Incorporating an Experiential Learning Capstone Project Course into a Curriculum Kathy Weaver, PhD Associate Director Master of Information Management University of Maryland keweaver@umd.edu Tetyana Bezbabna Program Coordinator Master of Information Management University of Maryland mimcoordinator@umd.edu

Capstone Experience Agenda Capstone Experience Objectives Capstone Experience Varieties Capstone Experience Examples UMD MIM Capstone Experience Capstone Experience Activities Capstone Experience Summary

Capstone Experience Professional experience based on real-world issues Students work with organization outside of classroom Projects are chosen based on student interest Showcase talents gathered in program Incorporate previous experience

Capstone Experience Objectives Synthesize knowledge and engage in life-long learning Communicate as professionals Understand the value of interpersonal skills Collaborate with clients Produce high-quality and significant products Improve professional skills Gather professional connections

Capstone Experience Varieties Full program research Final Presentation to committee Senior capstone courses Last semester sequence Master’s Report A substantive, publishable-quality paper Team Project Student teams An online simulation Simulation-game using real-world contexts Graduate vs. Undergraduate Project Complexity Project Variety (simulation vs. working with a real client)

Capstone Experience Examples Carnegie Mellon University, BXA Intercollege Degree Programs Final year Humboldt State University, Biology Self-designed student project throughout full program University of Maryland, Smith School of Business An online simulation University of Texas, Austin School of Information Master’s Report University of Washington, Computer Science and Engineering Team Project

UMD MIM Capstone Experience Information management (IM): Brings together technology, information, and management Increases efficiency and promotes innovation Examples of IM careers: CIO, CTO, CKO, Director of IT/IT Services, Business Intelligence Analyst, Business Analyst, IT Consultant, Project Manager, Information Architect, Data Scientist, User Experience Specialist

MIM Program Overview MIM Students backgrounds: Computer Science and Engineering electrical | computer | mechanical Business marketing | accounting | operations | finance Communication media | journalism Information technology and Information science Health professions Need to find projects to meet all of these needs

Capstone Experience Project Types Research Student conducts extensive research producing technical report or white paper Analytical Student analyzes information offering detailed strategy Technical Student develops usable tools

Capstone Project Database Gathering Capstone Projects Campus and department speakers Capstone projects website Student submissions Internship sponsors Past project clients UMD faculty Capstone Project Database Friends

Capstone Experience Project Cycle Project Proposals Professional Profiles & Project Preferences Client Submission Student Preferences Project Assignments Project Completion Students work on projects 10 hours / week Match needs of client and skills of student

Gathering Capstone Projects Example 1: Information Architecture (Analysis) Analyzed current information repositories Proposed new information management architecture Example 2: Interactive Dashboard (Technical) Organized information from yearly Excel document Used visualization tool to dynamically show incoming data Example 3: Social Media Strategy (Research) Research social media strategies at other universities Develop prototype of proposed social media strategy

Gathering Capstone Projects ACTIVITY 1: Create a capstone project Review the capstone project examples provided Generate an idea for a capstone project Document the idea on flipchart paper following the template provided

Student Preferences and Student Experience Document 1: Professional Profile Provide evidence based information about skills and expertise Career Goals Based on outcome of profile table, document desired career goals Student Capstone Project Preferences Top 5 choices based on database of capstone projects

Capstone Projects Preferences ACTIVITY 2: Based on the capstone projects in the room, select your top two choices. For each include: How does your background qualify you for this position? Which skills do you possess that match the description? If there is a programming language required: How much experience do you have with it? What was the experience? How proficient do you think you are with that language? If user studies will be conducted: Have you conducted user studies before? In what capacity? Are you IRB certified? Why do you think you should be chosen for this project? What skills and experience (or expertise) can you offer the organization? Why will the organization benefit from having you as a consultant? How will it contribute to your career preparation as part of your professional profile document? What specific skills will this project add to your professional profile? How will this benefit your career path?

MIM Capstone In-class Activities Requirements Gathering Project Plan development Milestones Processes Project managers Poster presentations Success and challenges Elevator pitch

Gathering Capstone Projects ACTIVITY 3: Develop a full project from the problem statement Based on your top capstone project preference, expand the project to describe its: Milestones Deliverables

Capstone Experience Summary Student Opinions About Capstone Projects “Doing projects with companies outside the school is the best part.”  “The project descriptions are way too short and vague for somebody to judge what's in there.” “The poster sessions really enhances presentation skills. Also, the part where alumni came to review the poster - that was excellent!” “I learned a lot, much more than I thought at the beginning. I appreciate this opportunity.”

References Goold, A. 2003. Providing process for projects in capstone courses. In Proceedings of the 8th Annual Conference on innovation and Technology in Computer Science Education (Thessaloniki, Greece, June 30 - July 02, 2003). D. Finkel, Ed. ITiCSE '03. ACM Press, New York, NY, 26-29. Gorgone, J. T. (2004, June). Information systems and the overview report for computing curricula 2004. In ACM SIGCSE Bulletin (Vol. 36, No. 4, pp. 15-16). ACM. Gorka, S., Miller, J. R., & Howe, B. J. (2007, October). Developing realistic capstone projects in conjunction with industry. In Proceedings of the 8th ACM SIGITE conference on Information technology education (pp. 27-32). ACM.

Online Information http://mim.umd.edu/lilly-conference/