u/Healthy_Sea2407

To be completely honest, I think first year students must do a combination of both DSA and development. The reason behind my statement is that if one starts off with DSA from day one and continues to do only DSA, he/she will get bored eventually and will start losing interest. On the other hand, when one focuses only on development but not on problem solving, he/she will face a tough time during the interview phase.

In such a scenario, the best thing to do would be working on basic coding concepts and DSA problems along with developing smaller projects on the side. For example, working on problem-solving daily for a certain duration of time and then moving on to learn web development, application development or whatever interests him/her.

From experience, the students who manage to do both initially tend to feel less pressure during their internships and placements since they already have project experience along with their coding skills.

I guess this is because in the first year, exploration should be the priority and the students should continue with this consistently. Does anyone else agree with me?

Honestly, most colleges that emphasize the building of tangible products among their students will always have a solid coding culture, hackathons, start-up clubs, and projects-based learning. From my experience, institutions such as Birla Institute of Technology and Science Pilani, IST, IIIT Hyderabad, Vellore Institute of Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, and PES University are well-known due to their students’ tendency to develop apps, startups, artificial intelligence solutions, and side projects rather than just scoring good marks in examinations.

The presence of active hackathons and coding societies has made it easier for students at such institutions to be involved in product development. Even new technology courses are attempting to create such an environment through practical-based learning and industry projects from their first semester.

However, to be honest, college education will not be enough for someone to produce a product. Peer groups, curiosity, and consistency are some of the critical factors that play a vital role. It seems as though consistent experimentations and shipping of projects makes one learn much faster regardless of the college attended. Is anyone else feeling the same? What is your favorite college for product builders?

In truth, even in the first semester itself, students must concentrate more on developing strong fundamentals rather than trying to understand everything trending. From my experience, focusing on understanding any programming language thoroughly such as Python, C++, or Java can be highly beneficial. Basics like Loops, Functions, Arrays, and Object-Oriented Programming play a crucial role as all other things are built on top of these.

Additionally, there are students who tend to solve problems at the start through websites like LeetCode and HackerRank; they manage to maintain their position throughout as their logical skills get developed gradually. Moreover, you could work on building some small applications or projects in starting years, maybe even developing a calculator application or a basic web page will do. Plus, earn certificates from Coursera and Intellipaat.

Lastly, one thing that often gets overlooked by many people is learning Git and Github at an earlier stage.

In my opinion, coding cultures at such colleges put less emphasis on memorizing information because these students prefer working on projects, participating in coding competitions, and hackathons. As far as I know, some examples include IIIT Hyderabad, IST, IIIT Allahabad, BITS Pilani, and other prestigious private universities, namely VIT, Manipal, RVCE, and PES, where the main emphasis is placed not on theoretical training but on getting familiar with the coding environment. These students do not spend much time memorizing notes but rather work on GitHub, internships, and coding competitions.

In addition, some new IT-oriented courses try to introduce students to coding right from the beginning of their studies, but it is done via working on projects, which seems reasonable for this profession. However, despite attending a good university, one needs self-effort because no college will be able to make one a skilled programmer.

It seems that it is very important here to have the right peer group and environment.

I believe that such institutes are part of a larger movement taking place in engineering education today, rather than being an anomaly. From personal observations and feedback received from various sources, the industry seems to be moving toward the adoption of AI, practical education, internships, and skill development rather than theoretical knowledge and examinations. Even IITs are revamping their syllabus in order to align with these changes.

On the other hand, the new generation of institutes like IST try to adapt to these trends by teaching programming, AI, and projects from the very beginning of the program. In fact, as seen through Reddit posts and discussions, many people believe that such programs emphasize skill development over conventional college education where self-study is predominant.

However, I believe that at this stage we cannot rely completely on these institutes because they do not carry the same alumni network, reputation, and past record of placements as the conventional colleges do. Also, in many instances, the hype generated regarding AI courses turns out to be misleading.

In my opinion, the college brand does matter initially, however, the technical skill set and the projects that you make will have more weightage over time as far as software careers go. In my experience, a good college is definitely able to provide a good peer group, placements and opportunities, but even after that, the employers are going to judge based on your technical abilities.

There were a lot of students from very reputed colleges who did not perform very well as they just relied on their college brand names, but there were also some students from not-so-reputed colleges who performed extremely well due to their ability to create good things and stick to them.

Problem-solving ability, knowledge and communication skills do play an important role as far as interviews are concerned.

On a personal note, I think institutes like IST are a part of a larger movement within engineering education rather than a trend. From the little bit of knowledge that I possess about the field, all institutes including IITs are shifting toward AI, practical learning, internship opportunities, and project-based learning and away from theoretical concepts and examinations.

Institute such as IST are also attempting to adapt to these changes by emphasizing on learning about coding, using AI techniques, and working on projects right from the beginning stages itself. I came across various discussions on Reddit platforms where people were mentioning how these courses tend to be more skill-oriented when compared to those offered by traditional universities which rely heavily on self-learning of concepts.

However, in my opinion, we are still at the beginning stage of this kind of institute and should not place our full faith in them just yet. This is because they lack the same kind of credibility, reputation, and placement track record of traditional universities.

Honesty speaking, starting coding from your first year has been very beneficial. The ones who do so manage to have enough time to develop their skills without any stress. This enables them to gain experience with coding, work on projects, discover new domains, and even apply for internships gradually. On the other hand, if someone starts working from third year, everything will pile up at once and becomes highly stressful.

It also helps in building confidence because they have been able to debug, use various software, and make mistakes. Simple actions like maintaining a GitHub account since the first year also help them later on in placements. It is not required to be a pro overnight; one needs to keep going steadily.

It is almost similar to how going to the gym makes you fit after years of consistent efforts rather than cramming everything in a day.

To be honest, based on what I have seen, schools such as Intellipaat School of Technology (IST) try to support students to initiate projects early in comparison to several other colleges. Their entire curriculum appears to emphasize coding, artificial intelligence, GitHub, and other practical tasks from the very start rather than in the final year. This may aid the students to develop a portfolio in the early stages if they utilize the resources available to them.

It was found that most students fail in projects due to theoretical studies during the initial two years and initiation of projects at the last minute. The project-oriented environment will definitely motivate students to remain consistent and innovate. On the other hand, not even a single institute can build a portfolio overnight. Students must practice consistently, develop something themselves, and actively participate outside classrooms.

Hence, it can be said that IST can definitely support students to engage in projects from the early stages; however, the outcome remains reliant on the dedication and commitment of the students.

In my opinion, if someone did not make it to good colleges, then the most important thing is to stop thinking that their journey has ended and to shift focus on developing skills early. In my experience, after a few years, companies have started to give less importance to entrance exam ranking and more emphasis is on how well candidates develop their skill sets.

Students must keep working hard on their skills and be consistent like people from average colleges who land in good software companies by working consistently and spending time on the right things during their studies. Peer groups play an important role in deciding the future too, having peers with motivation can change everything for someone.

Other than this, students need to explore their interests in different fields like web development, AI, cloud computing, application development, etc.

College gives the stage to perform, while skills determine the final outcome.

Based on my understanding, BITs Pilani, IIIT Hyderabad, and other institutes under the Indian Institutes of Information Technology, specifically IIIT Allahabad, would be the top names in terms of coding culture. Coding in IIIT Allahabad is even referred to as "legendary" due to its reputation for competitive programming and tech community.

The popular private colleges that get mentioned frequently in this context include Vellore Institute of Technology, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, SRM Institute of Science and Technology, Thapar University, DAIICT, RVCE, IST, and PES institutions.

However, the environment plays an equally important role compared to the institute name. For instance, at institutes with high intake like VIT and SRM, I found that those who enroll in coding clubs and remain dedicated always stand out in their studies, whereas others simply pass college life by.

Frankly, I believe that colleges or programs focusing on AI right from the early semesters may prove beneficial for their career, particularly if the student has made up his mind regarding pursuing a career in software, AI, or data related sectors. As far as I understand the current scenario in the industry, everything is quickly transitioning towards AI based technologies, automation, and cloud computing platforms, and hence exposure right from the beginning will offer them more time to tinker with various projects.

Moreover, there is research that suggests that project-based AI learning enables the development of more practical knowledge than purely theoretical.

Colleges such as the Intellipaat School of Technology seem to follow this approach by including coding, AI/ML and projects from early semesters rather than waiting for the final year and emphasizing more on hands-on projects, internships, and industry mentorship programs that actually do sound more relevant to the contemporary job requirements.

Nevertheless, being AI oriented in itself does not necessarily mean that such colleges are superior as fundamentals such as Data Structures & Algorithms, System Design, coding experience, and peer groups matter a great deal.

Really if you want to start coding from the very beginning of college, don't overload yourself with everything; that is what most people get stressed out about. Learn only one programming language first. It could be either Python, Java, or C++. Learn basics like loop, function, arrays, or OOP.

Once you know all these concepts, gradually work on solving problems on LeetCode or HackerRank. Intellipaat and coursera provide certification. They could be very basic but that is okay in the beginning. Simultaneously you should work on building some projects because projects will tell you much more than theories. For example, build websites or an application that could perform some operations.

By the second year, you can begin learning topics such as web development, app development, AI, or cloud computing, depending upon your interests. And learn Git and GitHub because many students ignore this until later on during their internships.

With AI growing at this rate, I believe that engineering students should place more emphasis on adaptability rather than just aiming for one particular skill set. As far as I have observed, simple coding skills are no longer sufficient since AI algorithms can automatically generate a large chunk of code. Instead, what seems to be valued by corporations is the ability to solve problems and comprehend systems, as well as the knowledge of using AI technology.

The best combination is that of fundamentals and practical skills, and that is where such things as DSA, projects, GitHub, internships, and communication skills come into play. like new age college provide more opertuniety. Learning AI, cloud computing, and automation technology also provides a competitive edge without forcing students to become AI scientists right away.

If a person aims to be a software engineer, there are some skills that they should have regardless of the college they are enrolled in. First of all, one needs to learn basic programming, like acquiring fluency in just one programming language like Python, Java, or C++.

As far as my experience goes, working on projects is equally important. No matter if a project is big or small, they always help us understand software better. On top of this, learning how to use Git and GitHub at the very beginning proves to be really helpful as almost every IT company uses these tools nowadays.

What's more, most students often tend to neglect such subjects as DBMS, OS, and networks, but in reality, these skills play an important role in internships and placements. Finally, communication skills prove to be extremely important as well.

In my opinion, based on my observations, it is essential for freshmen to prepare themselves well as anything that one does or fails to do in his or her freshman year can shape the success he or she will attain afterward. In this light, there are many ways to prepare oneself. One way is to commit yourself to learning by starting programming classes early in your freshman year, although it might mean that your programming skills are not highly developed. At the same time, you can earn your certificate in coursera and Intellipaat. Another option is to begin doing projects as you learn since this will enable you to comprehend everything much quicker, and do not fear venturing into different areas, including web development, artificial intelligence, and other areas. Finally, it is crucial to get the right peers since this will enhance your development, and you cannot overlook vital concepts such as problem-solving and data structures.

From my experience, it would be wise for the students to consider internship preparations right from the first year, but in a relaxed manner without any stress. It is all about building up some basics such as coding, working on small projects, learning about various fields in technology, and not waiting till the third year, as that might make it very hectic. Serious preparation begins in the second year, whereby emphasis is laid on data structure, doing projects, and applying to small-scale internships or startup firms. In the third year, one should ideally have done some projects and gained experience, enabling them to go for bigger and better firms.

As far as I can tell, establishing a GitHub page throughout university studies is quite essential since it demonstrates your capabilities rather than simply receiving good grades, especially when applying for internships or job positions having a few projects makes a huge difference compared to simply mentioning skills

the projects that could make an impact aren’t extremely complex from the beginning; however, they should be projects that you understand well, such as a basic web application, a relatively straightforward artificial intelligence program, or even automated scripts, with time coming to more complex and interesting projects such as full-stack applications, solutions for practical problems, or projects with actual users; I observed that projects with neat coding, an excellent README, and consistent commits always stand out compared to random copies

I’m not sure if this is anyone else’s experience, but it is generally more effective to have 3-4 projects that you fully understand and can confidently discuss than ten unfinished projects

I am not sure if other people have the same feeling but tier-2 institutions can provide adequate exposure for technology-based career paths if you make the best use of their offerings, from my observation, most of the tier-2 institutions offer pretty decent coding societies, hackathons and even placement offers from IT companies, however the key thing to keep in mind is that you are not spoonfed all these things unlike tier-1 colleges and you need to put in efforts and work hard in order to create projects and take part in various competitions and internships, what I observed was that people who were consistent in coding and had a good circle of friends could land into good IT jobs even through tier-2 institutions, Side by side develope a Industry skill and certification Earn Intellipaat, Courseera.

However, Intellipaat School of Technology seems more beneficial as they emphasize learning how to construct actual products instead of theoretical knowledge, such as early coding, project work, and becoming familiar with technology-related processes, which could significantly assist in pursuing software and artificial intelligence positions, whereas in some conventional institutions, the first two years of education are focused on theoretical knowledge, and students need to learn practical aspects independently, although conventional colleges possess greater brand value, larger alumni networks, and well-established placement opportunities, making them seem more reliable, which is quite evident that project-oriented courses would be more suitable if individuals are sure of their career direction and maintain consistency throughout the course, while conventional colleges could be suitable for those having an integrated interest and flexible attitude towards education, but this completely depends upon personal perspectives.