What you will learn
- Research question
- Source register
- Baseline
- Acceptance and rejection criteria
Research question
A capstone proposal states a bounded research question and the decision it could inform. Choose a scope that can be completed with available data and tools. An ambitious title is less valuable than a reproducible answer to a precise question.
Source register
Identify prerequisites and required resources before beginning. Data resolution, access rights and execution records can determine whether a question is answerable. Redesign the question when essential evidence is unavailable rather than fabricating precision.
Baseline
Define the baseline, candidate and evaluation design in advance. Record which data supports development and which remains reserved. A capstone should expose the selection process rather than present the final rule as inevitable.
Acceptance and rejection criteria
State practical and ethical boundaries: demo versus live activity, permitted data use and the claims the project will not establish. This course does not require real-money trading to demonstrate research competence.
Worked example
A proposal aims to prove a millisecond execution edge using daily bars. The research question and available evidence are incompatible; reducing the claim or obtaining suitable data is necessary.
Try it yourself
Write a one-page proposal with question, data, baseline, evaluation, deliverables and explicit limits.
Show the worked solution
A complete proposal connects every claimed measurement to available evidence and names a decision criterion. If the data cannot support the timing claim, revise the question before collecting results rather than weakening the standard afterward.
Apply this to your course project
Submit code or rules, evidence, risk plan, demo logs and an independent critique.
Keep the calculation inputs, assumptions and decisions with your work. Practical exercises are self-reviewed; the scored knowledge checks assess the questions shown, not an independent certification of practical competence.