A student from a Tier 3 government engineering college has shown how technical skills, competitive programming and the right peer group can help overcome limitations associated with campus placements. His journey from a college with an average package of around Rs 4 lakh to becoming an SDE 2 at Amazon was recently shared on X by Vikas Alwys.
The engineer completed his BTech in Computer Science from JNTU Jagityal, a Tier 3 government college. According to the post, the college had an average package of about Rs 4 lakh, with many students getting placed at companies such as TCS, Cognizant, Capgemini and Accenture.
There is a friend of mine who completed his https://t.co/BC6fLkcQNf CS from JNTU Jagityal, a tier-3 Govt college. To be honest, the college's average package is 4 LPA and most students get placed in TCS, Cognizant, Capgemini, and Accenture.
— Vikas Alwys (@VikasAlwys) September 9, 2026
But he is SDE 2 at Amazon earning…
However, the student chose to build his skills beyond the campus environment. The college reportedly did not have a strong coding culture, with limited exposure to competitive programming, coding contests and technical interview preparation.
One of the key factors in his journey was the peer group he created outside his college. He had friends studying at IITs and NITs, through whom he remained connected to programming discussions and competitive coding. Instead of spending his college years relying only on campus opportunities, he focused heavily on coding, participated in contests and continued improving his technical skills.
His efforts helped him secure his first job at Infosys as a Specialist Programmer, with a package of around Rs 11 lakh per annum, nearly three times his college's average package. But he continued looking for better opportunities. Around three years after starting his professional career, he reportedly joined Amazon as an SDE 2, earning nearly Rs 64 lakh per annum.
The journey highlights that a college's placement statistics need not define a student's long-term career. Building technical expertise, finding ambitious peers and continuously learning can open opportunities beyond campus limitations. The story shows that your network is not limited to your college. As he said, "Your real network is your network."
