Nobody in the real world cares about open source projects from my personal experience. I realize I won't get a degree, just wondering if people have ever been hired after spending time on something like this.
Also, even today there are a number of companies (esp. in the midwest) that won't let any open source software inside, unless it comes from a paid vendor (like Red Hat).
I don't claim that in order to work at <set A of companies> you should do open source. I only claim that doing open source will help you get a job at <set B of companies>. Those two sets are not the same.
Actually, now that I think of it, this may not be a strictly regional thing, except that certain industry types cluster around specific areas. I think it is more if a company sees its software as a competitive advantage, then they are more likely to go out on a limb to try to differentiate themselves. Whereas companies that see software as similar to a phone system, or electricity, they are usually only interested in traditional big-company that-you-can-contractually-blame software. At least that has been my experience around here.
It's a pretty meaningless statement to say "in the real world, no one cares about open source" when your definition of "real world" is one fraction of one fraction of the real world (specific companies within the corporate world).