This was quite helpful. I started thinking that deliberately looking out for competition or having competition to drive yourself was a bad thing. This video helped me clear that misconception.
Glad to hear the video helped, I'm sure competition can turn toxic at a certain point, but if you use it for motivation and to build confidence, it can be a great tool!
Did you ever get insecure while preparing? Like if you didn’t end up making the specific division and could have spent the time doing other extracurriculars? How did you know that usaco was the main thing you were going to commit to
If I didn't end up making the division I wanted, I would work way harder the next month to make it the next competition. I did sometimes feel like this was riskier than say joining a lot of clubs and trying to get into college that way, but ultimately I felt like usaco better showed colleges what I am capable of rather than getting elected to different positions in clubs. (I think I was the president of computer science club, but I got them into competitive programming and usaco too, so very similar to my other coding achievements).
I went to camp 3 times and each time was incredible. The days are packed with activities, both coding related and non coding related ones like escape rooms and six flags. We even went white water rafting one year. I learned so much every year from the other people there as well as the coaches and I’m still friends with many of the people I met there to this day.
As a newbie, you should focus on solving problems by drawing a bunch of test cases (about 6-7 test cases of size N=6-7) and looking for patterns. You'll be surprised how many problems you can figure out the algorithm simply by doing this process which takes about 5-10 minutes. You can also work on the problems from this free course: www.vplanetcoding.com/course1-usaco-basics
good video! i lived in a smaller state and i think the two things you mentioned (believing i can do it and finding good competition) held me back i was also wondering if you could share your thoughts on the differences between the different levels and what separates people on bronze/silver/gold/plat/camp/ioi. is it just algorithms, problem solving ability, practice, consistency, something else? thanks!
Glad you liked the video! I think the main thing that separates all the divisions is problem solving ability. (The reason it’s not algorithms is a bronze competitor who learns segment trees will not then be able to solve platinum problems on segment trees.)
Hey Prateek, great to hear you are interested. I just checked and I haven't received an email from you, can you email support@vplanetcoding.com? You can also just schedule a call here on the bottom of this page vplanetcoding.com/
Comments unrelated to the video are welcome! I don’t speak much Hindi. Last time I visited India I was really little, I believe I was about 2 years old then.
This was quite helpful. I started thinking that deliberately looking out for competition or having competition to drive yourself was a bad thing. This video helped me clear that misconception.
Glad to hear the video helped, I'm sure competition can turn toxic at a certain point, but if you use it for motivation and to build confidence, it can be a great tool!
Did you ever get insecure while preparing? Like if you didn’t end up making the specific division and could have spent the time doing other extracurriculars? How did you know that usaco was the main thing you were going to commit to
If I didn't end up making the division I wanted, I would work way harder the next month to make it the next competition. I did sometimes feel like this was riskier than say joining a lot of clubs and trying to get into college that way, but ultimately I felt like usaco better showed colleges what I am capable of rather than getting elected to different positions in clubs. (I think I was the president of computer science club, but I got them into competitive programming and usaco too, so very similar to my other coding achievements).
how was your time at the camp like?
I went to camp 3 times and each time was incredible. The days are packed with activities, both coding related and non coding related ones like escape rooms and six flags. We even went white water rafting one year. I learned so much every year from the other people there as well as the coaches and I’m still friends with many of the people I met there to this day.
Hello Riya I cannot solve problems in contests of codeforces how should i practice and what topics should i learn. I newbie now (1018).
As a newbie, you should focus on solving problems by drawing a bunch of test cases (about 6-7 test cases of size N=6-7) and looking for patterns. You'll be surprised how many problems you can figure out the algorithm simply by doing this process which takes about 5-10 minutes. You can also work on the problems from this free course: www.vplanetcoding.com/course1-usaco-basics
good video! i lived in a smaller state and i think the two things you mentioned (believing i can do it and finding good competition) held me back
i was also wondering if you could share your thoughts on the differences between the different levels and what separates people on bronze/silver/gold/plat/camp/ioi. is it just algorithms, problem solving ability, practice, consistency, something else? thanks!
Glad you liked the video! I think the main thing that separates all the divisions is problem solving ability. (The reason it’s not algorithms is a bronze competitor who learns segment trees will not then be able to solve platinum problems on segment trees.)
Hi Riya, i am interested in the training and willing to avail being coached by you. Mailed you but haven't received any reply yet. Thanks!
Hey Prateek, great to hear you are interested. I just checked and I haven't received an email from you, can you email support@vplanetcoding.com? You can also just schedule a call here on the bottom of this page vplanetcoding.com/
Have mailed back. I am fine if we schedule a call ASAP, as per your convenience. Thanks 😊
Not related to video but do you speak hindi? And do you ever visit india?
Comments unrelated to the video are welcome! I don’t speak much Hindi. Last time I visited India I was really little, I believe I was about 2 years old then.