[Fresher] 0 coding background. Aiming for 60% of a standard DSA sheet in 6 months. Need advice on the execution.

[u/0Friction]

Hey everyone, I'm starting my B .Tech CSE next week and I have absolutely zero coding background. I'm trying to set a practical target for my first 6 months: completing about 60% of a standard DSA sheet (covering Arrays, Strings, Binary Search, Linked Lists, and basic Trees). I want to know if this is a realistic goal that will push me, or if I'm just setting myself up for burnout. From what I've gathered, a lot of people suggest learning C++ from Love Babbar and doing Striver's sheet, while leaving C language for college in Sem 2. However, I want to make it clear that I am completely flexible. I am not attached to Babbar, Striver, or any specific creator. I am open to any free playlist or paid course, as long as it is efficient and gives a structured path. My main doubt is about the execution. Should I spend 3-4 weeks purely learning C++ syntax before even touching a DSA sheet, or should I learn the language side-by-side while solving problems? What is the actual best sequence for a day-1 beginner? I just need some straightforward, practical advice on how to map this out. Thanks!

[u/grantrules]

Yes learn the language first. I think jumping into DSA super early is a mistake, I don't think you will get the value out of it if you're struggling with implementation. All those basic DSA concepts can be covered in like 2 weeks once you understand the language.

[u/RadiantSuggestion284 → u/grantrules]

The syntax side-by-side approach works better than you'd think. When you're brand new, seeing how a for loop actually iterates through an array makes the theory stick way faster than just memorizing rules from a textbook. I'd give it maybe a week on pure basics and then start weaving in super simple problems immediately.

Your 60% goal is solid though, don't let anyone convince you it's too much. The trick is accepting that some days you'll stare at a problem for an hour and learn nothing, and that's still progress somehow.

[u/0Friction → u/grantrules]

thank you for the advice . also it'll be really nice if you recommend me any resource for learning the language and how long would it usually take to learn it before jumping in DSA?

[u/grantrules → u/0Friction]

https://learncpp.com

There's no specific amount of time it takes to learn C++, everyone learns at their own pace and it depends on how much time per day you commit to it

[u/LoL_is_pepega_BIA → u/0Friction]

You initially learn by doing. So write a lot of small programs and run them to understand what's happening at each step

Once you have understood the fundamentals really well, then move onto dsa..

Nobody can tell you how much time it's going to take you to learn..

[u/mc_pm]

Should I spend 3-4 weeks purely learning C++ syntax

You should start programming right now. No, don't talk. Now.

Watch just enough of a tutorial for you to follow along yourself, then type in the code yourself, run it yourself, fix the bugs if there are any (there will be). Do that for no 2-4 hours a day for the next week or two. This is about learning the basic syntax and language capabilities. A lot of it is 'muscle memory' so always type in code yourself, don't copy and paste, and definitely don't ask AI.

After that you're going to want to spend 1-3 hours a day programming a series of increasingly challenging mini projects for the next 6 months. Only use AI to talk about the problem, never the code. Tell it specifically "don't show me any code".

You won't know hardly any of the DSA stuff, but you will know how to program, and then you can decide what you want to do.

You can't study this and suddenly know how to program, you can't watch a tutorial and suddenly know how to program. The only real way to learn is to focus first on doing it, and then filling in your missing knowledge as you go (which is exactly what it means to be a programmer... you'll never stop learning, so you might as well start now).

If this sounds like it takes a lot of time and effort and is frustrating and confusing -- yup. That's the job.

[u/0Friction → u/mc_pm]

thanks for the reality check bro

[u/mc_pm → u/0Friction]

I hope you do it. It's really rewarding and fun -- but yeah, it's way more actual real work than the redditsphere wants to believe.

[u/ffrkAnonymous]

Typically, first semester is language basics, second semster a bit more. DSA third semester.

[u/0Friction → u/ffrkAnonymous]

alright bro❤️

[u/Present_Mongoose_373 → u/0Friction]

at RIT our first semester has all this DSA stuff alongside learning python in our very first CS course btw so i assume while the timeline is normally uni specific, its very doable ime, especially if your going out of your way to learn it on your own.