College is always one of the most anticipated moments in a teenager’s life. Studying and learning something you like, making new friends, starting in the job market, attending the parties. Almost always, there are four long years of learning, and in the end, all we want is the dreamed diploma. But before that, you have to go through an important and delicate moment: the final job required to complete a course, in Portuguese, called TCC.
There are countless concerns that we must have to make a good TCC: choose a good theme, schedule all deliveries, have an affinity with the workgroup. To understand the difficulties and pleasures of this whole process, we spoke with some casperians who told their experiences and gave some tips to those who are starting this long journey.
The student of the radio, tv and internet, Letícia Espíndola produced her TCC on a YouTube channel about independent Brazilian music, called Música Pra Quem?. She says the work, that lasted more than a year, made her and her team better as professionals and people. “Today, the channel, as well as a life project, has become a great professional portfolio.” Leticia’s tip is to choose to do something that you like, with someone who wants to accompany you. “Don’t be afraid to risk, now it’s the time!”
For Érica Azzellini, a journalism student who did a monograph on gender, technology, and cyberfeminism, the biggest challenge was knowing how to reconcile the deadlines, especially because she did all the work by herself. “I fought a lot with myself during the year”. She says the project started very abstractly and was developing throughout the year. “I had to go to the field to get some ideas ready.” For Érica, the main tip is to be honest with your advisor, since it is the person who will support you the most during this process. “You can also take part in congresses with your TCC’s work, it’s a great way to bring people from the Academy to your work.”
The theme chosen by Barbara Marini, a Public Relations student, was a street race organizer since all four of the group has a passion for sports and communication. Despite this, she says that it is not easy for so many people to live together for so long. “TCC is very intense, you will need to spend many hours with your group, so fighting is inevitable.” For her, the expectation for examiners is high, and nervousness can sometimes get in the way, so it’s best to hold rehearsal meetings. As a hint, Barbara has no doubts: “Planning and patience. These are the keywords for TCC. “
Camila Alvarenga is a journalism student and has finished her work on mental health, telling people who live with mental disorders, showing their daily life and telling their stories. The book went through several formats until finalized, and this was one of the biggest difficulties. “We ended up changing the subject twice. It was hard to find our way, and find out what we really wanted to do”. The tip of Camila is to choose a good advisor. “Think about the counselor’s profile and how he can contribute to his work”.
A self-sustaining community led by women in Minas Gerais was the theme of Beatriz Vecchi‘s TCC. For her, the best thing is to see that all deadlines have been met. “We made a timeline earlier in the year and we were able to follow everything we had planned. It was amazing!”. Beatriz also says that she always knew she wanted to make a documentary and sought out people who wanted to do the same, even if they were not her friends. “Do a job you believe, and with people who think alike, if it’s your friend it’s a bonus.”
To help those preparing for TCC, Luis Mauro Sá Martino, professor and advisor at the Cásper Líbero College, explained the main steps of a TCC:
- Pre-project: It’s in it that you will “sketch” the first ideas about work, as a theme, approach, and possible mentors. It’s often done, redone, and broken many times.
- Project: Working stage with the teacher-supervisor. You will expose the main ideas you intend to develop throughout the research or reporting. The project may have different formats.
- Final report: Registration document of the work process. In it, you document your place of research, your trajectory, your main steps, the main difficulties, the learnings and your impressions.
- Qualification: Delivery of material for the Supervision of Experimental Projects. An evaluating teacher is chosen to analyze the work, including the content, the form and also the pertinence of the material. The notes are made to contribute to the continuity of the production process.
- Delivering the project: The final delivery of the TCC must be made to the supervisor at a date defined in the calendar. The teacher should approve the work so that the supervisor goes to the defense in “examining jury”, the name was given to the evaluation of the work by a committee.
- Presentation of the work for the examiner’s jury: The jury is composed of three members. One of them is the teacher evaluating the project in the qualification, who will be the chairman of the bank. The other two members will be indicated by the students in dialogue with the counselor.
If you wish to know more about Journalism TCC, check this project made by three graduating students on the works delivered this year: TCCs de Jornalismo 2017