RESOURCES FOR CDC

Compiled by: Sarthak Goyal

Many of you will be having your CDC in the upcoming semesters. Summers will be the
most important time for your preparation. To help everyone be well prepared for the
tests and interview, we have compiled a list of resources for different profiles that you
can follow.

This guide is not exhaustive but it will give a good overview of how to prepare for your
upcoming CDC. Apart from this, you should also consult your seniors who have got an
internship in the respective field you are targeting for a good preparation methodology.

Now let us look at the profiles one by one:

SOFTWARE
To ace the software interview, you need to be good at Algorithms and Data
Structures. First get the basics of these cleared by following some introductory courses
(like CS21003: Algorithms 1 at our college, the NPTEL one here or any popular course
that you can find online.) Then start practising Competitive Programming from the
sources listed below or websites like Codeforces, Codechef, Leetcode and Interviewbit.

Sometimes core CS concepts are also asked:

a. For 3rd years: Mainly OOPS is asked to 3rd years. Some specific topics in
OOPS that have been asked previously are access modifiers, virtual functions,
overloading vs overriding, encapsulation, abstraction. Go through
https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/object-oriented-programming-in-cpp/ here or
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlrATfBNZ98dudnM48yfGUldqGD0S4FFb
playlist here
b. For 4th years: 4th years need to mainly focus on OOPS, OS and Networks. A
more thorough preparation might include DBMS as well. The portions covered in
academics are more than enough to be decently prepared.
More resources for Algorithms and Data Structures Theory

● CP Algorithms website: https://cp-algorithms.com/

● CP Handbook:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UI_5yAdnDrttxTcrhwQJ8iOZjFRNR8Nr/view
● Cracking the Coding Interview Book
● Code Readability:
http://personal.denison.edu/~havill/style.pdf?fbclid=IwAR1BtDQGJQBm1z0TYLjy
os2sFGdrAAH_9pUelrrl5v-1A8cP2RNA9ZE2bFs

Topic Wise Problems For Coding

● Binary Search (fairly imp):

○ https://www.topcoder.com/community/competitive-programming/tutorials/bi
nary-search
● STL (very imp)
○ https://www.topcoder.com/community/competitive-programming/tutorials/p
ower-up-c-with-the-standard-template-library-part-1/
○ https://www.topcoder.com/community/competitive-programming/tutorials/p
ower-up-c-with-the-standard-template-library-part-2/
● Bit manipulation (very imp)
○ https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/bits-manipulation-important-tactics/
● Maths (not much asked)
○ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1VVxbGtPR6eNM8AMFv5VYX8S_k1
Ksh3VfiihmqavdW5Q/edit?usp=sharing
● DP (very imp)
○ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MdZlrGHEmIUtrhDDjpguTH-dzytA_
MNScCEwPSETHTQ/edit
○ Can refer to https://cp-algorithms.com/
○ https://www.interviewbit.com/ has a good section on DP.
● Graphs (very imp)
○ Can refer to https://cp-algorithms.com/
● DP on trees(imp):
○ https://codeforces.com/blog/entry/20935

General Practice problems

● Codemonk: https://www.hackerearth.com/practice/codemonk/
● A2OJ: https://a2oj.com/ladders
● Topic-wise:
○ https://www.interviewbit.com/
 ○ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1z0Mh7F0dxMVWX2u6WEHWRYqr
C4kCXyJ4KEHTkkVYdu8/edit
● LeetCode Practice:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1L3cvv0jOKN5hh8GI7iGKG8vmQe81b
Oi4dBKuFV1uUss/edit#gid=1177592695

Interview Resources

● Tips for interview:

○ https://m.facebook.com/ishan.ranga/posts/3264412863648431
○ https://docs.google.com/document/d/1o4_uJrPaah-roIQjxI2G9Uu02Y6kQ4
PH7RymENy2pl4/edit
● Experiences:
○ https://cq-iitkharagpur.medium.com/
○ https://www.linkedin.com/posts/abhishek8899_internship-interview-experie
nce-abhishek-activity-6691662512074690560-xCgR/
○ https://codeclub-iitkgp.medium.com/interview-blogs-archive-7849828ed38
1
○ https://nitinkgp23.github.io/2020/09/23/A-to-Z-guide-to-your-campus-place
ments/?fbclid=IwAR3pH6HZ4KCA-DyquhbabRXttGhRH00zIhxo8jg8_Kn-
GAp9xpFO5NbImWk
● Some More Resources on Github
○ https://github.com/jnikhilreddy/Competitive-programming-resources?fbclid
=IwAR2rJ9ta9elC-H_HQUB2rKaMb6eJKUJw63nU11CYGlavpM0kN6NDY
qoYDOQ
○ https://github.com/lnishan/awesome-competitive-programming?fbclid=IwA
R2Wucce017r91pb_hLyOeuQGDhF3i8cVcVAUJtE3tIZP5hxev-FBdZvTpM

ML / DL / AI / DATA
1. You will first need to be familiar with the basic mathematics behind Machine
Learning. This knowledge can be gained through courses in our institute on the
topics: Probability and Statistics and Linear Algebra.
a. You can also practise questions from 50 challenging problems in
probability
b. If you want to study through video lectures you can follow Stats 110
c. If you are a book person then follow Prob & Stats by Montgomery
d. To solve good dice problems look at
https://www.madandmoonly.com/doctormatt/mathematics/dice1.pdf
 2. Then you can learn the basics of Python and important libraries like Numpy,
Pandas, Matplotlib
3. Then you can start with Machine Learning Courses. Note that you need not do
everything here. Just browse through these courses and pick one that you like.
a. Machine Learning by Andrew NG on Coursera or Youtube. Make sure
you solve the programming exercises.
b. Deep Learning Specialisation on Coursera
c. The Andrew NG courses though extremely popular are a bit outdated. You
can follow Jovian DL: Zero to GANS and Jovian ML: Zero to GBMs for a
more application-oriented introduction to ML and DL
d. For a more theoretical coverage of DL, you can follow Stanford Courses
like CS231n for Computer Vision and CS224n for NLP. Make sure you
also visit their course web pages and solve the programming
assignments. If you get stuck, you will find their solutions on Github easily.
4. You can move on to programming practice now
a. Create an account on Kaggle and start giving competitions from there.
b. Try to do some hands-on project following a video from Youtube or some
Blog
5. To get practical experience in this domain, you can apply for projects under
KGP Professors or startups working in this domain.
6. Machine Learning Tips

QUANT PROFILE
For resources on Quant Profile, you can refer to the following doc by Quant Club, IIT
Kharagpur

FINANCE PROFILE
For a Finance profile, it is necessary to have a decent background in Finance on your
CV through projects/internships/competitions. Recruiters are generally looking towards
finding an inclination towards Finance on your CV while shortlisting your resume, hence
a well balanced CV with a decent CGPA increases your chances.

Following is a comprehensive roadmap a beginner can follow to explore the realms of

Finance and consider forging a career in the same :-

https://medium.com/@financeclubiitr/roadmap-to-learning-finance-f3ba8efba298
In order to learn how to trade and explore the basics of different asset classes, one can
read the Zerodha modules and pursue Coursera courses.

https://zerodha.com/varsity/

You can also refer to the following books for an extensive introduction and advanced
understanding if you have decided to go into depth:-

1. Investments 11th Edition : Bodie, Marcus, Kane (Intermediary)

2. Options, Futures & Other Derivatives : J.C. Hull (Advanced)

As for projects and interns you can apply to various Business Schools through email,
Corporates via Linkedin. Trading, Stock Pitch & Portfolio Management competitions
continue to happen all throughout the year and can be found on the Dare2Compete
website.

You can also take additional courses from Vinod Gupta School of Management,
consider applying for a Masters in Financial Engineering to foster your interest in the
field and increase your chances of getting a shortlist.

From an internship/placement point of perspective, most companies have a CV shortlist

followed by direct interviews. Some companies would have a quant/coding test to filter
in the first round. You are expected to be extremely well versed with every word on your
CV, idea about the markets & the area of Finance pertaining to the job description.

CONSULTING
Consulting is about giving solutions to the problems of different companies. This
involves data analysis, market research and using your problem-solving skills to solve
companies’ problems.

To get an idea of consulting you can take part in various case study competitions. In
order to explore the field further, you can consider taking internships in
corporates/startups in strategy roles, applying for pro-bono consulting projects, etc.

For CDC internships, very few companies come offering a consulting role and follow a
strict CV shortlist. In Consulting, CVs are sorted on the basis of ‘Spikes’. A spike on
your CV is a considerable achievement on a section of our CV
(Academics/Project/POR/Extra-Curricular). Spikes on more than one of these sections
is important to secure a shortlist as these roles are open to all departments and secure
heavy applications.

Following a shortlist, there are multiple one-on-one case interview rounds followed by a
final HR round. Generally firms provide a buddy (recent employee) to help shortlisted
candidates prepare for the case interview round. There are multiple resources to
practice your case structure, methodology and build a problem solving approach such
as :-

1. Case in Point (Marc Cosentino)

2. Case Interviews Cracked (IIT Bombay)
3. Victor Cheng Case Interview Workshops (Youtube)

Following are some resources on Consulting:

1. Guessing Game: Communique

2. Previously asked Guestimates
3. More Resources
4. Consulting Fundae

PRODUCT MANAGEMENT
A product manager is responsible for the strategy, roadmap, and feature definition for a
product or product line. They conduct research, develop strategies, communicate plans
and coordinate the development of company projects.

1. Company Wise Mock Interview Videos

a. Flipkart: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSV-vuvmIro&t=148s
b. Microsoft: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Axa7gx1lKqA
c. Google (Maps): https://youtu.be/CXdaPETE7iE
d. Amazon: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LC92F0nUOV0
e. Lyft: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fN6D4i82X_E
2. Interview Tip Videos
a. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVZ-ImQfo4E
b. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpIRd5LKEmY&list=RDCMUCrxXuHC
TLVGUy0_zI6E8aNg&index=3
c. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61M1r69ZWDg
d. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n530l09t8zY
 3. Community: http://productmanagementexcercises.com/
4. Youtube Channels
a. PMSchool
b. Exponent
5. Topics to be familiar with
a. User Journey
b. Metrics and KPIs
c. Customer Acquisition
d. Engagement
e. Retention
f. Monetization
g. Stickiness
h. Churn Rate
i. Surge Pricing
j. 4 Ps of Marketing
k. CIRCLES framework
l. HEART framework
m. Porter's 5 forces
n. SEO (learn basic principles)
o. How Google Ad and Adwords work
p. Have knowledge about Google Analytics
6. Books
a. Decode and Conquer
b. Cracking the PM Interview
c. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pu6ljOGWlWcWIK1APd8pRt0yC1GbHg97/
view?usp=sharing
7. Other Resources

SUPPLY CHAIN
Supply chain managers keep track of logistics and update the company’s inventory.
They analyze operational performance and resolve issues. They also collaborate with
vendors and suppliers to ensure all operations (e.g. shipping, delivery) meet quality and
safety standards. Their goal is to improve productivity and efficiency and reduce costs
while securing high-quality material for their company.

To prepare for a supply chain role, here are some resources

 1. Supply Chain Management by Chopra and Meindl
2. Group Discussion Prep Videos on Youtube
3. More Resources

OTHER IMPORTANT FUNDAE

1. Soft Skills Guide by Communique
2. KGP Life Fundae