Software Development Engineer in Test (SDET) - W2 Role

Job Title: Software Development Engineer in Test (SDET)
Location: Albany, NY
Duration: W2 role!

Summary

We are seeking a hands-on SDET with deep expertise in Selenium WebDriver and Java to design, build, and maintain automated test frameworks for web applications. The ideal candidate writes production-quality automation code, embeds quality into the CI/CD pipeline, and partners closely with developers to catch defects early. This is an automation-heavy role the majority of the work is building and scaling test frameworks, not manual testing.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain robust, reusable Selenium WebDriver automation frameworks in Java (Page Object Model / modular design).
• Write clean, maintainable test code and integrate suites with TestNG or JUnit.
• Build and maintain data-driven and keyword-driven automation for regression, smoke, and end-to-end testing.
• Integrate automated tests into CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins, GitLab CI, or similar) for continuous execution.
• Collaborate with developers, product owners, and manual QA to define test strategy and acceptance criteria.
• Debug failures, perform root-cause analysis, and report defects with clear reproduction steps.
• Develop and maintain API-level automated tests (REST Assured, Postman) alongside UI automation.
• Contribute to code reviews, framework improvements, and best practices for test automation.
• Track and report on test coverage, execution results, and quality metrics.

Required Skills & Experience

• [5+] years of hands-on test automation experience in an SDET or automation engineer role.
• Expert-level Selenium WebDriver experience building frameworks from scratch, not just maintaining existing scripts.
• Strong core Java programming skills (OOP, collections, exception handling, design patterns).
• Proven experience with TestNG and/or JUnit.
• Solid understanding of the Page Object Model and other automation design patterns.
• Experience integrating automation into CI/CD (Jenkins, GitLab CI, Azure DevOps, or similar).
• Proficiency with version control (Git) and build tools (Maven / Gradle).
• Experience with SQL for backend/data validation.
• Strong grasp of the SDLC, Agile/Scrum, and defect-tracking tools (Jira).

Preferred / Nice-to-Have

• API automation experience (REST Assured, Postman/Newman).
• BDD frameworks (Cucumber, Serenity).
• Cross-browser / grid execution (Selenium Grid, BrowserStack, Sauce Labs).
• Performance testing exposure (JMeter).
• Cloud/containerization familiarity (Docker, AWS/Azure).
• ISTQB or related certification.

Education

• Bachelor''s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field or equivalent practical experience.