The 34-week plan
A paced plan for DSA, projects, fundamentals, system design, and a job search.
This plan runs from 19 October 2026 to 13 June 2027. Use it as a weekly guide, not a promise that a rating, interview, job, or salary will arrive by a set date. Start with the week template, then follow the calendar and adjust it when school, interviews, or health need time.
The six phases
| Phase | Dates | Main work | Review point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baseline | Oct 19 to 25 | Record your current DSA, schedule, and project setup | Choose a weekly pace you can sustain |
| Ledgerline | Oct 26 to Dec 6 | Build the core ledger and publish a working demo | Explain idempotency and show the tests |
| Logsmith | Dec 7 to Jan 17 | Build an append-only log or choose another project option | Finish one complete project and its design note |
| Deploy and operate | Jan 18 to Feb 28 | Deploy a service and document how you test and recover it | Demonstrate a release and a failure drill |
| Practice and applications | Mar 1 to Apr 11 | Continue eligible applications, mocks, and DSA | Use callback and mock results to adjust focus |
| Interview season | Apr 12 to Jun 13 | Prioritize live interviews, revision, and applications | Review options after graduation if needed |
These dates are planning checkpoints. If you fall behind, reduce project features first. Do not carry unfinished scope into every later phase.
How to use the calendar
Open the current week on Sunday and schedule its work. Each week lists DSA topics, a project step, interview practice, reading, and job-search tasks.
Use the A2Z calendar to choose problems. The week page gives a pace target, but count completed problems from the sheet itself. If the sheet count and the weekly estimate disagree, trust the sheet and revise the next week's target.
Start referral outreach in December, as roles and contacts become relevant. Apply to roles that accept your graduation year and eligibility. A weekly application count is a planning target, not a reason to send applications that do not fit.
Study CS fundamentals and system design in small, regular blocks. Use project work to make those topics concrete. Reduce optional reading and project stretch work during exam weeks or live interview loops.
Review and adjust
Use the readiness scorecard once a month. Compare your current results with the last review, then choose one change for the next month.
What to protect when time is short
Protect sleep, interview appointments, DSA practice, and the core project path. First cut optional projects, extra blog posts, advanced system-design videos, and stretch features.
Treat outcomes as outcomes
A contest rating, referral reply, interview loop, offer, or salary depends on factors outside this plan. Track them, but do not treat any one number as proof that you will or will not get hired.
The week pages
- Weeks 1 to 13: baseline, Ledgerline, a second project, and the first outreach
- Weeks 14 to 25: deployment, operations, mocks, and applications
- Weeks 26 to 34: revision and live interview support
The week template shows the planned hours. Treat it as a starting point and leave room for real life.