Google Summer of Code 2018

FreeCAD started participating to the Google student coding program (GSoC) in 2016. We participate through a combined effort of many CAx organisations. Due to the combined application at GSoC many links will lead from here to the BRLcad wiki, which is used as single place for everything.

How it works

 * The student writes a project proposal for FreeCAD.
 * Sometimes their project idea caters to something that the open source organization suggests and sometimes it's an idea entirely of the student's conception.
 * Proposals are reviewed, evaluated, and ranked by the open source organization's mentors.
 * Google allocates a certain number of slots to each participating organization
 * That, in turn, determines how many student developers work with that organization.

If you want to get involved have a look at the getting started checklist. Whether you're applying or accepted, we've itemized everything you need to do in this list. We're here to help you become new open source developers, so don't be shy if you have any questions.

The Selection Process
GSoC is about getting people involved and contributing to open source over the long-term. As such, we heavily weight our application selection process towards students that are interested in remaining involved in FreeCAD and open source software development long after GSoC has ended. GSoC is not a job. If you think this is just a summer job, then GSoC is probably not for you. It's only like a job in terms of planning your time commitment over the summer.

Additionally, submissions are graded based on perception of the submitter's abilities to complete the task within the program timeframe, general consensus on the technical approach being proposed, and overall interest in having such modifications made to FreeCAD. Particular notice is made of students that are responsive to questions and readily interactive in the IRC channel or on the forum. Communication is a great thing.

Just about every GSoC organization receives considerably more project proposals than can be accepted. Every application gets read multiple times and reviewed in detail. Of those applications, only a small subset are selected so keep in mind that the selection process is rather competitive and difficult.

Whether or not you are accepted, contributing to open source outside of GSoC is one of the main goals of the program and is the best way to be noticed and get your proposal accepted. Keep that in mind. Thanks for your interest and we look forward to working with new FreeCAD developers!

Available Slots
FreeCAD will be allocated a maximum of (tbd) slots in this year's GSoC. To increase your chances of earning a slot, get to know us early and start fixing bugs before GSoC starts, this always helps to build trust and will convince us of your dedication.

Possible Mentors
Bernd, Yorik, sgrogan, wandererfan : The best way to contact us is through the FreeCAD forums. You can also look on the IRC channel.

Implementation Ideas
The ideas listed here have a high chance of being accepted as project proposal. Note that for students already longer involved in FreeCAD, and which already contributed code, own ideas in their line of work are also welcome. Feel free to contact us on IRC, the forum or the mailing list for further discussions about the listed projects. The topics priority shows you how important the work on the ideas is for the mentors, and hence choosing a high priority topic will give you an advantage if there are more applications than slots for FreeCAD.

Best of luck to all applicants!