Google Summer of Code: “By pairing applicants up with the proven wisdom and experience of established prominent open source organizations (listed below), we hope to make great software happen.” At various times I’ve evangelized a similar idea to friends, that the world would benefit from an apprenticeship system for coders, that pairs up more experienced people with less experienced people who want to learn, and that it be done out in the open. Mentoring and transparency are the keys. The cash and Open Sourceness and organization-level involvement are nice but IMO not required for success. There’s no reason Microsoft couldn’t do something like this too. Maybe they already do? Update: The .LRN Foundation has applied to be a participating organization. A list of ideas is posted to the .LRN site.