Software Development practices have changed a lot in the last two decades: from Waterfall projects embracing Rational Unified Process (RUP) to the modern Scaled Agile Framework; from a single release in 2 years to multiple deployments to Production a day; from independent test organizations to the “Shift Right” approach where a significant part of testing is being performed on production automatically. The role of Quality Assurance specialists in modern software projects has changed a lot. We will talk about these changes and how they resulted in the birth and quick rise of a new profession of a Software Development Engineer in Test. I will cover my experience in this profession, highlighting differences between various Software Development and Quality Assurance Engineering organizations in different companies that shape the precise meaning of what an SDET role is. At the conclusion of our talk, we will have discussed what it means to be a great SDET, which are the skills that are most valued in this trade, and how to become one.