How to Answer: Making a comparison, how would you differentiate between Quality Assurance and Quality Control?
Advice and answer examples written specifically for a Software Developer job interview.
9. Making a comparison, how would you differentiate between Quality Assurance and Quality Control?
How to Answer
Anyone in the quality field, be it Software (IT), Engineering, Production, etc., should be able to differentiate between the two. Depending on what specific role you have with a quality task, it will be wide-ranging. To help you understand the difference between the two, let me give you a better idea of what they actually are and what they do. In short, Quality Assurance checks if proper processes are being followed, while Quality Control deals with maintaining the quality of a software product. If the hiring manager you are meeting with has any responsibility for QA or QC in their department, they will likely ask you to differentiate the two. Things that they might want to hear are things like.....
Quality Assurance - Assures that the approach and/or method used to produce a part are designed and implemented correctly.
Quality Control - A process used to test, verify and identify a defect. It also ensures that the approaches, techniques, and methods are designed and followed correctly.
Written by Tom Dushaj on August 31st, 2021
1st Answer Example
"For me, quality control and quality assurance work hand in hand in a software development environment. Every software development project that I work on requires a detailed specification document that includes QA and QC as part of the (SDLC) Software Development Life Cycle.
With Quality Assurance, I always perform the following (Prevent defects in development coding, apply statistical process controls, and define standards that need to be followed). As for Quality Control, I also always perform these tasks as well (Aim to identify and improve the quality of programming code, perform validation early in the development process, and follow pre-defined processes, policies, and standards)."
Written by Tom Dushaj on August 31st, 2021
2nd Answer Example
"My role as a software developer requires performing high-level quality control and quality assurance processes and procedures. When I'm developing a product or application, I test the quality to control it better. Quality as another process assures that I am doing the correct testing. It's also important for me to make sure that I establish standards and develop checklists to follow throughout the life cycle of a project. The most important thing for me is maintaining a high-quality, error-free product that meets the customer's expectations. In doing so, I need to follow my quality checklist to ensure I am delivering what the internal or external customers want. The basics that I cover are:
Detect weaknesses and defects
Apply correct processes and procedures
Apply failure prevention and detection practices"
Written by Tom Dushaj on August 31st, 2021