Tests applications for vulnerabilities: penetration testing, security scanning and validation.
Entry
Senior
Coding
High
Key skills
Common progression
- Security Test Engineer
- Test Lead
Career overview
The Security Test Engineer hunts for vulnerabilities in applications: penetration testing, security scanning, threat modelling validation and verification of fixes. They sit between QA and security and help developers ship safer code. The role leads to Test Lead, Security Engineer or Application Security Engineer positions.
Main responsibilities
- Perform security and penetration testing
- Define test strategy and plans
- Report, track and verify defects
- Build and maintain CI/CD pipelines
- Keep technical documentation up to date
- Prepare and execute change requests in production
- Analyse application logs to identify root causes
- Mentor junior team members and review their work
- Automate recurring tasks with scripts
- Design and document REST APIs
Technical skills
Technologies
Education level
Education requirements vary depending on the company, country and experience. Professional experience, certifications and technical skills can sometimes compensate for formal education.
High School / Bac
Less common
Bac+2 (2-year degree)
Less common
Bac+3 (Bachelor)
Less common
Bac+5 (Master / Engineering)
Common entry point
Experience & coding level
Experience level
Coding level
Useful certifications
Certifications are never mandatory. They are one way among others to prove a skill.
- OSCP
- CEH (Certified Ethical Hacker)
- ISTQB Security Testing
Where can this career take you?
Multiple paths are possible. Click a role to open its profile.
Direct progression
Possible branches
Where can you go next?
Realistic next career moves, with compatibility and a transition roadmap for each.
Overlap: 11% · Difficulty: Medium
Skills to learn: Test automation frameworks, UI automation (Selenium/Cypress), API automation
View roadmapWhere can you go from here?
A typical progression built from real career relationships. Click any role to open its profile.
- Security Test Engineer
- Test Lead
Soft skills
- Ethics and integrity
- Analytical thinking
- Rigour and attention to detail
- Problem solving
- Clear communication
- Sense of ownership
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