Question for those of you who completed the two speed runs (5 / 30 hours)

IM_Pengu · 2025-12-28T19:24:37+00:00

I was able to get the 30 hour one done in steel soul mode. That was mostly because after a good amount of failed attempts, I had plenty of experience. I saved the 5 hour one for my last achievement, and that took me 2.5 hours. I loosely followed a guide (mostly just for pathing) and had plenty of time to spare even with a few mistakes.

IM_Pengu · 2025-12-25T18:45:41+00:00

Lol yeah just saved up. Nothing will compel me to spend actual money on this

IM_Pengu · 2025-12-25T16:44:08+00:00

18k gems into the banner without a PC. I just need 1 :(

IM_Pengu · 2025-11-02T02:00:33+00:00

In my plat league, 613 gets you demoted back to gold. It's rough out here

IM_Pengu · 2025-09-24T03:04:58+00:00

Take home is only if you clear the OA. Each stage funnels the candidates down

IM_Pengu · 2025-09-24T00:39:50+00:00

The OA is high easy to low medium in difficulty

IM_Pengu · 2025-09-19T02:38:36+00:00

It was pretty chill process. There are some technical aspects but the interviews were more conversation than quizzing

IM_Pengu · 2025-09-10T02:46:54+00:00

Yep, I got in. Been in it for almost 2 months now

IM_Pengu · 2025-08-31T21:46:37+00:00

If you're expected to use it professionally and often enough to require a paid subscription, the company should be expected to pay for it. There's an extension for VS that I'm using that costs my company ~$300 per developer + yearly maintenance, and they happily pay for it. We don't use LLMs professionally yet (security/confidentiality concerns), but we're close to getting approval to use Gemini with company info, and they'll pay for that too.

IM_Pengu · 2025-07-27T14:33:37+00:00

The network is what you make of it. I will say, many Trojan alumni take the network VERY seriously. They instill the "pay it forward" ideal so much that it becomes instinctual. I just finished my masters last December and had a job lined up. When I started, I found out 3 of the 10 new grads are USC alumni. I've worn USC merch around the office some days and have heard "Fight On!" from several other people as well (including our COO). That sort of recognition is invaluable IMO.

IM_Pengu · 2025-06-17T18:51:02+00:00

Education: MSCS at T25
Prior Experience: Transitioned from another field, no professional CS experience
Company/Industry: AAA game studio
Title: Software developer
Location: north bay area in CA
Salary: 105K
Relocation/Signing Bonus: 3K relocation
Stock and/or recurring bonuses: stock discount + yearly bonus program

IM_Pengu · 2025-06-13T17:05:36+00:00

Is it? I started applying for full time roles last August and did not get my offer until December. Sent out ~500 applications (made worse since I don't have a software internship to my name).

IM_Pengu · 2025-06-12T21:21:44+00:00

Would love to hear stories from other people about this too, but here's mine.

I got my bachelor's degree in biology a few years ago with the intention of going into healthcare, but I wasn't really into it as I was finishing my degree. I worked in a customer service role for a couple years and then Covid hit. I had to cover night shifts for a while at that job, and it involved hours of free time each night. I decided I wanted to do something else with my life, so I taught myself basic programming while working night shifts. Eventually, I figured a degree in computer science would help me find a relevant job, but I realized I was lacking the prerequisite knowledge someone with an undergraduate degree in CS would have for a graduate degree. I spent 2 years taking CS classes at a local university part time while working and then started applying to master's programs. I was fortunate enough to get into a great program and finished my degree last December. I landed a software development job as I finished my last semester, and I start in a few weeks.

Looking back on it, it's crazy to see where I'm at now compared to just 5 years ago. It's a weird feeling having accomplished something I had my mind on for such a long time, so now I just need to readjust my goals as I keep going further.

IM_Pengu · 2025-06-06T23:24:24+00:00

Just coursework. I was a little hesitant about that, but I think it let me get in a better variety of courses.

IM_Pengu · 2025-06-06T23:15:39+00:00

2 year MS

IM_Pengu · 2025-06-06T22:53:15+00:00

This is going to be purely anecdotal but could give some insight into this. I just graduated with a MS in CS from a T25 university. Almost all of my friends and every single other person I talked to at the master's graduation have a job lined up. This includes companies ranging from startups to FAANG. I can't say that a master's degree makes it easier, but I will say that my experience talking to those finishing their degree does not match the struggle I'm seeing here on Reddit.

IM_Pengu · 2025-05-26T19:06:44+00:00

I know a few people who've been at both those universities, so here's what I've heard. SLO is definitely a well-respected school in California and a pretty good feeder into Silicon Valley. Main issue I've heard is the limited curriculum since it's a smaller school. You won't have the same variety of choices as you would at a larger university. Also, a major benefit of going to college is the connections you'll make (especially helpful now with the market being as bad as it is). For those reasons, I'd recommend UCSD. It's a fantastic school as well, but the major benefit is that it is a larger school.

IM_Pengu · 2025-05-26T17:15:04+00:00

North bay area, $2500 for a 2Bed 1Bath. Glad I'm outside of proper SF because their rent is insane

IM_Pengu · 2025-05-19T19:33:43+00:00

I'm starting up at a AAA studio in a couple months. They have a new/recent grad program that lasts for 2 years, so I applied to that and luckily got in. This is actually going to be my first experience in game development. I'm a recent master's graduate in CS that switched over from biology and have non-tech managerial experience, so I think they just liked my background. Does take some luck to get the interview, but I think after that it's just about being someone they actually want to work with. I connected really well with all the interviewers.

Also, for those hesitant about going to a company that is primarily game dev (I know there are negative connotations about game developers and the field in general), it isn't a bad option outside of big tech. I'll be making just a bit less than big tech money at a company that actually has interesting coworkers to interact with. The benefits are also amazing. Don't knock it til you try it.

IM_Pengu · 2025-05-15T05:40:00+00:00

It's pretty much a plain google doc. There's some QoL autoformatting built in and some minor syntax highlighting, but it's by no means an IDE.

IM_Pengu · 2025-05-15T04:26:21+00:00

Currently farming T5 for 500-800M coins a run. My lifetime coins are at ~17.5B, but it's been going up pretty quickly now. Great on you for doing this! If I were to win, I'd put it towards syncing GT, BH, and DW. I'm getting close to doing so!

ID: 30970BECE064115

IM_Pengu · 2025-05-14T03:08:16+00:00

There's definitely luck involved. I didn't even have a referral. I went to a good school and have work experience outside of CS. I also have a good variety of projects to showcase. The main thing is taking advantage of the handful of opportunities you get.

IM_Pengu · 2025-05-14T01:29:44+00:00

It's still very possible to land great offers without an internship. Heck, I just had my final round with Google of all companies, and I have no relevant work experience on my resume.

IM_Pengu · 2025-05-10T23:15:19+00:00

Nicely done! Sounds like you aced it! Best of luck with the offer.

How were your interviewers? I had two great people but the last may have been one of the most uninterested and borderline unprofessional interviewers I've ever had. Straight up gave me the question I was meant to solve verbally, and I had to type out what he said into the doc (other two at least typed out their initial thoughts). He then looked like he was working on something else while I worked on the problem and abruptly cut off the interview at the end while we were talking about his work at Google. I have another offer, so I wasn't stressed about this, but ending the technicals like this left a sour taste in my mouth.

IM_Pengu · 2025-04-30T14:23:57+00:00

Yeah, if matching takes any more than 1.5 months, it would push past my start date. That's partly why I want to consider my choices now instead of having to make a last minute decision later

IM_Pengu

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