Computer industry analysts are forecasting a need for over a quarter million Software Quality Assurance (SQA) engineers and testers in the next five years. Northland Pioneer College, a comprehensive community college serving Northeastern Arizona, is training professionals online for SQA careers with median annual salaries of $65,693.
“NPC’s SQA program is best suited for professionals in Software Engineering and/or Development who want to improve their skill set and expertise in all aspects of the software development lifecycle,” explains Computer Information Systems professor Eric Bishop, who serves as the program’s instructor. “This curriculum is unique and provides a great opportunity for individuals and organizations to introduce high quality, tested methods for ensuring quality software development.” NPC has offered the SQA courses since August 2008. The program is not limited to those already working in software engineering or development.
Bishop developed the courses as part of the Arizona Information Technology Skills Training Initiative (AITSTI), a partnership between the U.S. Department of Labor, IBM Enterprise Technical Learning, Arizona Department of Commerce, NPC and Mesa Community College. AITSTI was funded by a grant awarded under the President's High Growth Job Training Initiative.
An Arizona native, Bishop is a community college graduate, with an Associate of Applied Science degree in CISCO Networking Technology from Gateway Community College, a bachelor’s in Technical Management from DeVry University, and a master’s degree from Boston University in Computer Information Systems (Information Security Focus). He has also operated his own web hosting and development company.
NPC’s SQA program consists of three online courses delivered asynchronously using course content provided by IBM and supplemental materials created by Bishop. The curriculum provides the student with an in-depth understanding of what actually happens during a programming project besides “writing code.” To succeed in the program, Bishop suggests students have a working knowledge of any object-oriented programming language. He recommends NPC’s “Java Programming” (CIS 217) course for adequate preparation.
The SQA sequence begins with “Software Quality” (CIS 251), a foundational course into the issues surrounding software quality, testing best practices and required tooling. “Engineering Quality in Software Development” (CIS 252) provides hands-on practice in techniques to improve software quality from requirements discovery to effective design and implementation, as well as unit test and code inspection. The final course, “Software Testing” (CIS 253) provides an overview of the software lifecycle from a testing perspective, the role of testing in software development, testing concepts, and terminology plus hands-on practice in analyzing requirements as inputs to test cases, designing, documenting, implementing, and executing tests, and analyzing test results.
Most students take 15 weeks to complete each three-credit course, noted Bishop. The courses are “open entry/open exit,” so students can enroll at any time during the semester and complete studies at their own pace. Students completing all three courses can obtain a Certificate of Proficiency in Software Quality Assurance from NPC and take the industry certification exam as an IBM Certified Specialist in Software Quality.
In-state tuition is $52 per credit or $156 for 3 to 7.5 credits, plus a $10 fee per course and a $35 media fee per semester for students enrolled in 3 or more credits. There are no textbook charges, since all materials are online.
Arizona residents can easily qualify for a full tuition and fees scholarship for these courses. Scholarship applicants do not need to show a financial need to qualify. Bishop has the scholarship application and other program information available on the NPCSQA Website, www.npcsqa.com. You can also contact Bishop at his Show Low – White Mountain Campus office, (800) 266-7845, ext. 6154 or 532-6154, or by e-mail.
You can register for the SQA courses online, or at any NPC location or by calling (800) 266-7845, ext. 7660 Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. or Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. (Mountain Standard Time year-round)
Northland Pioneer College serves the residents of Navajo and Apache counties through four regional campuses and six centers with a variety of educational options for academic, career and technical and personal enrichment. NPC supports each student’s educational goals through affordable tuition, small class sizes and caring, professional instructors. For more information about NPC programs and services, call (800) 266-7845.