Quality Assurance Technician
Impact: Direct
Quality Assurance Technicians are responsible for inspecting and testing products to ensure they meet quality standards. They identify defects, record data, and recommend improvements to manufacturing processes.
What the day looks like
- People interaction
- Moderate
- Team vs solo
- Mix of team collaboration and independent testing.
- Client facing
- Rarely
- Impact visibility
- High
- Travel
- Minimal, occasional travel to different production sites.
- Schedule flexibility
- Structured
- Remote work
- On-site Only
- Typical work hours
- 40 hours/week
- Stress level
- Moderate
At a glance
- Median salary
- $55,000
- Entry-level
- $40,000
- Senior
- $70,000
- Growth by 2033
- 5%
- Demand
- Stable
- Freelance potential
- Low
- Salary growth potential
- Moderate
- Typical student debt
- $15,000 - $30,000
Skills you'll use
Hard skills
- Quality Control Analysis
- Testing Procedures
- Data Analysis
Soft skills
- Attention to Detail
- Problem-Solving
- Communication
Technical complexity: Very High
How to get there
- Minimum education
- Associate's degree or vocational training
- Licensing
- No
- Years to mid-career
- 5
- Years to senior
- 10
- Career switching
- Moderate
Where this career leads
How people arrive here
Where you can go from here
Typical progression
- Can advance to Quality Control Inspector, Quality Engineer, or Quality Manager.
Future outlook
- Automation probability
- Medium
- AI disruption risk
- Moderate
- Demand trend
- Stable
How people feel about it
- Overall satisfaction
- 4/10
- Meaning
- 3.5/10
- Work-life balance
- 4/10
- Prestige
- 5.5/10
- Social perception
- High