The steps you will have to take to become a field tester may depend on whether you are hoping to test products occasionally, as an independent contractor, or as a full-time job, as an employee. You may benefit from gaining experience with the type of products you wish to test and then actively seeking field tester opportunities. You may do this by calling companies you think will have interest in your services. Additionally, you can search for opportunities online and via the mail.
You may have a better chance of becoming a field tester if you first gain experience with the types of products or equipment for which you will perform field tests. For example, if you want to test camping equipment, having experience with camping and various types of related equipment may help. A company that is looking for field testers might consider you more qualified if you have this type of experience at hand. This does not mean that you will always need extensive experience to become a field tester, however; some companies may need the help of less-experienced individuals as well. For example, a company might want to learn whether its equipment is easy for a novice to use.
One way to find an opportunity to become a field tester is to contact the companies for which you are interested in field testing. Once you reach a company representative, preferably a manager, you can ask whether the company has any field testing opportunities available. Providing details about your experience and explaining why you believe you would make a good field tester may improve your chances of qualifying for an opportunity.
You can also become a field tester by applying for an opportunity with a company that is advertising field tester positions. For example, a market research firm may post ads looking for people to work as field testers. You can apply for such opportunities online or in person. Often, these sorts of opportunities are available as independent contractor positions, which means you will not work as an employee of the company. Instead, you will likely have the freedom to perform field tests for numerous different companies.
While some field tester opportunities are offered on an independent contractor basis, this not always the case; you can become a field tester as an employee instead. In this position, you would work full time testing products for one company.
The requirements you will have to meet to become a field tester employee depend on the particular field in which you seek to be hired. For some positions, you may need a bachelor's degree to get hired for this type of job. This is particularly true when it comes to the field testing of technical products. An employer may also require you to have experience working with the types of products for which you will be responsible. Job criteria varies from employer to employer, however.
