My name is Ansuman. I’m 20 years old and pursuing my Bachelors in Computer Science Engineering from the Odisha University of Technology and Research (Formerly CET Bhubaneswar). I’ve somehow reached my pre-final year and while I learnt little from my college courses, YouTube tutorials came to my rescue along with helpful websites like boot.dev, freecodecamp.org, and codedamn.com. It was from these saviours that I learnt how to type and execute my first lines of code. Along with the basics of programming, these websites have shown me the pure joy of being able to build things with just my fingers and a laptop. Isn’t that the beauty of Computer Science? I spend my free time tutoring high school students in Python and Java for their school exams. I must confess I’ve learnt more from them than they have from me. Richard Feynman was right in saying that "anyone can make a subject complicated but only someone who understands can make it simple". Tutoring has helped me realise how very little I understand about software. The only way for me to develop a deeper understanding of the things I wish to learn is by practicing and sharpening my skills. Although as fun as following tutorials and solving simulated exercises can be, I want to build something from scratch with other like-minded individuals that can create an impact on the world, albeit a small one.
Like 99.9% of the Indian student population, I could not make it to the prestigious IITs of the country. That took a major toll on my self-confidence, which I’m still struggling to recover from to this day. I’ve spent more time than I’d like to admit in self pity, so I won’t bore you with my sob story. All I can say is that I missed a major opportunity to perform at my full potential, which is a mistake I shall not be repeating. I have struggled to express myself professionally since graduating from high school. I believe Hackathons will be helpful for me in gaining relevant experience and overcoming my inferiority complex. But regardless of whether I get accepted to this Hackathon, I will still aim to do my best in order to fulfil my potential.