I Wasn’t From CS, But I Chose to Prepare Like One

I’m Mahima, a B.Tech ECE student who wanted to build a career in software development. My placement journey was a mix of learning, self doubt, consistency, and continuous improvement.

Coming from ECE, I knew I had a lot to learn. I had to build my DSA and problem solving skills while also preparing myself for the other parts of technical interviews.

Making Sense of Difficult Problems

takeUforward played an important role in my preparation, especially in strengthening my DSA fundamentals. The structured approach and quality resources helped me understand concepts more clearly and gradually become more confident with coding problems.

Instead of simply trying to complete questions, I focused on understanding the thought process behind them and learning how to approach unfamiliar problems.

The Other Side of Interview Prep

My preparation wasn’t limited to coding. Alongside DSA, I revised important CS fundamentals and worked on projects and interview preparation.

• DBMS, OS, and Computer Networks were part of my preparation.

• I practised DSA regularly and revised concepts along the way.

• I worked on projects so I could confidently discuss my work during interviews.

• I prepared common interview questions alongside technical preparation.

This helped me feel more prepared for the different things that could come up during the placement process.

Working Through the Doubt

There were moments when I questioned whether I was preparing enough or whether I was on the right path. Rejections and difficult problems could easily make me feel underconfident.

But I learned that every setback could also show me what I needed to improve. I stopped comparing my progress with others and focused more on becoming better than where I was before.

Give Yourself Time to Learn

Start With This in Mind:

• Start early and give yourself enough time to learn.

• Stay consistent instead of trying to do everything at once.

• Focus on understanding concepts, not just completing questions.

• Don’t compare your journey with someone else’s.

• Treat rejections as feedback and keep improving.

You don’t need to have everything figured out from the beginning. What matters is continuing to move forward.

When I Finally Got My Chance

All of this eventually led to an internship opportunity at Cisco, which became a very special milestone in my journey.

Looking back, the journey was about much more than preparing for placements. It was about learning to trust myself, improving one step at a time, and continuing even when things didn’t go as planned.

I’m genuinely grateful to takeUforward and the entire community for being an important part of my preparation journey.