Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Google Summer of Code Program Overhauled

Posted by Zonk on from the learning-a-new-way dept.

lisah writes "Though at first glance Google's Summer of Code (SOC) 2007 looks pretty much the same as last year's event, it turns out much of the program has been overhauled based on feedback from past participants. The biggest change is the amount of lead time given to applicants and mentoring organizations in the hopes of increasing the applicant pool and allowing everyone to be better organized once the program gets officially underway on May 28. SOC organizers say they are also aware that slow payment to last year's participants has been a bone of contention and they are taking steps to 'make sure that the problem is diminished or will not happen again.'"

6 of 37 comments (clear)

  1. Just a thought... by MikeRT · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Presumably, most of these students are from middle or upper class families if they're doing this work, in college, outside of a first world country. Surely they have access to a bank that can covert dollars to the local currency. Now call me crazy, but it would seem to me that Google could just deposit the dollars into their local bank account and the intern could convert it as needed. I would assume that either way, a conversion fee would be involved. If it comes down to it, I would imagine that most interns would rather have the hassle of being paid in dollars on a regular basis like interns in most companies in the US, than have Google's bureaucrats go through the process of finding out how to convert the currency, especially knowing how slow most HR people are.

    1. Re:Just a thought... by chrisd · · Score: 5, Informative

      So last year SoC students were in 90 countries encompassing some 73 currencies, and for some , your tactic might work, but in many, it would simply mean that they could not ever use the money. We have to do things legally and right, not just the expedient. An example: To pay someone in Brazil we have to accompany each of the 3 payments to any student with a document detailing why we want the reals and what they are being paid for. Then the student must take the docs to a local bank to receive the wire, and there are often fees. It's easy to come down on the accountants and bureaucrats and everything, but when you get down into it, many of the countries make it difficult to interact financially with their citizens. What you are recommending, in some countries, is illegal and could put our students in danger of being arrested. I'd rather a payment be slow.

      --
      Co-Editor, Open Sources
      Open Source Program Manager, Google, Inc.
    2. Re:Just a thought... by PhoenixSnow · · Score: 4, Informative

      I, for one, am a citizen of a country where it's illegal to hold ANY foreign currency, whether it's in my bank account or in cash unless you own a business with a special license to conduct business with foreign sources. Of course, it takes a few years to get that special license if you comply with due process. The government intends to keep the citizens as disconnected from the outside world as they can. It's true there are not that many countries like this but some still exist to this day.

  2. Overhauled... by zr-rifle · · Score: 3, Funny

    this means they are finally gonna get a tan this summer?

    --
    Hack your mind out of its sandbox.
  3. Re:it's not fair by The+One+and+Only · · Score: 2, Insightful

    "the rest of your life"? Maybe if you're bad at restricting your own spending, go to an overly expensive school without scholarships or grants, or do something else like that.

    --
    In Repressive Burma, it's not just your connection that dies. slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=314547&cid=20819199
  4. Do you have any oil? by /dev/trash · · Score: 4, Funny

    Perhaps we can bring you some democracy.