COMPETITIVE PROGRAMMING : THE REAL DEAL

Competitive coding the name itself gives you an idea about the topic, solving problems using programming in a language of your choice, and that too competitively is competitive coding.

Well, competitive coding has several advantages we shall discuss them here,
the first and the foremost advantage of competitive coding is that it helps you develop problem-solving skills and makes you better at data structures and algorithms, both of them can be termed as the backbone of programming.

The second advantage of competitive programming is that it helps you to get some really great offers from tech giants across the globe , several companies hosts programming contests and if you can perform well in those contests sometimes you get an opportunity do an internship or even sometimes you get direct job offers at reputable positions. Even indirectly it helps ,  ranks, and positions in coding contests can be used in your CV , which obviously will help you during your interviews.

The third advantage of competitive programming is that it can be rewarding and also helps you to build some solid connections in the IT field, yes for some rewards doesn't matter much but the connections you build through competitive programming are surely gonna help you a lot in the future.
Having like-minded friends or companions makes you feel comfortable and you can also discuss the problems with them.

We are finally over with the advantages of competitive programming, we shall move onto the topic of how to get started with competitive programming.

If you are interested in computer science and have your basics cleared in any programming language whether it is C, C++, java, python, etc, you can start competitive programming.
Yes, people sometimes suggest that you should have a proper grasp over data structures before starting competitive programming but in my opinion, its not mandatory, you will learn a lot through competitive programming and data structures are also a part of the learning process.

So, what's the first step?

If you are in your first, second or third semester then its the prime time for you, create an account in 
Hackerrank and get started with the problem-solving section, after solving some problems move straight to Codechef, HackerEarth and take part in the long contests.

• HACKERRANK
• CODECHEF
• CODEFORCES
• HACKEREARTH

The above-mentioned links will take you to the respective websites do create a profile and start your coding adventure.

With time you will improve a lot in problem-solving skills and algorithms, if you get stuck in any problem then google the solution, try to understand the logic behind it, and try it once by yourself.
Slowly and steadily you are on your way in becoming a coder and will have exceptional problem-solving abilities. The next big thing is ACM ICPC (Association for Computing Machinery - International Collegiate Programming Contest), one of the biggest and prestigious coding competitions in the whole world.
Make a team, participate in the qualifiers, and if your hard work pays of representing India in the world stage.

ACM-ICPC is the pinnacle of competitive programming and if you can crack it, you are truly a hero.

With this, the article comes to an end.
I am a newbie in the coding world and learning various aspects of it, hopefully, you liked the article and pardon me for the mistakes I made.
Liking the article will help a lot.

   Rounak Saha  

    CSE/17/49 

College of  Engineering and Management , Kolaghat 
   
   ZanTanMan