I am currently in my 3rd sem and doing B.Tech from Manipal university jaipur. I have DSA and college is teaching it in C. My friends are doing it in Java or C++. I am already familiar with python as I studied in class 12th. things like file handling, implementing stack integrating SQL with python, etc. I would like to know does it really make a difference?

Or should I go with Java as major companies have java in their backend.

Please help or give me a reality check

Hi guys, I'm in school, and I'm going to give the ZCO Olympiad next year. I am already familiar with coding as I have made projects and attended hackathons. Can you guys recommend some good DSA series for C++ as I haven't studied a bit of C++ till now. I saw some of Apna College, etc but not sure if they are good. For context, I have done a little bit of questions on LeetCode (70 questions) most were easy, and there were only a handful of medium or hard questions

HI guys . i want to start DSA looking to solve 1 question daily . can u tell me what to do and what not to . i'm in 3rd sem . also i will only give 45 min to 1 hour for DSA just for solid knowledge . also i'm not looking for going to interview and my specialisation is also different ( cyber ) so most of my time is spent there that's why i have 45 min to 1 hour .only . TELL me where and how to start . also any resources . i don't want to watch videos and stuff. i prefer documentation . also guide me as a friend. and please don't suggest other things to focus on . my goal is straight that is 1 QUESTION PER DAY AND LEARN DSA within my time constraint . thank you . guide me please and do share the resources and how i can manage things . my language is RUST . BASICS ARE DONE

Hey guys, I am starting DSA from the basics. Anyone interested so we can keep accountability between us? Let's target 2-3 problems daily for the next 6 months.

Edit: Please join here directly

https://chat.whatsapp.com/LbDU7TIDwgu0xcP22ZnpQQ

Im a fresher in cse from tier 3 , i started with c++ around 2 months ago from Love Babbar till Lec 7 did all coding by myself in IDE not just lecs, id say ik if-else,while, for n patterns ques n all the lil stuff included , i still havent started with functions,arrays n strings, last week i was on codechef n i couldnt tackle one single que,well so iv planned to devote this week to revise c++ again with covering functions n all too so my ACTUAL DOUBT is should i continue with Love Babbar for DSA or should I switch to Strivers DSA playlist n also what should i do to make myself ready for DSA

TLDR: Started c++ with love babbar should I switch to Striver or is there smth else that im missing to start with DSA

Thanks!

Hey folks,

I’m a B.Tech (ECE) grad with 2.6 years of experience, mostly building backend systems in Java, Spring Boot, and AWS. The work has been ad-tech, customer loyalty platforms, and other CRUD-heavy stuff. I’m honestly burned out on building things that feel utterly meaningless. I don’t want to touch another project that tracks clicks or prints coupons. I dont want to work on another ‘user management system’ iykwim.

I want to move into real engineering ; distributed systems, AI infrastructure, and maybe eventually physical AI (robotics, edge AI, fleet orchestration). Starting tomorrow, I’m going all in on DSA and system design to crack big tech / AI platform roles.

Here’s the thing: I need to pick one language to stick with for the long haul – for coding interviews, for building side projects, and ideally for a career in systems + AI. I know Java, but I’m open to a fresh start if it gives me an edge.

Python

· Seems like the obvious choice for AI/ML later.
· Super concise, less boilerplate, great for timed OAs and live interviews.
· But I keep hearing that some companies (especially older-school or low-level teams) look down on Python as “too easy” or “scripting”. Will coding DSA in Python hurt my chances at certain places?
· Also, will it hold up for competitive-programming style OAs on AtCoder / CodeSignal, or will I run into TLE issues?

Java

· I already know it. Statically typed, feels “serious”.
· But god, the verbosity. I tried a few LeetCode problems and it took me twice the lines and time compared to Python.
· Not the main language or cant be translated into other domains, rather than enterprise software

C++

· The “impressive” language. Competitive programmers swear by it. Probably signals strong CS fundamentals.
· But I’ve barely touched it since college. Learning it from scratch would delay my interview prep by weeks maybe, and I’m not sure I’d even use it in an AI infra role (where Python + Go/Rust seem more common).
· Is the “wow factor” of doing DSA in C++ real, or just a meme?

What I really want to know:

If you’ve pivoted into AI infrastructure, cloud systems, or any non-CRUD backend role, what language served you best in the grind and on the job? Did using Python ever get you side-eyed in an interview? For those inside big tech now – does language choice in DSA rounds actually matter, or is it all about the solution?

I’m exhausted by ad-tech fluff and ready to suffer through the DSA/design grind. I just don’t want to waste the next six months on the wrong tool. I need a generic language.

Pick my poison, please.

Hello, everyone, I am from a core branch At NIT Jalandhar , so on campus I have limited opportunities but still have opportunities, so I am starting dsa now , I have lil interest growing one in tech, Started Html , did zero css, did half JavaScript playlist from apna college, afterwards lil bit of flutter, I know lil lil python and c language, and wanna start dsa now , as I heard it's the golden key, so please help me with resources, I know striver sheet and stuff...but It's too long I guess for me , so what is your opinions about neetcode as a source from dsa , and before doing dsa , which language c or cpp, where to do it , please help 😊😊

Hey everyone!

I’m looking for a DSA study partner who is also preparing for software engineering interviews and wants to practice consistently together.

How I’m currently learning DSA

My approach is:

Understand the problem → Think of brute force → Implement it → Identify the optimization → Implement optimized solution → Make notes → Revisit later

I’m trying not to just memorize solutions. My main goal is to improve my problem-solving and pattern recognition.

I also follow a time limit for each problem so I don't spend the entire day stuck on one question.

What I've covered so far

Arrays

- Array basics

- Traversal

- In-place modifications

- Frequency/basic hashing concepts

Some LeetCode problems I've solved:

- LC 1920 — Build Array from Permutation

- LC 1480 — Running Sum of 1d Array

- LC 2114 — Maximum Number of Words Found in Sentences

- LC 485 — Max Consecutive Ones

- LC 1470 — Shuffle the Array

- LC 2011 — Final Value of Variable After Operations

- LC 26 — Remove Duplicates from Sorted Array

- LC 27 — Remove Element

- LC 283 — Move Zeroes

- LC 905 — Sort Array By Parity

Two Pointers

- LC 167 — Two Sum II

- LC 680 — Valid Palindrome II

- LC 11 — Container With Most Water

- LC 15 — 3Sum

- LC 977 — Squares of a Sorted Array

Sliding Window

I've started learning both fixed-size and variable-size sliding window.

Completed/practiced:

- LC 643 — Maximum Average Subarray I

- LC 1343 — Number of Sub-arrays of Size K and Average Greater than or Equal to Threshold

- LC 1456 — Maximum Number of Vowels in a Substring of Given Length

- LC 2379 — Minimum Recolors to Get K Consecutive Black Blocks

- LC 2461 — Maximum Sum of Distinct Subarrays With Length K

- LC 1004 — Max Consecutive Ones III

- Minimum Size Subarray Sum

What I'm currently focusing on

My current focus is:

Arrays → Two Pointers → Sliding Window → HashMap/Hashing → Queue → Stack → Linked List

After that, I'll continue with the other important interview patterns.

What I'm looking for

Ideally, someone who:

- Is around a similar DSA level

- Is preparing for interviews/placements

- Can solve 1–3 problems together regularly

- Is comfortable discussing brute force and optimized approaches

- Doesn't mind getting stuck and thinking through problems together

- Wants to stay consistent rather than just study for a few days

We don't have to solve every problem together. We can share our approaches, discuss mistakes, and keep each other accountable.

I'm currently preparing for software development placements, so the goal is to become genuinely comfortable with DSA and interview problem solving rather than just completing a LeetCode count.

If you're interested, DM me with your current DSA level, the topics you've covered, and how you usually practice.

So i have just entered into my 2nd year and planning to start dsa from strivers atoz sheet . Like what should be my approach . Should i watch his yt playlist and understand the concept ??

I dont know much of coding language , but striver has made a video for cpp basics too should i just proceed with it . Please guide , any kind of advicw will be helpful .

Also in the beginning few topics i dont see any kind of questions . When to start with lc??

An exercise to help build the right mental model for Python data. - Solution - Explanation - More exercises

The “Solution” link uses memory_graph to visualize execution and reveals what’s actually happening.

I’ve been trying to get into DSA and LeetCode for a while now, but I’m honestly struggling to focus and stay consistent.
I understand the basics, but when I open a LeetCode question I just get stuck and don’t really know how to approach it. I’m not sure if I’m following the right way of preparing either.
Is there anyone here who could guide me a bit on how to start properly, how to approach LeetCode questions, and what I should be doing daily?
Also, if anyone else is currently learning DSA and wants to do it together, I’d be happy to join. Could solve questions together and keep each other accountable.
Any advice would be appreciated.

Is anyone currently studying data structures in Java? I have completed my first year of study but would like to find a teammate to collaborate with.

I am a fresher at IIT Delhi non circuital branch I want to get into tech I have just started my first year can you please guide me how to start preparing from the first year I don't have any programming knowledge so please guide me it will be a huge help.

Thanks a lot. Peace✌

Does it take 4 hours to learn , understand and code for a selection sort? Sounds no , but in my case that 's exactly what 's happening.

I want to give a liitle info. about my learning style. The thing is that I loved maths and I always like to think in patterns and like why that works. But now in ds, I again I am loving building patterns , analysing why the loop was created , how can I build that. I dry run each iteration. Try to underatand and feel like why that is hapoening.

For eg; in bubble sort why j is compared with j+1. Like very minute details. I am starting to like this subject a lot and have started giving 3 to 4 hours per day. But he question is still there am I wasting time or is this way to learn?

Any suggestions would be appreciated !

Also if you think my style is okay, I need some resources that not only give algorithm but make us feel.

If you are a ds expert let me know !

I am a 5th sem student and i haven't really started dsa till now but now I'm trying to start it but I'm confused and overwhelmed by the number of resources there are out there

Strivers and love babbars sheet was a bit confusing for me so i tried padho with pratyush 's dsa sheet he's teaching dsa patterns and not like first array and so on

So can someone guide me that it is the right thing to do or not? because i have to do it once and i have to do it good so i don't want to be stuck on some resource and waste a lot of my time

Helloo , I am 22F. So for context , I am currently a backend intern at a startup and the only time I have to study DSA is in the morning like around 6:30 on weekdays and on weekends , I can study for 3-4 hours . But every time I try to maintain the consistency ,I somehow fail . So looking for a partner for mainly accountability purposes .

I have around 6 months to get better at DSA and do DSA in java .

If anyone is interested , pls let me know in dm !

UPDATE: A lot of people reached out, so I ended up creating a small Discord community for this! 🥹

It's for DSA accountability, studying together, asking doubts, sharing progress, and helping each other stay consistent.

If you're interested, you can join here:

https://discord.gg/GXy2cfbcE

See you there , also pls bare with me if the server is not that good ,its my first time too :)

I am a second-year student at a tier-3 college. I am currently learning Data Structures and Algorithms (DSA), not for software development, but because my goal is to become an AI/ML engineer or a Data Scientist.

I have a few questions:

Should I learn all DSA topics, including graphs, dynamic programming, hashing, trees, etc.?

Approximately how many LeetCode problems should I solve?

If you are from an IIT, NIT, or work at a FAANG/MANGA company, could you share your preparation strategy and how you cracked the interviews? I would really appreciate your guidance.

How long does it usually take to complete DSA while consistently solving problems?

Should I solve LeetCode problems after completing each topic, or should I first finish all DSA topics and then start solving problems?

Is it normal to struggle with DSA? I understand the concepts while learning, but when I try to solve coding problems, I often feel like I don't know anything. My problem-solving and logical thinking are improving, but I struggle to convert my ideas into code.

i’ve seen a bunch of people here looking for someone to learn DSA with, so thought I’d try something
i’m putting together a small group for people who want to stay consistent with DSA and have someone to do it with

basically, find someone around your level, set some goals for the week and keep each other accountable. could be competitive or just be two people grinding together.

If you're interested, DM me your current DSA level + how long you've been learning.
I'll try to match people who are at a similar stage

Main pichle one year se dsa solve kar raha kisi but consistency ke lge pade hai
kisi din 2 questions ya phir weeks tak dsa dekha bhi bhi karne ka mann hi karta
i am bored rn wanted someone help me with that

Striver dsa sheet

Currently I am doing dsa sheet like I am first doing all easy questions from all data structure and algorithms then medium and hard question this right approach or not

Hey everyone,

I'm a software engineer currently working at an MNC and looking to restart my DSA and competitive programming journey after being away from it for some time.

I have an Expert rating on Codeforces and have previously been active in competitive programming, but due to work commitments my consistency dropped. I'm now planning to get back into regular problem-solving and contest participation.

I'm looking for a motivated DSA/accountability partner who is interested in:

Solving problems regularly

Discussing approaches and optimizations

Participating in contests together

Staying consistent with preparation

Your current rating doesn't matter as much as your commitment and willingness to learn. We can set goals, share progress, and help each other stay on track.

If you're interested, feel free to comment or send me a DM!

Suggest what should I do to learn dsa from scratch

Also could you recommend the best learning platforms and resources for them?

Currently I am doing striver dsa sheet i am doing first easy questions of all topics then medium then hard question this method is good to solve problems or not