BUS-421 Online Capstone Review

[BearEDU]

Hey,

I just completed my BUS-421 Online Capstone course with an A. So I wanted to give my review about the course for those that may be taking it soon and have some fears. 

Things I had to think about when I was picking the course.
Which professor
Which course should go for Online vs Guided Study
How to write an  case analysis paper

I chose online study because you get an easy 5% for completing the proficiency assessment compared to the guided study. As well as your final project is less weighted and the grades are more balanced. 

Guided Study
Case study assignments (7) 35 percent 
Discussion assignments (5) 10 percent 
Midterm examination 25 percent 
Final project 30 percent

Online Course
Case study assignments (7) 35 Percent
Discussion assignments (11) 15 percent
Midterm examination 25 percent 
Proficiency assessment 5 percent
Final project 20 percent

Online Discussions
Yes Online study has more discussion assignments but it is very easy you just need to write 2 paragraphs or less. I've seen some people write less than a paragraph and have continued to do so throughout the semester. I guess they got a good grade so they just kept it that way? I recommend 2 paragraphs or enough to answer the question. Its better to be able to answer the question. The mentor does ask you follow up questions which you can answer in a couple of sentences. Writing a response back to other students was easy and overall I felt like improved my learning experience.  Please also include and cite your sources that you find etc. The online discussions all relates back to the readings so please dont skip out on the readings

Proficiency assessment
The proficiency assessment is something that GS study have to do as well but it is not counted towards their grade. Nothing to be afraid of here..at first I was confused what it was. you can read more about it here https://www.ets.org/proficiencyprofile/about

Case Study
Writing the first one is the hardest but once you get the idea of it and when you start seeing the connection of each case study to the reading chapter you will do ok. It will definitely prepare you for the final paper. 

Midterm
I was stressed out with the finals but I realized just have some confidence and understand that your case study and discussions questions are what prepares you for the midterm. Please use the study guide!! I spent 1-2 days going through the study guides bullet points if you understand each concept and analysis you will do fine. Take the practice exam to get a feel for the questions. I took the exam the first day it unlocked

Final Project 
Writing my case studies prepared me for this yes it may seem like a lot to write.. but it wasn't really. By the end of the 7 case study papers the final project was a breeze. For me it was less pressuring because if you looked at how Online study course grades are you could easily pass with an ok Finals paper. GS however its worth 30% which is much more pressuring to write an amazing final paper. However I didn't slack on my final project even though I already passed the course. I learned a lot so I spent my time and effort to write a paper I would be happy about. I actually wrote two finals paper lol and deleted one half way through. 

Tips 

• Please make a calendar with all the due dates on it. It is not a joke i highly recommend this so you know what you have to do.
  
• There is some time after your midterm which is just Online discussions due dates THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO SLACK!!! I started to write out the rest of my online discussions. I finished all 11 of my responses to the online discussions before hand. I wrote my next case study paper! Why? because if you look at the end of the semester you can see that your case study 7 and final paper is due within days of each other
  
• Use the STUDY GUIDE! Go through each of the bullet points
  
• Pick the professor with the least amount of seats available meaning its filling up like crazy
  
• Don't be afraid to message your professor about anything most of them understand that most people that are taking the course is adults and sometimes life has priorities 
  
• Don't skip out on the readings
  
• I was lucky to buy the book for cheap and so i could make notes and flip the pages like crazy. I made so many notes for the case study's. If you are reading it take notes on company revenue's, capabilities, resources, culture, competitors, and etc. Have the assignment questions printed out in front of you and when you see something that may answer it highlight it. Keep track of your sources! I used citefast.com to keep track of my sources and it helps you with your apa format.
  

Have fun!! I learned a lot in this course.  Thanks to the people that convinced me to take the course ASAP instead of slacking off a month to chill my brain lol.

Props to whoever was able to do the course while doing study.com etc. I know personally I wouldn't be able to do that.

I think dfrecore will post about GS experience soon? =)