How many hours to prepare for a coding interview?

The number of hours required to prepare for a coding interview can vary widely depending on several factors, including your current skill level, the difficulty of the interviews you're preparing for, and the specific companies you're targeting. However, a general guideline can help you estimate the amount of time you might need to invest.

General Guidelines

1. Beginners: 200-300 hours

• Learning Basics: Spend 50-100 hours learning the basics of programming and data structures (e.g., arrays, linked lists, stacks, queues, trees, graphs, hash tables).
• Practicing Easy Problems: Allocate 50-100 hours solving easy-level problems to build a solid foundation.
• Practicing Medium Problems: Spend 100-150 hours solving medium-level problems and getting comfortable with common algorithms (e.g., sorting, searching, dynamic programming).

2. Intermediate Level: 150-250 hours

• Reviewing Basics: Spend 20-40 hours reviewing data structures and algorithms.
• Practicing Medium Problems: Allocate 50-100 hours solving medium-level problems.
• Practicing Hard Problems: Spend 80-110 hours solving hard-level problems and mastering advanced algorithms.

3. Advanced Level: 100-200 hours

• Reviewing Advanced Topics: Spend 20-40 hours reviewing advanced algorithms and data structures.
• Practicing Hard Problems: Allocate 50-100 hours solving hard-level problems and focusing on optimization techniques.
• Mock Interviews: Spend 30-60 hours participating in mock interviews and refining problem-solving strategies under time constraints.

Detailed Breakdown

1. Learning Basics (50-100 hours)

• Topics: Variables, loops, conditionals, functions, basic data structures (arrays, linked lists, stacks, queues), and recursion.
• Resources: Introductory programming books, online tutorials, and beginner-friendly courses.

2. Reviewing Data Structures and Algorithms (20-40 hours)

• Topics: Trees, graphs, hash tables, sorting algorithms, searching algorithms, dynamic programming.
• Resources: Data structures and algorithms books, online courses, and tutorials.

3. Practicing Easy Problems (50-100 hours)

• Tasks: Solve 50-100 easy-level problems on platforms like LeetCode, HackerRank, or CodeSignal.
• Focus: Building a solid understanding of problem-solving techniques and common patterns.

4. Practicing Medium Problems (50-150 hours)

• Tasks: Solve 50-100 medium-level problems.
• Focus: Applying problem-solving techniques to more complex problems and improving efficiency.

5. Practicing Hard Problems (50-100 hours)

• Tasks: Solve 30-50 hard-level problems.
• Focus: Mastering advanced algorithms, optimization techniques, and handling edge cases.

6. Mock Interviews and Real-World Scenarios (30-60 hours)

• Tasks: Participate in mock interviews with peers, mentors, or online platforms like DesignGurus.io or Pramp.
• Focus: Simulating real interview conditions, practicing verbalizing thought processes, and refining strategies.

Suggested Course for Structured Learning

Grokking the Coding Interview: Patterns for Coding Questions from DesignGurus.io

Why Grokking the Coding Interview is Ideal:

• Pattern Recognition: Teaches you to recognize and apply common coding patterns, crucial for efficiently solving a wide variety of problems.
• Structured Approach: Organized around these patterns, providing a clear learning path that builds your problem-solving skills step-by-step.
• Detailed Explanations: Each problem comes with a detailed, step-by-step explanation, ensuring you understand not just the solution but the reasoning behind it.
• Practical Examples: Uses practical, real-world examples to illustrate how patterns can be applied, making it easier to understand the relevance and application of each pattern.

Conclusion

The amount of time required to prepare for a coding interview can vary based on your starting point and goals. However, with a structured approach and consistent practice, you can make significant progress in your preparation. Using resources like Grokking the Coding Interview can provide a focused and efficient learning path, helping you maximize your preparation time and improve your chances of success in coding interviews.

Explore Grokking the Coding Interview:

• Grokking the Coding Interview: Patterns for Coding Questions

By focusing on understanding and applying patterns, this course helps you build a solid foundation in problem-solving, increasing your confidence and performance in technical interviews.