WordPress.org

For the past several years, WordPress has been a proud participant in the Google Summer of Code program (aka GSoC). We’ve been accepted as a mentoring organization again this year, and are looking forward to working with a select handful of talented college students who are interested in developing for WordPress. Student applications are currently being accepted, and the deadline to apply is April 8. Are you a college student/developer looking for a summer challenge (or do you know one)? If so, read on to find out how you (or your friend) can make $5,000 developing for WordPress this summer. (Best. Summer. Job. Ever.)

GSoC Logistics:

• 175 mentoring organizations (including WordPress)
• Highly competitive and prestigious program (in 2010, 5539 proposals were submitted by 3464 students, and 1026 were accepted)
• You must be enrolled in an accredited college/university
• Coding period is May-August
• Successful completion of project = $5,000
• GSoC FAQ answers all your questions

WordPress logistics:

• Mentors include WordPress core developers, plugin authors (including BuddyPress and bbPress), mobile app developers, and WordPress professionals.
• Projects are limited only by your imagination and ability.
• Previous GSoC students have gained responsible roles in WordPress core development, like Dion Hulse and Andrew Nacin (core committers), and Daryl Koopersmith (wrote the internal linking feature in 3.1 and much of the custom menus feature in 3.0).
• This year, in addition to accepting project proposals for the main WordPress web app, we’re also encouraging applications for projects with the WordPress mobile apps (iOS, Android, Blackberry, Nokia, Windows Phone 7), for community-developed plugins like BuddyPress and bbPress, and even standalone plugins that could become community projects. Check out our Codex page on GSoC 2011 for some ideas to get you thinking.
• Last year we mentored 15 students, and hope to take on about the same number this year.

If you’re a college student/developer, we encourage you to apply. If you’re a professor or a teacher of graduating high school seniors, encourage your students! If you just want to help us spread the word, download the WordPress GSoC flyer and post it on campus bulletin boards in your town. Remember, April 8 is the deadline to apply!

If you’ve ever heard Matt Mullenweg talk about the early days of WordPress, the South by Southwest (SxSW) Interactive festival that takes place each spring in Austin, TX usually crops up in the story. South by Southwest is in full swing right now, and WordPress has been all over the place.

On Friday the 11th, Matt was interviewed by John Battelle of Federated Media in front of a packed ballroom, talking about the future of WordPress. That night, the annual SxSW WordPress BBQ party played host to hundreds of WordPress users, developers, and businesspeople, and attendees got an extra treat this year in the form of a t-shirt made especially to commemorate WordPress and its Texas roots.

On Saturday the 12th, a second party co-hosted by the Austin WordPress Meetup Group and GeekAustin (and co-sponsored by the WordPress Foundation and WPEngine) brought together a similar crowd but with the addition of local WordPress community members who were not registered for the SxSW conference.

Starting today, the South by Southwest trade show opens, and this year for the first time it will feature an official WordPress Genius Bar. Staffed by professional WordPress support staff, developers, advanced users, theme designers, and even some of the core contributors and project leaders, the booth will be open from 11am-6pm each day to answer questions and help people with any WordPress problems they might have. If you are at South by Southwest this year, consider stopping by to say hello and pick up a WordPress button or sticker. We’ll also have a limited supply of the special WordPress/Texas shirts that we’ll be giving away at the booth, so if you’re at SxSW between now and Thursday, stop by.  Hope to see you there!

Location: The WordPress booth will be in trade show stand numbers 829, 831, 928, and 930 (it’s an endcap booth that combines those four spaces). You can find us in those spaces by following the numbered banners hanging from the ceiling.