Automation, Advanced Testing, and AI

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Automation, Advanced Testing, and AI

This course is part of Microsoft Junior QA/Software Tester Professional Certificate

Instructor: Microsoft

Included with

11 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

1 week to complete

at 10 hours a week

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

11 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

Intermediate level

Recommended experience

1 week to complete

at 10 hours a week

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

What you'll learn

Write automated Playwright scripts and execute basic SQL queries for data validation.
Design basic performance load profiles.
Generate test cases and fake or synthetic test data using Generative AI prompts.
Utilize AI models to detect defect hot-spots and automate release note creation.

Skills you'll gain

Category: Technical Communication
Category: Test Tools
Category: Performance Stress Testing
Category: Test Case
Category: Computer Science
Category: AI literacy
Category: Software Testing
Category: Test Script Development
Category: Information Technology
Category: Continuous Integration
Category: Version Control
Category: Performance Testing
Category: API Testing
Category: Software Development
Category: Integration Testing
Category: Test Automation

Tools you'll learn

Category: Postman API Platform
Category: Generative AI
Category: GitHub
Category: Git (Version Control System)

Details to know

Shareable certificate

Add to your LinkedIn profile

Build your Software Development expertise

This course is part of the Microsoft Junior QA/Software Tester Professional Certificate

When you enroll in this course, you'll also be enrolled in this Professional Certificate.

Learn new concepts from industry experts
Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
Earn a shareable career certificate from Microsoft

There are 11 modules in this course

Advance your expertise by transitioning into technical test automation and AI-augmented quality assurance. In this course, you will write automated UI test scripts using Playwright and SQL queries for robust database validation. You will gain hands-on experience in backend integration and performance testing, utilizing Apache JMeter to analyze system load and API reliability. You will also future-proof your career by leveraging Generative AI to design intelligent test cases, generate synthetic test data, and automate defect hot-spot detection. By integrating version control via Git and exploring CI/CD pipelines, you will develop the technical proficiency to introduce code-driven efficiency to your QA processes. Tools used include Playwright, Git, and VS Code (open source, preconfigured in the Linux Lab VM), GitHub (Free Tier), and Apache JMeter (free, pre-installed in the Linux VM).

Automation is not a magic bullet. Learn the strategic boundaries of test automation, why you cannot automate 100% of a test suite, and how to identify the best candidates for automation in your backlog.

What's included

2 videos1 reading2 assignments

Get hands-on with Microsoft Playwright. You will use the Codegen feature to record your browser actions like a macro, allowing Playwright to write the JavaScript for you. Then, you will review the generated code in VS Code to understand how it works.

What's included

2 videos2 assignments1 ungraded lab

Recorded macros are a great start, but they are brittle. Learn how to manually write and refine Playwright scripts using robust CSS and text locators to automate a core "happy path" user journey.

What's included

3 videos1 assignment1 ungraded lab

Code only matters if you can share it. Instead of memorizing complex terminal commands, you will learn how to use the intuitive VS Code Source Control GUI to visually branch, stage, commit, and push your automated test to GitHub, culminating in a Pull Request linked to Jira.

What's included

2 videos2 readings2 assignments

UI tests can lie; the database doesn't. Learn the foundational SQL commands every tester needs to query databases, verify backend data exchanges, and ensure the UI is telling the truth.

What's included

2 videos1 reading1 assignment1 ungraded lab

Automated tests run while you sleep. Learn how to act as the "Morning Triage" QA, reviewing failed CI/CD pipelines in GitHub Actions, reading test runner logs, and turning stack traces into actionable bugs in Jira.

What's included

1 video3 readings2 assignments

1 videoTotal 4 minutes

Triaging GitHub Actions and Logging to Jira4 minutes

3 readingsTotal 24 minutes

Reading Pipeline Logs6 minutes
ADO Translation (Optional): Azure Pipelines to Azure Boards3 minutes
Hands-on Activity: Investigate a Failed Test Log15 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 35 minutes

Graded Quiz: SQL and Suite Monitoring30 minutes
Knowledge Check: Pipelines and Logs5 minutes

APIs are the nervous system of modern software. Learn how to bypass the UI entirely using Postman to send direct HTTP requests to an API, validate status codes, construct Collections, and analyze JSON payload responses.

What's included

2 videos1 reading1 assignment1 ungraded lab

What happens when 50 people log in at exactly the same time? Learn the principles of load testing, build a Thread Group in Apache JMeter to simulate heavy user traffic, and log execution results in Zephyr.

What's included

2 videos2 readings2 assignments1 ungraded lab

2 videosTotal 10 minutes

Load vs. Stress Testing5 minutes
Building a Load Profile in JMeter5 minutes

2 readingsTotal 6 minutes

ADO Translation (Optional): Attaching Performance Results3 minutes
JMeter Interface Orientation3 minutes

2 assignmentsTotal 35 minutes

Graded Quiz: Performance and Integration Power30 minutes
Knowledge Check: Load Testing and JMeter5 minutes

1 ungraded labTotal 20 minutes

Hands-on Activity: Execute a Load Test20 minutes

Codebases have memory. Learn how to feed historical defect logs into an AI model to detect patterns, highlight "hotspots" of high-risk code, and predict where your testing efforts should be focused in the next sprint.

What's included

2 videos2 readings1 assignment

A common struggle for Junior QAs is explaining technical failures to non-technical Project Managers. Learn how to prompt Microsoft Copilot to instantly translate raw Jira bug tickets and confusing test run logs into clean, readable "End-of-Day Status Updates."

What's included

2 videos1 reading2 assignments

Synthesize your technical engineering skills in a capstone automation simulation. You will write a SQL query to check data state, author a Playwright script to automate a UI workflow, visually commit your code via the VS Code GUI to GitHub, link it to a Jira ticket, and finally use Generative AI to analyze messy GitHub Actions test logs and author a clean End-of-Day status update.

What's included

1 video2 readings1 assignment1 ungraded lab

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Instructor

Microsoft

421 Courses2,831,942 learners

Offered by

Microsoft

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