it as a resource. That is very exciting!

What I will always remember: No matter what we had on the agenda, the meeting always began with John, Saraj  or Simmie asking about how everyone and their family was doing. We were able to learn a lot about each other in those moments and it made us closer, even if we were just talking to each other on screen.

Being a Quality Assurance Engineer at Fidelity Investments

One thing that I have learned during my internship so far is that the QA associate’s work is crucial to the overall performance and operation of the company. This associate works with a product from start to finish; overseeing the production and testing to make sure the company is adhering to standards and regulations. Without their expertise, the company may have difficulty being prepared for audits and satisfying product performance requirements established by their  clients.

Skills needed to be a QA Engineer at Fidelity Investments

Teamwork Being able to work with other people is important to the role of a QA Engineer. This is not a job that is done in isolation. This associate will communicate with a variety of people during the entire development phase and it is important that they

Flexibility Plans change constantly. This associate should embrace being flexible. Sometimes the client’s wants may change or software may need to be modified. Regardless, it is important for this associate to be willing to make changes when necessary.

Detail Oriented This associate must first be able to conceptualize the bigger picture to understand how all components cohesively work together. Having this ability will allow the QA engineer to scrutinize the details to ensure all stakeholder’s expectations are met.

Project Update

We have currently finished the draft of the QA 101 Curriculum. Some of the topics include change management, audit compliance, cloud computing and browser testing. We assembled a list of all the topics and then determined what subtopics to include to ensure the QA associate is learning all of the necessary material. These topics and subtopics were then sequenced along with a compilation of the learning materials for each lesson.

Agile, squads, scrum master, story points, Jira. Are any of these words ringing a bell for you? If so, lucky you! You are probably skilled with completing projects for company and working with a team of people on a consistent basis. However, I felt like I was flying on a magic carpet singing “A Whole New World” as all of the topics and concepts were being introduced to me. What is absolutely amazing is how a task is completed. The process that the company implements to get work done just seems so efficient and I have never experienced anything like it.
What is great about this experience is having mentors who are willing to spend time talking to me and explaining everything so that I can understand. During my three weeks, they met with me each day and answered all of the questions that I had. They were very patient and used many analogies and examples to help me understand some of the more nuanced terms in their company. This week I have began learning about automated and manual testing.
What am I doing you ask? Well, I am working with Fidelity to build a curriculum for their Quality Assurance Engineers. Although the summer is over, my work has really just begun. I will continue to meet with my mentors on a regular basis in order to build this curriculum. After this is completed, we will be moving forward to building a curriculum for their full stack and T-shaped engineers. Stay tuned!

I will be honest and say that I was not thrilled about attending the Virtual Summer Institute. I am not a pessimistic person, but the thought of sitting in front of my computer for a week doing virtual sessions made me cringe a little on the inside. However, this has been the best virtual experience that I have had. It was engaging and fun (I also learned some new ways to make my potentially virtual classroom experience more engaging for my students this coming school year). There were many activities that we participated in that allowed us to get up, move, laugh and learn a lot about our fellow fellows. I have already made plans to do the virtual scavenger hunt with my students when we begin school in the fall.

I also really enjoyed the conversations that took place. We had several sessions on cultural relevance and issues regarding equity. These conversations are very much needed and to hear educators who are passionate about addressing these issues is uplifting. My cohort is full of some pretty amazing and talented individuals and I am looking forward to being able to continue to work with them.