Guide
Devprentice vs an unpaid software internship
Devprentice doesn't pay contributors, and neither does an unpaid internship. On Devprentice, the work, the reviews, and your response to feedback stay public on GitHub, so anyone can check them.
If you're weighing an unpaid internship to get experience, a mentored open-source program is another option. On Devprentice you work on real issues in a public GitHub project, and its maintainer reviews your pull requests. Before you join, you see the roadmap, the expected time commitment, and the AI policy. Devprentice doesn't pay contributors, though a maintainer can arrange payment with you directly. The difference is that anyone can check this work.
| Typical unpaid internship | Devprentice | |
|---|---|---|
| Pay | None | Devprentice doesn't pay contributors; any payment is arranged with the maintainer |
| Where the work lives | Company code you usually can't show | Public GitHub repositories anyone can open |
| Feedback | Depends on the team | A named reviewer checks the work against agreed milestones |
| Schedule | Set by the employer | The expected commitment is stated before you join |
| What you can show afterward | A reference or a résumé line | Linked pull requests, reviews, and a Contribution Record |
What you can show afterward
Because every program runs in a public repository, the evidence is already on GitHub. At the end, a Contribution Record connects the agreed milestones, the reviewer's feedback, your response, and the outcome, with links back to the real work. It stays private until you choose to share it. See a sample Contribution Record.
When an internship is still the better choice
- It's paid, or it leads to a paid role.
- You want to work at that specific company.
- You need experience with private, in-house systems that open source can't give you.
Devprentice is in a private pilot. Anyone can sign in with GitHub and ask to join a program, and each maintainer decides whom to invite. See how a program works for contributors.