Experiences with open source projects?

[kommen]

I'm not really sure where to put this thread, so I'll just post it here. (Hopefully it doesn't end up in landfill)

I'm a university student in IT and I want to build my portfolio. I thought that although project open-sourcing probably won't make a lot of money, it probably has many other benefits for my situation:

1. It doesn't make me learn coding, but it does make me learn how to code for what the market needs
2. It is a good way to build a network. When I help people in open source projects, they will thank me and form good entrepreneurial friendships
3. My contribution will be VERY strong to put in my portfolio that it increases my chances to get private-freelancing opportunities (meaning not using Upwork or Fiverr, etc.)
4. Although not the main goal, but I can be sponsored with some donation from other people's generosity

What were your experiences with open-sourcing? How can I find good open-source projects for me as a beginner? Which open-source projects should I choose as my first one? What are your tips if you've ever contributed to open-source projects?

 

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[Jobless]

It is probably more thankless than you think. For building a portfolio, I think it's good. You can do the approach of small contributions to many projects or just engage yourself heavily in one.

You can also spend more time with documentation/testing, and leave the coding to someone else. This trains your communication/writing/analysis skills. In my experience, there is often a great lack of documentation, which is natural for new and WIP projects, but try to identify old and more complete projects that lack this.

For what projects to choose: Pick an open-source project you already use or are interested in using yourself.

 

[Eholic]

This is a good idea but wouldn't there be competition if others are also looking for open-source projects.