This year’s capstone course will run April 26 - June 24, 2027 (~8 weeks).
The soft deadline for UBC Capstone proposals is Oct 31st, 2026. And the hard deadline is Nov 30th, 2026. Proposals sent in by Oct 31st will receive feedback and prospective capstone partners will be offered an opportunity to revise their proposal (which will hopefully increase their chances of being selected).
| Event | Dates |
|---|---|
| Call for Capstone proposals opens | August 1, 2026 |
| Capstone Info Session | September 18, 2026 |
| Deadline to submit proposals for early feedback | October 31, 2026 |
| Final deadline to submit proposals | November 30, 2026 |
| Selection round one: staff | January 5, 2027 |
| Capstone fair | February 5, 2027 |
| Selection round two: students | February 7, 2027 |
| Partners demonstrate readiness of data and sign legal docs | March 1, 2027 |
| Students are assigned to projects | March 31, 2027 |
| Kickoff meetings | April, 2027 |
| Kickoff hackathon | April 26 - April 28, 2027 |
| Project | April 26 - June 24, 2027 |
Proposal revision process
Members of an organization interested in participating as a capstone partner should submit a project proposal.
Proposals received before October 31st will be reviewed by the MDS teams and feedback/suggestions for revisions will be provided to the partner, who can then revise and re-submit their proposal. This revision process aims to maximize the chance of a proposal being selected by students. Proposals received after October 31st will not be provided with feedback.
Selection round one: staff
The MDS leadership team will select proposals based primarily on suitability and student interest. Proposals that are selected in this round will be invited to the next phase of the selection process which is attending a capstone fair for the students to learn more about individual proposals.
Capstone fair
Capstone partners must attend the Capstone Fair to meet with the students and answer any questions they may have. The Capstone Fair takes place at the UBC Robson Square campus in downtown Vancouver. For remote capstone partners, we will organize a virtual fair. Detailed information will be emailed to each capstone partner.
Selection round two: students
After the capstone fair, the students assign a final rating to the projects.
Partners are notified of our decisions
Selection round two: students
After the capstone fair, the students assign a final rating to the projects. Based on student interest, the MDS leadership team decides which projects will move forward. Student groups are assigned to the projects at the same time.
Partners demonstrate readiness of data and sign legal docs
Before a project is accepted, the partner must provide MDS with a demonstration or written (email) declaration that the data has already been collected and prepared, and exists in its entirety (in the form specified in the proposal), and is ready to be shared with the students. Partners should feel free to ask us for our standard agreement and sign the relevant legal documents before moving forward.
Kickoff meetings
The students will arrange a date and time with their capstone partner and teaching fellow mentor to have an initial meeting to discuss the project. It is common that students sign any required legal documents at this meeting, which means the students should be sent the documents for review well in advance.
Project
The project itself. At the end, partners can expect the students to present at the partner organizations. Partners will also be invited to an end-of-program celebration at UBC.
Hackathon
The Capstone project typically starts with a 3-day hackathon at the UBC main Point Grey campus. Capstone partners are strongly encouraged to attend the afternoon of the 2nd day of the hackathon. In the past, students have found this very valuable, as they were able to ask questions about their dataset and clarify other data science issues with the partner.