The Senior Project is a selective program that involves an off-campus research project or internship of the students’ choice and design. Students select a BASIS Independent Schools faculty member as their advisor and work with a mentor at their research site. Students create detailed project plans, bibliographies of resources, and a personal syllabus for their projects, all of which is approved by a committee of teachers and administrators. These projects may be completed anywhere in the world. At the end of the trimester, students return to campus and present an analysis of their findings to peers, staff, and parents. To remain connected to their school community while in the field, students are required to blog throughout their experience.
Partnerships
BASIS Independent Schools students team up with corporations, entrepreneurs, agencies, and researchers across myriad fields nationally and internationally. However, this is not just an internship, as BASIS Independent Schools students bring passion, planning, and expertise to the entities they support as they fulfill the goals of their projects. While the average student at BASIS Independent Schools will have completed six AP® classes prior to acceptance into the Senior Project program, it is the program itself that sets students apart to the most prestigious universities in the world, and differentiates them from other graduating seniors.
Project Goals
The Senior Project program was developed to foster in our students valuable insight about utilizing their knowledge in the real world, while maintaining a sense of intellectual curiosity during the research-and-application process. Ultimately, the students present their research and findings to the school community, parents, and guests. Through pursuing a topic of their own intellectual passions in their Senior Projects, students demonstrate perseverance and resourcefulness that will serve them, and their future academic and professional communities, for years to come.
AP Research
While many students choose to embark on Senior Projects, many others choose to complete the College Board’s AP Capstone program. These students have successfully finished AP Seminar in grade 11 and complete AP Research in grade 12. While the College Board does not require students to blog, BASIS Independent AP Research students document the progress they make toward their final research in the same manner as those completing Senior Projects. This gives students an additional measure of accountability and opportunity to share their findings, and offers the community a chance to engage with students.