Originality. The capstone project requires students to come to their own deep understanding of some clearly defined and focused research question. This involves articulating a personal perspective on an issue and drawing relevant conclusions based upon research.
Independence. Students work primarily on their own with a Capstone mentor as a guide and domain expert.
Appropriate scope. In terms of credit hours the Capstone is equivalent to a normal BIS course (two if you include the Proseminar). Students should plan to spend on their Capstone project at least as much time and energy as they have devoted to their most challenging course in the BIS program. For the project itself, students have just one semester to complete their research and writing; this means that they need to keep the project within a limited (doable) scope.
Orderly and objective process of inquiry. The Capstone project should demonstrate facility with those methodologies and skills – those methods of inquiry – appropriate to the area of investigation. These will normally include the ability to identify a significant topic for research, to ask the right questions, to synthesize ideas, to identify and use evidence, to draw and support conclusions, to recognize compelling research, to objectively consider evidence in an unbiased way, to communicate ideas in an articulate way, or to solve a problem using a specific set of tools.
Intellectual stretch. The Capstone project should drive students to unfamiliar depths of intellectual rigor and originality.
