Skip to content
CS Capstone Handbook

Team Formation

There are different ways to form a Capstone project team (see below).

We require each team to have at least one experienced “external partner”.

Some categories have a project partner by definition (Research, Consultant), but they might not be technical enough. In that case, consider getting a faculty or industry mentor that has the technical acumen to guide you.

If your project does not have a partner at all (New Product or Game, FOSS), it is mandatory to find one or more mentors as well. This will increase your chances of success. Mentors can be faculty, industry professionals, or other people that can contribute positively to the success of your project. Mentors need to be approved by the instruction team and will evaluate your work every term.

Friends

Team up with friends. While familiarity can be an asset, productivity may sometimes be challenging to maintain. You can maximize your chances to be paired up with your friends during the project selection survey in week 0 of Fall term. You’ll need to choose the same projects in the same order of preference.

Shared Interests

Form a team with classmates who share your interests. Though initial effort is required to establish connections, this approach can yield high productivity and rewards. This is the default way of creating teams based of your prioritized list of projects in the survey.

External Collaborations

Teaming up with individuals outside your cohort is possible, though less common. This includes:

Multidisciplinary Engineering Projects

Collaborating with students from other engineering programs. Teams might be larger. Communication will play an even bigger role; different engineering majors might not “speak the same language”.

This constitutes a separate Capstone section (non-CS).

Electrical and Computer Engineering Projects

Options include:

  1. Collaborating with an ECE Capstone team on a shared project, within a CS Capstone team.
  2. Joining an ECE Capstone team for their project.

Option 2 constitutes a separate Capstone section (non-CS).

Research Groups

Collaborating with graduate students or professors as part of a research project.

Miscellaneous

You are generally encouraged to collaborate with external parties. Examples include: students or faculty from other colleges, professional organizations, knowledgeable staff from your partner organization (if applicable), online communities, etc.

Changing Teams

Every year, some students end up changing teams or working on their own. The later is mostly a way for them to not fail the class, and will involve close instructor supervision and a lot of effort.

Changing teams during a Capstone project can be disruptive, both for the individual and the team. It affects team dynamics, workflow, and potentially the overall success of the project. Therefore, team changes should be considered only when absolutely necessary.

If concerns arise, talk to your instructors or TA(s) as soon as possible.

Valid Reasons for Changing Teams

  • If significant, unresolved conflicts arise within a team that cannot be managed through mediation or negotiation, a team change might be warranted. However, all efforts should first be made to resolve the issues within the existing team.
  • If a student’s skills are significantly misaligned with their current team’s needs, and it becomes clear that they would contribute more effectively to another team, a change could be considered.
  • In some cases, project demands might shift, necessitating a reallocation of team members to better balance workload or expertise across projects. This later point is generally valid for multi-team projects.

Process for Changing Teams

  • Any request to change teams must be formally submitted to the instructor, detailing the reasons for the request and the efforts made to resolve any issues within the current team.
  • Team changes require the approval of the instructor, who will assess the situation, including speaking with all involved parties, to determine the best course of action.
  • If a team change is approved, a transition plan must be established. This includes transferring responsibilities, knowledge, and any ongoing work to minimize disruption to the project.
  • It’s essential to maintain open and honest communication with all team members, both old and new, throughout the transition process. This helps maintain trust and minimizes potential conflicts.

The reasons for the team change, the approval process, and the transition plan should be documented in detail. This documentation ensures transparency and provides a record for future reference.

Impact on Evaluation

  • If a team change occurs, the student’s contributions to both the original and new team will be assessed individually. The grade may be adjusted based on the impact of the change on both projects.
  • The overall performance of both the original and new teams will also be considered. The goal is to ensure that the change does not unfairly disadvantage either team.