Hey y'all! Is it worth making timed coding contests a weekly or every-other-week habit when you're still new to algorithm practice?

I'm not new to coding, but I haven't spent much time on this kind of problem-solving, and I'm not comfortable working under a timer yet.

Would you start participating anyway, or work through guided quests or a study plan first? I'm worried that repeatedly getting stuck during contests could discourage me before I've built a consistent habit.

If you started from a similar place, what helped you improve without losing motivation?

I started learning DSA and enrolled in the Namaste DSA course because I saw many people appreciating it and sharing positive feedback about it.

However, after spending around two months learning DSA, I feel like I haven’t made much progress. When I watch Akshay solve problems in the course, I can understand his explanations, but when I try to solve the same questions on my own later, I struggle to solve them or even remember the approach.

This is making me question whether I’m learning the right way or making some mistakes in my preparation.

For those who have completed the course or are currently learning DSA: Did you face the same issue when you started?

How did you practice so that you could solve problems independently instead of just understanding the instructor’s solution?

Should I keep revisiting the same questions, or should I change my learning approach?

I’d really appreciate any advice or suggestions from people who have gone through a similar experience. I want to understand where I’m going wrong and how I can improve.

I keep getting stuck on matrix, tree, and graph problems, even after spending time practicing. Matrix problems are especially difficult for me.

I can solve basic tree problems and problems I've solved before, but I struggle when I face something new.

What would you recommend practicing first? Is there a good progression from basic tree problems to matrix and graph problems that could help me build understanding instead of relying on having seen the problem before?

I am looking for people who is interested in discussing a new system design problem every alternate day and mock interviews on weekends.

We can discuss project ideas, topics, coding questions, hackathons anything. Just a valid active group ! No quitters!

Discord link in the comments.

Like i already did leetcode and while solving questions i really miss a companion so i wanna have a partner who will be like also solving questions with me

Like basically same questions

So that we can be in the same pace

And not like too much just doing dsa

As i dont want someone who is just dsa dsa

I want someone who does leetcode like maybe 1 or 2 problem daily & maybe post on LinkedIn for daily updates

But also like learn skills and other things

Somethings that i will prefer more

And also like we can be frnds like not only studies but like most of the time only studies actually so that we cant diverse ourselves from distractions and other things

I’m based in London and looking for one committed study partner to work towards data science or ML job applications over the next three months.

My focus is data science, machine learning, neural networks, and DSA, then computer vision, transformers, and RAG as we progress. We’ll prioritise topics based on our gaps and build projects alongside interview preparation.

I’m aiming for 10+ hours on days I’m free, around university and work. I want someone equally ambitious who will show up consistently, challenge my thinking, and expect the same from me.

The plan:

• Daily goals and honest progress updates.
• Daily discussions about problems, bugs, and concepts we’re stuck on.
• Code reviews, problem-solving sessions, and weekly project demos.
• Job applications and interview practice throughout.

London would be ideal for occasional meetups, but other countries are welcome if our schedules overlap.

If interested, DM me your current level, time zone, availability, and target role. Let’s agree on a realistic schedule and get started.

I've learnt both of these languages in earlier semesters and felt comfortable, but for DSA, i can't decide what to choose...

Suggest some resources to learn graphs.

Hi! I (27F) and my friend (23M) are looking to connect with people who are interested in practising mock interviews together.

We’ve been practising for the past month, focusing on DSA, problem-solving, and technical interview preparation. We’d love to connect with people who have industry work experience and can guide us with their insights, interview experiences, and tips on how to approach real-world technical interviews.

If you’re also preparing for interviews or have experience in the industry and would be willing to help us improve, we’d love to connect! We’re also happy to practise together and help each other grow.

Feel free to comment your discord.

I’ve started a Discord group for people learning AI, machine learning, Python, and DSA. We’re sharing daily progress and planning one weekly session to work through problems and review what we’re building.

Our first challenge: each person brings one real problem they’d like to solve. Together, we’ll question the ideas, choose one, and build a working prototype—sharing the mistakes and results along the way.

If you want to learn, contribute, and build with others, comment or DM me for an invite.

What’s one problem you’d bring to the group?

I'm a CSE student in India, and I want to understand the realistic salary expectations for someone who has mastered DSA and System Design.

Looking for partner to join my coding journey, will start and end everything from scratch one last time using java the tougher way and once fundamentals done leetcode easy to hard, I need a consistent partner to code along with me. M if anyone interested to join commit atleast 2 hrs everyday until we finish all the patterns thoroughly

Hi Me(28F) and my Friend(23M) are working towards a ML research paper and decided few topics

If anyone has suggestions or wants to join let us know.

I wanted to ask all my seniors who made DSA notes: first, did it help you? I am currently learning C++ from YouTube and practicing in VS Code, but I have a doubt regarding notes. I have watched some YouTube videos on how to make them, but I am getting a bit confused. I want to make handwritten notes. In one video, I saw that you should divide your notebook into different sections — one for arrays, another for the next topic, and so on — so that it is easy to revise later. However, I am confused about how much space to allocate to each topic, since I literally don't know anything about DSA yet. Please guide me. I really want to learn DSA and will give my 100% — I just need good guidance. By the way, I am currently watching the DSA series by Apna College. Till now I have only done the basics. (functions, if else, variable, etc.)

Lost job around may 4th 2026. I don't know but I lost my path. All I know is react native only.

Guide me to get a job or freelancing project to earn money and get into the right track.

I'm so lost. 27f

Help me with career advice.

Please 😭

I wanted to ask all my seniors who made DSA notes: first, did it help you? I am currently learning C++ from YouTube and practicing in VS Code, but I have a doubt regarding notes. I have watched some YouTube videos on how to make them, but I am getting a bit confused. I want to make handwritten notes. In one video, I saw that you should divide your notebook into different sections — one for arrays, another for the next topic, and so on — so that it is easy to revise later. However, I am confused about how much space to allocate to each topic, since I literally don't know anything about DSA yet. Please guide me. I really want to learn DSA and will give my 100% — I just need good guidance. By the way, I am currently watching the DSA series by Apna College. Till now I have only done the basics. (functions, if else, variable, etc.)

I am a 3rd year btech studying i am solving dsa for a while but i forget a problem i Solved myself.Mostly i don’t know how to revise dsa .how do you guys revise should i make small notes for the problems i solve and revise it or should I revise by concepts? What should i do?

Hello..

I am a bca graduate with not much programming knowledge neither skills...

I am thinking to start dsa , but confused to choose language..

Many suggestions told java would be better...but I am thinking to go with python as I am also joining an ai/ml online course...

So it would be helpful for both..

Any suggestions...whether should I go with java or python??

Like i am starting rn from today leetcode and solving questions so i wanna have a partner who will be like also solving questions with me

Like basically same questions

So that we can be in the same pace

And not like too much just doing dsa

As i dont want someone who is just dsa dsa

I want someone who does leetcode like maybe 1 or 2 problem daily

But also like learn skills and other things

Somethings that i will prefer more

Ready to do vc sometimes or like in calls so that we can discuss

Nightowl

And also like we can be frnds like not only studies but like most of the time only studies actually so that we cant diverse ourselves from distractions and other things

I'm very happy at this moment as I have completed 100 problems in leetcode but need to be consistent.

I am a BTech 1st year student and I wants to do DSA in C++. I tried striver but that's didn't work for me. But still I will do striver sheet by learning from other lectures.

Suggest some Non-slop/Non-hype genuine pieces of gem which you think are atleast partly responsible for your growth on DSA/CP.

Currently in 1st year, I have completed basic c++, all the loops and c style arrays and stuff like that, now I'm confused how to proceed, I open up a leetcode problem and there is time and memory and all that stuff and I don't know how to deal with it, there is also the weird thing of class stuff that should be at the beginning of each question, I don't know where to learn all of this.

Can someone suggest where to learn all of this, because I couldn't find a proper series that teaches all of this. Also tell me what things I should learn before I start doing leetcode, I have already started learning STL, is there anything else I should learn?

I run Logic Over Syntax, a YouTube channel where I teach Data Structures and Algorithms (DSA) in Telugu, helping students understand problem-solving logic instead of just memorizing code.

We've already reached 20,000+ watch hours, and my goal is to make coding education more accessible to Telugu-speaking students.

Channel Link:

https://youtube.com/@logicoversyntax