Capstone 388L Final Presentations – Guidelines

Why the Capstone Presentation is Important. Your Capstone experience is intended to serve as the practical application of your ISchool coursework, and as the culmination of your studies here. Furthermore, communication and presentation skills are among the top priorities of any employer. Should additional incentive be required, you might also note that Dean Dillon is prepared to offer a Dean’s Award for Capstone Excellence for the best completed and presented Capstone experience each semester.

The requirements include:

Organization and Content

  • Highlight the basic content including the project: goal, location, activities and results.
  • Address the following questions:
  • Did your project achieve the results you had intended when you started out? If not, why? If it did, why do you say this?
  • Did you learn what you expected to learn? If not, what changed? How would you do things differently?
  • What difficulties arose during the course of the project and how did you resolve them?
  • What advice would you give to a student beginning a similar project?
  • Your presentation should contain:
  • Title.
  • Introduction that grabs the attention of the audience,
  • Organized structure of your main points,
  • Well-developed conclusion that summarizes, draws conclusions and suggests what further work could be done on the project.
  • Use logical transitions to move from one point in the presentation to the next
  • Acknowledge both your field and faculty supervisors, either in your introduction or your conclusion.
  • Plan the presentation timing: a minimum of 10 minutes and not longer than 15 minutes.

Multimedia – PowerPoint, Website

  • A visual presentation is required – at a minimum, a single slide covering the basic project information.
  • Please do not read from the screen. Your audiovisual aids are intended to serve as highlights and additional informational aids for your audience. Be sufficiently familiar with your presentation to speak fluidly, with very occasional reference to notes of any kind.
  • Use font styles and sizes that can be read from the back of the room. Test your presentation early in the process to ensure its legibility.
  • Use creativity in design: avoid clutter, unreadable text and poor use of color combinations.
  • Pictures of you working onsite or of the site of your project enhance the presentation.
  • Do not block your audience’s view of the screen.
  • If you are making your presentation by conference call, make certain that the Capstone coordinator has your presentation files at least a day in advance – not five minutes in advance.

Speech and Voice

  • Speak up. Make certain that your voice is audible from the back of the room. Enlist support before your final presentation time in Room 468 to make certain your voice carries sufficiently.
  • Make eye contact with different members of your audience – do not talk to the wall, the floor, the screen or your feet.
  • Avoid fillers like “hmmm” “aah” “you know”, “like”,etc.
  • Vary the rate of speech, and vary the rate and volume to suit the purpose.
  • Relax, smile and speak naturally – your audience is eager to be impressed, and you’re the expert for the day.

General

  • Presentation day should not be the first time you have made the presentation in full. Practice the complete presentation, with the audiovisuals, more than once. You can schedule a time to practice in Room 468 with the Capstone coordinator.
  • Professional dress is recommended.
  • Student presenters should sit in the front two rows to leave room for the audience, whose occasional comings and goings will be less disruptive if accomplished from the back of the room.
  • Please arrive in sufficient time to copy your audiovisual aids to the computer and test them before the session begins.

Having said all this, it is historically accurate to observe that when it’s all over, most students do enjoy the Capstone Experience including their final presentations. The total experience (project and presentation) provides a “real-world” experience within an academic environment. Both the project and presentation can serve as valuable portfolio items that can often be used in your job search. Congratulations on reaching the “capping” experience in your Masters studies.

Lee LacyPage 101/09/2019