usurpedfounder

There is a big need for even contract type work to help nontechnical founders prototype. I get asked at least 1-3x per month (as a crappy front-end dev that has no time to keep learning how to code) to build x or y project. Post under job boards that you are "accepting PT or prototyping contracts" on job forums of communities similar to YC. Start-up coworking spaces, such as the CIC in Boston, have Slack channels where people are constantly looking for devs - ask a current member to post your capabilities on their internal Slack channel. Probably a bunch of folks would be happy to chat with you about contract work.

Adora, applaude YC's efforts to do the right thing! Admitted applicants, however, are getting a diluted experience; thus the solution takes away fairness from the admitted applicants. It's an impossible situation and all the time/energy YC is spending to fix it is incredible! Some suggestions:

1. Give the originally accepted applicants access to a separate pool of 100 $10k grants - so they have the same odds of accessing the grants. 2. If 1 isn't possible, try to think of other perks that the accepted pool gets access to (in addition to what was already offered to make up for the larger pool of people with access to the grants) 3. In tandem with 1 or 2, put some meritocratic constraints around all participants. In order to stay in start-up school, partcipants must read x book, conduct x experiments, etc. This way those who will really put effort into the program and be a part of the community will get to participate. After all, as Duckworth's book Grit outlines,and some research at Google, effort coupled with curiosity is an important predictor of success.