Year

https://preview.redd.it/nqivukuqpvtg1.png?width=2000&format=png&auto=webp&s=14143765b2a792a422c061eb684e9cb79caef67a Context: Finishing 2nd year at a T200 university as a CS + Applied Math major (GPA: 3.74). In terms of experience I worked at a lab on campus for a year that is partnered with a federal entity and did research through a DoD research program that multiple universities participate this past summer. I have not really done much Leetcode. I have an impressive homelab and some smaller scale projects that are finished that I put on my resume. I'm also an officer of my uni's swe club and VP of another club, plus some other extracurriculars like tutoring. The company (T300) initially interviewed me for a swe internship, but the interviewers asked if I had applied to the cyber security position that was posted alongside it (very similar responsibilities, and the positions are related to each other) to which I said yes. The following week they offered me that role. The interview consisted of two managers interviewing me from the facility of the internship. I had no technical questions asked of me, instead I was asked personal questions, social and behavioral questions, and given scenarios in which I described how I handled or approached inter-team interactions. The interview was like a conversation, with jokes and some laughter, and went 20 minutes over what was scheduled. The pay ended up being really good as well, and I have family friends that live in the area I will stay with. In terms of searching I applied to like 7 positions in the winter, then the rest in March which included this position. However, I had decided to look for postings only local to my state for a bit, leading to roughly 1/3 of my applications being local plus the postings of this company. I would recommend any freshman to join some university program or work with a professor because you'd be surprised at what you can get involved in which can be really beneficial for other opportunities. Even if it is just for a year. The program I was in that gave me my experiences I only did for a year since the professor running it had different priorities with the students in the program that I did not exactly want. So even if temporary it can help bootstrap other opportunities. I am very blessed for this opportunity and am super grateful with how it has all played out. Hopefully something a little more positive for Reddit since it is depressing looking at these posts sometimes.