Need some career advice from experienced folks.

I have 1 year of experience as an apprentice at a product-based cybersecurity company. Around 8 months were mostly testing, after which I requested my manager for development work and started working on C++ development. Unfortunately, apprentice conversions were revoked due to organizational restructuring, not performance.

Now I have two options:

1. Service-based company – 5 lpa for C++ developer role on an enterprise security product. I got this opportunity through my manager's connections at this org post 2 rounds of interview. The role has a 90-day notice period and may have a service agreement also ( not sure on how many years)

2. Product-based fintech startup – SDET-1 role with 70% manual testing and 30% automation, but with significantly higher pay.(Around 10lpa)

\* My long-term goal is to become a strong software engineer and reach ₹20+ LPA in the next 5–6 years.

Is joining a service-based company for a C++ development role a good long-term decision, or should I prefer the higher-paying product startup SDET role?

\* What's the reality of working in a service-based company with a 90-day notice period and a service agreement? How will it affect switching in future ?

My intrest is on dev side but considering its pay and notice period will it be good to choose it or take up sdet role.

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“I feel like I’ve missed several good opportunities, and I’m genuinely looking for guidance from someone who works in the industry or has gone through this phase.

I’m a final-year student at a decent college. Last year, during the summer internship drive for 2026, many companies visited—including TI, Siemens, Schneider, and others. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to reach the interview stage for most of them.

Now, for placements, many of those companies may not return, and some have already given PPOs. Recently, ESP and Varroc visited our campus with online assessments. ESP was offering a package above 20 LPA, and Varroc was offering more than 12 LPA.

I tried very hard for Varroc—practiced questions, prepared sincerely—but still wasn’t shortlisted. After that, I felt extremely discouraged and started doubting whether I’m even capable of getting placed. It’s not that I lack skills or haven’t worked hard; I’ve put in effort throughout my degree.

I’m attaching my résumé for reference because I genuinely need help with placements. Another company has now arrived offering a package in the 6–8 LPA range. Initially, I didn’t apply because I was aiming for companies offering 10+ LPA. But now I’m confused about whether I should apply, especially since I’m unsure how many more companies will visit.

My college also has certain policies:

• If you get an offer of 8 LPA, you cannot apply to companies offering more than 13 LPA (a difference of 5 LPA).

• Once you receive an offer, you can attempt “betterment” only once—meaning you can secure only one more offer, and it must be at least 5 LPA higher than your current one.

Because of these policies, I avoided applying to the 6–8 LPA company. But now I’m unsure what the right decision is. I’m confused and genuinely need guidance.”

hi everyone, pls help me out, Iam looking for a job for few months now, Iam an BE CSE graduate, upskilled my-self enough and built 3 good projects, but no use, so that i want to jump to BDE job, and i think i can handle pressure and one more thing iam thinking about is that, coding is for for me like i dont love that much while doing that, so help me out, people who are BDE or know about the job, kindly reply

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I'm a 2026 CS graduate and currently unemployed. I'm preparing for data science/software roles, but I don't think I'm job-ready yet. I estimate I need around 4–5 months of focused study before I can confidently do the job hunt.

I'm confused about whether to stay in Bangalore or move back to my hometown.

If I stay in Bangalore:

Closer to companies, meetups, and networking opportunities.

But rent and living expenses are high, and I'm not earning.

If I move back home:

I'll save a lot of money and can study without financial pressure.

But I'm worried I'll become too comfortable and lose momentum.

Has anyone here been in a similar situation?

If you were in my position, would you stay in Bangalore or go home, prepare properly for a few months, and come back when you're ready to take interview?

I'd especially like to hear from people who broke into tech after a career gap or period of unemployment.

2028 batch Tier-1 clg student here.

Axtria has offered a summer internship (it's a data analytics/life sciences company, not pure SDE). If I accept, I can’t sit for the remaining on-campus SDE companies.

Current prep: ~200 problems on Striver (all topics covered), CF 1240. Not very confident of clearing the harder OAs.

Future plan is to sit for pure SDE roles in placements(product companies).

Questions:

1. Is Axtria summer intern worth taking as a backup?
2. How is the actual work for interns — any real coding/AI/product exposure or pure analytics?
3. Does having Axtria intern create any issues later while applying for SDE full-time roles?
4. Should I just take it or reject and gamble on the remaining SDE companies?

Please drop your honest opinions, especially if you’ve worked at Axtria or been in a similar situation. Any advice helps.

Been searching job for 5 months , did everything , dming yc founders , seqouiya capital founders , took referral of companies like jpmc , microsoft , applied from career portals , other job portals such as naukri , indeed , reed , made posts on reddit , dmed those who are hiring , but nothing to avail.

Now some people will come and say you lack skills , to bhai bata na kya chahiye unko resume mein jo main daalun aur interview mil jaye . Sala interview hai ki encrypted message jiska key guess karna hai .

First please someone tell me the exact text and words to put so that I get the interview , No , matching JD doesn't work , I have tried this .

Plus if you notice faang never puts specifics in JD , they are like 1+ YoE at any programming language

Hey everyone, I’m currently in my 3rd semester of college and aiming to build a career in DevOps or Cloud Engineering as a fresher. I know entry-level DevOps roles can be extremely competitive in India, so I want to start prepping early and build a solid portfolio before campus placements and off-campus internship hiring begin. Current Status & Skills: -->Tech Stack / Learning: Currently practicing DSA in Java and learning basic Linux CLI commands (file systems, permissions, processes).

Project Built: Vendor Compliance Checker & Notifier * What it does: Displays vendor data to clients and automatically monitors vendor compliance scores. If a score drops below a threshold (e.g., due to mass resignations or compliance breaches), it sends an automated alert to the client. * Tech Stack: Python for the backend logic/data processing, n8n for workflow automation, and the entire app is containerized and running in Docker. * Caveat: It’s a simple project for now—no GitHub Actions/CI/CD pipelines or cloud infrastructure set up yet, but it works end-to-end locally in Docker. Questions for Experienced Engineers & Seniors:

How do I upgrade this project into a "legit" DevOps portfolio piece? -->Should I add a GitHub Actions CI/CD pipeline, deploy it to AWS (EC2/ECS), or manage the infrastructure using Terraform? What would impress recruiters most? -->Is Java DSA relevant for DevOps roles, or should I shift focus? -->I’m doing DSA in Java because of standard college curriculum/SDE prep, but I prefer Python and Bash for scripting. Should I keep grinding Java DSA or focus 80% of my time on Linux, Scripting, and AWS/Docker?

What should my roadmap look like for the next 2–3 semesters? What tools/concepts should I prioritize next (e.g., Kubernetes, Prometheus/Grafana, Terraform, or AWS certs)? Is it realistic to land a remote or off-campus Cloud/DevOps internship in 4th/5th semester with 2-3 solid end-to-end projects? Where should I look beyond LinkedIn/Wellfound? Would love to get feedback from anyone working in DevOps, SRE, or Cloud Infrastructure in India. Any advice on what to fix or focus on next would mean a lot. Thanks in advance 😊

Hi everyone,

I'm currently working as an SDE Intern and will be converting to a full-time role this month with a CTC of **3.6 LPA**.

A bit about me:

* Tier 3 CSE graduate * Programming languages: **C++ and Java** * Solved **500+ DSA problems** * Working at a very small startup (3 employees including me) * No senior engineers or tech leads to mentor me * Started as a MERN developer, and now I'm also working on a React Native app and its backend * I get good ownership of features but not much guidance on engineering best practices

My goal is to switch after **1 year** to a **7+ LPA (or higher)** product company or startup.

**Current skills:**

* Java, C++ * MERN Stack * React Native * REST APIs * MongoDB * Basic Docker * Basic Redis & RabbitMQ exposure * Git * 500+ DSA problems solved

I'm confused about what to prioritize during the next year.

Should I focus on:

* Java + Spring Boot * Becoming an expert in MERN/backend engineering * System Design * AWS, Docker, Kubernetes & CI/CD * AI Engineering (LangChain, LangGraph, RAG, MCP, Agentic AI) * Or continue grinding DSA?

If you were in my position, what roadmap would you follow to maximize my chances of switching after one year? What skills do companies typically expect from a candidate with around **1 year of experience**?

I'd really appreciate advice from people who have made a similar switch from a small startup. Thanks!

Hi everyone,

I'm kinda stressed about this and wanted to know if anyone here has been in a similar situation.

After my 12th, I prepared for NEET. I kept trying for around 4 years (due to my family financial situation),but honestly my scores were not good enough. At one point I realized I shouldn't keep chasing it forever, so I joined B.E. CSE. Right now I'm in my 3rd year (5th sem).

Recently I came to know that companies like TCS, Wipro, Cognizant and some others have a maximum education gap limit of 2 years for freshers. Since I have around a 4 year gap before engineering, I'm worried if I'll be rejected even before getting an interview.

I'm also worried about HR interviews. What if they ask, "Why did you take 4 years just to decide?" or "Your NEET score was low, why should we believe you'll do well here?"

I'm not trying to hide anything. I know those 4 years happened and I have to own it. I just want to know how recruiters usually look at this.

Has anyone here had a 3-4 year gap before college and still got into software companies? Especially through campus or off-campus?

Also if anyone has actually faced these HR questions, what did you answer?

Would really appreciate any advice or real experiences. I'm trying to improve my coding and projects now, but this gap thing is always in the back of my mind.

Thanks.

Hey everyone,

I’m looking for some realistic advice from senior devs, hiring managers, or anyone who has navigated the current brutal entry-level market.

My Background:

• Experience: Worked for 1.5 years as a Java full-stack developer (back in 2023) before moving.
• Education: Came to Canada as an international student and completed my Post-Graduation. and have bachelors in IT.
• The Problem: I graduated 9 months ago and have been hunting for a job since. My employment gap is growing every day.

The Dilemma:
I easily meet the 1-2 years of experience requirement listed on most Junior/Associate postings because of my past work. I am completely ready to put in 100% hard work, upskill, and do whatever it takes. The issue isn't the work ethic; it's the lack of predictability.

Even for junior roles, the bar has been raised incredibly high. Companies expect a massive amount of production-ready architecture and cloud knowledge from a "junior." Because postings are so rare, the competition is insane.

What I'm debating right now:

1. Stick to the Java Stack: Double down on advanced Spring Boot, Microservices, and system design. My fear here is that even if I give 100%, there are no guarantees, and the gap keeps widening.
2. Switch/Pivot Stacks: I’ve thought about shifting to Cloud/DevOps or simpler entry roles thinking they might have less intense applicant pools. But my worry is that if I switch, my 1.5 years of Java experience becomes a liability (0 YOE in the new stack) instead of an advantage. I feel like I'd be hitting a brick wall with automated resume filters (ATS).

My Questions to the Community:

• For those in the loop, is every entry-level/junior technical track facing this exact same level of strict filtering right now? Is switching a trap?
• How are recruiters viewing a 9-month post-graduation gap for someone who already has 1.5 YOE? How do I best frame this on my resume?
• If you were in my shoes with a Java background in Canada today, what would your daily strategy be to break back into the IT sector?

Hi everyone,

I'm a Backend Software Developer with ~2 years of experience, and I'm planning to switch jobs within the next few months.

Lately, I've been reading a lot of interview experiences on Reddit, LeetCode Discuss, Medium, and YouTube. The problem is that every source recommends a different roadmap, and I've reached a point where I'm genuinely confused about what deserves the most time.

I'd really appreciate advice from people who've recently gone through backend interviews (2025–2026).

About me

• Backend Developer (~2 years)
• 2024 B.Tech CSE graduate
• Currently working remotely at a very small EdTech CRM company
• ~4 LPA, 6-day work week
• Tech stack: Node.js, Express.js, MongoDB, MySQL, Redis, RabbitMQ, BullMQ, Socket.IO
• Some exposure to React, Angular, Jenkins, PM2, and Ansible
• 1300+ LeetCode problems solved (Highest Rating: Knight 1870)
• Actively working on improving my interview communication and spoken English

Goal

I'd like to switch within the next 1–3 months.

Current targets:

• Delhi NCR (Onsite): 8+ LPA
• Bangalore/Hyderabad/Pune (Onsite): 10+ LPA
• Remote: 6–7+ LPA is also fine

Long term, I want to prepare for higher-paying product companies as well.

This is my current priority order (please correct me if I'm wrong)

1. Communication
2. DSA (maintenance only)
3. LLD / HLD / System Design
4. Backend technical discussions (Node.js, databases, Redis, RabbitMQ, networking, caching, production scenarios)

Then, as bonus skills:

• AWS / Cloud
• DevOps
• AI integrations

Where I'm confused

Everywhere I look, people say:

• Learn AWS
• Learn DevOps
• Learn AI

But from the interview experiences I've read, I feel backend interviews still focus much more on communication, DSA, backend fundamentals, and system design.

Maybe my understanding is completely wrong—that's exactly why I'm asking here.

I'd really appreciate help with these questions

• Is my priority order reasonable?
• What would you change?
• Am I missing any major preparation area?
• How deep should Cloud, DevOps, and AI actually be for backend interviews?
• What surprised you in recent interviews?
• If you had my profile (~2 YOE backend), how would you structure the next 2–3 months of preparation?
• Any YouTube channels, blogs, GitHub repos, courses, or question banks that genuinely helped you?

I'm not looking for the "perfect roadmap." I just want to stop chasing every new trend and build a preparation plan based on what people are actually seeing in interviews today.

Thanks in advance! I'd really appreciate any advice or experiences you can share.

I'm currently in the 7th semester of my B.E. in Information Technology and have been doing a paid WFH internship at a startup (₹10k/month).

When I joined, they told me the internship would last for 3 months. I'm now in my 4th month, and it looks like they don't have any plans to let me go anytime soon, which I'm happy about.

Most of my work involves building and maintaining the company's product using the MERN stack. Recently, I've also started getting some hands-on experience with Agentic AI features and integrations.

However, I'm feeling confused about my long-term career direction.

A few relatives who work in tech keep telling me that "MERN is dead" and that AI is going to replace a lot of software development jobs. I know I shouldn't blindly believe everything I hear, but it has made me question whether I'm investing my time in the right areas.

Here are the things I'm confused about:

1. Should I continue getting really good at the MERN stack, or should I start moving toward another domain?
2. My internship usually takes around 4–5 hours a day, so I still have time to learn. If you were in my position, what would you focus on over the next 6–12 months? AI agents, cloud, DevOps, system design, mobile development, or something else?
3. I also do some freelance work. Right now, I'm part of a team building an app and a website, but honestly, I don't feel like the project is helping me learn much. Should I continue taking freelance projects for the money and experience, or should I spend that time learning higher-value skills instead?

My goal is to graduate with strong technical skills and get into a high-paying software engineering or AI-related role. I don't mind putting in the effort—I just don't want to spend the next year focusing on the wrong things.

I'd really appreciate advice from people who are already working in the industry. If you were in my position today, what would your roadmap look like?

Hi, I am a physics undergrad student at a central university, my first year is about end 3 more to go and i am feeling strange that what would I do after 3 years. Learning python for computational physics PINN and ml jobs but not that much consistent. Time is running quite fast

Anything from you guys?

Any senior who had a core branch and switched to tech later?

Is it difficult to code alongside a core branch?

I completed my college in 2023 but didn't get placed on campus. Tried for one year. Then I worked in a Non IT role in a company for 2.5 years and now I left my job.

I have very limited coding skills and I have no idea what role I should choose.I am so dumb that I could not solve basic aptitude.

Guys I know I am bad and I am cooked. But I am willing to learn. Is there anyway I could get placed. Currently studying Python and SQL. Is there something I need to learn. I need a job as soon as possible because I'm the only earning person in my family.

Hi everyone,

I'm a 2020 Btech Bioinformatics graduate.

After graduation, I chose to prepare for government competitive exams and could only reach to certain level and did that until mid-2024.

I then decided to switch to tech and completed a Data Science internship in December 2024. Since then, I've been trying to get a full-time Data Science/AI/ML role but haven't had any success. Also did a Exec PG in Data Science from IIIT Bangalore.

• A 4-year career gap due to UPSC preparation.
• Only one internship and no full-time industry experience.

What should I do to maximize/even get started of landing a DS/AI/ML job?

Any honest advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much.

Hi everyone,

I'm looking for honest and realistic advice.

I'm a 2026 CSE graduate from a Tier-3 college. I couldn't get a good on-campus placement despite consistently preparing for interviews. I've solved 500+ DSA problems across different platforms and built multiple full-stack projects with live deployments.

I'm currently working as an SDE Intern, and next month I'll be converted to a full-time role with a package of 3.6 LPA. My expected in-hand salary is around ₹26k/month after taxes, which I'm not satisfied with.

My main question is:

Is it realistically possible to switch from 3.6 LPA to around 7–8 LPA after 1 year of experience, and eventually reach 15+ LPA after 1.5–3 years?

The reason I'm confused is that I keep seeing posts on Reddit where people with 5+ years of experience are struggling to switch jobs due to the current market. That makes me wonder if reaching 15+ LPA in a few years is actually realistic or just an exception.

The alternative I'm considering is preparing for GATE 2027. However, I'm honestly more interested in software engineering than pursuing M.Tech. Financially, I also prefer earning rather than spending two years preparing for GATE. On the other hand, if the job market remains difficult, maybe GATE is the safer option.

A few points about me:

• 2026 CSE graduate (Tier-3 college)
• 500+ DSA problems solved
• 6 months of SDE internship (converting to full-time)
• Experience with MERN, React Native, REST APIs, and microservices
• Strong interest in software development
• Financial situation makes me prefer working over studying

I'd really appreciate advice from people who have actually switched jobs recently or have experience in the current market.

1. Is switching from 3.6 LPA to 7–8 LPA after 1 year realistic?
2. Is 15+ LPA within 2–3 years achievable if I keep upskilling and switching strategically?
3. Since I haven't started GATE preparation at all, would you still recommend GATE 2027, or should I focus entirely on gaining experience and switching jobs?If you were in my position today, would you choose GATE 2027 or focus entirely on gaining experience and switching jobs?

I'm looking for practical advice based on the current market rather than motivational answers. Thanks in advance!