Development: SoC Guidelines

Here are some tips about how to make a better proposal for a Google Summer of Code project.

Communicate - Please post to wx-dev mailing list and discuss your proposal before submitting it, this will certainly help you to make a better one. Also, communicating with the other developers is a prerequisite for working on any open source project so it is important to show that you don't shy away from it. Don't be bothered by the fact that English isn't your native language, it is the case for most of people on wx-dev (including the writer of this page) as well!

Manage your time - Please try to not underestimate the scope of a project, but also not to overestimate it. Defining clear milestones helps a lot here. Remember that you must make working on your wxWidgets project your main activity for the entire summer, don't count on doing another work in parallel with it.

Sell your idea - Describe your idea in detail. What is the ultimate goal? What components will it have? What are the benefits for the user (usually a wxWidgets-based application developers)? How do you plan to ensure that the project gets completed on time? If a more detailed explanation of the idea already exists, what will you do that will go above and beyond all expectations?

Sell yourself - Make sure you get across how enthusiastic you are about the project. The more enthusiastic you are, the more assured we will be that you will finish your project. It also indicates that there is a good chance you will stick around even after the Summer of Code has finished. Why are you interested in Open Source and wxWidgets in particular? What interests do you have, and how do these relate to the project for which you are applying?

Be enthusiastic - Summer of Code is a very exciting opportunity, and wxWidgets is a very exciting project, with a long and proven history, to work on. We aren't just looking for someone who wants a summer job to pass their time and earn some money. We want people who have a passion towards open source and are likely to become constant contributors to wxWidgets and open source also once the summer has passed. The goal of the whole initiative is to have students find their way to open source together with mentoring and a good motivation.

Don't be afraid - Do you have a brilliant idea not covered on the Development: Student Projects page? Excellent! We'd love to hear it.

Please use StudentApplicationTemplate as a template for your application and remember that proposals are due by 3rd April, don't miss the deadline!

Don't forget to read the Google Summer of Code Student FAQ

Parts of the above were adapted from Gentoo Linux.