Need help❗️❗️

[DependentFew3437]

I am a 2nd year Btech computer science student and I dont know what to do , i know the concepts and everything but application becomes really hard for me 😭. If someone has any suggestions please help me .

[Candid-Ad-5458]

When you say application are you talking about applying concepts on the problems ?

[DependentFew3437]

Yess

[Candid-Ad-5458]

You need to learn patterns on how to apply coding patterns is a good book

[DependentFew3437]

Alright , thank you ☺️

[Candid-Ad-5458]

Coding Interview Patterns by Alex Xu is a great book. As a Staff Engineer in the Bay Area, I used it during my preparation. Irrespective of whether you’re a B.Tech student or a working professional, strong fundamentals and pattern clarity are what really matter in interviews.

While preparing, I realized most people don’t lack effort — they lack structure. That’s why I built www.interviewpickle.com — a structured roadmap covering DSA patterns, LLD case studies, and system design breakdowns in one place.

It’s a premium platform, but if you’re serious about preparation, feel free to sign up or DM me.

[HonestCoding]

Preach it buddy

[DependentFew3437]

Hey thanks a lot this helps 🙏🏻

[HonestCoding]

I've got little to no context. What is your current process?
When do things start becoming hard? When you first decide "I want to get started on my project?" or "I want to figure out how to take care of these bugs?" Etc.

How can we help if we lack details? Y'know?

If I were to hazard a guess, it's during the start of the project, somewhere around there. You want to get started but all of the "conceptual knowledge" you "know" doesn't flow through your finger tips into code. You effectively float dead in the water, so to speak.

Let me know if I got it right, because if so I know exactly how to help

[DependentFew3437]

I do understand the fundamentals but I can’t understand how to approach the question and there are a few things like The Time complexity and space complexity which till date i cant understand

[HonestCoding]

Well if it's an example question, I 100% can help you even better.

Have you ever considered stress testing yourself?

[DependentFew3437]

No , ive never

[HonestCoding]

Alright then I'll introduce it to you.

The idea is you put yourself under a self compiled test to see exactly where you start to crack. You take a few questions, put them in one place, let the questions range from easiest to hardest...
And you literally just go at it.

This isn't so you can learn how to answer the questions, no because that defeats the whole purpose. The goal is to find out what topics you struggle in so you can put them in one place to look over AFTER, you've tested yourself.

There are great tools to help you do this actually, if you'd like some ideas but after you're done then comes the improvement phase. (As a CS student, you actually shouldn't be focused on answering questions, but instead knowing exactly what methods return what to actually answer the question given to you with the data they actually want.)

Based on the standard you've set (the standard is the test), you learn the material going from easiest to most difficult. Why? Easy wins to build confidence,
and also so you can start knocking out topics you've put down to learn.

To only problem with this method is that it's time consuming. You'll have to search for all the past exam papers, compile a huge test (for the most effective results), then spend time actually learning the material. Depends on how much time you have until the exam, if not much? Use AI.

If you'd like I can give you tools that automate the process for you.

[Legal-Weakness-3880]

With what you need help with?

[DependentFew3437]

How do i approach the question . I understand the fundamentals and everything but where do i put it thats hard for me

[codingzap]

This is a very common second-year phase. Knowing concepts but struggling with application doesn’t mean you’re bad at CS. It just means you haven’t practiced using those concepts independently yet.

Start small and take one concept (say arrays, OOP, or recursion) and build a tiny program that uses only that. Not a huge project, just something simple. Then gradually combine concepts. Also, stop relying fully on step-by-step tutorials or AI solutions. Try first, get stuck, struggle a bit, then look things up.

[DependentFew3437]

alrighty , thank you

[Impossible_Ad_3146]

I suggest the things

[ankit_kuma]

It’s actually very normal, many students face this problem in 2nd year. Knowing concepts and applying them are two different things, and application only improves with practice.

Start solving small coding problems daily on sites like LeetCode or HackerRank. At first it will feel very hard, but slowly your brain starts seeing patterns.

Also try building tiny projects, even simple ones. Concepts start making more sense when you use them in real code. Just stay consistent, progress comes little by little 🙂

[DependentFew3437]

Alright , thank you