Capstone is inspired by a student’s particular interest and passion and is open only to 11th & 12th grade students who already have extensive knowledge in a subject matter or who would like to explore another intellectual topic in-depth. Students will undertake a self-directed study that demonstrates high levels of critical thinking, innovation and advanced level work beyond the current PCS offered curricula. While projects will be independently driven and will rely on the student to direct the course of study, students will work under the guidance of a discipline-specific faculty mentor and the Capstone Project Research and Methods Class. Students may not be enrolled in more than one project at a time.

Grading: Projects are graded on the A-F letter-scale, with one grade for the entire year. Capstone Project grades will be based 50% on coursework, deadlines, attendance, and work habits in the Research & Methods Class and 70% on the final product, as assessed by the discipline-specific department evaluation at the end-of-the-year Symposium. Projects are worth 10 units per year. Projects are considered elective credit, unless exceptions are granted by the Principal or IEP accommodations.

Application: The Capstone Project Application consists of your typed response to the questions below. The approval process is two-fold: applications will initially be reviewed by the Capstone Committee, where the committee will choose to either forward the application to the discipline-relevant department for review, or the committee may choose to request a revised application. Once an application passes the initial stage and is forwarded to the discipline-relevant department, the department will review the application and may choose to approve, approve with revisions or not approve the proposed project. Please note, only Capstone Projects that are approved by the department will be forwarded to the registrar for scheduling.