Limited hours, many options, one goal: be hireable at graduation. Ranked by placement ROI:
The ranking
- 1. Self-study + shipped projects (60% of time): the non-negotiable core — it IS the hiring bar. Nothing on this list substitutes for it
- 2. Hackathons (high ROI, occasional): 24–48h of forced shipping + teamwork + a demo — one hackathon teaches more building-under-pressure than a semester. Wins are resume lines; even losses are projects + friends. Do 2–3 a year
- 3. Tech clubs (conditional): great IF you build/teach (workshops, club websites, event tech) — leadership + network. Low value if it's logistics and posters. Audit honestly
- 4. Certifications (mostly overrated): free ones (freeCodeCamp, NPTEL) as structure = fine. Paid certificates for resume decoration = weak; interviewers probe skills, not badges. Exception: cloud certs (AWS CCP) have some HR-filter value
The composite that works
Daily 2h self-study (see the routine) + a hackathon per semester + club involvement only where you build. Say no to the rest without guilt — a deployed project with users beats every certificate stack.