The Linux Foundation Announces 2012 Linux Training Scholarship Recipients

With demand for Linux talent at an all-time high, competition for Linux training scholarships gets fierce; more than 500 submissions received

SAN FRANCISCO, September 10, 2012 – The Linux Foundation, the nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating the growth of Linux, today announced the winners of its 2012 Linux Training Scholarship Program.

More than 500 submissions were received during the second year of this program, which is more than double the number of submissions reviewed in 2011. The Linux Training Scholarship Program awards five scholarships to computer science students and Linux developers or systems administrators who show incredible promise for helping to shape the future of Linux but do not otherwise have the ability to attend Linux Foundation training courses.

This year’s winners represent the diverse opportunities for the platform, ranging from embedded development to cloud computing, as well as bringing Linux to remote areas of the globe.

The 2012 Linux Training Scholarship winners are:

Adnan Akbar – Pakistan

Akbar is a doctoral student in the School of Engineering and Technology, Lahore. His Linux 
development work has largely been focused on embedded Linux, having worked on the Angstrom 
embedded Linux kernel and associated drivers. He says that to do this he studied different books 
on embedded Linux and listened to several online lectures but could not attend proper training because
of a lack of such opportunities available in Pakistan.

Julio Guillen – El Salvador

Guillen is a 15-year Linux user who has worked as a Linux systems administrator. He says his country lacks trained people to develop applications for mobile devices and to implement and maintain cloud computing technologies. He hopes his Linux training can help provide the knowledge for him to start his own company to provide Linux-based services in El Salvador.

Julita Inca Chiroque – Peru

Inca served as an intern for the GNOME Outreach Program for Women in 2011 and today is a both a member of the GNOME Foundation as well as a Fedora Ambassador to Peru. She recently finished a Master’s in Computer Science and is working as a Linux Server Administrator using Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5.0.  She says Linux training can help her prepare for a successful career as a Linux professional and to enable her to pass along knowledge to others. 

George Mhlanga – Africa

Mhlanga is a computer programmer at the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security at Lilongwe Agricultural Development Division in Malawi, Africa. Today he is managing web-based systems on Windows servers in 300 offices but says the servers are prone to viruses and that he wants to switch to Linux. He has requested Linux training from his management but management does not have the funds. He says he will use the Linux training scholarship to become “the next Linux expert” and to strengthen the role of Linux in his organization.

Alexander Samide – United States

Alexander Samide is studying computer science at Regis University but uses Linux in his day job as the base for building telecom equipment. He says he will use the Linux training scholarship to better implement embedded systems with increased security. He says he would like to reach a level of knowledge and experience to be able to provide more support to existing projects and to create new projects.

Each scholarship will cover the price of one class from The Linux Foundation’s course schedule, a value averaging more than $2,500.

“This year we saw the number of submissions for our Linux Training program more than double. This represents an acknowledgement by budding Linux developers and systems administrators that Linux is the hottest area in IT for career growth,” said Amanda McPherson, vice president, marketing and developer programs at The Linux Foundation. “Providing Linux training resources is an important part of The Linux Foundation’s work. We’re happy to help support individuals while at the same time advancing the Linux platform for the future.”  

According to the 2012 Linux Jobs Report (https://www.linuxfoundation.org/publications/linux-foundation/2012-linux-jobs-report), produced by Dice.com and The Linux Foundation, 81 percent of recruiters say that hiring Linux talent is a priority this year but 85 percent say that it’s difficult to find this talent. When hiring managers find Linux development and IT skills in a candidate, they’re offering higher salaries and more perks. The Linux Foundation is helping to meet this demand by providing Linux training opportunities that increase job seekers’ portfolio of skills and depth of knowledge related to Linux.

Given this high demand, The Linux Foundation plans to continue its annual Linux Training Scholarship Program in 2013.

For more information on these courses, please visit: http://training.linuxfoundation.org.

About The Linux Foundation

The Linux Foundation is a nonprofit consortium dedicated to fostering the growth of Linux. Founded in 2000, the organization sponsors the work of Linux creator Linus Torvalds and promotes, protects and advances the Linux operating system by marshaling the resources of its members and the open source development community. The Linux Foundation provides a neutral forum for collaboration and education by hosting Linux conferences, including LinuxCon, and generating original Linux research, Linux videos and content that advances the understanding of the Linux platform. Its web properties, including Linux.com, reach approximately two million people per month. The organization also provides extensive Linux training opportunities that feature the Linux kernel community’s leading experts as instructors. Follow The Linux Foundation on Twitter.

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