The Summer of Bitcoin is an internship program for high school and university students who want to learn how to improve the Bitcoin blockchain.
The online program is open to students from all over the world and lasts for twelve weeks. This summer 83 students from 15 countries were chosen.
Like any other serious internship, the Summer of Bitcoin is a full-time obligation that demands all of an intern’s focus. Students are discouraged from working, or participating in other summer activities while they’re on the program. Thankfully the summer of Bitcoin provides a $3,000 stipend, paid in BTC, to all participants who complete the course.
The top 3 benefits for students
1) The Summer of Bitcoin is an awesome opportunity to learn about the world’s best money. Bitcoin is hard money that can’t be manipulated via money printing and unethical politicians. Students who take the internship can learn about what makes Bitcoin superior to fiat currencies.
2) The Summer of Bitcoin organizers have great connections in the blockchain industry. The most promising students may get a chance to get fast-tracked into a job with a well-known Bitcoin company.
3) One of the greatest benefits for students is the opportunity to learn from Bitcoin experts. Depending on their focus, students can receive mentoring from dozens of professional Bitcoin designers and developers.
Hands-on experience
Summer of Bitcoin students will have the chance to contribute to real, open-source Bitcoin projects. For example, this summer’s students contributed to projects like Bitcoin core, Hexawallet, the Lightning Network, the Ledger Bitcoin app and Alby.
Students can choose from two specialties. A student can focus on development and contributing to Bitcoin’s open source code, or product design to make Bitcoin products intuitive and easy to use for everyone.
How to get in
The Summer of Bitcoin program receives thousands of applicants and only selects the best students for an internship position. The screening process tests for coding and algorithmic problem-solving skills. GSoC experience is also desirable.
Students who are applying for the design program will take a design skills test. The test focuses on design thinking and prototyping.
The final step in the application process involves submitting a project proposal for what the student would like to work on.
Benefiting the Bitcoin community
The Summer of Bitcoin program provides a double benefit to the cryptocurrency community. First, it teaches valuable skills to promising students. In addition, the program acts as a recruitment tool to bring highly talented designers and developers to some of the best Bitcoin companies in the world. More information is available on the Summer of Bitcoin’s website.