Sri Lanka in top ten of most number of applicants.

Moratuwa, Sri Lanka – May 22, 2008 – The University of Moratuwa is proud to announce that 24 student projects have been accepted for the Google Summer of Code program this year making it the number one University worldwide to have the most number of accepted projects.

Google, the Internet search engine giant, accepted 1125 applications by students globally to work on Free and Open Source Software projects in the summer. The Google Summer of Code Program (GSoC), now in its fourth year, entices students to submit their ideas to Google approved mentor organizations and contribute to open source projects. Once selected and on successful completion of their tasks in the period of 3 months, Google grants the student a reward of $4500.

“We are very happy about the achievements of our students this year. We have come a long way from the single award received three years ago. I take this Opportunity to thank the Free and Open Source Software (FOSS) Community for their efforts in helping these students. Clearly students benefit a lot from having a very active community” Said Mrs. Vishaka Nanayakkara, Head of Computer Science and Engieering, University of Moratuwa.

The Computer Science and Engineering Faculty received 18 projects from the total of 24 accepted projects from the University of Moratuwa with the Engineering Faculty receiving 2 and the IT Faculty receiving 4.

Sri Lanka was also in the top ten list of countries with the most number of accepted students, even beating the United Kingdom. The United States of America was number one followed by India, China, Cananda, France, Germany, Brazil, and Poland.

The University of Moratuwa is known as a trendsetter for its innovative approach to undergraduate education aimed at producing not only employable, but globally competitive graduates. The efforts have resulted in maintaining good standards in academic activities while placing emphasis on the soft skills development of undergraduates as well.