Are there any good sites for Beta testing leads?

Jacecr

I'm interested in pursuing a position in QA, in hopes of getting my foot in the door.I don't have experience as a tester and all I have is my portfolio of various art assets.What's the best approach to getting tester experience?and are there any sites that frequently mention beta tester opportunities?

EzMeow

Are you orienting yourself toward a QA position because you don't feel to do art stuff anymore, or are you trying to enter the industry by the QA door then try to push yourself into an art position?
In the second case I don't know if this would be a good solution.

Jacecr

I was thinking of the later.Trying to push my way into an art position after working QA.I heard a lot of companies hire from within.

Zipfinator

Jacecr wrote: »

I was thinking of the later.Trying to push my way into an art position after working QA.I heard a lot of companies hire from within.

Sometimes that can happen. What's more common from my understanding is companies hiring a ton of QA near the end of the project, making them work overtime on the project for weeks and then firing them all on release.

Jacecr

Yikes!I never thought of it that way, but that makes sense.Sounds like there's truly no easy way in other than raw talent.Even then who's to say you won't get laid off?

Firebert

I'm in no position to speak from experience, but from what I have read (on here lately and other places) a lot of studios are now moving further away from their QA teams, to the extent of them being in completely separate buildings. The disconnect makes QA > Art Position increasingly difficult. Add in the insane hours QA already put in and you are left with little time for you to actually work on your art and build up your portfolio.

Zipfinator

Seconding what Firebert said. I'm not speaking from experience either but from all of the advice I've read over the years on here, you'd be better off focusing on improving your art and searching for an internship or junior position instead of actively seeking a QA position.

EzMeow

If your goal is to land a job as artist the best way is to workout on your portfolio and make it "Shiny". As for the layoff it goes on the same way : keep your portfolio updated with strong art pieces and you'll be able to find another job.

Mark Dygert

I would be shocked if a place passed up a better qualified candidate from the outside in favor of someone already on payroll in an unrelated position.

Your chances of getting your face and work out of QA and in front of someone who would be in a position to actually help you get into a art position is about the same as scouting out a popular lunch time hot spot and "accidentally" spill your portfolio across someones table.

Your butt in a chair != experience, you will need to still demonstrate that you can do the job they're hiring you for, otherwise they won't.

Seriously, QA gets nothing but abused. Art gets the short end of the stick sometimes but you can count on it in QA. Unless you work your way up the food chain quickly count on being let go.

The only time I think artists should take QA positions is if there aren't any other jobs available in the city/state. Just about anything else will do a better job at paying the bills and giving you free time to work on your portfolio.

Jacecr

Thanks, I wasn't aware of any of this.