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Capstone Project

All Verrazzano students must complete a Capstone Project in their junior or senior year. You work closely with a professor to create a scholarly project that builds on your knowledge and interest in a field, or fields, of study. There is no singular definition for the Capstone. Many students write a long, scholarly essay or conduct research in their major, but you are permitted to do creative or multimedia projects as well. If you are eligible for Honors in the Major*, the departmental Honors Thesis will fulfill the Verrazzano capstone project requirement. Engineering students may use their senior project as their capstone; the document you submit must focus on the unique work you contributed to the collaborative project.

Steps to Completing the Verrazzano Capstone Experience

  1. By the deadline below, submit a general topic and the name of a full-time faculty member to supervise/advise your Verrazzano Capstone project. Adjuncts with a long-term relationship with the college may be mentors with Verrazzano approval. The mentor must be in a discipline related to the subject matter of the Capstone. You are eligible to complete a capstone project in any discipline—it need not be in your major.
  2. Submit a proposal and this Capstone Proposal Form signed by you faculty mentor by the deadline posted below.
  3. Present Capstone work at the Undergraduate Conference (or approved substitute) during the junior or senior year. This event takes place in late April or early May each year and requires that you apply to present. January graduates will have the opportunity to present at a special mini-conference in December.
  4. Submit a 1-2 page blog, with photos, for the Verrazzano Voyager blog. This reflection focuses on you rather than on the project itself. Look back on your accomplishment and share with your readers your thoughts about your capstone experience. Email blog and photos to Cheryl as an attachment in word. Be sure to include your name, the title of your capstone, and your mentor's name. Special note for engineering students: in addition to the blog, you must also submit a 2-3 minute video describing and demoing your senior project.
  5. Submit your capstone and the signed Capstone Submission Form. Follow these Capstone Expectations and Guidelines.

Deadlines

Students who have clinicals, student teaching, or other commitments during their last semester should make arrangements to complete the capstone prior to their last semester, and ask well in advance for time off to present at the conference.

Semester of Graduation

General Topic and Mentor Name Due

Proposal Due

Final Project and Reflection Due

Fall (January)

December 15 of the year before graduation
(junior fall)

April 15th of the year before graduation
(junior spring)

November 15th of the semester of graduation

Spring/Summer (June/August)

May 15 of the year before graduation
(junior spring)

September 15th of the semester before graduation (senior fall)

Note: For June 201 Graduates, the deadline is October 15

April 15th of the semester of graduation

*To learn about departmental honors in your major, visit the section listing your major requirements in the College Catalog and then speak with a full-time faculty member in that department.