Career Change in to Testing?

Question

I've around 10+ years of experience in Banking operations including reconciliations, sales, customer services, asset management, and financial transaction QA. Coming to academics I've done my PG in commerce (costing, auditing, banking, and statistics) also a diploma in project management, ISTQB foundation, Prince 2 foundation and ITIL foundation. Can any one advise me if the testing role is ideal for me and how to start with it.

Answer 1

With your background, I’d say you’re in a really strong position to move into testing. You already have years of experience in a highly regulated industry where accuracy, compliance, and attention to detail are critical — those skills translate directly into QA and testing work. Your financial transaction QA experience, in particular, is already a form of testing; it just happens to be in a banking context.

Academically, you’ve set yourself up well — ISTQB Foundation is a great entry point into software testing, and your project management and ITIL knowledge will help you understand workflows and processes from a broader perspective. That combination is valuable to employers because you can approach testing with both technical awareness and business context.

If you’re ready to start, I’d suggest:

1. Build a small testing portfolio – Practice by testing open-source applications or websites and document your process and findings.
2. Learn basic testing tools – Even familiarity with something like Jira, Selenium, or Postman can make your resume stand out.
3. Network in QA/testing communities – Join LinkedIn groups, ISTQB forums, or local meetups to connect with professionals in the field.
4. Target industries you know – Since you know banking inside and out, fintech and financial services companies will value your domain expertise.

It’s definitely doable — and you’ve got a head start most career changers don’t have. The key is showing how your existing skills and certifications connect directly to the type of testing work you want to do.