A young software engineer recently shared a moving account of his climb from a modest tier-three college to securing a lucrative role paying sixty lakh rupees annually. Taking to the subreddit Developers India, he described how his early academic journey did not unfold as expected. Despite once excelling in studies and athletics, he ended up scoring far lower than he had hoped in national entrance exams and completed Class 12 with average marks. Entering a lesser-known college initially shook his confidence, and he often felt he lacked personality or direction. Yet, during this phase, he formed deep friendships that brought stability to his college years.
The arrival of the pandemic changed everything. Isolated at home, he went through a demanding emotional phase, but this solitude also became a turning point. He slowly began investing in his personal development, focusing on progress rather than comparison. After graduation, he started his career with a service-based firm at a salary of 7.4 lakh rupees per year. Determined to improve, he put in consistent effort, eventually switching to a startup where his salary rose to 13.5 lakh rupees annually.
Then came a transformative moment. A recruiter from a leading global technology company approached him on LinkedIn. After submitting his résumé and clearing multiple interview stages, he earned an offer of sixty lakh rupees per year. For him, the achievement went beyond numbers. He felt he had evolved as a person—developing fitness, humour, confidence, and an overall presence he never imagined he could carry.
He believes he has not completely rediscovered who he wants to be, but he has uncovered crucial parts of himself, and that sense of progress brings genuine satisfaction. He views life as a series of opportunities waiting for the right time to surface, and he feels his chance finally arrived after four years of experience, including a year-long internship, now working at an SDE2 level.
He credited his technical growth to resources like Striver’s SDE Sheet for data structures, a widely used low-level design repository on GitHub, and advanced system design content from experts and former colleagues. He also explained that large tech companies follow fixed compensation bands, so previous salaries matter less than skill and level. His interviews included online assessments, coding challenges, low-level and high-level design evaluations, and a demanding bar-raiser round focused on problem solving.
The arrival of the pandemic changed everything. Isolated at home, he went through a demanding emotional phase, but this solitude also became a turning point. He slowly began investing in his personal development, focusing on progress rather than comparison. After graduation, he started his career with a service-based firm at a salary of 7.4 lakh rupees per year. Determined to improve, he put in consistent effort, eventually switching to a startup where his salary rose to 13.5 lakh rupees annually.
Then came a transformative moment. A recruiter from a leading global technology company approached him on LinkedIn. After submitting his résumé and clearing multiple interview stages, he earned an offer of sixty lakh rupees per year. For him, the achievement went beyond numbers. He felt he had evolved as a person—developing fitness, humour, confidence, and an overall presence he never imagined he could carry.
He believes he has not completely rediscovered who he wants to be, but he has uncovered crucial parts of himself, and that sense of progress brings genuine satisfaction. He views life as a series of opportunities waiting for the right time to surface, and he feels his chance finally arrived after four years of experience, including a year-long internship, now working at an SDE2 level.
He credited his technical growth to resources like Striver’s SDE Sheet for data structures, a widely used low-level design repository on GitHub, and advanced system design content from experts and former colleagues. He also explained that large tech companies follow fixed compensation bands, so previous salaries matter less than skill and level. His interviews included online assessments, coding challenges, low-level and high-level design evaluations, and a demanding bar-raiser round focused on problem solving.