The goal of Outreachy is to "create a positive feedback loop" that supports more women participating in free and open-source software, since contributors to free and open-source projects have mostly been men (see also
Women in Libre software communities). The program is similar to
Google Summer of Code, also an internship in free and open-source software, but unlike Google Summer of Code it is not limited to students or developers. It is intended to be compatible with student schedules, with mid-year internships corresponding with the summer break of students in the northern hemisphere, and late-year internships corresponding with the summer break of students in the southern hemisphere. The program began with inviting women participants, and it grew to include "anyone who was assigned female at birth and anyone who identifies as a woman, genderqueer, genderfluid, or genderfree regardless of gender presentation or assigned sex at birth". The December 2014 round was also open to participants of the Ascend Project of any gender, a training program for people from other groups underrepresented in open source. Starting in September 2015, Outreachy became open to "residents and nationals of the United States of any gender who are Black/African American, Hispanic/Latin@, American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, or Pacific Islander", as people underrepresented in the technology industry in the US. As part of the application process, applicants have to make a contribution to the project they want to work with. Participants work remotely, so the internship includes a $500 travel budget to support interns meeting fellow contributors in person and develop stronger connections to the project. Participants also write a blog about their work, which one said "allowed me to meet many people interested in the same topic as myself and opened a completely different range of opportunities." == Impact ==