March 28, 2017 Cheat Sheet for Algorithm Competitions at Topcoder

If you’re a newbie at Topcoder and just getting started in algorithm competitions, I’m sure the website is a bit overwhelming. There is so much information out there and many good tips for getting started. I’ve scoured the site just for you and have a few of my favorite resources for beginners in our algorithm competition.
Getting Started in Data Science. This how it works and where to go article should give you a step by step guide to getting started.
The Importance of Algorithms. An oldie but a goodies; this article is one our top resources written by a former admin, lbackstrom.
This link here will bring you to a ton of articles written by Topcoder members. All of these members know what they are talking about and provide excellent insight into our most popular competition at Topcoder.
Go here to view all our past matches. You can view the problem statements and code to get a feel for what kind of problems our competitors face. Then when you’re ready, you can head over to practice some yourself.
If you run into trouble, you can check out the problem set analysis commentary by members who explain the problems and provide solutions.
When all else fails, we have community forums give you direct contact to some our top competitors. Comb the forums for past threads, post your own questions, or just follow along on conversations.
Hopefully this will give you a good start for getting involved with Topcoder algorithm competitions. Our premier tournament, the Topcoder Open Algorithm Competition starts on April 1 and it’s a great chance to try your hand at qualifying. Check all the details here and best of luck!