# Arrays of Structures — C Programming

Source: https://www.geekswithgeeks.com/en/c/c-array-of-structs

> Model a list of records, like rows in a table.

## A table of students

Combine a struct with an array to store many records of the same shape.

```c
struct Student {
    char name[20];
    int marks;
};

struct Student class[3] = {
    {"Ana", 88},
    {"Bilal", 76},
    {"Chen", 92}
};

for (int i = 0; i < 3; i++) {
    printf("%s: %d\n", class[i].name, class[i].marks);
}
```

Output:

```
Ana: 88
Bilal: 76
Chen: 92
```

## Pass by pointer to avoid copies

Passing a large struct (or array of structs) by value copies every byte. Pass a pointer (`struct Student *s`) to a function instead, and use `s->field` to access members.

**Quiz:** What does `s->field` mean when `s` is a pointer to a struct?

- [x] Shorthand for (*s).field
- [ ] It compares s and field
- [ ] It creates a new struct

*Answer:* Shorthand for (*s).field. `->` dereferences the pointer and accesses the member in one step.