I qualified GATE 2026 with a score of 335. Yes, 335 😅. I qualified mainly because of my reservation, but my goal is to get into a top IIT, especially IIT Bombay.
I have around 1.5 years of experience as a developer, mainly in WordPress, PHP, Laravel, React and Node.js. I also have experience with hosting, DNS, SMTP, .htaccess, deployment, etc.
I wanted a solid, high-paying career in tech, so I resigned from my job and prepared full-time for GATE 2026. But because of my financial situation, I had to start working again while preparing. My current job is more of a data-entry/operations role and isn't related to CS, but it pays my bills.
Now I'm confused about what to do.
Should I continue working and seriously prepare for GATE, knowing that I need to improve from 335 to around 600–700+? Or should I give up on the IIT/GATE dream and restart my software career, even if I have to begin with a 3–4 LPA job?
I already have some development skills and experience, but I'm worried about the current job market and whether I can realistically manage both work and GATE preparation.
What would you do in my situation?
Source: r/GATE_CS_DA · by /u/Huge_Fly_9548