levisngigi / 2024-paid-open-source-opportunities

This is a list of paid open source organizations favorable for all skill levels starting from beginner to proficient programmers. Interested applicants are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the repos and community guidelines early on before the application period.

Paid open-source Opportunities

Compiled here is a list of paid open-source opportunities.

These institutions cater to individuals at entry-level proficiency, and a subset among them extends a welcoming embrace to those with limited technical expertise.

1. OUTREACHY

Outreachy provides paid internships in Open-Source, with a stipend of $7000 USD. It is beginner-friendly. Contributors have to go through a series of steps before being incorporated into the 3-month program. There are two intakes every year - May and December.

Interested? Apply for the May 2024 intake. Check out the Outreachy Applicant Guide to plan accordingly. The program runs for at least 3 months.

2. Google Summer of Code

Google Summer of Code(GSoC) is a Google-managed open-source remote 'internship'. Having run for 19 years now, GSoC has been a haven for open-source contributions from developers all around the world. Having helped budding developers for nearly 2 decades now, GSoC produces stellar SWEs who go on to work on big real world projects that impact thousands if not millions of users around the world. Some of its previous contributors morph into bigger roles and can be seen working for FAANG. The stipend paid out is determined by the hours of work put in as well as the scope of the project. Taking purchasing power parity into consideration, stipends on the same task will differ based on country of residence; and this ranges from $750 - $6000 USD. Familiarize yourself with the GSoC 2024 timeline here.

3. Google Season of Docs

This is a program targeted at technical writers. If you are great at writing documentation, this is the perfect internship for you. Interested organizations apply to become a part of each year's program. Once accepted, they will be announced. After this, contributor applications will be put out. The timeline here will help you in planning your application. The stipend ranges from $6000 USD - $15000 USD. It runs for about 7 months.

4. Hyperledger Mentorship Program

The primary goal of the Hyperledger Mentorship Program is to establish a well-structured, hands-on learning experience for new contributors who may not otherwise have the chance to participate in the Hyperledger open-source development community. Prospective mentees will submit applications and be paired with mentors actively involved in the Hyperledger community, working remotely from their preferred locations. Ongoing assessment and feedback mechanisms will be in place, allowing mentees to showcase their progress and contributions through various channels such as blogging, speaking engagements at meetups or regional events, and the potential to attend a global Hyperledger event to present their work in person while networking with peers in the wider community. Similar to GSoC and GSoD the stipend is adjusted according to the country of residence of the mentees with purchasing power parity taken into consideration but ranges from $3000 - $6000 USD. Visit their intern page to learn more about the program.

5. Major League Hacking Fellowship

This is a 12 week internship program for software developers, working at least 20 hours a week. The stipend given is $5000 USD for the entirety of the period. Newbies in programming are encouraged to apply as well in order to sharpen their skills.

6. Reinforcement Learning by Microsoft

This program runs from May to August and is referred to as a summer internship by countries in the upper hemisphere. It focuses on introducing students(newbies in programming) to open-source reinforcement learning and software development while working alongside engineers, researchers and data scientists. Students will work on a 16-week research programming project which they will present to the Microsoft Research Real World Reinforcement Learning team online. The stipend for your contribution is $10,000 USD or your local equivalent.

7. Linux Foundation Mentorship Programs

This mentorship is aimed at training the next generation of open-source developers to build a stronger and more diverse community of skilled developers and engineers. The stipend for this program starts at $3000 - $6600 USD adjusted according to a country's purchasing power parity(PPP)

8. The X.Org Endless Vacation of Code (EVoC)

This $5000 USD stipend is given to successful applicants for a three or four-month period of contiguous nearly full-time work. It was created after the organization (which was, previously, a contributor in GSoC) decided to venture out on its own providing another platform where talented developers get a chance to contribute code. The stipend is given in three tranches with an initial $500 USD payment issued at the beginning and two $2250 USD payments later on. You can learn more about the program here.

9. LFN Mentorship Program

The internship/mentorship initiative within LF Networking (LFN) strives to establish a well-organized, hands-on learning experience for aspiring developers who might not otherwise have the chance to immerse themselves in open-source software development or become part of the technical communities associated with LFN projects. Additionally, it offers a clearer pathway for LFN projects to engage with the upcoming cohort of student developers, enhancing their developer base by infusing fresh talent. Mentees develop close working relations with professionals and industry business leaders. Coupled with that, they get to have hands-on experience with real-world projects that affect thousands of users. The stipend for this program is dependent on the mentees's country of residence; and this can be found here. It ranges from $3000 - $6600 USD

10. GNOME internships

This 40-hour-week internship that pays a stipend of $8000 USD is a three-month-long program for SWEs. Applications open in September, and the internship starts in December to March of the following year. I encourage interested applicants to go through previous projects and start with beginner-friednly issues that they can solve. This will increase your chances of acceptance into the program. Get in touch with the maintainers and other contributors in the relevant chat rooms. Check out the eligibility requirements as some countries are not allowed to participate.