Exploring Capstone Design Class Experience of College Students

Objectives The purpose of this study is to explore the meaning of college students' experiences in capstone design classes. Methods A case study using in-depth interviews was conducted with 7 college students enrolled in a two-year university located in the metropolitan area. Participants in the study were students in the fourth semester of the last semester of graduation, which is a requirement to take a capstone design course, and participated in a capstone design class for 3 hours a week for 15 weeks. Efforts were made to increase the validity and reliability through triangular verification and research participant confirmation process through research interview records. Results The meaning of the college student's capstone design class experience is, first, a venue for acquiring opportunities to improve understanding of major subjects and improve practical skills. Second, an opportunity to re-establish awareness of work-human relationships. Third, it turned out that they met themselves who grew up in the stage of improving their creative problem-solving skills and voluntarily producing knowledge. Conclusions It is believed that it will be meaningful to understand capstone design classes in the future and use them as basic data for systematic capstone design classes to strengthen students' practical skills.