Should Software Testing really become a first-class concept at the academic level? [closed]

Question

Is Software Testing really given its importance at the academic level?

I believe there is a need in universities offering Software Engineering (and probably even Computer Science) to treat Software Testing as a separate course and topic in itself, rather than as part of a general topic of Software Engineering. Irrespective of the testing methodology and techninque used, this is something that is as much a part of a software professional's life as writing code.

I am not sure this is happening in most of universities - it is still being given secondary importance. When a fresh graduate comes out of university, he is all about programming and creating things, not on how to test them.

Should Software Testing really become a first-class concept at the academic level (or at-least treated like one)?

Answer 1

Yes, it probably should be given more consideration, and at some places it is. As a part of the new curriculum at the university I attended all programming projects are required to include test cases. There's no way to enforce a particular methodology, like TDD, but I think this is a step in the right direction.

There are even tools available, like Web-CAT, that allow for automated evaluation of test coverage. The students submit their code and their tests, and the system tells them how they scored against a set of instructor-accepted tests.