Identify the specific policy to be changed, including its jurisdiction. Indicate where the policy can be found.

Policy Project Definition Worksheet

This worksheet is designed to help students conceptualize the essential elements of their capstone project. Completing

this sheet and then discussing it with your instructor will ensure that your project will proceed smoothly. By the end of the

second week, you must provide a version of this sheet which your professor approves as a basis for proceeding further

with your capstone project.

What is your specialization and how does

your project fit with your specialization

Identify the action-forcing event that

prompted the study.

Identify the specific policy to be changed,

including its jurisdiction. Indicate where the

policy can be found.

What is your client’s question driving the

study? The question should reference a

specific policy and what the client hopes to

achieve by changing the policy. Examples:

 How can border policy be improved to better prevent human trafficking and smuggling to

the United States from Mexico?

 How can human rights policies in New York City alleviate age discrimination in the

workplace?

Identify the client or recipient of the study.

Identify your role or position. For example, if

you are employed by the client, what is your

job title or responsibility related to policy?

Provide a source you will use to gather

information for your problem assessment;

for example, data that provide a measure of

the problem or describe the timeline.

Identify specific data sources or documents

to be used in your literature review related

to specific or local information about your

policy problem, scholarly literature, and/or

best practices for addressing this kind of

policy problem.

Identify the stakeholders and their positions

relative to the policy under study. Name

actual officials, and, if relevant, the groups

they represent. Stakeholders include

policymakers and people employed by

lobbying or professional associations.

Identify at least three potential policy

options. Make sure that these involve

changes to the policy identified above.