General Information
Sidwell Friends School

Forgot your password?

All members of the senior class are required by the School to complete a senior project in order to graduate. Projects take the place of the academic day (8:00am to 2:30pm), and so are expected to be appropriately rigorous in terms of time and energy (approximately 30 hours/week). The four weeks allotted for Senior Projects represent an opportunity to engage in an edifying and fulfilling activity. Senior projects begin May 3 and run through June 4. The presentation day for the projects is June 11.

The following steps lead to the approval of your project by the Senior Projects Committee:

1. Design a project.
2. Discuss the project with your assigned committee member. This committee member will help you design a project that will be approved.
3. Choose an on-campus project supervisor. This faculty or staff member will be responsible for checking in with you and your off-campus supervisor (if your project is an internship or apprenticeship) to make sure that you are successfully completing your project. For creative, non-internship projects, you should choose a project supervisor who has expertise in the area in which you will be working. Faculty and staff members may sponsor no more than three projects, so you should seek out a supervisor as soon as possible.
4. Acquire an off-campus supervisor if your project is an internship or apprenticeship.
5. Complete an on-line Senior Project Proposal form, print it out for signatures, and turn in the form to your assigned committee member.

• INTERNSHIPS — Projects of this sort include interning with a wide variety of business, artistic, educational or government organizations. Consider also apprenticeships with chefs and photographers. A notebook containing information about previously completed internships is available in the College Guidance Office.
• COMMUNITY SERVICE — Projects in this area allow you to expand your involvement with community service organizations. Work with organizations not ordinarily permitted by the school will be allowed as senior projects (e.g., a humane society).
• DRAMATIC PRODUCTIONS OR MUSICAL RECITALS — Projects in this area include writing, directing, and/or performing in a dramatic production, or performing new pieces on an instrument that you already play. All students who intend to use the Arts Center for practice or performance space need to have their project proposals approved by the Senior Project Arts sub-committee.
• OTHER PROJECTS — If you have an idea for a senior project that does not fall within the suggested areas, please note the following: the acceptance of video, photography, and group projects (other than dramatic productions) is limited due to the complicated nature of their planning. Seniors who still wish to try such projects are advised to submit detailed day-to-day schedules and a description of the desired product. Any script-writing needs to be completed early and submitted with the proposal.

• Projects without signatures (on and off-campus supervisors, parents) will not be accepted. YOU MUST LEAVE SUFFICIENT TIME TO GET THESE SIGNATURES IN ORDER TO HAND IN YOUR PROPOSAL ON TIME.
• Off-campus supervisors must be made aware of the requirements of your project. They must be willing to be responsible for your project, by overseeing it or engaging in the same activity for approximately six hours per day.
• Students must not be paid for project work.
• Projects must not involve travel outside the Washington DC area.
• Projects must entail approximately 30 hours/week of work.
• Group projects are limited to three students. Each student in a group must hand in a separate proposal form describing the project and his/her role in it. The Project Committee will consider each member of the group individually and might not approve the project for all applicants. If a group of more than three is necessary for a project (a play, for example), the Committee may make exceptions.
• Projects must not involve significant expense.
• If a project involves the construction of an item, you must donate the item to an appropriate charitable organization.
• Students preparing for AP Examinations must design a project that will allow them to attend the necessary classes to prepare for the examinations or make other arrangements with the teacher. Students may do fewer than six hours of work per day on their projects during the period in which they are preparing for AP exams.