Significant open source contributions as MC or OC2

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Hello,

I saw that Significant contributor to open source projects is an example evidence for MC whereas we also have GitHub or Stack Overflow profile demonstrating active / ongoing participation and Evidence of contributions to an open-source project as OC2 (Recognition for Work Outside Immediate Occupation).

Is the one stated as MC related to an open-source project that is developed as part of a recent job, e.g. the company you work for has an open-source project to which you contribute? Or can it simply be a list/screenshots/links of commits, PRs, Code Reviews in public Github repositories (sound more like Outside immediate occupation but not sure)

I have various (spare-time) code contributions to different open-source projects in Github. One of them though is quite substantial in terms of that repo’s functionality (1100 stars repo, important tool for a research field in AI). I also have 1-2 repositories with more than 100 stars that I had developed & maintained myself only. Trying to understand how can I distribute these into potential evidences.

UPDATE: I found that in the official docs, the following is given as an example MC criterion so its not about the project being maintained/owned by your company I suppose. So maybe they are really very similar things but kept under both MC and an OC to allow for people to use it in various places?

Outside of your normal day-to-day job role, you led or were a significant contributor to a substantial open source project, as evidenced from compilation of code commit summaries, repo stars or similar metrics such as download statistics, where possible.

Thanks!

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That’s right - MC and OC2 are open-source work out of your job. OC3 is for the ones done as a part of your job.

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I have some open source projects I’d created, if you’d like to contribute to boost your open-source contributions, please DM me and I can add you as a maintainer

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Whilst this is almost a year old and may no longer be useful for the person who originally asked the question, for a knowledge repository like this, every bit of information can still be valuable.

Whilst MC and OC both involve contributions to open source, their contexts, I believe are different. If not presented strategically, simply listing GitHub or similar open‑source contributions in both MC and OC2 may appear repetitive and could weaken an applicant’s application, as each criterion is expected to showcase unique evidence rather than repeated examples.

One approach that has worked for the successful applicants I have guided, including myself, is to present evidence in a way that rightly aligns with what each criterion specifically requires.

The focus of MC is to demonstrate that you were recognised for doing something that positions you as an expert in the sector within the last five years. Merely contributing to open source authored by someone else does not show recognition; it can demonstrate contribution, but only when done to upstream projects (the original source repository).

Also, based on recent feedback, I suggest applicants present projects they authored or co authored with substantial adoption metrics in MC. Metrics such as downloads or likes show that peers recognise and use what you created. For OC2, applicants should highlight their sustained contributions to the original source repository authored by others.

It is important to note that project authored by an applicant can be used in OC2 too, if it is sustained, collaborative and substantial but the focus of this post is when you need to use the same open source (i.e GitHub) for both criteria

And here is how the guidance puts it respectively:

MC – “Outside of your normal day‑to‑day job role, you led or were a significant contributor to a substantial open‑source project.” “Led or were a significant contributor”

can connote being an author or co‑author of such a project.

OC2 – “Your GitHub profile demonstrating active participation in a collaborative project.” “Active participation in a collaborative project”

can connote contributing to projects authored by others.

All the best.

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