From Manual Tester to SDET: A Realistic 90-Day Roadmap
The exact order to learn things in, how many hours a week it really takes, and the mistakes that make people give up.
By Karthik Kodati · 20 October 2026 · 8 min read
Most roadmaps online are a wall of 40 technologies. This one is what actually gets people hired.
Days 1 to 30: One language, properly
Pick TypeScript. Learn variables, functions, arrays, objects, async/await and modules. Do not touch a test tool yet. Write small scripts: parse a JSON file, call a public API, print a report.
Time: 1 hour on weekdays, 3 hours on weekends.
Days 31 to 60: One framework, one real project
Install Playwright. Automate a real application with login, forms, tables and an API. Build Page Objects, fixtures and a config for multiple environments. Push every day to GitHub.
The GitHub history is your portfolio. Interviewers care about that far more than certificates.
Days 61 to 90: CI, polish, interviews
Add GitHub Actions. Make the suite run on every push. Add a README that explains the design. Then start mock interviews, at least two a week. Our free question bank on interview.qatechlabs.com is a good place to start.
Mistakes that stop people
- Watching tutorials instead of typing code
- Learning three tools at once
- Not pushing to GitHub because the code “isn’t ready”
- Waiting until they feel ready to interview. You never will. Start anyway.