Google Summer of Code 2016 Program Rules | Google Summer of Code

Google Summer of Code 2016 (the "Program") is sponsored by Google Inc. ("Google"), a Delaware corporation with its principal place of business at 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA 94043, USA.

Definitions.
1. "Acceptance Date" means the date accepted Project Proposals are announced on the Program Website, as set forth on the Program Timeline.
2. "Community Bonding Period" means the period for accepted Students to get to know their Mentors and prepare to begin work on their Projects, as set forth on the Program Timeline.
3. "Evaluation" means an evaluation by the Mentor of his or her Student's work or an evaluation by the Student of his or her Mentor, as applicable.
4. "Final Project Materials" means a Student's final source code and associated documentation for his or her Project.
5. "Final Results" means the list of Students who passed both their Evaluations.
6. "Ideas List" means the list of ideas for Projects publicly published by an Organization on its website.
7. "Members" means the Organization Administrators and Mentors for an Organization.
8. "Mentor" means the individual who registers for the Program as a mentor for an Organization.
9. "Mentor Parental Consent" means the Google Summer of Code 2016 Parental Consent and Waiver and Release document.
10. "Mentor Participant Agreement" means the agreement between Google and an Organization Administrator or Mentor, as applicable, that is presented during registration.
11. "Mentor Summit" means an event where Organizations' Members are invited to Google's campus to meet and collaborate.
12. "Minimum Age" means the minimum age to own a Google account.
13. "Organization" means the open source organization that registers for the Program as an organization.
14. "Organization Administrator" means the individual who registers for the Program as an administrator for an Organization.
15. "Organization Application" means an application from an Organization for its acceptance in the Program, including a completed profile.
16. "Organization Participant Agreement" means the agreement between Google and an Organization that is presented during registration.
17. "Organization Project Criteria" means the criteria for grading Project Submissions that an Organization determines at its sole discretion.
18. "Participants" means Organizations, Organization Administrators, Mentors, and Students.
19. "Program Administrators" means Google's administrators for the Program.
20. "Program Timeline" means the timeline for the Program on the Program Website.
21. "Program Website" means the website for the Program located at http://g.co/gsoc.
22. "Project" means an open source coding project to be worked on by a Student as an individual. For the avoidance of doubt, Projects do not include projects for documentation only.
23. "Project Proposal" means a Student's proposal for a Project.
24. "Project Submissions" means the work product that a Student submits for a Project, including the Project Proposal and any software and documentation, including Final Project Materials.
25. "Proof of Enrollment" means documentation evidencing a Student's enrollment or acceptance into an accredited institution, including a college, university, masters program, PhD program and/or undergraduate program, as of the Acceptance Date.
26. "Restricted Countries" means Argentina, Belarus, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Myanmar (Burma), Peru, Russia, and Ukraine.
27. "Student" means the individual who registers for the Program as a student.
28. "Student Participant Agreement" means the agreement between Google and a Student that is presented during registration.
29. The words "include" and "including" as used herein mean "including but not limited to."
Program Administration.
1. Changes to the Program.
  1. Google may suspend, cancel, or modify the structure of the Program if technical difficulties or events beyond Google's reasonable control prevent or make it unfair to run the Program in accordance with these Program Rules.
  2. Google may modify these Program Rules to reflect any modifications to the Program. Any changes made will be effective immediately upon notice, which will be given by posting the revised Program Rules on this page. Continued participation in the Program after such notice will be deemed acceptance of such changes.
2. Verifying Eligibility. Google reserves the right to verify a Participant's eligibility and to adjudicate on any dispute at any time. Participants must provide Google with any proof of eligibility requested by Google. Refusal or failure to timely provide such proof may result in removal from the Program.
3. Communications. All communications between Google and the Participants, including the Program Website and email communications, will be in English.
4. Conduct. Participants must use professional and courteous conduct when interacting with other Participants and the Program Administrators. If a Participant does not use such conduct, Google may remove the Participant from the Program.
5. Program Removal.
  1. In addition to any terms regarding removal from the Program set forth herein, Google may remove a Participant from the Program if Google reasonably believes that the Participant has attempted to undermine the legitimate operation of the Program, including providing false information during registration or concerning eligibility, violating these Program Rules, threatening or harassing other Participants (including their employees and representatives), and tampering or interfering with administration of the Program or with the ability of other Participants to participate in the Program.
  2. If a Participant is removed from the Program for any reason:
    1. the Participant will no longer be eligible to receive stipends from Google;
    2. Google may delete the Participant's profile and other data from the Program Website; and
    3. the Participant may be prohibited from participating in any future Google Summer of Code programs.
Organizations.
1. Eligibility. To participate in the Program, an Organization must:
  1. run an active and viable open source software project;
  2. have already produced and released software under an Open Source Initiative (OSI)-approved license;
  3. not be based in a United States embargoed country, or otherwise prohibited by applicable export controls and sanctions programs; and
  4. if the Organization is an individual,
    1. not be a resident of a United States embargoed country;
    2. not be ordinarily resident in a United States embargoed country, or otherwise prohibited by applicable export controls and sanctions programs; and
    3. be at least eighteen (18) years of age upon registration for the Program.
2. How to Apply. Organizations who wish to apply for acceptance in the Program must:
  1. accept the terms of the Organization Participant Agreement, and
  2. submit an Organization Application.
3. Organization Application.
  1. The Organization Application must be submitted by an Organization Administrator through the Program Website during the application period described in the Program Timeline.
  2. Each Organization may submit one (1) Organization Application.
4. Acceptance.
  1. Google may accept or reject any Organization at its sole discretion.
  2. Google will announce the Organizations accepted to the Program on the Program Website.
5. Responsibilities.
  1. Each accepted Organization will perform all necessary additional steps required for the Organization to participate in the Program, including:
    1. providing an Ideas List;
    2. determining the Organization Project Criteria, provided that the Organization may not discriminate on the basis of age, race, creed, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, marital or veteran status or any other basis that is prohibited by applicable law; and
    3. assigning one or more persons, as applicable, to:
      1. serve as the Organization Administrators;
      2. evaluate Students' Project Proposals submitted to the Organization in accordance with Section 6.4 below and decide which Project Proposals to accept;
      3. help Students integrate with the Organization's community during the Community Bonding Period;
      4. serve as Mentor(s); and
      5. serve as alternate Mentors in the event an existing Mentor is unable to fulfill his or her responsibilities.
  2. If Google reasonably believes that an Organization has failed to meet the foregoing responsibilities, Google may remove such Organization from the Program.
  3. Each Organization is responsible for its Organization Administrators and Mentors. If Google reasonably believes that an Organization Administrator or Mentor for an Organization has failed to meet any of the responsibilities set forth in Sections 4.3(a) or 5.3(a) below, as applicable, Google is not required to pay any stipends to the Organization.
Organization Administrators.
1. Role.
  1. Each Organization must have at least two (2) Organization Administrators.
  2. All Organization Administrators must accept the terms of the Mentor Participant Agreement.
  3. An Organization Administrator who has the full legal authority to bind the Organization must register the Organization for the Program and accept the terms of the Organization Participant Agreement on behalf of the Organization.
2. Eligibility.
  1. Requirements. To participate in the Program, an Organization Administrator must:
    1. be eighteen (18) years of age or older upon registration for the Program;
    2. be a contributor to an active and viable open source project run by the Organization; and
    3. not be a Student in the Program.
  2. Ineligible Individuals. An Organization Administrator may not participate in the Program if he or she is:
    1. a resident of a United States embargoed country;
    2. ordinarily resident in a United States embargoed country; or
    3. otherwise prohibited by applicable export controls and sanctions programs.
3. Responsibilities.
  1. The Organization Administrators for an accepted Organization will:
    1. act as the main points of contact between Google and the Organization and will respond to any inquiries from Google within thirty-six (36) hours;
    2. oversee the overall progress of the Organization and its Students throughout the Program;
    3. perform administrative tasks regarding the Program for the Organization, including publishing the Organization's Ideas List and designating one or more Mentors for each accepted Student through the Program Website;
    4. oversee and manage Mentors to ensure that they meet their responsibilities as set forth in Section 5.3 below; and
    5. at the end of the Program, write and publish a blog post about the Organization's participation in the Program.
  2. If Google reasonably believes that an Organization Administrator has failed to meet any of the foregoing responsibilities, Google may require the Organization to designate a replacement Organization Administrator.
Mentors.
1. Role.
  1. Mentors must be designated by an Organization Administrator through the Program Website.
  2. Mentors must accept the terms of the Mentor Participant Agreement.
2. Eligibility.
  1. Requirements. To participate in the Program, a Mentor must:
    1. upon registration for the Program, be either:
      1. eighteen (18) years of age or older; or
      2. between the Minimum Age to age seventeen (17) and have the consent of a parent or legal guardian to participate as evidenced by his or her signing of the Mentor Parental Consent. As part of the registration process, the Mentor must submit the signed Parental Consent to Google at [email protected].
    2. be a contributor to an active and viable open source project run by the Organization; and
    3. not be a Student in the Program.
  2. Ineligible Individuals. A Mentor may not participate in the Program if he or she is:
    1. a resident of a United States embargoed country;
    2. ordinarily resident in a United States embargoed country; or
    3. otherwise prohibited by applicable export controls and sanctions programs.
3. Responsibilities.
  1. Each Mentor for an accepted Organization will:
    1. participate in the Community Bonding Period;
    2. provide guidance to his or her Student(s) on their Projects for the Organization;
    3. use best efforts to respond to Student requests within thirty-six (36) hours; and
    4. provide Evaluations of his or her Student(s)' work as described in Section 7.1 below in accordance with the Organization Project Criteria.
  2. If Google reasonably believes that a Mentor has failed to meet any of the foregoing responsibilities, Google may require the Organization Administrators to designate a replacement Mentor.
Students.
1. Eligibility.
  1. Requirements. To participate in the Program, a Student must:
    1. be eighteen (18) years of age or older upon registration for the Program;
    2. be enrolled in or accepted into an accredited institution, including a college, university, masters program, PhD program and/or undergraduate program, as of the Acceptance Date;
    3. for the duration of the Program, be eligible to work in the country in which he or she resides; and
    4. not be an Organization Administrator or Mentor in the Program.
  2. Ineligible Individuals. A Student may not participate in the Program if:
    1. He or she is:
      1. a resident of a United States embargoed country;
      2. ordinarily resident in a United States embargoed country; or
      3. otherwise prohibited by applicable export controls and sanctions programs.
    2. He or she is an employee (including intern), contractor, officer, or director, of:
      1. Google or its affiliates, or
      2. an Organization or any of its affiliates.
    3. He or she is an immediate family member (including a parent, sibling, child, spouse, or life partner regardless of where the Student lives) of one of the individuals listed in subsection (ii) above or a member of their household (whether related or not).
    4. He or she has participated as a Student in Google Summer of Code three (3) or more times previously.
2. How to Apply. Students who wish to apply for acceptance in the Program must:
  1. accept the terms of the Student Participant Agreement,
  2. submit Proof of Enrollment, and
  3. submit a Project Proposal.
3. Proof of Enrollment. Prior to submitting a Project Proposal, the Student must submit Proof of Enrollment through the Program Website.
4. Project Proposals.
  1. Students may submit Project Proposals to Organizations through the Program Website during the application period described in the Program Timeline.
  2. Each Student may submit up to five (5) Project Proposals; however, only one (1) Project Proposal may be accepted per Student.
  3. Project Proposals may, but are not required to, be for Projects on an Organization's Ideas List.
  4. If a Project Proposal is for a Project that the Student is already working on, the Student must note this in the Project Proposal. Any work done on the Project prior to acceptance of the Project Proposal will not be considered for Evaluations.
5. Acceptance.
  1. Project Proposals will be reviewed by the Organizations to which they were submitted. An Organization may accept or reject any Project Proposal at its sole discretion. In the event that two or more Organizations wish to accept Project Proposals from the same Student, such Organizations may work amongst themselves to determine which Organization will accept the Student.
  2. Google will announce the Project Proposals accepted to the Program on the Program Website.
  3. Each Student with an accepted Project Proposal will be matched with at least one Mentor from the applicable Organization.
  4. Students without an accepted Project Proposal may not continue with the Program and their profiles may be deleted from the Program Website.
6. Responsibilities.
  1. Each accepted Student will perform all necessary additional steps required for the Student to participate in the Program, including:
    1. participating in the Community Bonding Period;
    2. providing Evaluations of his or her Mentor as described in Section 7.1 below;
    3. working diligently to complete the Project as it may be modified with the agreement of the Organization; and
    4. publishing his or her Project code in a publicly accessible location and under an Open Source Initiative approved license of the Organization's choice.
  2. If Google reasonably believes that a Student has failed to meet the foregoing responsibilities, Google may remove such Student from the Program.
Program Participation.
1. Evaluations.
  1. Multiple Mentors. If a Student has more than one Mentor:
    1. the Student is only required to submit an overall Evaluation of the Mentors; and
    2. only one Mentor is required to submit an Evaluation of the Student. If more than one Mentor submits an Evaluation, only the first Evaluation will be accepted.
  2. Form. Evaluations must be in the form of responses to questions provided by Google.
  3. Deadlines. Students and Mentors must submit Evaluations through the Program Website by the deadlines set forth in the Program Timeline. Evaluations are given at two (2) points: mid-term and final.
  4. Visibility.
    1. Except for any fields labeled "shared with student" ("Shared Comments"), Evaluations submitted by a Mentor will only be visible to the Organization Administrators, the Student's other Mentor(s) if applicable, and the Program Administrators. The Student will only see a pass/fail grade result and any Shared Comments.
    2. Evaluations submitted by a Student will only be visible to the Organization Administrators and Program Administrators. The Mentor(s) will not see these Evaluations, except where the Mentor and Organization Administrator are one and the same.
    3. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in subsections (i) and (ii) above:
      1. Google may make Evaluations available to other Google employees, third parties, or the Organization or Student, as applicable:
        
        upon the Student's or Organization's prior written consent, as applicable; or
        
        if Google deems such action necessary to administer the Program (e.g., where the Program Administrators need assistance from other Google employees in their review to reconsider a Student's grade or where the feedback may be vital to arbitration with the Student or Organization regarding payment or non-payment of a stipend).
      2. Google may use Evaluations internally to improve Google Summer of Code and for recruiting purposes.
  5. Grading; Missing Deadlines.
    1. The Mentor will evaluate the Student's Project Submissions against the Organization Project Criteria.
    2. If a Student fails to submit an Evaluation by the applicable deadline, the Student will be deemed to have received a failing grade on the Evaluation, regardless of the actual grade the Student received from the Mentor.
    3. If a Student receives a failing grade on the mid-term Evaluation, the Student will be removed from the Program.
    4. If a Student does not agree with the grade he or she received, the Student may request a review by Program Administrators to reconsider the grade. In the event that the Program Administrators agree to perform the review, their decision on the grade is final and binding.
    5. Intentionally Blank.
    6. If a Mentor fails to submit an Evaluation by the applicable deadline, the Mentor will not be permitted to attend the Mentor Summit and the Organization's eligible stipend amount for the Mentor Summit will be reduced by half.
    7. If the Mentors for an Organization fail to submit Evaluations by the applicable deadlines two (2) or more times collectively (i.e., at the mid-term deadline, final deadline, or mid-term and final deadlines combined), the Organization will not be permitted to send any Members to the Mentor Summit and will not be eligible to receive any stipend for the Mentor Summit.
  6. Final Project Materials. Students must submit their Final Project Materials through the Program Website by the final Evaluation deadline. If a Student fails to do so, the Student will be deemed to have received a failing grade on the final Evaluation, regardless of the actual grade the Student received from the Mentor.
2. Payment.
  1. Stipends. Subject to subsection (b) below, Students and Organizations may receive stipends from Google as follows:
    1. Students accepted to the Program and in good standing with their Organization after the Community Bonding Period may receive a $500 USD stipend shortly after coding begins. For the avoidance of doubt, in the event that a Mentor notifies the Program Administrators of a Student who has not sufficiently participated in the Community Bonding Period, such Student will be removed from the Program and will not be eligible to receive this stipend.
    2. Each Student who has received a passing mid-term Evaluation and who has submitted the mid-term evaluation of his or her Mentor on time may receive a $2,250 USD stipend shortly after the mid-term Evaluation deadline.
    3. Each Student who has received a passing final Evaluation and who has submitted the final Evaluation of his or her Mentor on time may receive a $2,750 USD stipend shortly after the final Evaluation deadline.
    4. At the end of the Program, Organizations may receive (i) a $500 USD stipend per Student mentored, and (ii) subject to Sections 7.1(e)(vi) and (vii), a $2,200 USD stipend to send up to two (2) Members to the Mentor Summit, by making a request through the form provided by Google by August 22, 2016. Google is not required to pay for amounts requested after this date.
      1. In order to receive payment, Organizations must register as a supplier in Google's payments system by August 1, 2016. Google will issue purchase orders for the relevant amount, and the Organization will invoice Google. Google is not required to pay any invoice submitted more than ninety (90) days after the end of the Program.
    5. Google is not required to pay any stipends to any Student or Organization who violates any applicable law or regulation, including money laundering regulations.
  2. Tax Documentation. Tax-related documentation must be submitted by May 16, 2016 for Students and August 1, 2016 for Organizations. Google is not required to issue any payments if tax-related documentation is submitted after this date.
    1. Students. Students must submit tax-related documentation through the Program Website as specified by the instructions provided by the Program Administrators to accepted Students.
    2. Organizations. Organizations must submit the following tax-related documentation as part of their registration as a supplier through Google's payments system:
      1. For Organizations based in the United States - a completed IRS form W9.
      2. For Organizations based outside the United States - a completed IRS form W8-BEN.
3. Final Results. Google will announce the Final Results on the Program Website.
4. Mentor Summit. Subject to Sections 7.1(e)(vi) and (vii), each Organization may send two (2) Members to the Mentor Summit.
Disclaimer. PARTICIPANTS' USE OF THE PROGRAM WEBSITE AND PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM IS AT EACH PARTICIPANT'S SOLE RISK. THE PROGRAM WEBSITE IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS. GOOGLE DISCLAIMS ALL REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES (EXPRESS OR IMPLIED), INCLUDING ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. GOOGLE IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INCOMPLETE, FAILED, OR DELAYED TRANSMISSION OF INFORMATION DUE TO THE INTERNET, INCLUDING INTERRUPTION OR DELAYS CAUSED BY EQUIPMENT OR SOFTWARE MALFUNCTION OR OTHER TECHNICAL PROBLEMS.
Promotional Items. Google may provide promotional items to Participants at its sole discretion. Due to shipping difficulties, Google will not ship physical goods to Restricted Countries.
Translations. In the event of any discrepancy between the English version of these Program Rules and a translated version, the English version will govern.