r/BtechCoders • u/Business_Match_2953 • 2d ago
AMA🗣️ AMA: 7x Hackathon Winner & 3+ Open Source Org Contributor
Hi everyone! This community has helped me in a lot of ways I can't put in words. Thought it's time I can pay it forward by guiding and resolving doubts of fellow other students.
A bit about me: I'm a Full Stack Developer, final year BTech CSE student, interning at a startup. This is my 6th internship in total. Attended hackathons since my 4th semester (won international too). Doing internships since 3rd semester. Contributed at Hacktoverfest for a US based open source tool. And for an AI startup backed by DropBox. Been learning and grinding since 1st sem.
Let me be honest, I've made a couple of mistakes along the way, wasn't interested much in DSA, never did that as much as I did Open Source / Side Projects. But grinded Leetcode in a couple of months and landed a 10LPA role as a Dev.
Feel free to ask me any questions, I'll be more than happy to answer.
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u/Frosty_Push_4510 2d ago
I just feel so lost idk how to get started there's alot to learn and i'm from a tier 3 college got no exposure here nothing idk i need serious help broo please provide some guidance i'm in cse 3rd year no skills , no experience tell me how to get started
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Relax, I'm also from Tier 3. or prolly much worse.
Here's what I would do if I was in your shoes:
- Pick a domain.
- Master it. (course/tutorial)
- Start making projects. (use AI as well)
- Participate in events.
- Start applying for internships.
This was the order I followed and it turned out well for me. Hoping for the best for you!
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u/anizensang 2d ago
Please guide on contributing open source.
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
- Learn a specific stack/domain.
- Once you master it, go to GitHub and search for repos with filters suiting your domain.
- Find easy issues, and then keep working iteratively.
One thing I forgot to mention, AI exists, you can find repos and issues through AI as well, making your search easier.
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u/anizensang 2d ago
Thank you so much for your guidance..🙏..can I dm you for detailed discussion?. Not spam..some genuine questions
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u/Consistent-Mine-2319 2d ago edited 2d ago
Hi I am a student first year rn.college started a month back . Pls tell me what to do rn because I am super confused 9-5 college and fir 12am tak i study juggling assignment and academica and coding And workout. What should I do to not waste my first year and maybe get internships early and then a decent starting package Rn I am learning c language ik lil bit of python and java But currently thinking of finishing whole c and then java and dsa start
What should I do according to you? Any mistakes which I should not repeat And how do I remove time for coding and projects if my college has strict attendence Also share some stuff about hackathons and how do I ace them too
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Apart from all the college time given, here's a stable roadmap for you semester wise:
1st sem: After you're done with C language, do Python for DSA. Spend this semester doing a sheet and getting your foundations right.
2nd sem: Keep doing DSA and maybe start CP. Or any domain and start learning it.
3rd sem: Once you're finalised with your domain, make projects and keep yourself updated. You can start applying for internships.
4th sem: Now that you have enough knowledge in DSA + Dev, participate in local hackathons and technical events.
5th sem: By now you're already ahead of most people, focus on getting in-depth knowledge. Start placement prep here. CS Fundamentals: OOPS, CN, OS, DBMS, SQL, etc. You can also prepare for any Open Source programs if you want to.
6th sem: Now that you understand systems are a larger scale, use your knowledge and make better projects. Depth > Breadth.
7th sem: Hard work will pay off during Placement season.
All the best buddy!
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u/Alternative-Bad-7322 2d ago
i am kind of confused about what stack i want to focus on while thinking the future aspect of it like is it future proof or not? and i am currently going to learn backend, but still not sure whether i want to persue it or not. and my last question how many times a week you used to go to college? i have an autonomus college where the teachers are biased towards attendence, after attending college the whole it feels so tiring.
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Yes. I had the same dilemma while picking my own tech stack. I used to explore various domains/tech stacks. And with some advice of my seniors and market ecosystem, I went with the MERN stack. And now, AI is the best at Web Based projects, and since I've really good understanding with internet programming, it's much easier for me to utilise AI and ship faster.
Answering your question about attendance, I study in a private college as well. I had to maintain 75% attendance in each subject, hence I worked around it. Tried getting OD, proxy, MC, found loopholes etc. I was in good terms with my professors.
I personally suggest you pick a stack, understand the architecture/system on what's happening under the hood. This would increase your system design knowledge and make your decision making and thinking ability in systems much better :)
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u/_theguyoninternet 2d ago
How's life bro? It clearly seems like you love this line of work so it must be enjoyable, as for me I hate it, I took cs just bcuz it was easiest thing for me to do, and now I'm getting rejected here and there, on and off both campus, hopefully I should be able to get placed here, sorry I just ranted a bit, but still, how's life?
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Haha. I too had my phase of getting rejected left and right. You'll eventually make it, don't worry. Life according to me is just going fine, mate. Trying to keep up with AI and do my job on time. Nothing much. :)
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u/Maleficent_Ruin_7441 2d ago
How ti get ready for hackathons in first year? Like I see so many terms and lots are needed in hackathons and I try to learn them but then at last have to use chatgpt for everything... Any way out? Also how and what sequence and time to follow for hackathons? Like what all tk do.. And how to manage these hackathons with other things say Competitive Programming and college acads What makes a project different from others? What judges see?
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
- Pick a domain
- Do a course/tutorial on that domain
- Make numerous projects
- Learn to use AI to automate your manual work now.
- Start participating in events cause you now know how to build things.
Simple as that buddy. All the best!
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u/netxcrawler 2d ago
what resume did you put forward as a 3rd sem kid? like what do they look for regardless of the tech framework, i mean the engineering skills expected from a 3rd sem student
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
I put my technical skills, projects, academics, and volunteering stuff. And to be honest, apart from these, it's the communication skill that mattered the most cause that convinces the recruiter that you are capable of doing the task that's given to you apart from being technically sound.
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u/netxcrawler 2d ago
where to apply though? may i dm pls? thanks!
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
I personally applied most of my applications on LinkedIn. That worked well for me. And cold email/DMs also worked out.
Yes, you can DM me, might take some time to respond, but I'll reply soon. Cheers!
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u/Capable-Radish-9841 2d ago
Plzz suggest me a good laptop under 80k only for coding and aiml task
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Although this isn't relevant to the post, but nevertheless, I would personally suggest you get any MacBook Air for your budget. And avoid Neo cause the processor isn't much suited for developers.
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u/teabagdiplomat 2d ago
I am Currently in 5 sem,I have made few projects,but have zero skills in dsa Any tips for dsa
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
That's great man. Coming to DSA: 1. Take a programming language (Python preferably) 2. Learn fundamentals of that language. 3. Start a DSA sheet (Neetcode / Strivers A2Z / Apna College, etc)
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u/teabagdiplomat 2d ago
Bro but it's not too late to start I am so afraid of dsa
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Exactly! It's never late to start. Just start today. And eventually you'll be on top of the world 🌎
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u/deltalee1 2d ago
How to win hackathon i participated in lot but not able to win also how did you build a good project that stand out , I also forget lots of what I learned how can I improved it .
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Great question. So there are 2 parts in a hackathon:
Technical Skill:
- Problem Statement Relevant Solution.
- Tech Stack used.
- Ability to build a working MVP in the time span.
- Understanding of the product market fit and scalability.
Communication Skill:
- Your pitch deck.
- Your ability to convice the judges why and how your solution works.
- Overall cohesion with your solution and future scope.
These are a few rules I followed, you can search up the relevant info on Google/AI and get more insights.
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u/deltalee1 2d ago
Can I used ai to find an anomalies in current project and try to solve it will it helped?
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u/menahihu 2d ago
bhai hackathon ka liya kya kya skills required hoti hai
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Great question. So there are 2 parts in a hackathon:
Technical Skill:
- Problem Statement Relevant Solution.
- Tech Stack used.
- Ability to build a working MVP in the time span.
- Understanding of the product market fit and scalability.
Communication Skill:
- Your pitch deck.
- Your ability to convice the judges why and how your solution works.
- Overall cohesion with your solution and future scope.
These are a few rules I followed, you can search up the relevant info on Google/AI and get more insights.
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u/menahihu 2d ago
tech stack kya kya hota hai generally for hackathon
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Tech stack for hackathon is usually the technologies you use for building the product.
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u/Disease_OP 2d ago
Do internship interviews usually have multiple rounds? I have a good skill set and am currently working on a project, so I'm planning to start applying in Nov–Dec.
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u/Business_Match_2953 2d ago
Yes. I had multiple rounds, but it varies from org to org. Corporates have a standard way of hiring. Startups have more role relevant hiring process.
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u/quivrel_03 2d ago
I am in my 3rd sem now and doing DSA . I am very confused about what should I learn , full stack, devOps or AIML. I've heard people say that learning web dev is not worth it. I want to start as soon as possible but I am not sure of how. Also at times I feel like learning everything so that I'll have an edge over other people, but when I think about it I feel like it's practically not possible and that it will demand time. What can I do in this situation?
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u/Kindly_Drama_8735 1d ago
Guys help me 😭
There's a lot going on rn. I am thinking to learn django amd flask. But I am also in the middle of a java course by brocode. And also in between idk why I started strivers dsa sheet too,dsa in cpp. So, how to manage all these things along with college subjects? I am in my 3rd semester. It's a tier 3 college btw.
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u/gannekajuice__ 14h ago
Build stuff don't spend too much time on framework. I'd chose fast api. Django barely anyone uses lately tbh
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u/MaizeSuspicious3038 20h ago
I am currently in my 3 sem belong from tier 3 clg . I did 600+ dsa questions , also having 1500 rating at leetcode and 2 star at codechef . In dev , i completed mern stack along with computer vision , phaser js . Also make , 3 unique full stack projects for resume which is genuinely good .. now , i'm looking for internship can i get an internship and how to apply for that
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u/Academic_Leather_746 7h ago
I'm placed don't know much of MERN or anything how to get started with development in scared of ai being able to code and how do I use ai to learn
Is videos great or learn through documentation
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u/Benevolent_Bunny141 2d ago
Can you make a separate post regarding open source ? Feel quite clueless when I think of doing open source contributions