The M.A. Capstone Experience
The Master of Arts degree in English/Technical Communication requires you to complete a certain number of credits plus a capstone experience. Students understand the coursework part, but the capstone experience raises a lot of questions.
What is a capstone experience?
A capstone experience is a comprehensive project that draws upon the material that you've learned in many (perhaps most) of the courses in your program of study. “Capstone” is just shorthand for whatever document you create to meet your graduation requirement. It might mean a thesis, an alternate plan paper, or the the four-credit course that we began offering in Fall 2012.
What are the capstone experience options in Technical Communication?
The Technical Communication program allows graduate students to complete a traditional thesis, an alternate plan paper, or enroll in a four-credit capstone course.
Option 1: Thesis
The rule of thumb is that a thesis involves both primary and secondary (published) research. The thesis writer develops an original theory or solution to a problem, often using primary research such as a survey, a series of interviews, a usability test, or a case study. Before beginning research involving other people, such as a survey or a series of interviews, the student must receive approval from the Minnesota State Mankato Institutional Research Board; your advisor will help you craft the application. Your thesis may involve quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods forms of data collection. In our program, a thesis is usually around 60-100 pages. You will register for 3 credits of thesis (ENG 699) and work independently, but you must create a timeline that includes regular (i.e. weekly or biweekly) contact with your advisor.
Option 2: Alternate Plan Paper (APP)
An alternate plan paper is a synthesis, interpretation, and evaluation of published research on an a theory or problem. In our program, it usually takes the form of an extended literature review. We hope that it includes some original contribution, such as an application of theory to a workplace problem or a synthesis of ideas or solutions in to a list of best practices. In our program, an APP is around 30-60 pages. You will register for 1-2 credits of APP (ENG 694) and work independently, but as with the thesis, you must create a timeline and maintain regular contact with your advisor. You must be enrolled in at least one credit in the semester in which you complete the program requirements and graduate.
In the case of both the thesis and APP options, a university rule requires you to be enrolled in at least one credit in the semester which you complete the program requirements and graduate. That credit could be anything, though, including your internship.
If you decide to do a thesis or APP, then you must submit a Research Prospectus to your advisor and committee members with whom you would like to work. Many students revise the prospectus that they wrote in ENG 673 Research and Theory in Technical Communication using the instructor's feedback and and submit it to their potential advisor. Your advisor will probably require a revision, particularly on the methodology and the timeline, before letting you send it out to other faculty on your thesis or APP committee.
Once the proposal is accepted, you will need to get to work on the project in earnest. The more developed your prospectus is the more likely you can repurpose its content into your thesis or APP, so think of it as a first draft of the final paper that will require at least 2-3 significant revisions.
Option 3: ENG 696 Capstone Course
The capstone course (ENG 696) is a four-credit course with a required weekly chat that is offered every fall and spring. The requirements for the capstone course may vary by instructor, but I have a sample syllabus that you can view to help you make your decision. In my course, the readings typically focus on the technical communication practice, there are weekly discussion threads about the readings and the development of your project, and you must write a paper and present it. This paper is usually a revision of something they started in another class in their program of study, something that was interesting but perhaps deserves more attention or a deeper analysis than they were able to give it the first time around. The paper in the capstone course is generally about 4000 words or 10 single-spaced pages, which is larger than most course assignments but smaller than an APP. You will also work with your classmates to edit each other's work.
If you are planning to take the capstone course, you should review the papers that you have written for other classes in your program of study and identify 2-3 papers that would make good candidates for revision. We work on a tight timeline in the capstone course: you must have a complete draft by week 10, you will peer review in week 11, and you submit the final draft in week 12.
Oral Presentation of Your Research
Following the committee’s approval of your completed thesis or APP, you will schedule a presentation of your work. This oral presentation may take place face to face in a classroom setting or be conducted as a synchronous online presentation with webcam and microphone.
In the capstone course, you will make a synchronous presentation of your work to faculty and students in Adobe Connect and record a video presentation to host in the Cornerstone Archive. (Several are already available for you to view.)
For more information, visit the Technical Communication Capstone web page at http://english.mnsu.edu/techcomm/capstone.html
tl;dnr
Capstone Options in a Nutshell
- Capstone course
- Enroll in ENG 696 in your final semester. (Pre-req: ENG 673, completion of 28 credits)
- Thesis/APP
- Select a thesis/APP adviser and a second reader for your committee.
- Get your research proposal approved by your committee.
- If applicable, get permission from the IRB to use human participants in your data collection.
- Complete your research and write your thesis or APP.
- Thesis only: Submit your final draft to ProQuest.
Capstone Experience FAQ
How many credits are involved with each capstone experience?
The coursework requirements vary by option. As the Master's Degree in Technical Communication page explains,
Completion of the degree requires designated coursework, an internship, and a thesis, an alternate plan paper, or the capstone course—all of which include a public presentation. At least 50% of the credits, excluding thesis or APP credits, must be at the 600 level.
Designated coursework:
Thesis Plan: 30 credits (including 3-4 credits of ENG 699)
Alternate Paper Plan: 34 credits (including 1-2 credits of ENG 694)
Capstone Course: 34 credits (including ENG 696)
What is a thesis or APP committee?
Your thesis/APP committee consists of an adviser and a second reader who must approve the final draft of your thesis or APP before you will be considered eligible to graduate. A thesis also requires a third reader, someone outside of the Tech Comm program, to be an additional subject matter expert and consultant. If you would like to add a third reader from outside of the technical communication program, contact your adviser.
Your thesis/APP committee is there to offer feedback on your drafts, provide advice on completing the project, and suggest resources that might help you. Select faculty whose areas of specialty match your research topic, but also with whom you have a good rapport.
If you decide that you would like to change your thesis/APP advisor or second reader you may do so. Discuss your concerns with the faculty in question and let him/her know that you'd like to make a change. Talk to other technical communication faculty to find someone who may be a better fit. Share a copy of your research proposal. Finally, complete the Change of Advisor/Committee Member form, get the appropriate signatures, and submit it to GSR.
Must I work with the professor who is currently my advisor?
No. When you enter the program, the English department's director of graduate studies and the Technical Communication Program Director assign one of the faculty to be your program of study advisor. This person should be your main point of contact when you have questions about the program, courses, and requirements. However, your thesis or APP advisor should be someone with whom you have a positive relationship and a similar attitude about work. It's also a good idea to choose a professor who has subject matter expertise in the topic of your research, but you can also choose your SME to be the second reader.
To change your advisor or select a second committee member (or third, in the case of a thesis), please fill out the Change of Advisor/Committee Form at http://english.mnsu.edu/forms/changecommitteeadvisor.pdf If you are a 100% online student working from a distance, fill out the form, scan it, and email or fax it to your new advisor. He/she will arrange for the necessary signatures.
How long will it take to complete the capstone experience?
The capstone course (ENG 696) is a 16-week course that meets for a synchronous chat once per week.
Expect to spend 1-2 full semesters working mostly independently to complete your thesis or APP. Talk to your advisor about his/her expectations for check-ins, phone calls, or other conferences about your work. Schedule time in your calendar every week for your project. Every day is better, even if it's only 30 minutes. A week-long writing retreat is even better. The more you can immerse yourself in the project, the faster the writing will be. If you take long breaks or plan to work on the project only on Saturdays then you're probably going to find it hard to recapture the "flow" of the writing experience.
Typically a thesis that involves original (primary) research will require the student to have the proposal approved no later than the beginning of the semester prior to the semester in which you plan to graduate. If your research involves collecting data from human participants then you must also obtain approval from the University Institutional Review Board (IRB) before beginning your data collection. IRB approval usually takes at least two weeks.
Allow two weeks for your committee to read and provide feedback on the proposal and each draft of their paper. It is not unusual for students to revise a draft incorporating recommendations from the your committee at least three times. When scheduling your work, plan to submit the final draft of your paper to your thesis adviser at least four weeks before the Graduate College deadline for submitting approved theses and APPs to the Graduate College: two weeks for the committee to read and respond, a week for you to make revisions, and finally a week for your committee to review the final revisions.
You can view my sample thesis/APP timelines to help you plan your research prospectus.
What other paperwork do I need to complete?
Plan of Study Form http://english.mnsu.edu/forms/planofstudyform.pdf
To be completed before you complete 15 credits of coursework. The College of Graduate Studies will look for this in your file when it checks that you have met the requirements for the degree and to cross-check your other paperwork (below). Unfortunately, we aren't as diligent about requiring this form as we should be so fill it in as soon as you can. There is no need for committee signatures if you are not yet working on your thesis or APP.
Application for Graduation Form http://www.mnsu.edu/registrar/forms/ug_graduation_app.pdf
To be completed early in the semester in which you plan to graduate. $25 one-time fee. If your schedule changes, you can submit a new form but do not need to pay the fee again. The deadline for this form is posted at
Recommendation for Awarding the Degree http://grad.mnsu.edu/forms/recommendcertificatedegree.pdf
To be completed after you have successfully completed and presented your thesis, APP, or capstone course project. The deadline for this form is posted at