Discovering Crio
The story begins in a BSc Computer Science classroom. I was a final year student, trying to find my place in the world of tech. I had secured a placement, but it wasn’t fulfilling. It lacked that spark, that passion I knew I was capable of finding.
One day, while scrolling through Instagram, I saw a story from DSC SRM, about Crio’s Launch program. I had seen plenty of similar programs advertised, with their flashy promises of instant careers in Artificial Intelligence or Data Science. This one, however, had a different vibe. “Work-Like Experience,” it read. “Build Real Software Products.” The best part? “You Pay Nothing.”
Weird, so you’re telling me.. No AI/ML/Data Science/Futuristic Robot Building/Invent A Time Machine? I pay nothing? Of course I dug deeper.
Everything seemed… perfect. A program in which I could actually work on my skills… for free.
I signed up without hesitation, and the rest was history.
Getting selected into the program
The first round of selection involved solving a few basic coding problems. I was apprehensive - competitive programming wasn't my forte. Thankfully, I managed to solve a couple of problems. Then, came the next round.
The next round consisted of a mini project we had to build. We were given an option to fast track our selection by participating in Crio’s very own “Crio Launch Tryouts”.
I signed up for it and had an amazing weekend working on features of a food ordering app.
Some days later, I received my pass to Crio Launch. And my journey began.
Crio Launch
I will not bore you too much with the technical details about the program here. You can check it yourself here.
All I can tell you is that Crio perhaps taught me more in 3 months, than college taught me in 3 years.
The program exceeded all my expectations. Crio packed more value into three months than my entire college experience had. I worked with other students from diverse backgrounds, learned from industry experts, and built a fantastic portfolio. This wasn't a theoretical approach. We learned by doing, and I wouldn't trade that experience for anything.
“Learn By Doing” — Crio’s Motto
The Launch program opened my eyes as to how much I actually didn’t know and how much there is to explore out there in this field of Computer Science.
I had built a few hobby projects before, but nothing like what I worked in Launch.
Trust me when I say this, you cannot make progress in the program unless you are constantly learning.
By the end of Crio Launch, I was a confident developer. I was armed with new skills and practical projects under my belt. However, there was one crucial hurdle left - cracking technical interviews. Crio's Launch Plus program stepped in to prepare us for this challenge.
Crio Launch Plus focused on system design, data structures and algorithms, and problem-solving techniques. We tackled tough coding problems, similar to those encountered in real tech company interview assessments.
Crio was the glue that attached me to the things I loved doing.
Opening new doors
Quickly, but slowly at the same time, Crio Launch had come to an end.
I came out of it a much more confident developer, with a myriad of tools in my toolkit and good projects I had built.
But now, it was time to think of my career. I had very little interviewing experience, and had not experienced any real tech interviews before. I also had a placement offer that I didn’t like.
Crio then introduced us to Crio Launch Plus, their optional premium program.
It was exclusive to students who had graduated from Crio Launch and it was meant to prepare students in all the aspects of a tech interview.
I went through it, and again… it was perfect.
It lined up with the things I wanted to learn, and by now I had fallen in love with Crio’s Learn By Doing methodology.
“Education should be free…”, I mumbled as I looked at the price tag of the program. But then I remembered that I spent 3 years in college, paying huge fees for no outcome but a piece of paper.
I remembered all the hard work the Crio Mentors put in for us during Crio Launch, without receiving a penny in return. That same night, I rejected the offer I had and signed up for Launch Plus.
The journey To getting hired
The Launch Plus program started approximately a week or two after Launch finished. Again, I will not bore you with the technical details about the program. Feel free to check it out here.
This program tested my limits. I felt frustration, happiness, and everything in between.
As someone who was weak in my problem solving skills, there was a huge mountain to climb.
But with Crio’s Methodology, paired with some excellent mentors and friendships I had made during Launch, I had very good guidance.
I slowly started enjoying the process of solving problems. Something I thought would never happen.
I learned various techniques and methods to solve different kinds of problems that could be asked in technical interviews.
Apart from this, the program featured a product development track, where we worked on features of a food ordering app (an extension to Crio Launch Tryouts), a segment called “Buildouts”, where in we learnt how to solve similar problems that were sent as take home assignments by tech companies, and also sessions on System Design.
We were also guided on soft skills, resume preparation, and how to apply for jobs.
Crio also sent out referrals to some amazing tech companies whom I had a chance to interview with.
After a lot of hard work and with the help of my mentors and peers, and although not through their referrals, I was hired as a Software Engineer.
The Road Ahead, Crio’s Impact And Key Takeways
The Road Ahead, Crio’s Impact And Key Takeways
I write this to you during my initial days of my professional career as a Software Engineer.
There is so much to learn for me. So much to explore. The real learning, for me, starts today.
Crio has impacted me in so many ways and I will hold dear to my heart the experiences I had with both the programs. It changed my way of thinking and propelled my career forward.
Some key takeaways for every developer out there, based on my Crio journey:
- Always stay curious and hungry to learn.
- Be passionate about what you do.
- Build an online presence, talk and network with people.
- You never learn unless you apply. So learn by doing.
I would like to thank the people behind Crio, from the co-founders to everyone who works there and was a part of my journey, for creating this beautiful platform and helping students out. Cheers!
