Each University Honors Capstone Project must meet these general criteria. These criteria are to be judged by the faculty mentor.
UH Capstone Criteria
- Conducted scholarship that was largely independently driven (albeit under the mentorship of at least one faculty member). No group projects. No faculty-driven research projects where the student serves as research assistant (although a student-driven research project may emerge from this work)
- Holds exceptional skill or knowledge in their chosen area of study. This “area” need not be a specialization within a major/discipline. A student could do an interdisciplinary piece of scholarship or scholarship outside their major
- Makes an original scholarship contribution
- Appropriately cites sources consistent with the style manual recommended by the faculty mentor
- Displays exceptional writing skills
UH Capstone Reflection
Write a minimum 500 word capstone reflection that begins with a sentence or two summary of your capstone project and then focuses on contextualizing your capstone project in the following ways:
- How does this work fit in your field? How does your workflow logically from and contribute to previous research? And how might your work inform future scholarship in the field?
- How does this work fit in society? What type of impact might your capstone work have on society? Be specific, how might your work affect the grand challenges facing the world (e.g., theoretically, advances in knowledge that change how we live, material, social, or other outcomes that affect quality of life and work)?
- How does this work fit in your life? How did working on and completing this capstone project affect you personally? What did you develop/learn/gain through conducting this scholarship for your capstone requirement?
Frequently asked questions
How many pages (or words) long does the capstone paper have to be? There is no length minimum or maximum. Students should consult with their faculty advisor to decide on the appropriate amount of writing required to accomplish the goals of the project and the above-mentioned general capstone requirements. Write your capstone scholarship consistent with publishing standards in your field. We encourage students and faculty to consider submitting their capstone scholarship for review at conferences or journals. Don’t forget we publish our own undergraduate honors journal. You could consider submitting for publication there too.
Can my capstone paper also count for other scholarship/research requirements? Scholarship conducted for other purposes can still be accepted for UH credit as long as the project meets all of our capstone criteria. As such, a UH Capstone Project could double as a research project completed via the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP), a department-level honors program, or other curricular requirements. The key for UH is that the capstone project meets the requirements listed above. Students and their faculty mentors are responsible for ensuring that the project meets these UH general criteria.