How It Works
All Lauder students fulfill the M.A. research and writing requirement by completing a capstone course in Fall of their second year and a solo-authored paper (30-35 pages) in the Spring of their second year.
The Capstone is the vehicle through which each Lauder student is expected to demonstrate the ability to conduct master’s degree level research in the social sciences or humanities, and often on cutting edge topics of interest to policymakers, non-government organizations, and the business community. Students select their paper topics and illustrate mastery of their program of concentration through their use of target language, intercultural awareness, and comparative research. We have a dedicated faculty member who oversees the Capstone, including student training, design of student milestones, student performance, and faculty advisor recruiting.
Capstone Timeline
In their first year at Lauder, students immerse in learning in order to gain exposure to new ideas and conceptual frameworks, as well as engage Penn faculty who may serve as research advisors. In Fall of Year 2, students enroll in a mandatory INTS capstone seminar, with training in comparative analysis and research design. While enrolled in the Capstone seminar, each student works with a primary faculty advisor to finalize their research design. Students also receive advising support from a secondary advisor from the Lauder faculty. During spring of their second year, students write and submit their final capstone papers.
The Language Component
The Capstone also provides students with a venue to demonstrate competency in their target language, for example, by designing surveys, conducting interviews, or using primary and secondary data in their target language.
Faculty Advisors
Faculty advisors are drawn from across the university, with each student having a primary advisor and a secondary advisor from among the Lauder faculty. Advisors are paired with students early in their third semester and meet regularly with students to monitor their progress and to suggest bibliographic and other resources needed to deepen student knowledge. They help students define questions and research methodologies and select appropriate research sites and interviewees for the research trips.
Research Topics
Student research topics are rooted in their individual program of concentration, and explore a problem linked to one or more of Lauder’s academic themes: Strategic Decision Making in a Multipolar World; Data-Driven Societies and Economies; Economic Inclusion and Development; and Resource Management and Interdependencies.
Faculty advisors nominate the very highest quality papers for the Lauder Institute’s Reginald H. Jones Research Prize. Nominated papers are blind-reviewed by a committee representative of faculty from the Wharton School and the School of Arts and Sciences. A separate “Constructive Disagreement” prize is given to the paper that best demonstrates evenhanded analysis and thoughtful engagement with a controversial or politically sensitive topic.
Capstone Prizewinners 2025
Winner: Roland Spier, Macron’s Planes, Trains and Cranes: the Strategic Playbook of French Industrial Firms in China
Advisor: Dr. Ecaterina Locoman
First Runner-Up: James Kakisingi, Colonially-inherited Linguistic Identity and Barriers to Capital And Opportunities: A Case Study of Anglophone Entrepreneurs in Cameroon
Advisors: Dr. Eileen Doherty-Sil
Second Runner-Up: Lucy Friedmann, Government Venture Capital in the Nordics: A Study of Sweden and Denmark
Advisors: Dr. Ayse Kaya
Constructive Disagreement Prizewinner 2025
Winner: Nadir Tekarli, Planning as Power: How Regional Planning Overrides Nimbyism and Enables Expansion in Jerusalem
Advisor: Dr. Eileen Doherty-Sil
Student Research Snapshot
Angela Huang (G’23, WG’23), winner of the Reginald H. Jones Research Prize, talks with Penn Today about her capstone research which investigates the increasing internationalization of Japanese and Korean pop music. Full Story
Contact Us
Senior Lecturer, Political Science
Faculty Lead, Capstone Research
The Lauder Institute
