If you are targetting GSoC'27 Listen!

I got selected for Google Summer of Code 2026, and one thing became very clear to me:

Most people start preparing too late.

GSoC preparation does not begin with writing a proposal.

It begins with finding a project you genuinely want to work on, running it locally, using it, understanding one small part of the codebase, and slowly becoming useful to the community.

You do not need to understand the entire codebase before contributing. I made that mistake early on.

Instead:

Pick a project you can actually run and use.
Find one small issue or feature.
Trace the relevant code.
Understand that part deeply.
Make your contribution.
Repeat.

Your understanding of the codebase grows through contributing.

Over the coming months, I'll share what I learned from my own GSoC 2026 journey — choosing an organization, making contributions, communicating with maintainers, writing the proposal, and the mistakes I would avoid.

No vague “just contribute to open source” advice. I'll try to share the practical details I wish I had when I started.

If you're targeting GSoC 2027, you have one major advantage right now:

Time. Use it.

I'm also sharing shorter, more frequent GSoC and open-source tips on X/Twitter: DM if you wanna follow along!

If you want to come along for the GSoC 2027 journey, follow me there. Happy to answer questions here too.

https://redd.it/1uunie8
@BTechtardsReddit