Honors Capstone Project

The ultimate “Dare to Know,” the Honors Capstone empowers students to follow their curiosity, express their passions, and demonstrate their growth by managing a long-term project on the topic of their choice. Honors Capstones offer professional training, opportunities to shape graduate school essays and publications, and evidence of independent initiative. Capstone mentors provide students with detailed recommendation letters, reliable advice about how to structure and complete their projects, connections to other professionals in their fields, and insight into the pursuit of professional goals. 

Every Honors student’s capstone committee consists of at least two different professors: the student’s primary faculty mentor and a Departmental Honors Advisor (DHA) in the student’s or primary faculty mentor’s home department. If the mentor and DHA are the same, students must add a second faculty member with useful expertise. Any student may add a third faculty member to the committee if they see a need for additional expertise. The Honors Program Executive Director also reads each final capstone to ensure a high level of achievement across the program as a whole.

Having completed the capstone experience, Honors students leave USU as developing researchers or creative practitioners in their fields and skillful advocates for the value of their own work. These qualities distinguish them from their peers as they apply for jobs, graduate programs, fellowships, internships, or volunteer opportunities. As educational experiences designed to cap off the Honors curriculum, Honors Capstone Projects both showcase the value of an Honors education and act as springboards to the future. An Honors Capstone Project is a requirement to graduate with University Honors.