Leetcode & DSA

I'm a backend engineer with 6+ YoE. I have never had interest in solving DSA problems. I started off as being very bad at it- I did understand the technical details behind various data structures and algorithms, but never had that passion about applying it to various leetcode problems. Over time, I have got better with DSA, but I still can't say I am at a great level- I still often struggle with Leetcode-medium problems. I am confident of being a decent engineer- with a nice mix of tech and soft skills and an interest in building things. I also have some aspiration of joining a Faang company (or other such top-level company); but I feel overwhelmed at how "good" it requires you to be in DSA. So, I wish to know- how good do I need to be at DSA before I can realistically apply at such companies, given my YoE. And, how may I possibly gauge how far away I still am from that "required level"?

Any DSA solvers? First time solving DSA and preparing myself to switch to better product based companies for higher package. My question is: When I solve LeetCode, I am able to understand the question, come up with initial approach too but without looking into solution or explanation I am unable to solve it completely!😢 while watching a Youtube videos I am perfectly able to understand and solve the problem but when I solve a problem alone(without any resource) or live solve in mock interviews, I am stuck.. Anyone's gone thru the same phase, how to uplift myself from here? TIA

I am a 2023 batch passout BE CSE, i worked in Newfold Digital company for 7 months in support and now I have just joined tech Mahindra as Associate Software Engineer, I want to know how should i move forward to get a 12lpa package. I have worked on backed(java) Also considering current situation of AI, I would appreciate any comments other fields such as Deep learning or ML

I just think we should skip DSA rounds for existing FAANG employees. I understand the importance of DSA rounds and is pretty much required for SDE 1 roles as their major work is to code. But for higher levels, it starts becoming less and less relevant and pointless. In most companies DSA is to understand the basics of the candidate, can they write code, explain the problem and thought process. Now most FAANG interviewers look for the same thing. Now once I have cleared one that means I have proved myself to be someone who meets the bar, doing it again is just like "Well, have you continued grinding leetcode after getting the job". You can check design competencies, problem solving in design, mentoring etc. but why ask DSA and go through that gruelling interview process. Your thoughts?

Hi, to give a little background, I started working as a data scientist in a quite well paying startup straight out of college. (CS grad from a tier-2 engineering college, NIT/IIIT) But due to having more interest in software engineering, I picked up mostly engineering work (I've mostly worked using Java, springboot, python, flask, fastAPI etc). But now after 1.5 years of experience i want to switch to swe roles, my query is, will my current role i.e. 'data scientist' be a road blocker, even if I've many engineering works to mention in my resume? And is there a way to resolve this, without switching roles internally, as the team said it takes 6-12 months to do this due to company policy, and i really don't wanna be stuck here for that amount of time anymore.

I will be using a scale of 10 for better quantification. Python : 7/10 SQL: 7/10 PowerBI: 9/10 ML(Pandas): 6/10 PLSQL: 6/10 Advanced Excel: 8/10 Azure Databricks + DataFactory : Started learning Apache Spark: Started learning Communication skills: 9/10 Prior Work Ex: 1.8yrs as a PLSQL developer (started off as a fresher) + one SAP internship of 4months + one Data analyst internship of 1 month Aspiration : Data Engineering Role 1. Is the above techstack enough to get me a good data engineering role? Will I be able to clear the technical rounds at companies like accenture, IBM etc with this profile? I have heard the barrier to entry for data engineering is higher than that of data analyst. 2. Do I need to learn DSA? 3. What salary range do I fall in with this profile? I seek your honest answer. I feel lost. Also, should I focus more on improving my cloud skills or shall I be more competent with my python skills? Which one would pay me off in a better sense financially? I certainly can not focus on all the tools at once.

As a Software Engineer with 6+ years of experience, can you guys please guide me on preparation for DSA. Consider my current knowledge about DSA 0. How should I start? Approx how much time it will take? How should I know what topics are more frequently asked at my level? Any DSA plan for 0 to hero in DSA? Apart from DSA I’m also preparing for HLD and LLD and I’d love to have recommendations from you folks about how to prepare these and where to prepare these from? Also, if I’m missing something in my prep do let me know

My company is going to fire me and i dont have enough skills to get hired. I have switched from QA to Development. But my logical skills are not upto interview level. What should i do and i have a month time?

RANT ALERT I am a Software Engineer with 2 YoE. Wherever I apply they ask for 3+ or 5+ YoE minimum. I am hardly eligible for any roles. To one recruiter I really got angry and said "What is it that you believe 3+YoE candidates can do and 2+ can't ?" I got the same old reply - "It is company's policy" . I wonder who makes them. There are some really stupid people above us. Seriously - how does an EM decide that this position requires at least 10 YoE. I bet they haven't the slightest clue and possibly tossing a coin. Or worst, they think what they were capable of doing at 10+ YoE themselves.

So i have been working for 4 years now (data engineer and scientist) and havent been enjoying much. Thinking of finally grinding and getting into better company. PLEASE suggest resources for DSA grind which are currently trending and most optimised.