I have been through the same phase. Let me give you some tips - * Immerse yourself in programming. You have no idea how much satisfaction you can get out of it

I have been through the same phase. Let me give you some tips - * Immerse yourself in programming. You have no idea how much satisfaction you can get out of it. * Read. Read. Read. Start reading things. Read your CS books, non-fiction, etc. Read as much as you can. * Get active in some sort of Free/Open Source Software community. Pick a project you like and start contributing. Always good to have a goal (I will fix/file/triage x bugs in x months). * Get into IRC. ##linux-india on Freenode is a great channel full of people who hack stuff (and some other non-hackers too). * Some people have suggested getting a girlfriend or a social life. Knowing the place you come from, that won't help. Stay away from those people. They will only make you feel worse. * Set a goal to get into Google Summer of Code next year once you have figured out programming and working on FOSS projects. * Study just before the exams and make sure you get out of your college as fast as possible (ie, don't drop out). If you have good knowledge of Linux systems, taking over the college labs will help you a lot. Build some sort of a hacker reputation so that people discount your bad grades. That's pretty much what I did when I was in one of those crappy Indian colleges. Once you have gained enough confidence, things will get better for you. If you need more help, email me - b.ghose at infinitelybeta.com [update] And oh, don't worry about jobs; if you can hack, I have a job for you.