Karan, an accessibility testing engineer at Qualitest, is passionate about learning new things in life. His difficulty with eyesight, however, has never been able to dampen his enthusiasm. In fact, it’s made him an adaptive learner instead.
In addition, his keenness to learn about innovative technologies stems from his childhood dream of becoming a space scientist. Even though he could not pursue that dream, it did hold him back from following his passion for learning new stuff. When it comes to motivation, his family, especially his mom, plays a significant role.
Karan says, “Even though I am a person with a vision impairment, my mother never feels like it. She always motivates me to do better than my physical capabilities.”
As an accessibility testing engineer, Karan’s skillset primarily revolves around screen readers such as JAWS, NVDA, TalkBack, etc. However, his areas of expertise are not limited to accessibility testing alone. In fact, he has learned some programming languages, which include Basic HTML, Basic PHP, Basic C++ and Basic Java Script.
“In my computer training I have also created a static website using HTML and Java Script,” adds Karan.
Karan, despite his vision challenges has studied in a school with sighted people. Back then, his family had no idea about special schools. However, this experience of interacting with other kids helped him tremendously. It made him mentally strong to cope with his life ahead, both personally and professionally.
“It was challenging at the start to study with sighted persons, but after some time it was not that bad. I am glad I have studied in normal schools so I can know the challenges and fun of school life,” says Karan.
He further adds, “I have made many good friends and learned an important fact: All types of friends, be they good or bad, can teach you something. What we learn and what we don’t depends on us.”
Karan’s love for computers made him choose IT as a career. Moreover, he also loved learning new things, so his early encounters with computers & IT made him realize that IT was the field where he could pursue his passion for his entire life.
Karan had been working at QA Infotech for over two years when Qualitest acquired the company in 2021.
Regarding his time at QA Infotech and Qualitest, Karan says, “It was a highly informative journey at QA Infotech. At Qualitest, I am learning even more and discovering more about testing in other countries.”
Being an accessibility testing engineer himself, Karan has some thought-provoking observations about this testing process.
According to Karan, “Accessibility testing is an especially important part of any digital or physical platform. In Qualitest, we ensure our clients’ digital platforms are accessible to every person who needs it.”
He cites the example of the Qualitest building in Noida (India) to highlight how an accessible physical platform can help the differently-abled.
Just like the building of Qualitest, Karan also wants all digital platforms to be accessible to everyone.
He says, “If any software, apps etc. are not accessible it will be difficult for any specially-abled user to use its functionality.”
Karan uses another example of a digital platform of how his bank’s mobile application is not accessible, and therefore it becomes difficult for him to use all its functionalities properly.
“Therefore, digital accessibility is also a thing where all companies should focus because there is a good user base of differently-abled people on digital platforms,” says Karan.
Karan also highlights the fact that accessibility is critical to ensure that differently-abled individuals can lead independent lives.
He says, “Digital platforms are extremely helpful for any differently-abled person if it is accessible because he/she can do his work on him/her own without taking any one’s help. For example, if flight, rail, food, bank, entertainment etc. sites are accessible, every user can access them independently.”
Karan’s message to the next generation of testers is heartfelt and filled with emotions.
He also highlights some benefits of choosing a career in IT.
“Some of the perks of choosing a career in IT include a good salary, a lot of learning for a lifetime, excellent work culture and more” says Karan.
When Karan is not working, he is busy with his hobbies, which includes playing cricket, watching cricket and watching horror, action & sci-fi films.
“My favorite films are Insidious, Avatar, Marvel films, Mission Impossible series etc.,” says Karan.
Karan also likes to play quiz games, racing games and watch space research videos on YouTube, NASA, ISRO, etc.
