Stage
CycleOpen now 20Rolling 23Closed, but recurring 16RegionGlobal 75United States 18Other 25PathwayO-1A 97EB-1A 97EB-2 NIW 97
| Type | Opportunity | Field | Cycle | Deadline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open-source programmes | AWS Community Builders — Community program (open application) AWS Community Builders | Software engineers | Not stated | Annual review (yearly cohort) |
| Open-source programmes | AWS Heroes — Invitation-only recognition AWS Heroes | Software engineers | Not stated | Annual |
| Open-source programmes | Apache Software Foundation — Contributor → committer → PMC membership (merit-based) Apache Software Foundation | Rolling | Continuous | |
| Open-source programmes | CNCF Cloud Native Ambassador (2-year term) CNCF (Cloud Native Computing Foundation) | Software engineers | Closed | 2026-07-12 (2026 cycle closed) |
| Open-source programmes | CNCF Cloud Native Ambassadors — Ambassador program (2-yr term) CNCF Cloud Native Ambassadors | Software engineers | Closed | Annual — 2026 apps closed Jul 12 2026; next window ~May 2027 |
| Open-source programmes | GitHub Stars — Recognition program (feature access, speaking invites) GitHub Stars | Rolling | Rolling review | |
| Open-source programmes | Google Developer Experts (GDE) program Google | AI engineers, Machine learning engineers, Software engineers, Technology builders | Open now | Always open (with referral) |
| Open-source programmes | Google Developer Experts — Expert program (public directory, badge) Google Developer Experts | AI engineers, Software engineers | Rolling | Rolling annual renewal |
| Open-source programmes | Microsoft MVP — MVP Award (1-yr renewable) Microsoft MVP | Not stated | Annual award cycles (quarterly-ish reviews) | |
| Open-source programmes | Outreachy — Mentorship program (2 rounds/yr) Outreachy | Not stated | Twice yearly |
How to use this
Pick two or three that genuinely fit what you already do, do the work, and let the record accumulate. Recognition you did not earn is worthless, and in an immigration file it is worse than worthless.
Every entry here is free to apply for. We do not list anything that charges a fee to be considered, and the programmes that do are written down and excluded rather than forgotten.
10 programmes listed.