I am considering attending TestBash in Manchester in September. I am working as a manual tester, but I still have a lot to learn! I donât have any real education in Testing and I donât come from a technical background. I kind of ended up in Software testing by coincidence. I know I will benefit from attending the talks, but I am concerned that I wonât be able to contribute a whole lot in the workshops, due to my non-technical background and lack of experience with ârealâ testing.
So, is TestBash really for me? Or would you recommend something different for me?
I think conferences are awesome for people new in their career, you can get a lot of motivation, learn something new, have fun and best of all meet a lot of interesting people - I made a lot of connections visiting meetups and conferences, which were really useful in the long run.
Do it! Youâll be amazed how many other testers have similar backgrounds to yours. Just by talking to other testers, youâll get ideas and insights about both the testing youâre doing now and the way and direction you want to develop your testing focus in future.
And lurking is a perfectly legitimate approach to attending TestBash!
I hope youâre doing well.I think there is no such barrier.I still remember when I attended my first test bash I felt the same way a little out of place.I didnât know anybody nor my friends were attending it. The timings also were not so convenient for me. all I knew was I want to take the experience and move ahead and the rest is history. Attended all the test bashes since last year most of which were virtualâŠI liked all of them. I took ideas for talks and blogs educated myself met a few testers from other places and gave my 99-second talk which was fun. So you will cherish this experience. You donât need to have a technical background. Come with a little bit of curiosity and the attitude to learn you will enjoy it. Not everybody who comes here does automation or any other kinds of testing. There are people like you and who knows you may start your journey into something after this.
I hope this helps.
All the best and see you at one of the upcoming test bash events
Iâve been to TestBash a few times as a speaker and was fortunate enough to also be a participant in the workshops.
People are TestBash are very welcoming and thereâs an effort to make people feel included (thereâs also this idea that people shouldnât be left alone if they donât want to be, so if you attend a conference without your colleagues you donât have to worry about that).
I was at TestBashX with some new testers (they were about 2 weeks into testing) and they said that they found it awesome. They totally brought questions and ideas to workshops (remember that your own opinions and thoughts influences testing) and I had a great conversation talking about âhow the colours we like can bias testing UIsâ with them.
Youâd get to meet other testers and maybe even find someone friendly that you can hit up on Twitter for questions and mentoring. Plus it gets you to maybe start seeing something cool that you might wanna learn about. In my first testing conference I learnt that you can train AIs to be more ethical⊠which is super cool!
So I guess Iâd say, TestBash would be awesome for you if you wanna come in with an open mind to see what else there is about testing and meet other testers
And thanks so much for asking a brilliant question. I do hope the helpful replies provide you with useful information to support a decision to consider attending.
There is space for everyone at TestBash, no matter where you are on your journey.
Feel free to keep the questions coming should you have more.
Hi,
I was also at the TestBash X this year and the workshops were great. The talk at the bash will be useful no matter how far into your test carrier you are. @cakehurstryan did a great talk on the lessons we can learn from D&D when applied to testing, and there was another great talk on value.
The talks are also recorded, and I have found an example talk that is available on a club membership to give you a bit of an idea of what to expect:
I canât speak for other workshops, by Iâll be running the workshop on Accessibility Testing and the aim of this will be to explore and learn about the tools available in chrome extensions. No technical knowledge required. It is more about learning about the tools and the basics of how to use them, and then developing the skill further afterwards.
Workshops are a brilliant way to learn new skills as youâll get the opportunity to actually practice them with the support of an instructor and others attending the workshop. You may not get it perfectly in the workshop, but you will learn enough to develop the skill at home. Personally, I find the less you know the better.
Yes, @girlfromspace is right, also if there is an MoT meetup in your city - or nearby, they might have a TestBash World Watch part planned, so you could watch the conference live and hang out with other testers in person!
TestBash is for everyone who wants to learn and I believe you qualify!
I have, regrettably, never attended a TestBash. I have attended Testing conferences in the United States. Regardless of experience level and background, theses conferences welcome everyone.
