This course provides the experience of applying systems engineering principles and skills learned in the formal courses to a specific practical project that is suggested by the student and is presented in a formal proposal. The product of the system project is a final report; also required are interim reports and an oral presentation to permit review of the project objectives and approach. This is an independent course that has no formal classes; the student is responsible for developing their own project timeline and works to complete it within one semester. A student typically has a mentor who is a member of the systems engineering faculty. The mentor reviews and approves the draft proposal and project deliverables. The course instructor approves the final proposal, grades the final deliverables, and receives the student’s project defense. The total time required for this course is comparable to the combined class and study time for the formal courses. Course Note(s): Students who plan to register for this course will need to contact the Systems Engineering Program Coordinator (annie.cranston@jhuapl.edu) at least four to six weeks prior to the semester start date for access to the Capstone website. Students must connect with a project mentor (via capstone website) and have an approved topic prior to being registered manually by the course instructor. For additional details, please visit: https://bit.ly/SE_CapstoneThesis
Deadlines for Adding, Dropping, and Withdrawing from Courses
Students may add a course up to one week after the start of the term for that particular course. Students may drop courses according to the drop deadlines outlined in the EP academic calendar. Between the 6th week of the class and prior to the final withdrawal deadline, a student may withdraw from a course with a W on their academic record. A record of the course will remain on the academic record with a W appearing in the grade column to indicate that the student registered and withdrew from the course.
Academic Misconduct Policy
Students with Disabilities - Accommodations and Accessibility
Student Conduct Code
Classroom Climate
JHU is committed to creating a classroom environment that values the diversity of experiences and perspectives that all students bring. Everyone has the right to be treated with dignity and respect. Fostering an inclusive climate is important. Research and experience show that students who interact with peers who are different from themselves learn new things and experience tangible educational outcomes. At no time in this learning process should someone be singled out or treated unequally on the basis of any seen or unseen part of their identity. If you have concerns in this course about harassment, discrimination, or any unequal treatment, or if you seek accommodations or resources, please reach out to the course instructor directly. Reporting will never impact your course grade. You may also share concerns with your program chair, the Assistant Dean for Diversity and Inclusion, or the Office of Institutional Equity. In handling reports, people will protect your privacy as much as possible, but faculty and staff are required to officially report information for some cases (e.g. sexual harassment).
Course Auditing
When a student enrolls in an EP course with “audit” status, the student must reach an understanding with the instructor as to what is required to earn the “audit.” If the student does not meet those expectations, the instructor must notify the EP Registration Team (EP-Registration@exchange.johnshopkins.edu) in order for the student to be retroactively dropped or withdrawn from the course (depending on when the "audit" was requested and in accordance with EP registration deadlines). All lecture content will remain accessible to auditing students, but access to all other course material is left to the discretion of the instructor.