Capstone Project Proposal Guide
This proposal consists of several paragraphs that describe the basic aspects of your capstone project. The intent of writing this proposal is for you:
To learn to articulate a reasonable, doable-in-one-semester original research project.
To outline for yourself each part of the research necessary to complete a timely project.
To explain in straightforward language what you will study, what question you want to answer, and/or what problem you want to address in an area of communication studies.
Content (at least a paragraph for each heading):
Topic on which you want to focus. (The specific question or hypothesis of your project.)
Communicative significance of the project.
What is the relationship between your question/hypothesis and the
academic study of communication?
Why is it important to the field of communication? What original
contribution does it make to the field of communication?
Social significance of the project. (How does it contribute to or benefit society? What impact does it make? How does it promote social justice, if at all?)
Presentational format for the project. (How will you present the project? Possibilities include: Thesis, Video, Audio, Rhetorical/Persuasive Campaign or Artifact, Screenplay.)
Method of inquiry. (How will you do the project?) Possibilities include: a. Qualitative (case study, sociological, anthropological)
b. Quantitative (nomothetic, experimental, etc.)
c. Textual (literary, historical, philosophical)
d. Rhetorical e. Other
Method of data collection/organization. (How will you gather data/material for your project? What kind of data? How much data – and/or how many participants – do you need for your project to be legitimate?)
Basis in theory. (What important theoretical approaches serve as the basis of your research question?)
Project as “capstone.” [We expect, as a department, that your prior coursework will inform your project, at the very least Argument & Advocacy, Communication Theory, Qualitative or/and Quantitative Methods, and your upper division courses.] How do you specifically envision prior course content being central to your project?
Last Completed Projects
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