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15-Day Array Mastery
Roadmap (DSA)
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
Arrays are often the first hurdle in Data
Structures and Algorithms. Many
developers get stuck here because they
treat every array problem as a unique
puzzle, attempting to memorize
individual solutions. This approach
leads to burnout and a lack of real
understanding.
The secret to mastering arrays is to
stop solving endless questions and
start learning by patterns. Most array
problems are simply variations of a few
core techniques: Two Pointers, Sliding
Window, Prefix Sum, and Hashing. By
focusing on these underlying patterns,
you will build the intuition necessary to
dismantle new, unseen problems
quickly and effectively. This 15-day
roadmap is designed to build that
intuition systematically.
SECTION 2: 15-DAY
ROADMAP
Day 1–2: Basics + Traversal
What to study: Memory layout of
arrays, time complexity of array
operations, and standard traversal
techniques (forward, backward,
jumping).
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What to practice: In-place
modifications, swapping elements,
and simple counting operations.
Day 3–4: Prefix Sum
What to study: The concept of
running totals, range sum queries,
and how storing previous sums
reduces time complexity from
O(n^2) to O(n).
What to practice: Finding
equilibrium indices, calculating
sums of specific subarrays, and
optimizing nested loops.
Day 5–6: Two Pointers
What to study: Left/right pointer
mechanics for sorted arrays, and
slow/fast pointer (Tortoise and
Hare) mechanics for cycles or in-
place shifting.
What to practice: Finding pairs
that meet a target, reversing
sequences, and merging sorted
arrays.
Day 7–8: Sliding Window
What to study: Fixed-size
windows vs. dynamically resizing
windows. Learn how to maintain a
subset of valid data without
recalculating from scratch.
What to practice: Finding
maximum/minimum sums in fixed
subarrays, and finding the
longest/shortest sequences that
meet a specific condition.
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Day 9–10: Hashing
What to study: Using Hash Maps
and Hash Sets to achieve O(1)
lookups. Understand the space-
time tradeoff.
What to practice: Frequency
counting, finding duplicates, and
solving the "Two Sum" variations
efficiently.
Day 11–12: Kadane’s Algorithm +
Subarrays
What to study: Dynamic
programming applied directly to
arrays. Understand local
maximums versus global
maximums.
What to practice: Maximum
subarray sum problems, handling
negative numbers, and circular
array logic.
Day 13: Mixed Practice
What to study: Pattern
identification. Learn to look at
constraints and keywords to
decide which of the previous
patterns applies.
What to practice: Randomly
selected problems from the list
below without looking at the
category tags.
Day 14: Revision
What to study: Review your notes
and code implementations for the
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patterns you found most difficult.
What to practice: Re-solve the
specific questions that took you
more than 30 minutes during your
initial pass.
Day 15: Mock Practice
What to study: Time
management, pressure handling,
and debugging.
What to practice: Select 4
unseen array problems of varying
difficulty and attempt to solve them
strictly within 90 minutes.
SECTION 3: PATTERN-WISE
QUESTION LIST
1. Basics & Traversal
Build Array from Permutation
Concatenation of Array
Shuffle the Array
Remove Duplicates from Sorted
Array
Remove Element
Move Zeroes
Sort Colors
Majority Element
2. Prefix Sum
Running Sum of 1d Array
Find Pivot Index
Range Sum Query - Immutable
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Corporate Flight Bookings
Product of Array Except Self
Subarray Sum Equals K
Contiguous Array
Number of Sub-arrays With Odd
Sum
3. Two Pointers
Two Sum II - Input Array Is Sorted
Valid Palindrome
Squares of a Sorted Array
Merge Sorted Array
3Sum
4Sum
Container With Most Water
Trapping Rain Water
4. Sliding Window
Maximum Average Subarray I
Minimum Size Subarray Sum
Longest Substring Without
Repeating Characters
Longest Repeating Character
Replacement
Fruit Into Baskets
Permutation in String
Find All Anagrams in a String
Sliding Window Maximum
5. Hashing
Two Sum
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Contains Duplicate
Contains Duplicate II
Intersection of Two Arrays
Group Anagrams
Top K Frequent Elements
Longest Consecutive Sequence
First Missing Positive
6. Kadane / Subarray Problems
Maximum Subarray
Best Time to Buy and Sell Stock
Maximum Product Subarray
Maximum Sum Circular Subarray
Maximum Absolute Sum of Any
Subarray
Longest Turbulent Subarray
Continuous Subarray Sum
7. Mixed / Advanced
Missing Number
Single Number
Find All Numbers Disappeared in
an Array
Find the Duplicate Number
Next Permutation
Rotate Image
Spiral Matrix
Set Matrix Zeroes
Merge Intervals
Insert Interval
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Non-overlapping Intervals
Longest Increasing Subsequence
SECTION 4: HOW TO USE
THIS ROADMAP
Pacing: Aim to solve 3 to 5
questions per day depending on
the difficulty. Quality of
understanding always beats
quantity of submissions.
Move Forward: Do not fall into the
trap of repeating array concepts
indefinitely. Once these 15 days
are complete, move on to Strings,
Linked Lists, or Trees. Array
manipulation skills will naturally
reinforce themselves as you
progress through other data
structures.
Focus on the "Why": Never
settle for just getting a green
checkmark. Ask yourself why a
specific pattern worked. "Why did
Two Pointers optimize this from
O(n^2) to O(n)?" Document that
specific reasoning.
No Hints for 20 Minutes:
Struggle is part of the process.
Give yourself a strict 20-minute
window of unassisted thought
before looking at standard
solutions.
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