Excelsior Capstone

[Risa]

Hi Everyone,

I am going to be taking Excelsior's Liberal Arts Capstone course staring on May 1st. I heard that it is required to write a research paper, group paper, and do an internship. Is this true? If so, how does the internship work online and how many weeks/hours is it? Also, how does the group project work? Are all of the projects happening at the same time? It sounds quite overwhelming and difficult. If anyone can provide insight into this course, I'd appreciate it!

[rachel83az]

I don't remember hearing of anyone doing an internship for the Lib Arts capstone. Maybe other capstones have internships, but I don't think the Lib Arts one does. I've definitely heard of the group paper and the research paper, though.

[frankc]

I took the Liberal Arts Capstone course last October, and while there wasn't an internship, the course did have its challenges. One of the most overwhelming parts for me was the group project, which lasted for around 3 out of the 8 weeks. I worked with three other students, I had to take charge of the project because our assigned team leader was dealing with some family matters most of the time. I completely understood her situation, as well as the religious commitments of my other two teammates, which sometimes limited their availability until the day the project was due.
I did almost all the brainstorm, share ideas on the discussion board, assign tasks to my team members, and even drafted everything for the presentation slides. Honestly, group projects in online courses are really not a good experience. Good luck.

[Risa]

I took the Liberal Arts Capstone course last October, and while there wasn't an internship, the course did have its challenges. One of the most overwhelming parts for me was the group project, which lasted for around 3 out of the 8 weeks. I worked with three other students, I had to take charge of the project because our assigned team leader was dealing with some family matters most of the time. I completely understood her situation, as well as the religious commitments of my other two teammates, which sometimes limited their availability until the day the project was due.
I did almost all the brainstorm, share ideas on the discussion board, assign tasks to my team members, and even drafted everything for the presentation slides. Honestly, group projects in online courses are really not a good experience. Good luck.

Thanks for sharing this! I'm not at all excited for the capstone. I wish there was a way to test out of it, but for now we just have to power through!

[new2this]

I am currently in the Liberal Arts Capstone class.  I will break it down for you.
If you take the class on an 8-week platform, expect to do a lot of work.

I can only speak on the 8-week version of the Liberal Arts Capstone. No Internship!
 
This is what you can expect every week.

• 2-3 Presentations are sideshows explaining the assignments
  
• A journal entry of approx 250-300 words is due every Sunday, answering the questions for that week.
  
• Global research project- here is the 12-17 page Research paper
  Every weekly milestone builds up to this assignment.  Pick a global problem that allows you to find much information on the worldwide issue.My professor said the topic was related to our education or career path.The Research paper is broken down as follows:Coverage, abstract, introduction with a thesis statement, literature review(here you analyze your selected sources and evaluate them to see if the research sources (peer-reviewed) you selected assist you in finding a solution to your research paper topic or if they refute your topic choice chosen.  This heavy assignment will make up the bulk of your research paper.  Then the proposed solution to your research problem and the conclusion and reference page.
• Group discussion post three times per week, sometimes more often
  Post id due on Wed, Fri, and responses to your teammates from Friday thru Sunday.  These require answering the questions being asked for that particular week while also utilizing sources to back your claimYou will be broken down into teams of three or four students, and your goal is to evaluate certain philosophies of giving to charity. Choose a philosophy and then select a charity that exhibits that philosophy. Then you have to explain how the chosen charity utilizes the three foundations of the liberal arts. I.e., history, social science, humanities.  The final group assignment is a PowerPoint slide show comprising at least 12 slides.  I am currently doing this now, and I did eight slides.  The group portion is difficult because many people don't pull their weight. 
  
   If you have any other questions, PM me.  I have advised others to take this class over the 15-week semester timeline because, with a family, a full-time career, and other obligations, this class is time-consuming.  I am in module 6 and almost done.

[oldguy4associate]

I am currently in the Liberal Arts Capstone class.  I will break it down for you.
If you take the class on an 8-week platform, expect to do a lot of work.

I can only speak on the 8-week version of the Liberal Arts Capstone.    No Internship!
 
This is what you can expect every week.

• 2-3 Presentations are sideshows explaining the assignments
  
• A journal entry of approx 250-300 words is due every Sunday, answering the questions for that week.
  
• Global research project- here is the 12-17 page Research paper
  Every weekly milestone builds up to this assignment.  Pick a global problem that allows you to find much information on the worldwide issue.My professor said the topic was related to our education or career path.The Research paper is broken down as follows:Coverage, abstract, introduction with a thesis statement, literature review(here you analyze your selected sources and evaluate them to see if the research sources (peer-reviewed) you selected assist you in finding a solution to your research paper topic or if they refute your topic choice chosen.  This heavy assignment will make up the bulk of your research paper.  Then the proposed solution to your research problem and the conclusion and reference page.
  
• Group discussion post three times per week, sometimes more often
  Post id due on Wed, Fri, and responses to your teammates from Friday thru Sunday.  These require answering the questions being asked for that particular week while also utilizing sources to back your claimYou will be broken down into teams of three or four students, and your goal is to evaluate certain philosophies of giving to charity. Choose a philosophy and then select a charity that exhibits that philosophy. Then you have to explain how the chosen charity utilizes the three foundations of the liberal arts. I.e., history, social science, humanities.  The final group assignment is a PowerPoint slide show comprising at least 12 slides.  I am currently doing this now, and I did eight slides.  The group portion is difficult because many people don't pull their weight. 
  
   If you have any other questions, PM me.  I have advised others to take this class over the 15-week semester timeline because, with a family, a full-time career, and other obligations, this class is time-consuming.  I am in module 6 and almost done.

Thanks for the break down. Did you use the soomo or canvas app for the cornerstone or capstone?

[new2this]

I am currently in the Liberal Arts Capstone class.  I will break it down for you.
If you take the class on an 8-week platform, expect to do a lot of work.

I can only speak on the 8-week version of the Liberal Arts Capstone.    No Internship!
 
This is what you can expect every week.

• 2-3 Presentations are sideshows explaining the assignments
  
• A journal entry of approx 250-300 words is due every Sunday, answering the questions for that week.
  
• Global research project- here is the 12-17 page Research paper
  Every weekly milestone builds up to this assignment.  Pick a global problem that allows you to find much information on the worldwide issue.My professor said the topic was related to our education or career path.The Research paper is broken down as follows:Coverage, abstract, introduction with a thesis statement, literature review(here you analyze your selected sources and evaluate them to see if the research sources (peer-reviewed) you selected assist you in finding a solution to your research paper topic or if they refute your topic choice chosen.  This heavy assignment will make up the bulk of your research paper.  Then the proposed solution to your research problem and the conclusion and reference page.
  
• Group discussion post three times per week, sometimes more often
  Post id due on Wed, Fri, and responses to your teammates from Friday thru Sunday.  These require answering the questions being asked for that particular week while also utilizing sources to back your claimYou will be broken down into teams of three or four students, and your goal is to evaluate certain philosophies of giving to charity. Choose a philosophy and then select a charity that exhibits that philosophy. Then you have to explain how the chosen charity utilizes the three foundations of the liberal arts. I.e., history, social science, humanities.  The final group assignment is a PowerPoint slide show comprising at least 12 slides.  I am currently doing this now, and I did eight slides.  The group portion is difficult because many people don't pull their weight. 
  
   If you have any other questions, PM me.  I have advised others to take this class over the 15-week semester timeline because, with a family, a full-time career, and other obligations, this class is time-consuming.  I am in module 6 and almost done.

Thanks for the break down. Did you use the soomo or canvas app for the cornerstone or capstone?

Canvas