HOW TWO AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES ACHIEVED “CAPSTONES FOR ALL”: A Change Management Perspective

This chapter highlights how the universal capstone requirement evolved from conception, through implementation, to present practice at relevant Australian universities. Lee and Loton have studied style, scope, and purposes of capstones at Australian universities extensively, but not the institution-wide requirement for undergraduate capstones. Literature on institutional change is reviewed, and the scope of inquiry is outlined. This research has implications for any institution seeking to implement capstones. Hayden-Roy et al. recommended a wider scope of change in which the process for providing universal capstones is from the grassroots and involves the larger campus community, including students. To further their understanding of how institutions adopt and implement capstones wholesale, future research could contrast these Australia examples with those of universities in other countries.