Interview Preparation — Master Guide (SDET / QA Automation)¶
Owner: Rohan Dsouza | Role Target: SDET / QA Automation Engineer (6+ yrs) Last Updated: 2026-05-20
How to use this folder¶
Read in this order for maximum effect:
| # | File | Purpose | Time to Revise |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 01_DSA_Patterns.md | 50+ DSA patterns with examples | 3-4 days |
| 2 | 02_CS_Fundamentals.md | OOPS, OS, DBMS quick sheet | 1 day |
| 3 | 03_Mock_Interview_Guide.md | How to think aloud + frameworks | 1 hour |
| 4 | 04_Manual_Testing_SDLC_STLC.md | Core QA concepts | 1 day |
| 5 | 05_Selenium_Concepts.md | Selenium deep dive | 1 day |
| 6 | 06_Playwright_Concepts.md | Playwright deep dive | 1 day |
| 7 | 07_Performance_Security_VAPT.md | JMeter + OWASP + VAPT | 1 day |
| 8 | 08_AI_Testing_Agentic_AI.md | LLM testing, Agentic AI | 1 day |
| 9 | 09_API_Testing_RestAssured.md | API + Rest Assured | 1 day |
| 10 | 10_Real_Interview_Questions_2026.md | 45 real 2026 SDET-2 questions | 2 hours |
| 11 | 11_Model_Answers_Hardest_Questions.md | Full spoken-style answers for 15 hardest Qs | 3 hours practice |
| 12 | 12_Programming_Basics_Java_Python_JS.md | Java/Python/JS basics side-by-side | 2 days |
| 13 | 13_Programming_Deep_Dive_Interview_Topics.md | Deep-dive interview topics (defend under probing) | 1 week |
| 14 | 14_Project_Deep_Dive_Architecture_QnA.md | Your 6 real projects — architecture + interview Q&A | 1-2 days |
| 15 | 15_SDET_Specific_Programming_Topics.md | Pytest/TestNG/Playwright fixtures, REST Assured, Selenium patterns, Mockito, CI/CD, POM, reporters | 3-4 days |
| 16 | 16_15_Day_Study_Plan.md | Day-by-day 15-day prep schedule with 4 mocks | 15 days |
| 17 | 17_QA_Specific_Coding_Questions.md | 130+ QA-specific coding Qs — strings, validators, SQL, OOP design, etc. | 4-5 days |
| 18 | 18_SQL_MySQL_MongoDB_Complete_Guide.md | SQL + MySQL + MongoDB — 50 SQL Qs, full Mongo guide, 40 Q&A | 3-4 days |
Memory Trick — "DCOMS-PPAA"¶
- D = DSA
- C = CS Fundamentals
- O = Oral practice (Mock)
- M = Manual Testing
- S = Selenium
- P = Playwright
- P = Performance/Security
- A = AI Testing
- A = API Testing
Final-week routine¶
- Day 1-3: DSA patterns (1-2 patterns per day with 2 problems each)
- Day 4: CS Fundamentals + Manual Testing
- Day 5: Selenium + Playwright
- Day 6: API + Performance/Security
- Day 7: AI + Mock Interview practice
Good luck — you've got this.