Nilesh,

I wasn't a GSoC applicant, but I just finished my OPW internship. For me, I got in touch with mentor on the project I was interested in and discussed with him. After getting an idea of what I wanted to do, I created a proposal page (https://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/User:Chot/OPW/Proposal). Mine is pretty sparse and not the best example of a good proposal. The more details you can provide, the better the application will be, especially with the number of candidates that Wikimedia has been getting. Then you can ask the community for feedback; a good alternative to this email list is through your talk page or irc. I would say apply when you have a polished idea and have established a working relationship with your would-be mentor(s) since you'll be working closely with them.

In any case, the important thing isn't *when* you apply, it's that you get involved. The mentorship programs are a gateway to get people engaged in the community so don't be shy about participating and asking questions. Everyone, for the most part, is really nice and knowledgable.

Also, here are the launch pages for both the programs: http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Summer_of_Code_2013 http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Outreach_Program_for_Women

Keep an eye on these pages since they tend to change with important information.

Good luck with your application! Teresa aka terrrydactyl

On Mon, Apr 22, 2013 at 11:14 PM, Nilesh Chakraborty nilesh@nileshc.comwrote:

Hi Quim,

Being a first-time GSoCer, I have a question about this - "We recommend all candidates to apply soon and be ready to improve your project proposals fast based on feedback received." - do you mean that I should post the project proposal in this list -> discuss -> receive feedback -> modify -> reiterate -> apply through google?

OR, should I apply through google with the project proposals -> receive feedback -> modify -> reiterate?

I hope you get what I mean and would really appreciate the clarification. Sorry if it's too obvious. :)

Thanks, Nilesh

On Tue, Apr 23, 2013 at 1:29 AM, Quim Gil qgil@wikimedia.org wrote:

...

Hi,

Just a note to say that Google Summer of Code application period is now officially open:

http://www.google-melange.com/**gsoc/events/google/gsoc2013<

http://www.google-melange.com/gsoc/events/google/gsoc2013%3E

...

The deadline is May 3. In the meantime, the Outreach Program for Women application period is also open, until May 1.

We recommend all candidates to apply soon and be ready to improve your project proposals fast based on feedback received.

Women interested in both programs are encouraged to apply to both. If you are unsure, apply to both as well, or just ask (the sooner, the better).

All this may create some extra traffic in this list. New project

proposals

...

are encouraged to be announced here, pointing to their related Bugzilla reports. Please move the technical discussions to the Bugzilla reports as much and as soon as possible.

Thank you and good luck to all candidates!

-- Quim Gil Technical Contributor Coordinator @ Wikimedia Foundation http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/**User:Qgil<

http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/User:Qgil%3E

...

______________________________**_________________ Wikitech-l mailing list Wikitech-l@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/**mailman/listinfo/wikitech-l<

https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikitech-l%3E

-- A quest eternal, a life so small! So don't just play the guitar, build one. You can also email me at contact@nileshc.com or visit my websitehttp://www.nileshc.com/ _______________________________________________ Wikitech-l mailing list Wikitech-l@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikitech-l

On 04/23/2013 02:36 PM, Quim Gil wrote:

Thanks to Lydia we have now a link to a collection of real & good GSoC proposals:

https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1Iqk8MTix2CN1pAgqhZqhefKTwiA7P73zQH9...

It's not critical. But of course it would also be nice to have some MediaWiki examples.

Matt Flaschen

On 04/22/2013 01:14 PM, Nilesh Chakraborty wrote:

Hi Quim,

Being a first-time GSoCer, I have a question about this - "We recommend all candidates to apply soon and be ready to improve your project proposals fast based on feedback received." - do you mean that I should post the project proposal in this list -> discuss -> receive feedback -> modify -> reiterate -> apply through google?

OR, should I apply through google with the project proposals -> receive feedback -> modify -> reiterate?

Good question.

Your evaluation will be done based on your GSoC application. Apply to the GSoC website as soon as you have the basics of you project right. This will get you officially under our radar. Note that you can edit your submitted application until the deadline.

The GSoC mentors and myself as org admin will do our best helping you polishing your proposal. However, the real deal is to get community interest, feedback and help. This is why we also ask candidates to share your plans in a wiki page linked from a Bugzilla report and a post in Wikitech-l.

After this there should be only two channels of discussion:

1. Details about your skills, availability etc are discussed directly with you via email.

2. Technical discussion happens in the related Bugzilla report.

I hope you get what I mean and would really appreciate the clarification. Sorry if it's too obvious. :)

Not obvious at all. Thank you for asking.