An exclusive list of sample questions with answers for preparing for the CSTE Software Testing Certification Exam. Practice and prepare yourself confidently with this list of questions:
This tutorial will give you a general idea of the CSTE Certification exam paper pattern. We have included some sample questions and answers for the CSTE mock test paper. You can refer to these questions and judge the pattern of the descriptive answer paper.
If you need objective-type questions from the CSTE paper, you can refer to our previous tutorial on CSTE objective-type question answers. You can also download some more sample papers from our ‘Downloads’ section.
Let’s move on!!
CSTE Mock Test Paper – Questions and Answers
Q #1) Define the following along with examples [25 Marks]
a) Boundary Value Analysis
b) Equivalence Testing
c) Error Guessing
d) Desk Checking
e) Control Flow Analysis
Answer:
a) Boundary Value Analysis: This process involves selecting test cases/data by identifying the boundaries that separate valid and invalid conditions.
Tests are constructed to test the inside and outside edges of these boundaries, in addition to the actual boundary points or A selection technique in which test data are chosen to lie along “boundaries” of the input domain [or output range] classes, data structures, procedure parameters, etc.
Choices often include maximum, minimum, and trivial values or parameters.
For example, Input data 1 to 10 (boundary value)
Test input data 0, 1, 2 to 9, 10, 11
b) Equivalence Testing: The input domain of the system is partitioned into classes of representative values so that the number of test cases can be limited to one per class, which represents the minimum number of test cases that must be executed.
For Example, valid data range: 1-10
Test set:-2; 5; 14
c) Error Guessing: Test data selection technique. The selection criterion is to pick values that seem likely to cause errors. Error Guessing is based mostly upon experience, with some assistance from other techniques such as Boundary Value Analysis.
Based on experience, the test designer guesses the types of errors that could occur in a particular type of software and designs the test cases to uncover them.
For example, if any type of resource is allocated dynamically, then a good place to look for errors is in the de-allocation of resources. Are all resources correctly deallocated, or are some lost as the software executes?
d) Desk Checking: Desk Checking is conducted by the developer of the system or program. The process involves reviewing the complete product to ensure that it is structurally sound and that the standards and requirements have been met. This is the most traditional means for analyzing a system or program.
e) Control Flow Analysis: It is based upon the graphical representation of the program process. In Control Flow Analysis, the program graphs have nodes that represent a statement or segment, possibly ending in an unresolved branch.
The graph illustrates the flow of program control from one segment to another, as illustrated through branches. The objective of the Control Flow Analysis is to determine the potential problems in logic branches that might result in a loop condition or improper processing.
Q #2) You find that there is a senior tester who is making more mistakes than the junior testers. You need to communicate this aspect to the senior tester. Also, you don’t want to lose this tester. How should one go about constructive criticism? [10 Marks]
Answer: In the quality approach, it is the responsibility of the supervisor to make his/her subordinates successful. The effective use of criticism is a tool for improving subordinate performance.
While providing constructive criticism, you should incorporate the following tactics:
- Do it privately.
- Have the facts.
- Be prepared to help the worker improve his/her performance.
- Be specific about Expectations.
- Follow a specific process in giving criticism.
Q #3) Your manager has taken you on board as a test lead for testing a Web-based Application. He wants to know what risks you would include in the Test Plan. Explain each risk factor that would be a part of your test plan. [20 marks]
Answer:
Given below are the Primary Risk Factors of a Web-Based Application:
- Security: Anything related to the security of the application.
- Performance: The number of computing resources and code required by the system to perform its stated functions.
- Correctness: Data entered, processed, and outputted in the system is accurate and complete.
- Access Control: Assurance that the application system resources will be protected.
- Continuity of processing: The ability to sustain processing in the event a problem occurs.
- Audit Trail: The capability to substantiate the process that has occurred.
- Authorization: Assurance that the data is processed by the intent of the management.
General/Secondary Risks:
- Complex: Anything disproportionately large, intricate or convoluted.
- New: Anything that has no history in the product.
- Changed: Anything that has been tampered with or “improved”.
- Upstream Dependency: Anything whose failure will cause cascading failure in the rest of the system.
- Downstream Dependency: Anything that is especially sensitive to failures in the rest of the system.
- Critical: Anything whose failure could cause substantial damage.
- Precise: Anything that must meet its requirements exactly.
- Popular: Anything that will be used a lot.
- Strategic: Anything that has special importance to your business, such as a feature that sets you apart from the competition.
- Third-party: Anything used in the product, but developed outside the project.
- Distributed: Anything spread out in time or space, yet whose elements must work together.
- Buggy: Anything known to have a lot of problems.
- Recent Failure: Anything with a recent history of failure.
Q #4) You are in the contract stage of a project and are developing a comprehensive proposal for a safety-critical software system. Your director has consulted you to prepare a guideline document that will enlist the user’s role during the Acceptance Testing phase.
Indicate the key roles you feel the user should play during the acceptance stage. Also, indicate the categories into which the acceptance requirements should fall. [10 Marks]
Answer:
- Ensure user involvement in developing system requirements and acceptance criteria.
- Identify interim and final products for acceptance of their acceptance criteria and schedule.
- Plan how and by whom each acceptance activity will be performed.
- Plan resources to provide information.
- Schedule adequate time for buyer staff to receive & examine products and evaluation prior to acceptance review.
- Prepare an acceptance plan.
- Respond to the analysis of project entitlements before accepting and rejecting.
- Approve the various interim software products.
- Perform final acceptance activities, including formal acceptance testing at delivery.
- Make an acceptance decision for each product.
Q #5) What is Parallel Testing, and when do we use Parallel Testing? Explain this with a simple example. [5 marks]
Answer: Testing a new or altered data processing system with the same source data that is used in another system is Parallel Testing. The other system is considered as the standard of comparison. OR we can say that parallel testing requires the same input data to be run through two versions of the same application.
Parallel testing should be used when there is uncertainty regarding the correctness of the processing of the new application. Old and new versions of the applications are the same.
For Example,
- Operate old and new versions of the payroll system to determine if paychecks from both the systems are reconcilable.
- Run the old version of the application system to ensure that the operational status of the old system has been maintained if problems are encountered in the new application.
Q #6) What is the difference between testing Techniques and Tools? Give examples. [5 marks]
Answer:
Testing Technique: This is a process for ensuring that some aspects of the application system or unit function properly, and there may be a few techniques, but many tools.
Tools: It is a vehicle for performing a test process. The tool is a resource for the tester, but it is insufficient to conduct testing
For Example, the swinging of a hammer to drive the nail. A hammer is a tool, and swinging the hammer is a technique. The concept of tools and techniques is important in the testing process. It is a combination of the two that enables the test process to be performed.
The tester should first understand the testing techniques and then understand the tools that can be used with each of the techniques.
Q #7) Quality control activities are focused on identifying defects in the actual products produced. However, your boss wants you to identify and define processes that would prevent defects. How would you explain to him to distinguish between QA and QC responsibilities? [10 Marks]
Answer:
Quality Assurance:
- A planned and systematic set of activities is necessary to provide adequate confidence that the requirements are properly established and products/services conform to the specified requirements
- An activity that establishes and evaluates the processes to produce the products.
- Helps to establish processes.
- Sets up measurement programs to evaluate processes.
- Identify weaknesses in processes and improve them.
- QA is the responsibility of the entire team.
- Prevents the introduction of issues or defects.
Quality Control:
- The process by which the product quality is compared with applicable standards, and the action is taken when non-conformance is detected.
- An activity that verifies if the product meets pre-defined standards.
- Implement the process.
- Verify if a specific attribute(s) is in a specific product or service
- Identifies defects for the primary purpose of correcting defects.
- QC is the responsibility of the tester.
- Detects, reports and corrects defects.
Q #8 ) Differentiate between Transaction Flow Modeling, Finite State Modeling, Data Flow Modeling and Timing Modeling. [10 Marks]
Answer:
Transaction Flow Modeling: The nodes represent the steps in transactions. The links represent the logical connection between the steps.
Finite State Modeling: The nodes represent different user-observable states of the software. The links represent the transitions that occur when moving from state to state.
Data Flow Modeling: The nodes represent the data objects. The links represent the transformations that occur when translating one data object to another.
Timing Modeling: The nodes are Program Objects. The links are sequential connections between the program objects. The link weights are used to specify the required execution time as the program executes.
Q #9) According to you, what are the two primary goals of Testing? [5 Marks]
Answer:
- Determine whether the system meets specifications (producer view)
- Determine whether the system meets business and user needs (Customer view)
Hope you have got an idea of the CSTE Software Testing Certification Exam Question Pattern.
Check your Eligibility for CSTE Certification
Here is another ‘Sample Exam Questions’ tutorial on CSTE certification. CSTE testing certification is the basic certification to check the testers skill and understanding of Software Testing theory and Software Testing practices.
If you are applying for the CSTE certification, check if you can answer at least 75% of the following test questions. The four-and-a-half-hour CSTE exam consists of 4 parts, two multiple-choice parts, and two essay parts.
Take this Sample CSTE Examination
Here you will find 20 Multiple Choice Questions from all skill categories. There are around 10 skill categories, and we have included 2 questions from each category.
Skill Categories:
- Software Testing Principles and Concepts
- Building the Test Environment
- Managing the Test Project
- Test Planning
- Executing the Test Plan
- Test Reporting Process
- User Acceptance Testing
- Testing Software Developed by Contractors
- Testing Internal Control
- Testing New Technologies
These are the latest sample questions from the CSTE CBOK.
Mark the answers somewhere so that you can check the score at the end of the test.
Q #1) The customer’s view of Quality means:
a. Meeting requirements
b. Doing it the right way
c. Doing it right the first time
d. Fit for use
e. Doing it on time
Q #2) Testing of a single program or function, usually performed by the developer, is called:
a. Unit Testing
b. Integration Testing
c. System Testing
d. Regression Testing
e. Acceptance Testing
Q #3) The measure used to evaluate the correctness of a product is called the product:
a. Policy
b. Standard
c. Procedure to do work
d. Procedure to check work
e. Guideline
Q #4) Which of the four components of the test environment is considered to be the most important component of the Test environment?
a. Management support
b. Tester competency
c. Test work processes
d. Testing techniques and tools
Q #5) Effective Test Managers are effective listeners. The type of listening in which the tester is performing an analysis of what the speaker is saying is called:
a. Discriminative listening
b. Comprehensive listening
c. Therapeutic listening
d. Critical listening
e. Appreciative listening
Q #6) To become a CSTE, an individual has the responsibility to accept the standards of conduct defined by the certification board. These standards of conduct are called:
a. Code of ethics
b. Continuing professional education requirements
c. Obtaining references to support experience
d. Joining a professional testing chapter
e. Following the common body of knowledge in the practice of software testing
Q #7) Which of the following are the risks that testers face in performing their test activities?
a. Not enough training
b. Lack of test tools
c. Not enough time for testing
d. Rapid change
e. All of the above
Q #8) All of the following are methods to minimize loss due to risk. Which one is not a method to minimize loss due to risk?
a. Reduce the opportunity for error
b. Identify any errors prior to the loss
c. Quantify loss
d. Minimize loss
e. Recover loss
Q #9) Defect prevention involves which of the following steps?
a. Identify critical tasks
b. Estimate expected impact
c. Minimize expected impact
d. a, b and c
e. a and b
Q #10) The first step in designing a use case is to:
a. Build a system boundary diagram
b. Define acceptance criteria
c. Define use cases
d. Involve users
e. Develop use cases
Q #11) The Defect attribute that would help the management determine the importance of the Defect is called:
a. Defect Type
b. Defect Severity
c. Defect Name
d. Defect Location
e. Phase in which a defect occurred
Q #12) The system test report is normally written at what point in Software Development?
a. After Unit Testing
b. After Integration Testing
c. After System Testing
d. After Acceptance Testing
Q #13) The primary objective of User Acceptance Testing is to:
a. Identify Requirements Defects
b. Identify missing requirements
c. Determine if the Software is fit for the use
d. Validate the correctness of interfaces to other software systems
e. Verify that software is maintainable
Q #14) If IT establishes a measurement team to create measures and metrics to be used in Status Reporting, that team should include individuals who have:
a. Working knowledge of measures
b. Knowledge in the implementation of statistical process control tools
c. A working understanding of benchmarking techniques
d. Knowledge of the organization’s goals and objectives
e. All of the above
Q #15) What is the difference between testing software developed by a contractor outside your country, versus testing software developed by a contractor within your country?
a. Does not meet people’s needs
b. Cultural differences
c. Loss of control over reallocation of resources
d. Relinquishment of control
e. Contains extra features not specified
Q #16) What is the definition of a critical success factor?
a. The specified requirement
b. Software Quality Factor
c. Factors that must be present
d. Software Metrics
e. High cost to implement the requirement
Q #17) The condition that represents a potential for loss to an organization is called:
a. Risk
b. Exposure
c. Threat
d. Control
e. Vulnerability
Q #18) A flaw in a software system that may be exploited by an individual for his or her advantage is called:
a. Risk
b. Risk analysis
c. Threat
d. Vulnerability
e. Control
Q #19) The conduct of the business of the Internet is called:
a. e-commerce
b. e-business
c. Wireless applications
d. Client-server system
e. Web-based applications
Q #20) The following is described as one of the five levels of maturing a new technology into an IT organization’s work processes. The “People-Dependent technology” level is equivalent to what level in SEI’s compatibility maturity model?
a. Level 1
b. Level 2
c. Level 3
d. Level 4
e. Level 5
Done? Check the Answers
In the upcoming articles, we will emphasize more on sample CSTE essay papers and explain how to answer multiple-choice and essay-type questions. You can refer to our previous Software Testing Certification Articles here.
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