ISTQB foundation level exam is conducted by the (International Software Testing Qualifications Board) ISTQB, the software testing certification authority based in Belgium, established in 2002. It was formulated as a non-profit organization which offers ISTQB certifications world over based on a universal syllabus pattern. ISTQB certified tester is a qualification for software testers which provide them recognition and validate their testing skills in the software testing domain.

• ISTQB Foundation Level (CTFL)
• ISTQB Advanced Level (CTAL) – (The exam has 3 sub levels)

1. Technical Test Analyst
2. Test Analyst
3. Test Manager

• Expert Level (CTEL)

I cleared the ISTQB foundation level exam after one month of preparation, which as far as my experience goes, is enough for clearing this paper even if you are a newbie. One thing I have learnt and realized is that cracking ISTQB exam is not a mandatory step for anyone hoping to make software testing his or her career. I have seen and met numerous testing professionals having many years of job experience to back them up but almost 80% of them are not ISTQB certified. But they do have credible expertise in manual as well as automation testing.

Software testing is one such career option where certifications are not given undue importance over hands on job experience. If you are well versed in testing jargon, quit comfortable in testing documentation and technically agile enough to operate couple of automation tools then nobody will raise a finger at the empty certifications column in your CV. But yes having an ISTQB certification definitely helps you enter the software testing field with ease and confidence. Plus few companies do prefer a person with certifications if the total years of experience are less or not as per their job requirements.

So let’s move on to the cracking ISTQB foundation level part as the title of this article suggests. Here are some vital info chunks about this exam in a short and terse manner:

• MCQ based exam where you have to answer 40 questions (4 answers per question)
• 1 hour 15 minutes time provided to finish it
• To clear it you have to score minimum 65% (Score 26 out of 40) in this exam
• Can register Online for the exam at www.istqb.in
• Fees for online exam – 4500₹ ( (Discounted amount is 4000₹ if your company ties up with ITB (Indian Testing Board) for getting their testers trained or if you are trained from ISTQB accredited training provider)
• No negative marking
• To re-appear for this exam you have to pay 2800₹

Some tips and resources which I consider are very important and should help you crack the foundation level for sure:

• The best book available for CTFL exam which covers the complete syllabus and terminology is “Foundations of Software Testing” by Dorothy Graham / Erik Van Veenendaal / Isabel Evans & Rex Black. This one book is sufficient for you to clear foundation level with utmost ease; you just have to go through it at least thrice, that’s it. Finish it once and then go for 2 thorough revisions of this book rather than getting lost in the maze of books and resources available online or at your nearest book store.
• The second important step after reading the above mentioned book is to go through the ISTQB dumps and practice as many MCQ questions as you can. The dumps cover almost every part of the syllabus and it will give you a very good oversight to what’s going to happen on the exam day plus you will get acquainted with the format and level of difficulty of questions you will face. Solving the MCQ dumps boosts up you confidence and provides you an opportunity to self-analyze your level of preparation.
• Go through the specific ISTQB foundation level exam guidelines. It covers and clarifies all the crucial things you must know before appearing or even making up your mind to go for this certification. It’s a must read document for all the candidates.
• Going through the syllabus in detail is a MUST for this exam. The ISTQB foundation level syllabus itself makes lot of points clear for you, all the major topics covered under the syllabus and their sub topics are neatly arranged in it. Like testing fundamentals, principles, test process, SDLC models, test levels, test types, techniques, test tools and the other topics under the syllabus can be memorized very easily by going through the syllabus multiple times. To remember the information as written in the syllabus along with the sub topics in your mind will help you very much in the exams for answering basic K1 questions.

• The Syllabus as well as the MCQ questions which will come in the exam are categorized under different learning objectives as listed below:
  
  • K1: Remember
  • K2: Understand
  • K3: Apply
  • K4: Analyze

• Do go through the testing GLOSSARY as well before the exam as there are few questions based on testing terms also. Being aware of different testing terms and definitions will help you to understand and analyze the questions better and solve few of them too.