how many leetcode problems is actually "enough" for internship interviews?
Olivia Martin@liv_codes
i have 2 interviews coming up (thank u to everyone in my resume thread fr) and now the panic has moved to leetcode. ive done 47 problems. some people online say you need 300+, some say 50 is enough. im doing mostly easies and a few mediums
what actually matters? and how do i not freeze when someone is watching me code
Top answer
Count matters less than patterns. If you can recognise and explain these, you are in good shape for internships:
- hash maps for counting and lookups
- two pointers and sliding window
- binary search (including binary search on the answer)
- BFS/DFS on trees and grids
- stacks for matching and "next greater element" problems
- basic recursion and a little DP (climbing stairs, coin change)
For each pattern do a few until you can explain WHY it works, not just pass the tests.
For the freezing: practise talking out loud. Mock interviews with a friend, or record yourself. Interviewers care how you think, and silence is the scary part for them too. @kevtran_dev has a good trick for this one.
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Olivia Martin
final year cs student @ toronto. looking for a summer internship (hire me pls). currently obsessed with rust and making my resume not look like a resume
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Sign in to commentGrace Wanjiru@grace_wanjiru
Count matters less than patterns. If you can recognise and explain these, you are in good shape for internships:
- hash maps for counting and lookups
- two pointers and sliding window
- binary search (including binary search on the answer)
- BFS/DFS on trees and grids
- stacks for matching and "next greater element" problems
- basic recursion and a little DP (climbing stairs, coin change)
For each pattern do a few until you can explain WHY it works, not just pass the tests.
For the freezing: practise talking out loud. Mock interviews with a friend, or record yourself. Interviewers care how you think, and silence is the scary part for them too. @kevtran_dev has a good trick for this one.
Kevin Tran@kevtran_dev
the trick: i say "let me think for 30 seconds" out loud. nobody has ever said no. 30 seconds of silence you announced is way less awkward than 30 seconds of silence you didnt
Olivia Martin@liv_codes
binary search on the answer is new to me, looking that up. and recording myself sounds horrifying which means i should do it
Tomasz Kowalski@tomasz_k
In my time we had no leetcode. We had whiteboard, marker that does not work, and fear. You have it easy.