What is a Capstone?
BYU’s Computer Science a capstone course for the Software Engineering Emphasis. The capstone is two-semesters in length and taken by junior and senior level students. This course is intended to be the culminating experience for a student graduating in Computer Science. All CS Students are invited to enroll in the course, however its completion is only a requirement for those with a Software Engineering emphasis.
This Capstone program gives students firsthand experience designing programs and generating data for a company while overcoming real-world challenges. Our hope is that through this capstone, students can more fully develop the competence and confidence to better enter and contribute in the workplace. This experience, while benefitting our students, assists companies with projects and grants them access to our upperclassman for internship opportunities and potential job recruitment.
In the Fall, students are split into teams of 3-5 members under their prospective fields. These teams are assigned a faculty coach and work with a liaison from the sponsoring company. Research indicates that students work harder and more creatively when their projects are authentic and of real consequence to a company.
Over the two-semester course, it is anticipated that each team member will dedicate 10 hours a week towards the project; meaning teams of 4 students will be putting in a cumulative 40 hours a week. Capstone includes class time and work outside of class as teams. Each team is required to build a product that is valuable for a real customer.
If you are a company looking to sponsor a capstone, please visit this page for more information.