Software Developer Career Advice

[Kourosh23]

Hi everyone,

I already posted this question in Lounge, but I did not get any response back, so I thought I might post it here since there are more people here.

I am a second year software systems student living in Canada. My future goal is to one day become a software developer at big companies like Microsoft, Google, and etc. I want to aim at getting a co-op at these companies, but the part that makes me worried is the interview process. I know that the majority of successful candidates have a portfolio of their work(the programs/applications they have written), but I don't know where to start? Any suggestion for what I can build to stand out of the crowd? Any website/resources that I can use to find out more information?

My current skills:
- C++ (~2 years)
- Writing test cases
- Debugging
- RobotC (EV3 robot programming)

- In the next 6-12 months, I am planning to learn python, Java, and software automation testing.