02 — Courses¶
Courses are books with pacing built in. The danger is mistaking “watching videos” for “learning.” Every hour of video watched without solving a problem immediately after is an hour that will return zero retention. The courses below are evaluated on one practical metric: does the community report actually getting better at solving problems after using them, or just feeling like they understand more?
Use one primary course per phase. If you’re watching two courses simultaneously, you’re wasting time.
1. NeetCode (YouTube + Roadmap + NeetCode.io)¶
What it is: NeetCode is a YouTube channel, a free problem roadmap (NeetCode 150), and a paid platform (NeetCode Pro). The free version includes 150 curated LeetCode problems organized by pattern (arrays, two pointers, sliding window, stack, binary search, linked list, trees, heap, backtracking, tries, graphs, DP, etc.) with video explanations for each. NeetCode 150 replaced the Blind 75 list as the de-facto industry standard prep list.
Free or paid: Free. NeetCode Pro adds interactive coding environment, hints, and additional problems — $119/year or $219 lifetime. The community consensus is that the free version covers 90% of what you need. NeetCode Pro is useful if you want structured hints rather than going directly to the video solution.
Hours to complete: NeetCode 150 with understanding: 150-250 hours depending on experience. Each problem should take 20-60 minutes including the video review. This is not a quick course — it is a problem training program.
Phase alignment: Phases 1-4 (M1.5–M6). NeetCode 150 is the primary LeetCode training vehicle.
Community verdict: r/learnprogramming and r/leetcode (2024-2026) consensus: NeetCode is #1 for LeetCode preparation. 500k+ YouTube subscribers, active uploads through at least January 2026. Frequently cited phrasing: “Just do NeetCode 150 and you’ll be fine.” It’s the closest thing to a consensus standard that exists. The channel owner (Navdeep Singh) is credible — explains not just the solution but the pattern identification process.
Verdict for this learner: PRIMARY for LeetCode track, Phases 1-4. Start with NeetCode 150 after Phase 0 foundation. Follow the roadmap order — it’s carefully sequenced.
URL: neetcode.io (verify before use)
2. Striver’s A2Z DSA Sheet (TakeUForward)¶
What it is: A structured ~455 problem sheet covering all DSA topics from fundamentals to advanced, with video explanations on YouTube (@takeUforward). Created by Raj Vikramaditya (ex-Google, now TakeUForward full-time). The sheet has a very smooth difficulty curve — the gentlest ramp from absolute beginner to intermediate of any structured resource.
Free or paid: Free. Website: takeuforward.org. YouTube channel: @takeUforward (TUF+, the paid version, exists but is not required).
Hours to complete: Full A2Z sheet: 400-600 hours. This is not the right way to use it — use it as a companion to understand specific topics, not as a 9-month cover-to-cover grind.
Phase alignment: Phase 0-2 (M1–M3). Especially strong for Phase 0-1 where the smooth ramp from basics is most valuable. After Phase 2, CP-algorithms + USACO Guide provide better CP-aligned guidance.
Community verdict: r/developersIndia and r/Btechtards (Indian CS community, 2024-2026) reference it constantly — it is the dominant resource recommendation in the Indian CS learning community. Consistent praise: “Striver’s sheet is the best structured resource for absolute beginners in India.” The video explanations are in English with an Indian teaching style that many learners find more accessible than American creator styles. Quality of explanations is high.
Verdict for this learner: PRIMARY for Phase 0-1, especially first 6 weeks. You are in India, working at Zoho, likely familiar with this resource already. The smooth ramp and video explanations make it the best entry point. Transition to NeetCode 150 + USACO Guide after Phase 1.
URL: takeuforward.org | YouTube: @takeUforward
3. AlgoExpert¶
What it is: Paid platform with 160+ problems, video explanations, code walkthroughs in multiple languages, and data structure crash courses. Positioned as a premium interview prep platform.
Free or paid: Paid. $199/year ($99/year on sale, which happens frequently).
Phase alignment: Phase 3-5 if you prefer structured video explanation over self-discovery.
Community verdict: r/learnprogramming and r/cscareerquestions (2024-2026) are consistently skeptical. The dominant sentiment: “AlgoExpert is fine but overpriced for what you get. NeetCode covers 90% of the same content for free.” The production quality is higher than free alternatives, but production quality doesn’t translate to problem-solving ability. There is no evidence in community discussion that AlgoExpert users outperform NeetCode users on interview outcomes.
Verdict for this learner: SKIP. $199/year for content you can get free from NeetCode is indefensible for a learner on a 9-month personal project budget. If you want to spend money, LeetCode Premium ($159/yr) has clearer value through company-specific questions.
5. Coursera — Algorithms, Part I & II (Sedgewick/Princeton)¶
What it is: Two Coursera courses by Robert Sedgewick (Princeton). Part I: union-find, sorting, stacks/queues, BSTs, balanced BSTs, hash tables. Part II: graphs (undirected, directed, MST, shortest paths), strings, compression, data compression. Java implementations throughout.
Free or paid: Free to audit (no graded assignments). ~$79/month for a certificate (irrelevant for this journey). Coursera sometimes has issues with audit access — check current status.
Hours to complete: Part I: ~54 hours. Part II: ~63 hours. Total: ~120 hours. At 10-15 hrs/week, that’s nearly 2 months for both parts. This is a significant time commitment.
Phase alignment: Phase 1-2 as a theory foundation if you prefer academic structure over the CP Handbook.
Community verdict: r/learnprogramming (2024-2026): “One of the best free algorithm courses if you can commit to it. The visualizations are exceptional. Java can be a barrier.” High quality, but the Java-centric implementation and academic pacing make it a slower path to CP readiness than CP Handbook + USACO Guide. Praised heavily by people who want depth and rigor.
Verdict for this learner: SUPPLEMENT (optional), Phase 1-2 only. If you prefer academic structure with Java examples (your primary language), this is a solid Phase 1 supplement. But CP Handbook + USACO Guide gets you to Codeforces faster. Choose based on your Phase 1 preference: structured academic course vs. practical CP reference.
6. Abdul Bari — Algorithm Course (YouTube / Udemy)¶
What it is: YouTube channel with algorithm theory videos. Covers time complexity, recursion, sorting, searching, hashing, graphs, DP, greedy. Also has a paid Udemy course (~$15 on sale) that packages the content more structuredly.
Free or paid: YouTube is free. Udemy course ~$15 on sale (regularly discounted from $85 listed price — never pay full price on Udemy).
Hours to complete: Core YouTube playlist: ~40-50 hours. Udemy course: similar content, better organized.
Phase alignment: Phase 0-1 for theory. Specifically strong for recursion (he explains the recursion tree visualization better than most), sorting algorithms, and DP fundamentals.
Community verdict: r/learnprogramming and r/learnCS (2024-2026): “Abdul Bari is the best YouTube resource for algorithm theory intuition. His recursion tree explanations are uniquely clear.” Still active as of 2025-2026 per community references. The YouTube channel is the reference — the Udemy course is the same content with slightly better structure.
Verdict for this learner: SUPPLEMENT for Phases 0-1, specific topics. Specifically: use his recursion playlist when recursion is unclear. Use his DP playlist as a second explanation if CP Handbook’s DP section isn’t clicking. Not a primary resource — a surgical second opinion on specific concepts.
URL: YouTube — search “Abdul Bari algorithms” | Udemy — search “Abdul Bari algorithms” (wait for sale)
7. William Fiset — Graph Theory (YouTube)¶
What it is: YouTube playlist covering graph theory in depth: DFS/BFS, Dijkstra, Bellman-Ford, Floyd-Warshall, topological sort, strongly connected components (Tarjan’s, Kosaraju’s), bridges and articulation points, Eulerian paths, max flow (Ford-Fulkerson, Edmonds-Karp), bipartite graph matching. Implementations in Java.
Free or paid: Free.
Hours to complete: Graph Theory playlist: ~8-10 hours of video content. Add 2-3x for problem practice after each video.
Phase alignment: Phase 3 (M4.5–M6) when graph algorithms become primary focus.
Community verdict: r/learnprogramming (2024-2026): “Fiset’s graph theory playlist is the best explanation of advanced graph algorithms on YouTube. The visualizations are exceptional.” Still referenced as active in 2025. Java implementations, but the conceptual explanations are language-agnostic.
Verdict for this learner: SUPPLEMENT for Phase 3, graph topics. When you hit advanced graph algorithms (flows, SCC, bridges), watch the relevant Fiset video before attempting problems. It dramatically reduces time-to-understanding on algorithms that are hard to internalize from text alone.
URL: YouTube — search “William Fiset graph theory”
8. Back to Back SWE (YouTube)¶
What it is: YouTube channel focused on LeetCode-style interview problems. Covers arrays, trees, graphs, DP, system design. Problem explanations with whiteboard style.
Free or paid: Free.
Community verdict: r/learnprogramming (2023-2025): Solid quality, but upload frequency dropped significantly after 2022. As of 2025-2026 the channel is largely inactive for new content. The existing problem explanation videos remain useful but the channel is not a source for new content.
Verdict for this learner: SKIP as primary. Use specific videos if you find them via search. The channel is semi-inactive. NeetCode has newer, more comprehensive coverage of the same material with active uploads.
Summary Table¶
Course/Resource |
Free/Paid |
Hours |
Phase |
Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
NeetCode 150 |
Free (Pro: $119/yr) |
150-250h |
1-4 |
PRIMARY LeetCode track |
Striver A2Z DSA |
Free |
400-600h (use selectively) |
0-1 |
PRIMARY Phase 0-1 (India) |
Abdul Bari |
Free / $15 Udemy |
40-50h |
0-1 |
SUPPLEMENT specific topics |
Sedgewick Coursera |
Free audit |
120h |
1-2 |
SUPPLEMENT (if academic preferred) |
William Fiset Graphs |
Free |
8-10h |
3 |
SUPPLEMENT graph algorithms |
LeetCode Premium |
$159/yr |
N/A |
5-6 |
DEFER to Phase 5 |
AlgoExpert |
$199/yr |
80-100h |
— |
SKIP |
Back to Back SWE |
Free |
— |
— |
SKIP (semi-inactive) |
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