College%20of%20Computing%20Sciences%20Progress%20Report%20on%20Senior%20Project%20Capstone%20Courses:%20Prepared%20by%20

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College of Computing
SciencesProgress Report on Senior Project
Capstone CoursesPrepared by  Osama Eljabiri
Director of Senior Project Capstone Courses
Presented to the OWASP meeting Jan 30th, 2006
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The Capstone Experience

• Started in Fall 2002
• Offers a very unique real world educational
  experience to NJIT students.
• Mandates that all seniors majoring in CS, IS and
  IT complete a semester-long project. 
• Evolved recently to offer access to
  university-wide human resources including
  students from
• Five university colleges
• Graduate students
• Senior high school students

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The Capstone Experience

• Working in teams of four to six
• Interdisciplinary student teams analyze, design
  and implement software and other IT-driven
  solutions in collaboration with project
  stakeholders. 
• In addition to in-class training, market-driven
  capstone Open University sessions, in-class
  training and evolutionary presentation sessions,
  each student is expected to spend approximately
  nine hours a week on the project, and many of
  them travel to their sponsor companies.

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The Capstone Experience

• The projects deal with different business
  problems and applications, from entertainment,
  finance, health care, education and public sector
  needs. 
• One recurring participant, the CIT Group, a
  Fortune 500 commercial and consumer finance
  company, has saved  "hundreds of thousands of
  dollars" by having NJIT students design and
  implement a database which CIT uses to comply
  with rigorous auditing rules mandated under a new
  federal law.    
• Best of all the service is currently provided
  FREE to our corporate sponsors, though if you are
  pleased with the results we ask you to consider
  making a donation to NJIT.  
• We also offer other modes and models for more
  demanding and complex projects.  

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The Capstone Experience

• If you have a non mission-critical project you
  have been thinking about doing, but currently do
  not have either the budget or time to undertake
  it, why not let NJIT's Capstone Program do it for
  you.  
• Proposals for our summer and fall 2006 semester
  are due by April 15th, 2006 as our priority
  deadline.
• Please send an email to oe2_at_njit.edu (Osama
  Eljabiri) to request an invitation email that has
  a link to our online proposal form.

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Why makes our capstone experience unique?

• Students view sponsors as educators and sponsors
  view students as partners.
• We provide a full team-based problem solving
  package not a number of interns.
• True multidisciplinary team formation
• Adaptive agile problem solving process through
  evolutionary prototyping (sprints/scrum/FDD)
• High degree of selectivity in projects, sponsors,
  project managers and team formation.
• Emphasis on project managers and leadership
  training.
• Collaborative quantitative evaluation of
  students progress
• Open university our free parallel college to
  train students on market driven skills
• Our unique support team alumni, sponsors,
  faculty, administrators, legal advisors, current
  students, future students, business communities,
  government agencies, etc.
• Fast career development track
• Except for legal documents, we are completely
  paperless.
• We are a learning organization. We improve every
  semester
• We adapt to clients timeframes and human
  resources needs,

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Projects Success RateRated by Sponsors

• In the last 70 projects we did
• 81 were rated between good and excellent
• 40 were rated as outstanding
• 9 projects were rated average and only 4 were
  below average

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The Triple Win Multi-Stakeholder Satisfaction
Triangle
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The First Winner Students

• Real world exposure and problem solving
• Interaction with professional stakeholders
• New skills mastered and experience acquired .
• Effective usage of education and backgrounds
• Substantial value to their resumes

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Industry
The Second Winner

• Cost effective
• Students achieve solutions to business
  problems free of charge
• Productive
• Students provide solutions in a short time
  frame using rapid application development
• Adaptive and Flexible
• Students can do projects from 3-12 credits
  project (one to four semester projects)
• Effective
• Teams combined from 4 majors will use
  their 4 years of college education plus
  experience and university resources in tackling
  problems
• Comprehensive
• Students will provide a complete
  documentation for the full development process
  from problem identification to final
  implementation
• Measurable and Tangible
• Project progress can be easily assessed via
  biweekly progress reports , biweekly prototypes ,
  biweekly presentations , testing methods and
  statistical analysis
• Result-Driven

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The Second Winner Other Industry Benefits

• Creates an opportunity for evaluating potential
  hires
• Builds strong ties with the university and
  faculty that may result into research and
  consulting benefits to the sponsor in fields of
  interest.
• Makes the sponsor more visible on and off-campus.
  
• Involves sponsor in supporting educational
  efforts for future specialists in area of
  interest to him.

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College and University
The Third Winner

• Added-value for all academic courses
• Students become as school performance
  indicators wherever they go.
• Endless windows of opportunities for research ,
  support and placement for graduates .
• The entire school system becomes more attractive
  which boosts enrollment rates.

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Example Sponsors

• For Spring 2006

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NO Sponsor Contact Name Project Title
1 Department of Army (3 Projects) C4ISR - SEC ITED Dominic Motolla Suspense Tracking System Software Quality Assurance Tool Assessment Software Quality Assessment Video Presentation
2 Edentify, Inc. (Project 1) Terrence Defranco Advanced Reporting Module
3 Monmouth County Friends of Clearwater, Inc. Edward Dlugosz Electronic Traveling Environmental Festival (eTEF)
4 Morphos Financial LLC (Project 1) Enrique Nunez Test Environment Infrastructure
5 Career Development Services _at_NJIT Greg Mass Online Career Development System
6 Johnson and Johnson Ketul Patel Global Supply Chain Management System
7 IMS Health Gail Pecota Data Variation Tag Database
8 Homeland Security Technology Center _at_ NJIT Bill Marshall Emergency Preparedness System
9 Orthotic Enterprises, LLC. Frank Ferrari Reinventing Orthotics
10 Rational Solutions Corp (R.I.M.S) Milind Shah Brand Recognition Solution
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Added-value Community Benefits

• Sposnor-Sposnosr Collaboration
• Open-house Participation
• Collaboration across teams and across semesters
• Non-Profit and public service projects
• NJIT departments projects
• Commercialization of students ideas
• Students published empirical research
• EDC bi-directional support

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New Statistics

• Number of completed projects will reach at least
  250 full-scale projects
• A minimum of 300 products or sub-projects
  carried out by more than 300 teams after 10
  semesters
• This is an average of 30 products per semester
  plus CIS490 first-phase teams.
• Many of these projects have had multi-phases and
  some have involved multi-teams
• Up to 6 semesters /phases for some large-scale
  projects. up to 4 teams in some extremely
  complex or demanding industry-projects .
• Key sponsors offer more than one project every
  semester
• (CIT provided 14 projects in Spring 2004 alone
  and Cyberextruder offered 9 projects in Spring
  2003 )
• At least 1500 students have participated in the
  capstone program since Fall 2002 from CS , IS ,
  IT and HCI.

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More Facts

• Sponsors and projects diversity demonstrate a
  broad array of interest
• Examples entertainment , finance ,
  health , education , public sector
  entrepreneurships
• Geographical Distribution These projects came
  from all round NJ (North , Central and South) ,
  NY or PA . We even had a project from Boston , MA
  . This expands our reach beyond short-distance
  businesses.
• A number of companies have offered our students
  excellent support for their careers .
• Examples CIT, Saint Clair health
  system , Edu-Global , Cyberextruder ,
  All-fine-dining , IMS health
• Support forms Full time employment
  , part-time employment , internships , rewards ,
  financial support , research support ,
  recommendation letters , direct support calls ,
  software purchase , company resources , certified
  training , after graduation training.

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• Well-Defined Plan
• Clear Agenda
• Standardized
• Process

• Evaluation
• Continuous
• Metrics-Based
• Collaborative

Leadership Project Managers
Methods And Strategies

• Multi-dimensional Collaboration
• JAD
• Value-Based
• Long -Term

Interdisciplinary Team structure Roles and
Backgrounds

• Motivation
• Online Feedback
• Competitive environment
• Presentations
• Live Mentorship

Help/Support Facilitating Resources

• Productivity
• Prototyping
• Iterative Development
• RAD

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Position Code Position Position Job Description/responsibilities Qualifications
01 Project manager Project manager In addition to managing the team, project managers will be responsible for project management deliverables including feasibility study. Should use project management tool (Microsoft Project Manager) to plan project tasks, allocate and mange resources, assign team members to complete tasks, compile team members' weekly time sheets, report task completion and actual hours worked on tasks, prepare periodic reports on project progress.  Receives extra credit when successful. In addition to the criteria stated in the previous section, background in software economics, process life cycle models and project management techniques is essential.
02 System Analyst System Analyst System analysts will be responsible for requirements gathering and documentation (Problem definition, requirements report, DFDs, process specifications, data dictionary , etc) and coordinating with other team members. Experience/ background in requirements analysis, requirements elicitation techniques, and project documentation.
03 Back-end designer 0301 Data Base Designer Responsible for designing the backend of the system including data structures, entity relation ship models normalization, SQL, normalization, system structure and other architectural models (repository , client-server, abstract machine model , object-oriented design in UML ,etc.) Experience/ background in DBMS, CASE tools and modeling techniques in software engineering.
03 Back-end designer 0302 Network Designer Responsible for designing the backend of the system including data structures, entity relation ship models normalization, SQL, normalization, system structure and other architectural models (repository , client-server, abstract machine model , object-oriented design in UML ,etc.) Experience/ background in DBMS, CASE tools and modeling techniques in software engineering.
04 Front-end designer Front-end designer Responsible for designing the user interface for users (including GUI components , forms , reports , navigation , etc. Experience/ background in HCI , cognitive psychology , user interface design, user manuals
05 Programmer Programmer Implementing the system at the unit level and system level. Testing and Maintaining the system Writing user manual . Experience in web programming and other programming such as C , Visual Basic , Java, and the like)
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Testimonials
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Testimonials

• We have 50 NJIT student interns who are
  studying information technology and computer
  science, working on eight projects. Having them
  work for us has allowed us to jump ahead in our
  work.
• Larry Gardner
• CEO and Founder of Cyberextruder

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Testimonials

• This was a huge project and required much
  attention to detail. The team asked the right
  questions and we very helpful to Arc of Monmouth
  staff in deciphering what needed to be done.
  They provided many useful suggestions.
• Sarah Logan
• Office Manager
• The Arc of Monmouth

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Testimonials

• I was so impressed with the whole process.
  I am amazed at how talented, professional and
  responsive the team was to the project. The
  group of students that worked on this project
  quickly understood the scope and was able to
  deliver the requested tool within a very short
  period of time. The entire experience was one
  that I am going to recommend to other managers at
  IMS.
• Marilyn Mahon Group Manager, Quality
  Assurance IMS Health 100 Campus Road Totowa,
  NJ 07512 USA

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Testimonials

• If I had to pay a consultant to do the work that
  the NJIT students did for CIT as part of the
  Capstone Program it would have cost us hundreds
  of thousands of dollars
• The program gives NJIT students a chance to
  integrate real world experience into their
  academic experience, which is invaluable to them
  and to us.
• Harold Olmstead
• Vice president of Systems and Technology Services
  
• CIT

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Testimonials

• The solution for Cocomats created by the
  group reflected a keen assessment of both the
  weaknesses of Cocomats and the needs of the
  Office of Constituent relations
• Ian Thomas Brennan
• New Jersey Office of the Governor, Office of
  Constituent Relations
• Aide to the Governor

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Testimonials

• This group was very prompt in implementing
  suggestions, very professional and timely. Based
  on the scope of work initially developed, we are
  very pleased with the results.
• Juan Rosario
• Newark Housing Authority
• Acting I.T. Administrator

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Testimonials

• This group hung in there and were able to
  work around these problems and move steadfastly
  through the project. This group communicated well
  and worked very efficiently. They were always on
  time for the meetings and handled themselves in a
  very professional manner. I was very impressed
  with the work that they did. They fulfilled all
  of our needs and produced a product that is above
  and beyond what we expected. Overall all I was
  pleased and would look forward to participating
  in
• upcoming projects.
• Jerri Drakes
• CEO
• The Workstation Inc.

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Testimonials

• Very well diverse group of dynamic individuals
  with many skills equipped to create a website,
  write a business plan, business marketing, hard
  working, and capable of delivering a complete
  product.
• Henri Boll
• President
• Go2Museum.com Inc

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Testimonials

• As a whole the team preformed extremely well.
  The direction given by TMS was an outline. The
  team was able to understand what we were looking
  for and implement our needs into the finished
  program.
• Sean P McShane
• President
• Transportation Made Simple

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Testimonials

• Jeremy (Jeremy Dela Rosa) has been very
  accommodating regarding my extremely busy
  schedule. He has demonstrated a strong ability
  to learn and adjust throughout this experience.
  Jeremy performed a terrific job in coordinating
  the efforts of the team, a task that is very
  difficult for any leader. He was also able to
  work well as a liaison between me and the team,
  ensuring that my requests were communicated
  properly to all the members. Additionally, as
  project manager, he was involved in nearly every
  aspect of the project, and demonstrated a solid
  understanding of every one of the teams
• Jason Huang
• Project Leader
• Honeywell International Inc

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Senior Project Capstone CourseWhat is new?

• New Strategies
• Adaptable business Modes and Models
• Four new tracks
• - Entrepreneurship track (Restructuring)
• - Research Track
• - Education Track
• - Public Sector (Enhancement)
• Exploratory and Evolutionary Prototyping
• Pioneers groups

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New CRM

• Extensive Sponsor Engagement (in breadth and
  depth)
• Strategic alliances with key Sponsors
• Capstone Advising Community
• Showcase Every Semester
• New marketing channels
• Former Students Channel
• Media Channel
• Sponsor-Sponsor Channel

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New Resources Educational Benefits

• Collaborative training for students
• Certified Training for Students (Microsoft, Six
  Sigma)
• Fast Career Development for Students
• Multi-Grant Support (proposal phase)

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Our Sponsors
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Sponsors Statistics
Initial Collaboration (Pending/Upcoming) 6
Small to Low-medium size companies 23
Small Business ( EDC companies) 14
Small Business (Other Entrepreneurs Companies ) 2
Public Services Organizations 5
University / Educational Institutions 8
Medium Size companies (Company Size estimated) 6
Large Size companies (Company Size estimated) 3
Fortune 500 Companies ( Excluding JJ) 5
Students Professional Organizations or College Advisement 3
Entrepreneurship Track (only success stories - Good to excellent) 6
NJIT faculty or academic departments (Except for one) 10
Total Number of Sponsors (All categories) 91
Companies (with Fortune 500) 60
Companies (excluding Fortune 500) 54
External Sponsorship (Not from NJIT- 2) 70
External Sponsorship () 76.9
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• List of some of our External Sponsors -1-
• Large Companies
• McKesson ,Systems Technology Solutions, Revenue
  Cycle Mgmt. Services, Somerset, NJ 08873
• CIT _at_ Livingston , NJ
• Scholastic Books Inc., 26 Glen Oaks Ct.,
  Clifton, NJ 07012
• AVIS car rental
• Recent contacts with UPS and PSEG for Summer and
  Fall 2003 projects
• Medium-Size Companies
• Professional Resources Corporation (PRC) ,8 Twin
  Lakes Dr Manalapan, NJ 07726 .
• Green Roof Suites , 45 River Road, Suite-301,
  Flemington, NJ 08822
• PF Laboratories Inc., Damon G. Douglas CO.,700
  Union Blvd., Totowa, NJ 07512
• Small Businesses and Entrepreneurs
• Wendys Fast Food Restaurants (one branch) , 59
  Central Avenue , Union , NJ
• MGR Enterprises, 421 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY
  10001
• Heights Service Station, Inc., 70 Glen Ave.,
  Midland Park, NJ 07432
• Intellinetix Inc.,35 Parchment Drive New
  Hope, PA 18938 
• Duet Designer Consignment Boutiqu, 79 S.
  Livingston Ave, Livingston, NJ 07039
• Pomarico Pharmacy, 239 Old Bergen Road, Jersey
  city,NJ
• A-1 Construction Services, Inc. , 33 Sackett St.,
  Jersey City ,  NJ 07304 .

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List of some of our External Sponsors -2-

• Educational Institutions
• Newark Public Library ,(973)-733-3607
• Rutgers University New Brunswick, Cook College,
  Department of Food Science
• Essex County College 303 university ave (IT
  department) Newark, 07102, NJ
• Torah Academy of Bergen County ,1600 Queen Anne
  Road, Teaneck, NJ 07666.
• Global Education Mission ,2184 Kennedy
  ,Boulevard, Jersey City,  NJ  07305
• Federal Organizations
• NSF (National Science Foundation)
• NASA
• National Guard

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No Sponsors Name
1 Web-based Appointment System
2 EMG, Inc.
3 Interclipper / Documat LLC
4 CyberExtruder
5 Educate Global
6 Adeena , LLC
7 Nano Medica
8 LMI Technologies
9 Mask Business Solutions
10 All-fine-dining /Go-To-Museum
11 Workstation
12 Sandbox Technologies
13 Qplay Interactive
14 Geo-Interactive
15 MindPillar LLC
16 4 Inc
17 Supertron Technologies, Inc.
18 Rutgers University - Cook College, Department of Food Science
19 NJIT- Human Resources Department
20 NJIT- Main Library
21 St. Philips Academy (SPA)
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22 Rutgers University - Jazz Institute
23 Essex County College
24 Torah Academy of Bergen County
25 NJIT- Research office
26 Intellinetix Inc.
27 Global Education Mission
28 Entrepreneurship Track Dr. Roger Cubicciotti (W.Khori)
29 Entrepreneurship Track Dr. Roger Cubicciotti (Dipesh Patel)
30 Entrepreneurship Track Dance Online
31 Entrepreneurship Track Control My home
32 Entrepreneurship Track ERS (Emergency Recovery system)
33 Entrepreneurship Track Police Vehicle System
34 McKesson
35 CIT
36 PSEG
37 Honey Well
38 Bayer
39 JJ
40 Scholastic Books Inc.
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41 AVIS car rental
42 Saint Clairs Health System
43 Professional Resources Corporation (PRC)
44 Green Roof Suites
45 PF Laboratories Inc
46 IMS Health
47 The Arc of Monmouth
48 GMS Group LLC.
49 NSF Funded Project - NJIT Faculty-Dr. Bieber
50 NASA Funded - NJIT Faculty -Dr. Bieber
51 WTC Case -NJIT faculty -Dr. Mendonsa
52 AI Systems -NJIT Faculty- Dr. Baltrush
53 The Information Exchange -Dr. Withworth
54 20 Component-Project (Audio system)- Dr. Tremaine
55 Interactive Course Performance Feedback. Dr. lm and Dr. Tremaine
56 IE Department at NJIT (PM Alb Arasalan)
57 GIS (Geographiic Information systems) with Rutgers
58 High Schools Programming Contest -Dr. Giller
59 Philipino Students Organization (National)
60 Career Development services _at_ NJIT (Newark City NJ Services)
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61 Newark Public Library
62 Newark Housing Authority
63 National Guard
64 NJ Governor's Office
65 Wendys Fast Food Restaurants (one branch)
66 MGR Enterprises
67 Heights Service Station
68 Duet Designer Consignment Boutiqu
69 Pomarico Pharmacy
70 A-1 Construction Services
71 Survey-Sez.com
72 Parts Infinity
73 Joseph N. and Joseph A. Rispoli (Magnabid)
74  Electronic Software Solutions, Inc.
75  RiverWays Enterprises
76 TRANSPORTATION MADE SIMPLE
77 AL Systems
78 DPE Consulting / DPE Enetrpreises , LLC
79 ICG, Inc
80 Movie Plex
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81 NJ Rent a Car
82 Mycor Services
83 Cottage Computers
84 LAHMS Capital LLC
85 Visual Web Slutions
86 Kerness Consulting Group LLC
87 IT Initiatives Corporation
88 Clean18.com
89 Tu PC Doctor
90 ACM at NJIT
91 Open Source/Linux at Rutgers
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Thank You