Siddhant Gupta – Geek on the top | “Opportunities don’t happen. You create them.”

Geek on the top is all about success stories of Geeks who are working hard to chase their goals and are inspiration for other geeks.

Siddhant Gupta is currently working at GeeksforGeeks. Though he pursued his majors in Mechanical Engineering, he was curious to learn programming. His knack for programming not only made him a geek, but also a part of GeeksforGeeks family. He believes in creating opportunities rather than waiting for them.

When did you start programming?  What is vital for programming?
My first interest in programming woke back when was in 1st year of college. Computers already intrigued me before that, but creating something (coding) had a different impact. But as my college major was mechanical, I moved on to Automobiles to align with my degree, and did not carry out coding.
But it was until recently, when I was looking to change my Occupation field, that I started coding again. So all in all its been more than a year now.
“Interest”, is the one & the only thing required. If you are intrigued by this world of technology, and computers spark that tinge in you, then that’s it. Welcome to the programming world.

When did you feel the need to switch from your previous major to Computer Science? Why?
As I previously mentioned, it was more than a year back when I decided to change my major to Computer Science. Being a Mechanical Engineer, and an enthusiast for Research and development, I decided to be an Automobile Engineer, and luckily after college was able to become a part of one of the leading automobile giants. But India lacks a lot in Automotive Technologies and even being in R&D, the work was not much research related, and due to this factor, the income and growth opportunities were not good within the industry itself.
At that point, I began to explore different options. Well, as you would already know, I had the obvious options of doing MBA or go for Govt. Jobs. But I decided to go with my interest and began coding.

How did you come to know about Geeks Classes? What was your objective while joining Geeks Classes and how did Geeks Classes help you?
When I started coding, I was learning languages and all other things. But the main subject for any coder is Data Structures and Algorithms. And apart from that, I wanted to have a certification from a reputed organization, to have a working proof for IT companies (as you may know, I am a Mechanical, not CS guy).
This is where Geeks Classes came for my rescue. I came to know about Geeks Classes from their website – GeeksforGeeks.org (Like every other CS guy I was studying from there). I was quite lucky to get such an opportunity and could not miss it.
My objective was to come out as a self-confident coder having a good grasp over Data Structures and Algorithms that would really boost me in my quest. And Geeks classes taught me more than I anticipated. It was just not the concepts but the way of thinking and problem-solving. The practice tracks (of some really great questions) and weekly contests, and that competitive environment strengthened my basics. That is all required to learn competitive programming. Geeks classes helped me more than I thought it would (It gave me wings…!!!).

Have you adapted to programming? What have you gained by learning competitive programming?
Yes, I have. Anyone would after there rigorous tenure (Yaa it is…). Even if you are like me, means college major not being Computer Science or IT. Now, I am quite fluent with programming, and most importantly, confident enough.
Coding is something that should be taught at school level. Every student should know how to code. It teaches you how to think differently. It opens up your brain. But out of all, I have gained the happiness to do something that I wanted to do.
You’ve joined GeeksforGeeks now. How do you feel to be a part of GeeksforGeeks? How is the environment?
Great. Elated. Rejuvenated. Ecstatic. The working environment is too good. It’s like what I wanted. Doing the intellectual work for the complete duration. And yes, It’s not a “Prison”. Culture is really important for any organization to prosper and grow. And it directly affects the most important resource – the Human Resource. And hence and organizations with such a culture are bound to prosper.

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