Scholars Application

Ruby Central is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the Ruby programming language through conferences, open source stewardship of RubyGems and Bundler, and community development programs since 2001.

Ruby Central

Employee count: 11-50

United States only

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Welcome and thank you for your interest in the Scholars and Guides program!

We’re excited to offer this opportunity for individuals new to the Ruby/Ruby on Rails community. Applications are accepted year-round, with specific deadlines for each event, so please be sure to check the details below.

About the Scholars and Guides Program:

This program connects Scholars (mentees) with experienced Guides (mentors) who will provide guidance and advice, especially leading up to and during the conference. Scholars are individuals who are new to Ruby or Ruby on Rails and are looking to build professional connections within the community.

Who Can Apply:

We encourage individuals from underrepresented communities in tech to apply. The program is open to anyone interested in learning Ruby and Ruby on Rails, but Scholars must meet the following requirements:

Be 18 years or older at the time of application submission.
Complete a mini-project alongside an assigned Guide.
Attend three mandatory meet-ups: Speakers & Scholars Reception, Pre-conference Zoom Meetup, Post-conference Lunchtime Retro (on-site)
Have never been a Scholar in the past.

You can read more about the program and requirementshere.

Conference Details:

Ruby Central hosted event, RubyConf, is a 3 day professional development conference event. This year, RubyConf 2026 will take place in Las Vegas, NV from July 14th ~ July 16th. The event will be held over three days:

Day 1 & Day 3: Conference talks
Day 2: Workshops, hack-a-thon, talks and community activities

We also have our first ever annual Fundraising Dinner happening July 13th, 2026 where we are extending a personal invitation to our Scholars to join us.

::Note:: This scholarship covers the full 3-day conference ticket cost.

Application Process Timeline

RubyConf Application Deadline:Tuesday, March 18th, 2026 11:59pm EST
Submission confirmation: Tuesday, March 25th, 2026 -1 week to confirm your application for reviewal
Application review period: March 25th ~ April 8th - 2 week reviewal period
Application status updates: Mid-April

::Note::RubyConf 2026 applications will start collecting once RubyConf 2026 applications have closed.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact us atscholarships@rubycentral.orgor visit our website atrubyconf.org.

Thank you for applying, and we look forward to reviewing your application!

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About the job

Apply before

Sep 11, 2026

Posted on

Jul 13, 2026

Job type

Intern

Experience level

Entry-level

Experience

No experience required

Location requirements

United States

Hiring timezones

United States +/- 0 hours

About Ruby Central

Learn more about Ruby Central and their company culture.

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Ruby Central, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to driving innovation and building community within the Ruby programming ecosystem since 2001. Founded by David Alan Black and Chad Fowler after organizing the first RubyConf in Tampa, the organization has grown to become the backbone of the Ruby community, organizing world-class conferences and maintaining mission-critical open source infrastructure.

Ruby Central organizes RubyConf, the world's largest Ruby conference, and RailsConf, the longest-running event for Rails developers. Since 2001, they have hosted 42 conferences with 18,000+ attendees and 2,000+ speakers from around the globe. Through their Open Source Program, they maintain RubyGems (the Ruby package manager with over 210 billion downloads) and Bundler, serving over 230,000 users and 185,000 gems with 100% uptime since 2013. The organization also supports community development through local meetup grants spanning 26 groups across 5 continents, their Scholars & Guides mentorship program with 330+ scholars, and membership programs with 1,575 members. In 2022, Ruby Central merged with Ruby Together, uniting the Ruby community's leading events and infrastructure under one roof to ensure the long-term sustainability of the ecosystem.

Tech stack

Learn about the tools and technologies that Ruby Central uses to build, market, and sell its products.

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Ruby

GitHub

Bundler

Stripe

Ghost

Ruby Central employees can create an account to update this tech stack.

Employee benefits

Learn about the employee benefits and perks provided at Ruby Central.

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Newsletter Access

Members receive monthly newsletters detailing how funds are spent and ecosystem progress.

Corporate Sponsorship

Opportunities for companies to support Ruby Central and gain visibility with the Ruby community.

Meetup Grants

Local meetup grants supporting regional Ruby events around the world spanning 26 groups across 5 continents.

Scholarships

Scholars program for individuals new to Ruby/Ruby on Rails with mentorship opportunities and conference support.

View Ruby Central's employee benefits

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