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• How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates

How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates

Published on October 12, 2022 by Shona McCombes and Tegan George. Revised on November 21, 2023.

A research proposal describes what you will investigate, why it’s important, and how you will conduct your research.

The format of a research proposal varies between fields, but most proposals will contain at least these elements:

Introduction

Literature review.

• Research design

Reference list

While the sections may vary, the overall objective is always the same. A research proposal serves as a blueprint and guide for your research plan, helping you get organized and feel confident in the path forward you choose to take.

Table of contents

Research proposal purpose, research proposal examples, research design and methods, contribution to knowledge, research schedule, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about research proposals.

Academics often have to write research proposals to get funding for their projects. As a student, you might have to write a research proposal as part of a grad school application , or prior to starting your thesis or dissertation .

In addition to helping you figure out what your research can look like, a proposal can also serve to demonstrate why your project is worth pursuing to a funder, educational institution, or supervisor.

Research proposal length

The length of a research proposal can vary quite a bit. A bachelor’s or master’s thesis proposal can be just a few pages, while proposals for PhD dissertations or research funding are usually much longer and more detailed. Your supervisor can help you determine the best length for your work.

One trick to get started is to think of your proposal’s structure as a shorter version of your thesis or dissertation , only without the results , conclusion and discussion sections.

Download our research proposal template

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Writing a research proposal can be quite challenging, but a good starting point could be to look at some examples. We’ve included a few for you below.

• Example research proposal #1: “A Conceptual Framework for Scheduling Constraint Management”
• Example research proposal #2: “Medical Students as Mediators of Change in Tobacco Use”

Like your dissertation or thesis, the proposal will usually have a title page that includes:

• The proposed title of your project
• Your supervisor’s name
• Your institution and department

The first part of your proposal is the initial pitch for your project. Make sure it succinctly explains what you want to do and why.

Your introduction should:

• Introduce your topic
• Give necessary background and context
• Outline your  problem statement  and research questions

To guide your introduction , include information about:

• Who could have an interest in the topic (e.g., scientists, policymakers)
• How much is already known about the topic
• What is missing from this current knowledge
• What new insights your research will contribute
• Why you believe this research is worth doing

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As you get started, it’s important to demonstrate that you’re familiar with the most important research on your topic. A strong literature review  shows your reader that your project has a solid foundation in existing knowledge or theory. It also shows that you’re not simply repeating what other people have already done or said, but rather using existing research as a jumping-off point for your own.

In this section, share exactly how your project will contribute to ongoing conversations in the field by:

• Comparing and contrasting the main theories, methods, and debates
• Examining the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches
• Explaining how will you build on, challenge, or synthesize prior scholarship

Following the literature review, restate your main  objectives . This brings the focus back to your own project. Next, your research design or methodology section will describe your overall approach, and the practical steps you will take to answer your research questions.

To finish your proposal on a strong note, explore the potential implications of your research for your field. Emphasize again what you aim to contribute and why it matters.

For example, your results might have implications for:

• Improving best practices
• Informing policymaking decisions
• Strengthening a theory or model
• Challenging popular or scientific beliefs
• Creating a basis for future research

Last but not least, your research proposal must include correct citations for every source you have used, compiled in a reference list . To create citations quickly and easily, you can use our free APA citation generator .

Some institutions or funders require a detailed timeline of the project, asking you to forecast what you will do at each stage and how long it may take. While not always required, be sure to check the requirements of your project.

Here’s an example schedule to help you get started. You can also download a template at the button below.

Download our research schedule template

If you are applying for research funding, chances are you will have to include a detailed budget. This shows your estimates of how much each part of your project will cost.

Make sure to check what type of costs the funding body will agree to cover. For each item, include:

• Cost : exactly how much money do you need?
• Justification : why is this cost necessary to complete the research?
• Source : how did you calculate the amount?

To determine your budget, think about:

• Travel costs : do you need to go somewhere to collect your data? How will you get there, and how much time will you need? What will you do there (e.g., interviews, archival research)?
• Materials : do you need access to any tools or technologies?
• Help : do you need to hire any research assistants for the project? What will they do, and how much will you pay them?

If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Methodology

• Sampling methods
• Simple random sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Cluster sampling
• Likert scales
• Reproducibility

 Statistics

• Null hypothesis
• Statistical power
• Probability distribution
• Effect size
• Poisson distribution

Research bias

• Optimism bias
• Cognitive bias
• Implicit bias
• Hawthorne effect
• Anchoring bias
• Explicit bias

Once you’ve decided on your research objectives , you need to explain them in your paper, at the end of your problem statement .

Keep your research objectives clear and concise, and use appropriate verbs to accurately convey the work that you will carry out for each one.

I will compare …

A research aim is a broad statement indicating the general purpose of your research project. It should appear in your introduction at the end of your problem statement , before your research objectives.

Research objectives are more specific than your research aim. They indicate the specific ways you’ll address the overarching aim.

A PhD, which is short for philosophiae doctor (doctor of philosophy in Latin), is the highest university degree that can be obtained. In a PhD, students spend 3–5 years writing a dissertation , which aims to make a significant, original contribution to current knowledge.

A PhD is intended to prepare students for a career as a researcher, whether that be in academia, the public sector, or the private sector.

A master’s is a 1- or 2-year graduate degree that can prepare you for a variety of careers.

All master’s involve graduate-level coursework. Some are research-intensive and intend to prepare students for further study in a PhD; these usually require their students to write a master’s thesis . Others focus on professional training for a specific career.

Critical thinking refers to the ability to evaluate information and to be aware of biases or assumptions, including your own.

Like information literacy , it involves evaluating arguments, identifying and solving problems in an objective and systematic way, and clearly communicating your ideas.

The best way to remember the difference between a research plan and a research proposal is that they have fundamentally different audiences. A research plan helps you, the researcher, organize your thoughts. On the other hand, a dissertation proposal or research proposal aims to convince others (e.g., a supervisor, a funding body, or a dissertation committee) that your research topic is relevant and worthy of being conducted.

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How to write a Research Proposal: Components of a research proposal

Components of a research proposal.

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Research proposals differ in terms of their presentation depending on what each University department requires. In other words, there is no set template  for a research proposal. Please contact your lecturer regarding the format you are expected to use for your research proposal.Thus, the components of a research proposal include, but are not limited to those mentioned in this guide.

1. The title

Try to come up with a title that is unique and at the same time easy to remember. It should also make a lasting impression to the reader and make them want to come back and read your proposal.  The title must also capture the main concepts of the study . As the research process is lengthy, it is   important that you choose a topic that you are   so curious about  that you remain motivated for the duration of the research process.  Select a topic that you will be able to complete within the time frame that you have for your research. 

3. The background

The background to the topic of your intended research must be clear and precise. It must not only include an in-depth explanation of the key points of your subject but also all the developments in the field as well as their timelines . The researcher must also explain the compelling interest in the research issue as well as the personal interest (if any) in the topic. This section must also indicate the specific area within which the topic falls in your particular field of study or subject . Aslo, how will the proposed study contribute to a particular field? In other words, the impact and the significance in a subject area must be clearly outlined. The target audience must also be clearly described.

5. Objectives of the research

It is important that the objectives are in alignment with the research questions. The objectives must indicate what the aim of the research study is.  In fact, objectives give you a clear indication of the steps that you will take to achieve the aim of the research. The objectives must be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound.

7. Literature review

Collect and present relevant literature on your topic of choice. It is important to include all the main authors or experts in a particular field.  Depending on your field of study or topic, ensure that you include recent literature as well as literature that presents counterarguments to the topic. The justification for the study needs to based on existing literature. Click here for more information on how to write a literature review.

8. Limitations and delimitations of the study

The researcher must indicate the limitations of the study which are what the researcher cannot do or factors that are beyond the researcher's control, as well as delimitations that the researcher chooses not to address for the purposes of the study. Delimitations are boundaries that the researcher has set for the study. The r easons  both for limitations and delimitations must be discussed in this section.

10. Work plan

Your schedule for the research must be stated clearly including the projected timelines for the various stages of your study.

11. Bibliography

All the sources that you have used for your proposal must be listed in alphabetical order using a referencing style that your lecturer has prescribed for your subject field.

Click here for more information on the various reference styles.

2. Introduction to the research

This section of the proposal must provide a broad overview of the topic. The jargon and key terms used in the particular topic must also be thoroughly explained in order to avoid confusion. The interest of the researcher in the particular topic must also be clearly outlined while at the same time mentioning, albeit briefly at this point, a critical review of the main literature that covers the topic.  The researcher must also provide the aim of the research by clearly and concisely stating the problem,  as well as the research questions to be dealt with.  This section must also indicate what the research study will not be covering .

4. The research questions

The research questions must state clearly what your proposed study is meant to address or answer. Ensure that you use simple language that is easy to understand, while being cognisant of the level of  your intended audience . 

6. Research methodology / research methods

This section outlines the approach which the researcher will follow in order to address the research problem and to answer all the research questions from the researcher. The research design must be clearly defined, e.g., is the research  Descriptive, Correlational, Causal-Comparative/Quasi-Experimental, Experimental, Diagnostic or Explanatory.

State clearly

• how the research will be conducted in terms of the theoretical resources that will be used
• the theoretical framework for conducting the research, which is the theoretical approach drawn from your literature review to support your research study
• proposed research method(s)
• a comparison of the advantages, limitations and suitability of the available approaches and methods for conducting your research
• participants, instruments, procedure, analysis, etc.

Research design

Selecting the approach to use

Research approach

Research design and methodology

Importance of research

Attributes of a good research scholar

Summary of different research methodologies

9. Significance of the research

The researcher must provide justification for the need to conduct the study. What is the gap that the study will fill, and what is its contribution to the  existing body of knowledge? The originality and importance of the research which will be  level appropriate, must be clearly described, for instance, the required level of originality for a fourth year research project is different to that of a doctoral candidate. 

The impact of the study for the subject field must be indicated. In other words, how will the research improve the field, who will it impact, how will it make changes in your industy or field etc.? Lastly, the proposed resaerch must be relatable , interesting and engaging .

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Structure and content, introduction (to topic and problem), research question (or hypothesis, thesis statement, aim), proposed methodology, anticipated findings, contributions - impact and significance, tables and figures (if applicable).

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The structure and content of a research proposal can vary depending upon the discipline, purpose, and target audience. For example, a graduate thesis proposal and a Tri-Council grant proposal will have different guidelines for length and required sections.

Before you begin writing, be sure to talk with your supervisor to gain a clear understanding of their specific expectations, and continually check in with them throughout the writing process.

• Organizing your Research Proposal - Template This 6-page fillable pdf handout provides writers with a template to begin outlining sections of their own research proposal.

This template can be used in conjunction with the sections below.

What are some keywords for your research?

• Should give a clear indication of your proposed research approach or key question
• Should be concise and descriptive

Writing Tip: When constructing your title, think about the search terms you would use to find this research online.

Important: Write this section last, after you have completed drafting the proposal. Or if you are required to draft a preliminary abstract, then remember to rewrite the abstract after you have completed drafting the entire proposal because some information may need to be revised.

The abstract should provide a brief overview of the entire proposal. Briefly state the research question (or hypothesis, thesis statement, aim), the problem and rationale, the proposed methods, and the proposed analyses or expected results.

The purpose of the introduction is to communicate the information that is essential for the reader to understand the overall area of concern. Be explicit. Outline why this research must be conducted and try to do so without unnecessary jargon or overwhelming detail.

Start with a short statement that establishes the overall area of concern. Avoid too much detail. Get to the point. Communicate only information essential for the reader’s comprehension. Avoid unnecessary technical language and jargon. Answer the question, "What is this study about?"

Questions to consider:

• What is your topic area, and what is the problem within that topic?
• What does the relevant literature say about the problem? – Be selective and focused.
• What are the critical, theoretical, or methodological issues directly related to the problem to be investigated?
• What are the reasons for undertaking the research? – This is the answer to the "so what?" question.

The following sections - listed as part of the introduction - are intended as a guide for drafting a research proposal. Most introductions include these following components. However, be sure to clarify with your advisor or carefully review the grant guidelines to be sure to comply with the proposal genre expectations of your specific discipline.

Broad topic and focus of study

• Briefly describe the broad topic of your research area, and then clearly explain the narrowed focus of your specific study.

Importance of topic/field of study

• Position your project in a current important research area.
• Address the “So what?” question directly, and as soon as possible.
• Provide context for the reader to understand the problem you are about to pose or research question you are asking.

Problem within field of study

• Identify the problem that you are investigating in your study.

Gap(s) in knowledge

• Identify something missing from the literature.
• What is unknown in this specific research area? This is what your study will explore and where you will attempt to provide new insights.
• Is there a reason this gap exists? Where does the current literature agree and where does it disagree? How you fill this gap (at least partially) with your research?
• Convince your reader that the problem has been appropriately defined and that the study is worth doing. Be explicit and detailed.
• Develop your argument logically and provide evidence.
• Explain why you are the person to do this project. Summarize any previous work or studies you may have undertaken in this field or research area.

Research question or hypothesis

• Foreshadow outcomes of your research. What is the question you are hoping to answer? What are the specific hypotheses to be tested and/or issues to be explored?
• Use questions when research is exploratory.
• Use declarative statements when existing knowledge enables predictions.
• List any secondary or subsidiary questions if applicable.

Purpose statement

• State the purpose of your research. Be succinct and simple.
• Why do you want to do this study?
• What is your research trying to find out?

Goals for proposed research

• Write a brief, broad statement of what you hope to accomplish and why (e.g., Improve something… Understand something… ). Are there specific measurable outcomes that you will accomplish in your study? 
• You will have a chance to go into greater detail in the research question and methodology sections.

Background or context (or literature review)

• What does the existing research on this topic say?
• Briefly state what you already know and introduce literature most relevant to your research.
• Indicate main research findings, methodologies, and interpretations from previous related studies.
• Discuss how your question or hypothesis relates to what is already known.
• Position your research within the field’s developing body of knowledge.
• Explain and support your choice of methodology or theoretical framework.

The research question is the question you are hoping to answer in your research project. It is important to know how you should write your research question into your proposal. Some proposals include

• a research question, written as a question
• or, a hypothesis as a potential response to the research question
• or, a thesis statement as an argument that answers the research question
• or, aims and objects as accomplishment or operational statements

Foreshadow the outcomes of your research. Are you trying to improve something? Understand something? Advocate for a social responsibility?

Research question

What is the question you are hoping to answer?

Subsidiary questions (if applicable)

• Does your major research question hinge on a few smaller questions? Which will you address first?

Your hypothesis should provide one (of many) possible answers to your research question.

• What are the specific hypotheses to be tested and/or issues to be explored?
• What results do you anticipate for this experiment?

Usually a hypothesis is written to show the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. Your hypothesis must be

• An expected relationship between variables
• Falsifiable
• Consistent with the existing body of knowledge

Thesis statement

Your thesis statement is a clear, concise statement of what you are arguing and why it is important. For more support on writing thesis statements, check out these following resources:

• 5 Types of Thesis Statements - Learn about five different types of thesis statements to help you choose the best type for your research.
• Templates for Writing Thesis Statements - This template provides a two-step guide for writing thesis statements.
• 5 Questions to Strengthen Your Thesis Statement - Follow these five steps to strengthen your thesis statements.

Aims and objectives

Aims are typically broader statements of what you are trying to accomplish and may or may not be measurable. Objectives are operational statements indicating specifically how you will accomplish the aims of your project.

• What are you trying to accomplish?
• How are you going to address the research question?

Be specific and make sure your aims or objectives are realistic. You want to convey that it is feasible to answer this question with the objectives you have proposed.

Make it clear that you know what you are going to do, how you are going to do it, and why it will work by relating your methodology to previous research. If there isn’t much literature on the topic, you can relate your methodology to your own preliminary research or point out how your methodology tackles something that may have been overlooked in previous studies.

Explain how you will conduct this research. Specify scope and parameters (e.g., geographic locations, demographics). Limit your inclusion of literature to only essential articles and studies.

• How will these methods produce an answer to your research question?
• How do the methods relate to the introduction and literature review?
• Have you done any previous work (or read any literature) that would inform your choices about methodology?
• Are your methods feasible and adequate? How do you know?
• What obstacles might you encounter in conducting the research, and how will you overcome them?

This section should include the following components that are relevant to your study and research methodologies:

Object(s) of study / participants / population

Provide detail about your objects of study (e.g., literary texts, swine, government policies, children, health care systems).

• Who/what are they?
• How will you find, select, or collect them?
• How feasible is it to find/select them?
• Are there any limitations to sample/data collection?
• Do you need to travel to collect samples or visit archives, etc.?
• Do you need to obtain Research Ethics Board (REB) approval to include human participants?

Theoretical frame or critical methodology

• Explain the theories or disciplinary methodologies that your research draws from or builds upon.

Materials and apparatus

• What are your survey or interview methods? (You may include a copy of questionnaires, etc.)
• Do you require any special equipment?
• How do you plan to purchase or construct or obtain this equipment?

Procedure and design

What exactly will you do? Include variables selected or manipulated, randomization, controls, the definition of coding categories, etc.

• Is it a questionnaire? Laboratory experiment? Series of interviews? Systematic review? Interpretative analysis?
• How will subjects be assigned to experimental conditions?
• What precautions will be used to control possible confounding variables?
• How long do you expect to spend on each step, and do you have a backup plan?

Data analysis and statistical procedures

• How do you plan to statistically analyze your data?
• What analyses will you conduct?
• How will the analyses contribute to the objectives?

What are the expected outcomes from your methods? Describe your expected results in relation to your hypothesis. Support these results using existing literature.

• What results would prove or disprove your hypotheses and validate your methodology, and why?
• What obstacles might you encounter in obtaining your results, and how will you deal with those obstacles?
• How will you analyze and interpret your results?

This section may be the most important part of your proposal. Make sure to emphasize how this research is significant to the related field, and how it will impact the broader community, now and in the future.

Convince your reader why this project should be funded above the other potential projects. Why is this research useful and relevant? Why is it useful to others? Answer the question “so what?”

Specific contributions

• How will your anticipated results specifically contribute to fulfilling the aims, objectives, or goals of your research?
• Will these be direct or indirect contributions? – theoretical or applied?
• How will your research contribute to the larger topic area or research discipline?

Impact and significance

• How will your research contribute to the research field of study?
• How will your research contribute to the larger topic addressed in your introduction?
• How will this research extend other work that you have done?
• How will this contribution/significance convince the reader that this research will be useful and relevant?
• Who else might find your research useful and relevant? (e.g., other research streams, policy makers, professional fields, etc.)

Provide a list of some of the most important sources that you will need to use for the introduction and background sections, plus your literature review and theoretical framework. 

What are some of the most important sources that you will need to use for the intro/background/lit review/theoretical framework? 

• Find out what style guide you are required to follow (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago).
• Follow the guidelines in our Cite Your Sources  Libguide to format citations and create a reference list or bibliography.

Attach this list to your proposal as a separate page unless otherwise specified.

This section should include only visuals that help illustrate the preliminary results, methods, or expected results.

• What visuals will you use to help illustrate the methods or expected results?
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What (Exactly) Is A Research Proposal?

A simple explainer with examples + free template.

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) | Reviewed By: Dr Eunice Rautenbach | June 2020 (Updated April 2023)

Whether you’re nearing the end of your degree and your dissertation is on the horizon, or you’re planning to apply for a PhD program, chances are you’ll need to craft a convincing research proposal . If you’re on this page, you’re probably unsure exactly what the research proposal is all about. Well, you’ve come to the right place.

Overview: Research Proposal Basics

• What a research proposal is
• What a research proposal needs to cover
• How to structure your research proposal
• Example /sample proposals
• Proposal writing FAQs
• Key takeaways & additional resources

What is a research proposal?

Simply put, a research proposal is a structured, formal document that explains what you plan to research (your research topic), why it’s worth researching (your justification), and how  you plan to investigate it (your methodology). 

The purpose of the research proposal (its job, so to speak) is to convince  your research supervisor, committee or university that your research is  suitable  (for the requirements of the degree program) and  manageable  (given the time and resource constraints you will face). 

The most important word here is “ convince ” – in other words, your research proposal needs to  sell  your research idea (to whoever is going to approve it). If it doesn’t convince them (of its suitability and manageability), you’ll need to revise and resubmit . This will cost you valuable time, which will either delay the start of your research or eat into its time allowance (which is bad news). 

What goes into a research proposal?

A good dissertation or thesis proposal needs to cover the “ what “, “ why ” and” how ” of the proposed study. Let’s look at each of these attributes in a little more detail:

Your proposal needs to clearly articulate your research topic . This needs to be specific and unambiguous . Your research topic should make it clear exactly what you plan to research and in what context. Here’s an example of a well-articulated research topic:

An investigation into the factors which impact female Generation Y consumer’s likelihood to promote a specific makeup brand to their peers: a British context

As you can see, this topic is extremely clear. From this one line we can see exactly:

• What’s being investigated – factors that make people promote or advocate for a brand of a specific makeup brand
• Who it involves – female Gen-Y consumers
• In what context – the United Kingdom

So, make sure that your research proposal provides a detailed explanation of your research topic . If possible, also briefly outline your research aims and objectives , and perhaps even your research questions (although in some cases you’ll only develop these at a later stage). Needless to say, don’t start writing your proposal until you have a clear topic in mind , or you’ll end up waffling and your research proposal will suffer as a result of this.

Need a helping hand?

As we touched on earlier, it’s not good enough to simply propose a research topic – you need to justify why your topic is original . In other words, what makes it  unique ? What gap in the current literature does it fill? If it’s simply a rehash of the existing research, it’s probably not going to get approval – it needs to be fresh.

But,  originality  alone is not enough. Once you’ve ticked that box, you also need to justify why your proposed topic is  important . In other words, what value will it add to the world if you achieve your research aims?

As an example, let’s look at the sample research topic we mentioned earlier (factors impacting brand advocacy). In this case, if the research could uncover relevant factors, these findings would be very useful to marketers in the cosmetics industry, and would, therefore, have commercial value . That is a clear justification for the research.

So, when you’re crafting your research proposal, remember that it’s not enough for a topic to simply be unique. It needs to be useful and value-creating – and you need to convey that value in your proposal. If you’re struggling to find a research topic that makes the cut, watch  our video covering how to find a research topic .

It’s all good and well to have a great topic that’s original and valuable, but you’re not going to convince anyone to approve it without discussing the practicalities – in other words:

• How will you actually undertake your research (i.e., your methodology)?
• Is your research methodology appropriate given your research aims?
• Is your approach manageable given your constraints (time, money, etc.)?

While it’s generally not expected that you’ll have a fully fleshed-out methodology at the proposal stage, you’ll likely still need to provide a high-level overview of your research methodology . Here are some important questions you’ll need to address in your research proposal:

• Will you take a qualitative , quantitative or mixed -method approach?
• What sampling strategy will you adopt?
• How will you collect your data (e.g., interviews, surveys, etc)?
• How will you analyse your data (e.g., descriptive and inferential statistics , content analysis, discourse analysis, etc, .)?
• What potential limitations will your methodology carry?

So, be sure to give some thought to the practicalities of your research and have at least a basic methodological plan before you start writing up your proposal. If this all sounds rather intimidating, the video below provides a good introduction to research methodology and the key choices you’ll need to make.

How To Structure A Research Proposal

Now that we’ve covered the key points that need to be addressed in a proposal, you may be wondering, “ But how is a research proposal structured? “.

While the exact structure and format required for a research proposal differs from university to university, there are four “essential ingredients” that commonly make up the structure of a research proposal:

• A rich introduction and background to the proposed research
• An initial literature review covering the existing research
• An overview of the proposed research methodology
• A discussion regarding the practicalities (project plans, timelines, etc.)

In the video below, we unpack each of these four sections, step by step.

Research Proposal Examples/Samples

In the video below, we provide a detailed walkthrough of two successful research proposals (Master’s and PhD-level), as well as our popular free proposal template.

Proposal Writing FAQs

How long should a research proposal be.

This varies tremendously, depending on the university, the field of study (e.g., social sciences vs natural sciences), and the level of the degree (e.g. undergraduate, Masters or PhD) – so it’s always best to check with your university what their specific requirements are before you start planning your proposal.

As a rough guide, a formal research proposal at Masters-level often ranges between 2000-3000 words, while a PhD-level proposal can be far more detailed, ranging from 5000-8000 words. In some cases, a rough outline of the topic is all that’s needed, while in other cases, universities expect a very detailed proposal that essentially forms the first three chapters of the dissertation or thesis.

The takeaway – be sure to check with your institution before you start writing.

How do I choose a topic for my research proposal?

Finding a good research topic is a process that involves multiple steps. We cover the topic ideation process in this video post.

How do I write a literature review for my proposal?

While you typically won’t need a comprehensive literature review at the proposal stage, you still need to demonstrate that you’re familiar with the key literature and are able to synthesise it. We explain the literature review process here.

How do I create a timeline and budget for my proposal?

We explain how to craft a project plan/timeline and budget in Research Proposal Bootcamp .

Which referencing format should I use in my research proposal?

The expectations and requirements regarding formatting and referencing vary from institution to institution. Therefore, you’ll need to check this information with your university.

What common proposal writing mistakes do I need to look out for?

We’ve create a video post about some of the most common mistakes students make when writing a proposal – you can access that here . If you’re short on time, here’s a quick summary:

• The research topic is too broad (or just poorly articulated).
• The research aims, objectives and questions don’t align.
• The research topic is not well justified.
• The study has a weak theoretical foundation.
• The research design is not well articulated well enough.
• Poor writing and sloppy presentation.
• Poor project planning and risk management.
• Not following the university’s specific criteria.

Key Takeaways & Additional Resources

As you write up your research proposal, remember the all-important core purpose:  to convince . Your research proposal needs to sell your study in terms of suitability and viability. So, focus on crafting a convincing narrative to ensure a strong proposal.

At the same time, pay close attention to your university’s requirements. While we’ve covered the essentials here, every institution has its own set of expectations and it’s essential that you follow these to maximise your chances of approval.

By the way, we’ve got plenty more resources to help you fast-track your research proposal. Here are some of our most popular resources to get you started:

• Proposal Writing 101 : A Introductory Webinar
• Research Proposal Bootcamp : The Ultimate Online Course
• Template : A basic template to help you craft your proposal

If you’re looking for 1-on-1 support with your research proposal, be sure to check out our private coaching service , where we hold your hand through the proposal development process (and the entire research journey), step by step.

Psst… there’s more!

This post is an extract from our bestselling short course, Research Proposal Bootcamp . If you want to work smart, you don't want to miss this .

You Might Also Like:

51 Comments

I truly enjoyed this video, as it was eye-opening to what I have to do in the preparation of preparing a Research proposal.

I would be interested in getting some coaching.

I real appreciate on your elaboration on how to develop research proposal,the video explains each steps clearly.

Thank you for the video. It really assisted me and my niece. I am a PhD candidate and she is an undergraduate student. It is at times, very difficult to guide a family member but with this video, my job is done.

In view of the above, I welcome more coaching.

Wonderful guidelines, thanks

This is very helpful. Would love to continue even as I prepare for starting my masters next year.

Thanks for the work done, the text was helpful to me

Bundle of thanks to you for the research proposal guide it was really good and useful if it is possible please send me the sample of research proposal

You’re most welcome. We don’t have any research proposals that we can share (the students own the intellectual property), but you might find our research proposal template useful: https://gradcoach.com/research-proposal-template/

Cheruiyot Moses Kipyegon

Thanks alot. It was an eye opener that came timely enough before my imminent proposal defense. Thanks, again

thank you very much your lesson is very interested may God be with you

I am an undergraduate student (First Degree) preparing to write my project,this video and explanation had shed more light to me thanks for your efforts keep it up.

Very useful. I am grateful.

this is a very a good guidance on research proposal, for sure i have learnt something

Wonderful guidelines for writing a research proposal, I am a student of m.phil( education), this guideline is suitable for me. Thanks

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Thank you. This is a great insight. I am a student preparing for a PhD program. I am requested to write my Research Proposal as part of what I am required to submit before my unconditional admission. I am grateful having listened to this video which will go a long way in helping me to actually choose a topic of interest and not just any topic as well as to narrow down the topic and be specific about it. I indeed need more of this especially as am trying to choose a topic suitable for a DBA am about embarking on. Thank you once more. The video is indeed helpful.

Have learnt a lot just at the right time. Thank you so much.

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Hi. For my MSc medical education research, please evaluate this topic for me: Training Needs Assessment of Faculty in Medical Training Institutions in Kericho and Bomet Counties

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I do applaud your simplified method of explaining the subject matter, which indeed has broaden my understanding of the subject matter. Definitely this would enable me writing a sellable research proposal.

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Great! I liked your tutoring on how to find a research topic and how to write a research proposal. Precise and concise. Thank you very much. Will certainly share this with my students. Research made simple indeed.

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Thank you very much. I can now assist my students effectively.

I need any research proposal

Thank you for these videos. I will need chapter by chapter assistance in writing my MSc dissertation

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This article was most informative and easy to understand. I now have a good idea of how to write my research proposal.

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What is JAM? Please explain.

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thank you for the video but i need a written example

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• How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates

How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates

Published on 30 October 2022 by Shona McCombes and Tegan George. Revised on 13 June 2023.

A research proposal describes what you will investigate, why it’s important, and how you will conduct your research.

The format of a research proposal varies between fields, but most proposals will contain at least these elements:

Introduction

Literature review.

• Research design

Reference list

While the sections may vary, the overall objective is always the same. A research proposal serves as a blueprint and guide for your research plan, helping you get organised and feel confident in the path forward you choose to take.

Table of contents

Research proposal purpose, research proposal examples, research design and methods, contribution to knowledge, research schedule, frequently asked questions.

Academics often have to write research proposals to get funding for their projects. As a student, you might have to write a research proposal as part of a grad school application , or prior to starting your thesis or dissertation .

In addition to helping you figure out what your research can look like, a proposal can also serve to demonstrate why your project is worth pursuing to a funder, educational institution, or supervisor.

Research proposal length

The length of a research proposal can vary quite a bit. A bachelor’s or master’s thesis proposal can be just a few pages, while proposals for PhD dissertations or research funding are usually much longer and more detailed. Your supervisor can help you determine the best length for your work.

One trick to get started is to think of your proposal’s structure as a shorter version of your thesis or dissertation , only without the results , conclusion and discussion sections.

Download our research proposal template

Prevent plagiarism, run a free check.

Writing a research proposal can be quite challenging, but a good starting point could be to look at some examples. We’ve included a few for you below.

• Example research proposal #1: ‘A Conceptual Framework for Scheduling Constraint Management’
• Example research proposal #2: ‘ Medical Students as Mediators of Change in Tobacco Use’

Like your dissertation or thesis, the proposal will usually have a title page that includes:

• The proposed title of your project
• Your supervisor’s name
• Your institution and department

The first part of your proposal is the initial pitch for your project. Make sure it succinctly explains what you want to do and why.

Your introduction should:

• Introduce your topic
• Give necessary background and context
• Outline your  problem statement  and research questions

To guide your introduction , include information about:

• Who could have an interest in the topic (e.g., scientists, policymakers)
• How much is already known about the topic
• What is missing from this current knowledge
• What new insights your research will contribute
• Why you believe this research is worth doing

As you get started, it’s important to demonstrate that you’re familiar with the most important research on your topic. A strong literature review  shows your reader that your project has a solid foundation in existing knowledge or theory. It also shows that you’re not simply repeating what other people have already done or said, but rather using existing research as a jumping-off point for your own.

In this section, share exactly how your project will contribute to ongoing conversations in the field by:

• Comparing and contrasting the main theories, methods, and debates
• Examining the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches
• Explaining how will you build on, challenge, or synthesise prior scholarship

Following the literature review, restate your main  objectives . This brings the focus back to your own project. Next, your research design or methodology section will describe your overall approach, and the practical steps you will take to answer your research questions.

To finish your proposal on a strong note, explore the potential implications of your research for your field. Emphasise again what you aim to contribute and why it matters.

For example, your results might have implications for:

• Improving best practices
• Informing policymaking decisions
• Strengthening a theory or model
• Challenging popular or scientific beliefs
• Creating a basis for future research

Last but not least, your research proposal must include correct citations for every source you have used, compiled in a reference list . To create citations quickly and easily, you can use our free APA citation generator .

Some institutions or funders require a detailed timeline of the project, asking you to forecast what you will do at each stage and how long it may take. While not always required, be sure to check the requirements of your project.

Here’s an example schedule to help you get started. You can also download a template at the button below.

Download our research schedule template

If you are applying for research funding, chances are you will have to include a detailed budget. This shows your estimates of how much each part of your project will cost.

Make sure to check what type of costs the funding body will agree to cover. For each item, include:

• Cost : exactly how much money do you need?
• Justification : why is this cost necessary to complete the research?
• Source : how did you calculate the amount?

To determine your budget, think about:

• Travel costs : do you need to go somewhere to collect your data? How will you get there, and how much time will you need? What will you do there (e.g., interviews, archival research)?
• Materials : do you need access to any tools or technologies?
• Help : do you need to hire any research assistants for the project? What will they do, and how much will you pay them?

Once you’ve decided on your research objectives , you need to explain them in your paper, at the end of your problem statement.

Keep your research objectives clear and concise, and use appropriate verbs to accurately convey the work that you will carry out for each one.

I will compare …

A research aim is a broad statement indicating the general purpose of your research project. It should appear in your introduction at the end of your problem statement , before your research objectives.

Research objectives are more specific than your research aim. They indicate the specific ways you’ll address the overarching aim.

A PhD, which is short for philosophiae doctor (doctor of philosophy in Latin), is the highest university degree that can be obtained. In a PhD, students spend 3–5 years writing a dissertation , which aims to make a significant, original contribution to current knowledge.

A PhD is intended to prepare students for a career as a researcher, whether that be in academia, the public sector, or the private sector.

A master’s is a 1- or 2-year graduate degree that can prepare you for a variety of careers.

All master’s involve graduate-level coursework. Some are research-intensive and intend to prepare students for further study in a PhD; these usually require their students to write a master’s thesis . Others focus on professional training for a specific career.

Critical thinking refers to the ability to evaluate information and to be aware of biases or assumptions, including your own.

Like information literacy , it involves evaluating arguments, identifying and solving problems in an objective and systematic way, and clearly communicating your ideas.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

McCombes, S. & George, T. (2023, June 13). How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates. Scribbr. Retrieved 18 June 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/the-research-process/research-proposal-explained/

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The goal of a research proposal is twofold: to present and justify the need to study a research problem and to present the practical ways in which the proposed study should be conducted. The design elements and procedures for conducting research are governed by standards of the predominant discipline in which the problem resides, therefore, the guidelines for research proposals are more exacting and less formal than a general project proposal. Research proposals contain extensive literature reviews. They must provide persuasive evidence that a need exists for the proposed study. In addition to providing a rationale, a proposal describes detailed methodology for conducting the research consistent with requirements of the professional or academic field and a statement on anticipated outcomes and benefits derived from the study's completion.

Krathwohl, David R. How to Prepare a Dissertation Proposal: Suggestions for Students in Education and the Social and Behavioral Sciences . Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 2005.

How to Approach Writing a Research Proposal

Your professor may assign the task of writing a research proposal for the following reasons:

• Develop your skills in thinking about and designing a comprehensive research study;
• Learn how to conduct a comprehensive review of the literature to determine that the research problem has not been adequately addressed or has been answered ineffectively and, in so doing, become better at locating pertinent scholarship related to your topic;
• Improve your general research and writing skills;
• Practice identifying the logical steps that must be taken to accomplish one's research goals;
• Critically review, examine, and consider the use of different methods for gathering and analyzing data related to the research problem; and,
• Nurture a sense of inquisitiveness within yourself and to help see yourself as an active participant in the process of conducting scholarly research.

A proposal should contain all the key elements involved in designing a completed research study, with sufficient information that allows readers to assess the validity and usefulness of your proposed study. The only elements missing from a research proposal are the findings of the study and your analysis of those findings. Finally, an effective proposal is judged on the quality of your writing and, therefore, it is important that your proposal is coherent, clear, and compelling.

Regardless of the research problem you are investigating and the methodology you choose, all research proposals must address the following questions:

• What do you plan to accomplish? Be clear and succinct in defining the research problem and what it is you are proposing to investigate.
• Why do you want to do the research? In addition to detailing your research design, you also must conduct a thorough review of the literature and provide convincing evidence that it is a topic worthy of in-depth study. A successful research proposal must answer the "So What?" question.
• How are you going to conduct the research? Be sure that what you propose is doable. If you're having difficulty formulating a research problem to propose investigating, go here for strategies in developing a problem to study.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Failure to be concise . A research proposal must be focused and not be "all over the map" or diverge into unrelated tangents without a clear sense of purpose.
• Failure to cite landmark works in your literature review . Proposals should be grounded in foundational research that lays a foundation for understanding the development and scope of the the topic and its relevance.
• Failure to delimit the contextual scope of your research [e.g., time, place, people, etc.]. As with any research paper, your proposed study must inform the reader how and in what ways the study will frame the problem.
• Failure to develop a coherent and persuasive argument for the proposed research . This is critical. In many workplace settings, the research proposal is a formal document intended to argue for why a study should be funded.
• Sloppy or imprecise writing, or poor grammar . Although a research proposal does not represent a completed research study, there is still an expectation that it is well-written and follows the style and rules of good academic writing.
• Too much detail on minor issues, but not enough detail on major issues . Your proposal should focus on only a few key research questions in order to support the argument that the research needs to be conducted. Minor issues, even if valid, can be mentioned but they should not dominate the overall narrative.

Procter, Margaret. The Academic Proposal.  The Lab Report. University College Writing Centre. University of Toronto; Sanford, Keith. Information for Students: Writing a Research Proposal. Baylor University; Wong, Paul T. P. How to Write a Research Proposal. International Network on Personal Meaning. Trinity Western University; Writing Academic Proposals: Conferences, Articles, and Books. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Writing a Research Proposal. University Library. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Structure and Writing Style

Beginning the Proposal Process

As with writing most college-level academic papers, research proposals are generally organized the same way throughout most social science disciplines. The text of proposals generally vary in length between ten and thirty-five pages, followed by the list of references. However, before you begin, read the assignment carefully and, if anything seems unclear, ask your professor whether there are any specific requirements for organizing and writing the proposal.

A good place to begin is to ask yourself a series of questions:

• What do I want to study?
• Why is the topic important?
• How is it significant within the subject areas covered in my class?
• What problems will it help solve?
• How does it build upon [and hopefully go beyond] research already conducted on the topic?
• What exactly should I plan to do, and can I get it done in the time available?

In general, a compelling research proposal should document your knowledge of the topic and demonstrate your enthusiasm for conducting the study. Approach it with the intention of leaving your readers feeling like, "Wow, that's an exciting idea and I can’t wait to see how it turns out!"

Most proposals should include the following sections:

I.  Introduction

In the real world of higher education, a research proposal is most often written by scholars seeking grant funding for a research project or it's the first step in getting approval to write a doctoral dissertation. Even if this is just a course assignment, treat your introduction as the initial pitch of an idea based on a thorough examination of the significance of a research problem. After reading the introduction, your readers should not only have an understanding of what you want to do, but they should also be able to gain a sense of your passion for the topic and to be excited about the study's possible outcomes. Note that most proposals do not include an abstract [summary] before the introduction.

Think about your introduction as a narrative written in two to four paragraphs that succinctly answers the following four questions :

• What is the central research problem?
• What is the topic of study related to that research problem?
• What methods should be used to analyze the research problem?
• Answer the "So What?" question by explaining why this is important research, what is its significance, and why should someone reading the proposal care about the outcomes of the proposed study?

II.  Background and Significance

This is where you explain the scope and context of your proposal and describe in detail why it's important. It can be melded into your introduction or you can create a separate section to help with the organization and narrative flow of your proposal. Approach writing this section with the thought that you can’t assume your readers will know as much about the research problem as you do. Note that this section is not an essay going over everything you have learned about the topic; instead, you must choose what is most relevant in explaining the aims of your research.

To that end, while there are no prescribed rules for establishing the significance of your proposed study, you should attempt to address some or all of the following:

• State the research problem and give a more detailed explanation about the purpose of the study than what you stated in the introduction. This is particularly important if the problem is complex or multifaceted .
• Present the rationale of your proposed study and clearly indicate why it is worth doing; be sure to answer the "So What? question [i.e., why should anyone care?].
• Describe the major issues or problems examined by your research. This can be in the form of questions to be addressed. Be sure to note how your proposed study builds on previous assumptions about the research problem.
• Explain the methods you plan to use for conducting your research. Clearly identify the key sources you intend to use and explain how they will contribute to your analysis of the topic.
• Describe the boundaries of your proposed research in order to provide a clear focus. Where appropriate, state not only what you plan to study, but what aspects of the research problem will be excluded from the study.
• If necessary, provide definitions of key concepts, theories, or terms.

III.  Literature Review

Connected to the background and significance of your study is a section of your proposal devoted to a more deliberate review and synthesis of prior studies related to the research problem under investigation . The purpose here is to place your project within the larger whole of what is currently being explored, while at the same time, demonstrating to your readers that your work is original and innovative. Think about what questions other researchers have asked, what methodological approaches they have used, and what is your understanding of their findings and, when stated, their recommendations. Also pay attention to any suggestions for further research.

Since a literature review is information dense, it is crucial that this section is intelligently structured to enable a reader to grasp the key arguments underpinning your proposed study in relation to the arguments put forth by other researchers. A good strategy is to break the literature into "conceptual categories" [themes] rather than systematically or chronologically describing groups of materials one at a time. Note that conceptual categories generally reveal themselves after you have read most of the pertinent literature on your topic so adding new categories is an on-going process of discovery as you review more studies. How do you know you've covered the key conceptual categories underlying the research literature? Generally, you can have confidence that all of the significant conceptual categories have been identified if you start to see repetition in the conclusions or recommendations that are being made.

NOTE: Do not shy away from challenging the conclusions made in prior research as a basis for supporting the need for your proposal. Assess what you believe is missing and state how previous research has failed to adequately examine the issue that your study addresses. Highlighting the problematic conclusions strengthens your proposal. For more information on writing literature reviews, GO HERE .

To help frame your proposal's review of prior research, consider the "five C’s" of writing a literature review:

• Cite , so as to keep the primary focus on the literature pertinent to your research problem.
• Compare the various arguments, theories, methodologies, and findings expressed in the literature: what do the authors agree on? Who applies similar approaches to analyzing the research problem?
• Contrast the various arguments, themes, methodologies, approaches, and controversies expressed in the literature: describe what are the major areas of disagreement, controversy, or debate among scholars?
• Critique the literature: Which arguments are more persuasive, and why? Which approaches, findings, and methodologies seem most reliable, valid, or appropriate, and why? Pay attention to the verbs you use to describe what an author says/does [e.g., asserts, demonstrates, argues, etc.].
• Connect the literature to your own area of research and investigation: how does your own work draw upon, depart from, synthesize, or add a new perspective to what has been said in the literature?

IV.  Research Design and Methods

This section must be well-written and logically organized because you are not actually doing the research, yet, your reader must have confidence that you have a plan worth pursuing . The reader will never have a study outcome from which to evaluate whether your methodological choices were the correct ones. Thus, the objective here is to convince the reader that your overall research design and proposed methods of analysis will correctly address the problem and that the methods will provide the means to effectively interpret the potential results. Your design and methods should be unmistakably tied to the specific aims of your study.

Describe the overall research design by building upon and drawing examples from your review of the literature. Consider not only methods that other researchers have used, but methods of data gathering that have not been used but perhaps could be. Be specific about the methodological approaches you plan to undertake to obtain information, the techniques you would use to analyze the data, and the tests of external validity to which you commit yourself [i.e., the trustworthiness by which you can generalize from your study to other people, places, events, and/or periods of time].

When describing the methods you will use, be sure to cover the following:

• Specify the research process you will undertake and the way you will interpret the results obtained in relation to the research problem. Don't just describe what you intend to achieve from applying the methods you choose, but state how you will spend your time while applying these methods [e.g., coding text from interviews to find statements about the need to change school curriculum; running a regression to determine if there is a relationship between campaign advertising on social media sites and election outcomes in Europe ].
• Keep in mind that the methodology is not just a list of tasks; it is a deliberate argument as to why techniques for gathering information add up to the best way to investigate the research problem. This is an important point because the mere listing of tasks to be performed does not demonstrate that, collectively, they effectively address the research problem. Be sure you clearly explain this.
• Anticipate and acknowledge any potential barriers and pitfalls in carrying out your research design and explain how you plan to address them. No method applied to research in the social and behavioral sciences is perfect, so you need to describe where you believe challenges may exist in obtaining data or accessing information. It's always better to acknowledge this than to have it brought up by your professor!

V.  Preliminary Suppositions and Implications

Just because you don't have to actually conduct the study and analyze the results, doesn't mean you can skip talking about the analytical process and potential implications . The purpose of this section is to argue how and in what ways you believe your research will refine, revise, or extend existing knowledge in the subject area under investigation. Depending on the aims and objectives of your study, describe how the anticipated results will impact future scholarly research, theory, practice, forms of interventions, or policy making. Note that such discussions may have either substantive [a potential new policy], theoretical [a potential new understanding], or methodological [a potential new way of analyzing] significance.   When thinking about the potential implications of your study, ask the following questions:

• What might the results mean in regards to challenging the theoretical framework and underlying assumptions that support the study?
• What suggestions for subsequent research could arise from the potential outcomes of the study?
• What will the results mean to practitioners in the natural settings of their workplace, organization, or community?
• Will the results influence programs, methods, and/or forms of intervention?
• How might the results contribute to the solution of social, economic, or other types of problems?
• Will the results influence policy decisions?
• In what way do individuals or groups benefit should your study be pursued?
• What will be improved or changed as a result of the proposed research?
• How will the results of the study be implemented and what innovations or transformative insights could emerge from the process of implementation?

NOTE:   This section should not delve into idle speculation, opinion, or be formulated on the basis of unclear evidence . The purpose is to reflect upon gaps or understudied areas of the current literature and describe how your proposed research contributes to a new understanding of the research problem should the study be implemented as designed.

ANOTHER NOTE : This section is also where you describe any potential limitations to your proposed study. While it is impossible to highlight all potential limitations because the study has yet to be conducted, you still must tell the reader where and in what form impediments may arise and how you plan to address them.

VI.  Conclusion

The conclusion reiterates the importance or significance of your proposal and provides a brief summary of the entire study . This section should be only one or two paragraphs long, emphasizing why the research problem is worth investigating, why your research study is unique, and how it should advance existing knowledge.

Someone reading this section should come away with an understanding of:

• Why the study should be done;
• The specific purpose of the study and the research questions it attempts to answer;
• The decision for why the research design and methods used where chosen over other options;
• The potential implications emerging from your proposed study of the research problem; and
• A sense of how your study fits within the broader scholarship about the research problem.

VII.  Citations

As with any scholarly research paper, you must cite the sources you used . In a standard research proposal, this section can take two forms, so consult with your professor about which one is preferred.

• References -- a list of only the sources you actually used in creating your proposal.
• Bibliography -- a list of everything you used in creating your proposal, along with additional citations to any key sources relevant to understanding the research problem.

In either case, this section should testify to the fact that you did enough preparatory work to ensure the project will complement and not just duplicate the efforts of other researchers. It demonstrates to the reader that you have a thorough understanding of prior research on the topic.

Most proposal formats have you start a new page and use the heading "References" or "Bibliography" centered at the top of the page. Cited works should always use a standard format that follows the writing style advised by the discipline of your course [e.g., education=APA; history=Chicago] or that is preferred by your professor. This section normally does not count towards the total page length of your research proposal.

Develop a Research Proposal: Writing the Proposal. Office of Library Information Services. Baltimore County Public Schools; Heath, M. Teresa Pereira and Caroline Tynan. “Crafting a Research Proposal.” The Marketing Review 10 (Summer 2010): 147-168; Jones, Mark. “Writing a Research Proposal.” In MasterClass in Geography Education: Transforming Teaching and Learning . Graham Butt, editor. (New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2015), pp. 113-127; Juni, Muhamad Hanafiah. “Writing a Research Proposal.” International Journal of Public Health and Clinical Sciences 1 (September/October 2014): 229-240; Krathwohl, David R. How to Prepare a Dissertation Proposal: Suggestions for Students in Education and the Social and Behavioral Sciences . Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 2005; Procter, Margaret. The Academic Proposal. The Lab Report. University College Writing Centre. University of Toronto; Punch, Keith and Wayne McGowan. "Developing and Writing a Research Proposal." In From Postgraduate to Social Scientist: A Guide to Key Skills . Nigel Gilbert, ed. (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2006), 59-81; Wong, Paul T. P. How to Write a Research Proposal. International Network on Personal Meaning. Trinity Western University; Writing Academic Proposals: Conferences , Articles, and Books. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Writing a Research Proposal. University Library. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

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9 Components of a Research Proposal

A research proposal can be divided into many different steps but all of these configurations serve to demonstrate two qualities to your reader: that (1) there is an important question which needs answering; and (2) you have the capacity to answer that question. All the steps of a proposal must serve either or both of these goals (Wong, n.d.).

Before we delve into the substantive details of the research proposal, we want to briefly discuss two often overlooked components: title page and abstract. The first component of presenting a topic is developing a title page that accurately reflects your topic. Make sure that your title highlights the focus of your study and the expected outcomes (e.g., do you expect to discover lessons, insights, implementation strategies, improved understandings etc.). It is best to keep your title short (usually no more than two lines) and specific to your research concerns. For more tips on writing effective titles, see Hartley (2017). Apart from the actual words in your title, you should ensure that your title page aligns with the referencing style used in the rest of the proposal (e.g., check out APA convention on title pages). Regardless of the referencing style used, a good title page usually has the following information: title of the proposal, author’s name, institution and/department, program/course and the date. Including a running header and page number are optional.

Hartley, J. (2007). There‘s more to the title than meets the eye: Exploring the possibilities. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication , 37(1), 95-101. https://doi.org/10.2190/BJ16-8385-7Q73-1162

Wong, Paul T. P. (n.d.). How to Write a Research Proposal . Meaning.ca. http://www.meaning.ca/archives/archive/art_how_to_write_P_Wong.htm

Practicing and Presenting Social Research Copyright © 2022 by Oral Robinson and Alexander Wilson is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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11.2 Steps in Developing a Research Proposal

Learning objectives.

• Identify the steps in developing a research proposal.
• Choose a topic and formulate a research question and working thesis.
• Develop a research proposal.

Writing a good research paper takes time, thought, and effort. Although this assignment is challenging, it is manageable. Focusing on one step at a time will help you develop a thoughtful, informative, well-supported research paper.

Your first step is to choose a topic and then to develop research questions, a working thesis, and a written research proposal. Set aside adequate time for this part of the process. Fully exploring ideas will help you build a solid foundation for your paper.

Choosing a Topic

When you choose a topic for a research paper, you are making a major commitment. Your choice will help determine whether you enjoy the lengthy process of research and writing—and whether your final paper fulfills the assignment requirements. If you choose your topic hastily, you may later find it difficult to work with your topic. By taking your time and choosing carefully, you can ensure that this assignment is not only challenging but also rewarding.

Writers understand the importance of choosing a topic that fulfills the assignment requirements and fits the assignment’s purpose and audience. (For more information about purpose and audience, see Chapter 6 “Writing Paragraphs: Separating Ideas and Shaping Content” .) Choosing a topic that interests you is also crucial. You instructor may provide a list of suggested topics or ask that you develop a topic on your own. In either case, try to identify topics that genuinely interest you.

After identifying potential topic ideas, you will need to evaluate your ideas and choose one topic to pursue. Will you be able to find enough information about the topic? Can you develop a paper about this topic that presents and supports your original ideas? Is the topic too broad or too narrow for the scope of the assignment? If so, can you modify it so it is more manageable? You will ask these questions during this preliminary phase of the research process.

Identifying Potential Topics

Sometimes, your instructor may provide a list of suggested topics. If so, you may benefit from identifying several possibilities before committing to one idea. It is important to know how to narrow down your ideas into a concise, manageable thesis. You may also use the list as a starting point to help you identify additional, related topics. Discussing your ideas with your instructor will help ensure that you choose a manageable topic that fits the requirements of the assignment.

In this chapter, you will follow a writer named Jorge, who is studying health care administration, as he prepares a research paper. You will also plan, research, and draft your own research paper.

Jorge was assigned to write a research paper on health and the media for an introductory course in health care. Although a general topic was selected for the students, Jorge had to decide which specific issues interested him. He brainstormed a list of possibilities.

If you are writing a research paper for a specialized course, look back through your notes and course activities. Identify reading assignments and class discussions that especially engaged you. Doing so can help you identify topics to pursue.

• Health Maintenance Organizations (HMOs) in the news
• Sexual education programs
• Hollywood and eating disorders
• Americans’ access to public health information
• Media portrayal of health care reform bill
• Depictions of drugs on television
• The effect of the Internet on mental health
• Popularized diets (such as low-carbohydrate diets)
• Fear of pandemics (bird flu, HINI, SARS)
• Electronic entertainment and obesity
• Advertisements for prescription drugs
• Public education and disease prevention

Set a timer for five minutes. Use brainstorming or idea mapping to create a list of topics you would be interested in researching for a paper about the influence of the Internet on social networking. Do you closely follow the media coverage of a particular website, such as Twitter? Would you like to learn more about a certain industry, such as online dating? Which social networking sites do you and your friends use? List as many ideas related to this topic as you can.

Narrowing Your Topic

Once you have a list of potential topics, you will need to choose one as the focus of your essay. You will also need to narrow your topic. Most writers find that the topics they listed during brainstorming or idea mapping are broad—too broad for the scope of the assignment. Working with an overly broad topic, such as sexual education programs or popularized diets, can be frustrating and overwhelming. Each topic has so many facets that it would be impossible to cover them all in a college research paper. However, more specific choices, such as the pros and cons of sexual education in kids’ television programs or the physical effects of the South Beach diet, are specific enough to write about without being too narrow to sustain an entire research paper.

A good research paper provides focused, in-depth information and analysis. If your topic is too broad, you will find it difficult to do more than skim the surface when you research it and write about it. Narrowing your focus is essential to making your topic manageable. To narrow your focus, explore your topic in writing, conduct preliminary research, and discuss both the topic and the research with others.

Exploring Your Topic in Writing

“How am I supposed to narrow my topic when I haven’t even begun researching yet?” In fact, you may already know more than you realize. Review your list and identify your top two or three topics. Set aside some time to explore each one through freewriting. (For more information about freewriting, see Chapter 8 “The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?” .) Simply taking the time to focus on your topic may yield fresh angles.

Jorge knew that he was especially interested in the topic of diet fads, but he also knew that it was much too broad for his assignment. He used freewriting to explore his thoughts so he could narrow his topic. Read Jorge’s ideas.

Conducting Preliminary Research

Another way writers may focus a topic is to conduct preliminary research . Like freewriting, exploratory reading can help you identify interesting angles. Surfing the web and browsing through newspaper and magazine articles are good ways to start. Find out what people are saying about your topic on blogs and online discussion groups. Discussing your topic with others can also inspire you. Talk about your ideas with your classmates, your friends, or your instructor.

Jorge’s freewriting exercise helped him realize that the assigned topic of health and the media intersected with a few of his interests—diet, nutrition, and obesity. Preliminary online research and discussions with his classmates strengthened his impression that many people are confused or misled by media coverage of these subjects.

Jorge decided to focus his paper on a topic that had garnered a great deal of media attention—low-carbohydrate diets. He wanted to find out whether low-carbohydrate diets were as effective as their proponents claimed.

Writing at Work

At work, you may need to research a topic quickly to find general information. This information can be useful in understanding trends in a given industry or generating competition. For example, a company may research a competitor’s prices and use the information when pricing their own product. You may find it useful to skim a variety of reliable sources and take notes on your findings.

The reliability of online sources varies greatly. In this exploratory phase of your research, you do not need to evaluate sources as closely as you will later. However, use common sense as you refine your paper topic. If you read a fascinating blog comment that gives you a new idea for your paper, be sure to check out other, more reliable sources as well to make sure the idea is worth pursuing.

Review the list of topics you created in Note 11.18 “Exercise 1” and identify two or three topics you would like to explore further. For each of these topics, spend five to ten minutes writing about the topic without stopping. Then review your writing to identify possible areas of focus.

Set aside time to conduct preliminary research about your potential topics. Then choose a topic to pursue for your research paper.

Collaboration

Please share your topic list with a classmate. Select one or two topics on his or her list that you would like to learn more about and return it to him or her. Discuss why you found the topics interesting, and learn which of your topics your classmate selected and why.

A Plan for Research

Your freewriting and preliminary research have helped you choose a focused, manageable topic for your research paper. To work with your topic successfully, you will need to determine what exactly you want to learn about it—and later, what you want to say about it. Before you begin conducting in-depth research, you will further define your focus by developing a research question , a working thesis, and a research proposal.

Formulating a Research Question

In forming a research question, you are setting a goal for your research. Your main research question should be substantial enough to form the guiding principle of your paper—but focused enough to guide your research. A strong research question requires you not only to find information but also to put together different pieces of information, interpret and analyze them, and figure out what you think. As you consider potential research questions, ask yourself whether they would be too hard or too easy to answer.

To determine your research question, review the freewriting you completed earlier. Skim through books, articles, and websites and list the questions you have. (You may wish to use the 5WH strategy to help you formulate questions. See Chapter 8 “The Writing Process: How Do I Begin?” for more information about 5WH questions.) Include simple, factual questions and more complex questions that would require analysis and interpretation. Determine your main question—the primary focus of your paper—and several subquestions that you will need to research to answer your main question.

Here are the research questions Jorge will use to focus his research. Notice that his main research question has no obvious, straightforward answer. Jorge will need to research his subquestions, which address narrower topics, to answer his main question.

Using the topic you selected in Note 11.24 “Exercise 2” , write your main research question and at least four to five subquestions. Check that your main research question is appropriately complex for your assignment.

Constructing a Working ThesIs

A working thesis concisely states a writer’s initial answer to the main research question. It does not merely state a fact or present a subjective opinion. Instead, it expresses a debatable idea or claim that you hope to prove through additional research. Your working thesis is called a working thesis for a reason—it is subject to change. As you learn more about your topic, you may change your thinking in light of your research findings. Let your working thesis serve as a guide to your research, but do not be afraid to modify it based on what you learn.

Jorge began his research with a strong point of view based on his preliminary writing and research. Read his working thesis statement, which presents the point he will argue. Notice how it states Jorge’s tentative answer to his research question.

One way to determine your working thesis is to consider how you would complete sentences such as I believe or My opinion is . However, keep in mind that academic writing generally does not use first-person pronouns. These statements are useful starting points, but formal research papers use an objective voice.

Write a working thesis statement that presents your preliminary answer to the research question you wrote in Note 11.27 “Exercise 3” . Check that your working thesis statement presents an idea or claim that could be supported or refuted by evidence from research.

Creating a Research Proposal

A research proposal is a brief document—no more than one typed page—that summarizes the preliminary work you have completed. Your purpose in writing it is to formalize your plan for research and present it to your instructor for feedback. In your research proposal, you will present your main research question, related subquestions, and working thesis. You will also briefly discuss the value of researching this topic and indicate how you plan to gather information.

When Jorge began drafting his research proposal, he realized that he had already created most of the pieces he needed. However, he knew he also had to explain how his research would be relevant to other future health care professionals. In addition, he wanted to form a general plan for doing the research and identifying potentially useful sources. Read Jorge’s research proposal.

Before you begin a new project at work, you may have to develop a project summary document that states the purpose of the project, explains why it would be a wise use of company resources, and briefly outlines the steps involved in completing the project. This type of document is similar to a research proposal. Both documents define and limit a project, explain its value, discuss how to proceed, and identify what resources you will use.

Writing Your Own Research Proposal

Now you may write your own research proposal, if you have not done so already. Follow the guidelines provided in this lesson.

Key Takeaways

• Developing a research proposal involves the following preliminary steps: identifying potential ideas, choosing ideas to explore further, choosing and narrowing a topic, formulating a research question, and developing a working thesis.
• A good topic for a research paper interests the writer and fulfills the requirements of the assignment.
• Defining and narrowing a topic helps writers conduct focused, in-depth research.
• Writers conduct preliminary research to identify possible topics and research questions and to develop a working thesis.
• A good research question interests readers, is neither too broad nor too narrow, and has no obvious answer.
• A good working thesis expresses a debatable idea or claim that can be supported with evidence from research.
• Writers create a research proposal to present their topic, main research question, subquestions, and working thesis to an instructor for approval or feedback.

Writing for Success Copyright © 2015 by University of Minnesota is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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2.2: Components of a Research Proposal

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A research proposal can be divided into many different steps but all of these configurations serve to demonstrate two qualities to your reader: that (1) there is an important question which needs answering; and (2) you have the capacity to answer that question. All the steps of a proposal must serve either or both of these goals (Wong, n.d.).

Before we delve into the substantive details of the research proposal, we want to briefly discuss two often overlooked components: title page and abstract. The first component of presenting a topic is developing a title page that accurately reflects your topic. Make sure that your title highlights the focus of your study and the expected outcomes (e.g., do you expect to discover lessons, insights, implementation strategies, improved understandings etc.). It is best to keep your title short (usually no more than two lines) and specific to your research concerns. For more tips on writing effective titles, see Hartley (2017). Apart from the actual words in your title, you should ensure that your title page aligns with the referencing style used in the rest of the proposal (e.g., check out APA convention on title pages). Regardless of the referencing style used, a good title page usually has the following information: title of the proposal, author’s name, institution and/department, program/course and the date. Including a running header and page number are optional.

Hartley, J. (2007). There‘s more to the title than meets the eye: Exploring the possibilities. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication , 37(1), 95-101. https://doi.org/10.2190/BJ16-8385-7Q73-1162

Wong, Paul T. P. (n.d.). How to Write a Research Proposal . Meaning.ca. http://www.meaning.ca/archives/archive/art_how_to_write_P_Wong.htm

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What Are The Elements Of A Good Research Proposal?

by  Antony W

March 10, 2023

The key to writing a great research proposal for your upcoming research project is to make sure the document has the right structure.

Your paper must include all the components that your professor expects to see. So in this guide, we’ll outline all the elements of a good research proposal and explain why they’re important.

The elements of a good research proposal are the title, the introduction, literature review, aims and objectives, methodology, scope of the research, outline and timetable, and bibliography.

It’s important to include these elements in your research proposal exactly in the order in which they appear in the list above.

Why The Key Elements Of A Research Proposal Matter

The basic elements of a research proposal are important because they communicate your thought process, present the originality of your ideas, and demonstrate that you’re passionate about the subject in question.

If you structure and write your research proposal well, your paper can convince your professor that your project is feasible and you have what it takes to take   your research project to the next level.

Have no time to read this guide and would rather get quick writing help? Let us write your research proposal for you! 

7 Key Elements of a Research Proposal 

While developing a detailed and comprehensive research proposal requires a lot of planning, attention to details, and academic writing skills , understanding the core elements of the paper is the first step to getting your proposal accepted.

So here are the elements that you should include in your research proposal.

It sounds somewhat obvious when we say that your research proposal with a title. To say the least, you already know you should.

But perhaps the most common mistake that many students make is to write general titles that lack focus.

Instead of writing a long title that’s hard to read or a short title that fails to highlight the theme of your research, write a clear and concise headline that tells your reader what your research proposal is about at a first glance.

2. Introduction

The starting paragraph to a research project is one of the elements of a good research proposal because it introduces the subject you wish to address or a research problem you wish to analyze.

Because the introduction of a research proposal is what sets the tone for the rest of the paper, it’s important to start with a hook and then organize your thoughts in a logical and organized manner.

The introduction to your research proposal should give background information and explain why you believe a research question is worth exploring. While not mandatory, you can briefly describe your methodologies in the introduction and then expand them later on.

Your introduction should be clear and concise. Make sure you include only the most relevant information in this section so you don’t make it unnecessarily too long.

3. Literature Review

Although a research proposal doesn’t include a full literature review , it’s important to include an overview of the most significant studies in your field.

The section should feature evidence and statistical data to demonstrate the significance of your research.

Through the literature review, you can easily draw your reader’s attention to existing research, identify gaps in existing studies, and make your reader understand how your proposal will contribute to the already existing research.

4. Aims and Objectives

Aims and objectives are what you wish your research proposal to accomplish. Your aims will be your overall outcome or what you want the research to achieve.

Objectives tend to be narrower and more focused. More often than not, you need to provide an explanation for each of your objectives to show how they will help to meet the aims of your study.

Unless required, you don’t really have to include a hypothesis that your research proposal looks forward to test.

5. Research Methodology

Methodologies are simply the research methods you will use to conduct your study and they must appear in your research proposal whether or not you’re conducting an experimental research.

The methodologies include analysis and sampling techniques equipment, research approaches, and ethical concerns.

Make sure your explanation for each methodology is clear and precise. It helps to justify why you’ve chosen to use a certain methodology over an alternative. This will go a long way to show that you took your time to think about your methodologies before picking them.

It’s important to explain how you will collect data, the sample size you plan to consider for your research investigation, and the techniques you consider the most appropriate to analyze the data.

6. Scope of the Research

Because you’ll be working with limited time and resource, it’s reasonable to include a section on the scope of the research in your proposal. In other words, you have to show your reader that you can start and complete your research within the constraints of these two resources.

Remember, your research will more than likely have limits, and addressing them in this section not only shows that you have given them a thought but also makes your research proposal strong and authentic.

Don’t just focus on the challenges that you’re likely to come across during your studies. You should also propose alternative solutions that you can use and why they might help.

7. Outline and Timetable

Your professor expects to see an outline and a timetable in your research proposal so it’s important that you include them in your research proposal.

The purpose of the outline is to show how you plan to structure your dissertation . Briefly note what each section will cover and explain how it all fits into the argument of your research project.

The purpose of the timetable is to show how much time you’ll need to complete your research. In particular, you need to make sure you mention exactly how long you expect each stage of your study to take.

Don’t just mention how long the research process will take. Make sure you also indicate how long you’ll take to compile your research.

Get Help with Research Proposal Writing

Knowing the elements of a good research proposal is one thing. Writing the proposal is where there’s a lot of work. If you don’t have the time to complete the work yourself, feel free to take advantage of our research proposal writing and get the paper done on time.

About the author 

Antony W is a professional writer and coach at Help for Assessment. He spends countless hours every day researching and writing great content filled with expert advice on how to write engaging essays, research papers, and assignments.

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Home » Research Proposal – Types, Template and Example

Research Proposal – Types, Template and Example

Table of Contents

Research Proposal

Research proposal is a document that outlines a proposed research project . It is typically written by researchers, scholars, or students who intend to conduct research to address a specific research question or problem.

Types of Research Proposal

Research proposals can vary depending on the nature of the research project and the specific requirements of the funding agency, academic institution, or research program. Here are some common types of research proposals:

Academic Research Proposal

This is the most common type of research proposal, which is prepared by students, scholars, or researchers to seek approval and funding for an academic research project. It includes all the essential components mentioned earlier, such as the introduction, literature review , methodology , and expected outcomes.

Grant Proposal

A grant proposal is specifically designed to secure funding from external sources, such as government agencies, foundations, or private organizations. It typically includes additional sections, such as a detailed budget, project timeline, evaluation plan, and a description of the project’s alignment with the funding agency’s priorities and objectives.

Dissertation or Thesis Proposal

Students pursuing a master’s or doctoral degree often need to submit a proposal outlining their intended research for their dissertation or thesis. These proposals are usually more extensive and comprehensive, including an in-depth literature review, theoretical framework, research questions or hypotheses, and a detailed methodology.

Research Project Proposal

This type of proposal is often prepared by researchers or research teams within an organization or institution. It outlines a specific research project that aims to address a particular problem, explore a specific area of interest, or provide insights for decision-making. Research project proposals may include sections on project management, collaboration, and dissemination of results.

Research Fellowship Proposal

Researchers or scholars applying for research fellowships may be required to submit a proposal outlining their proposed research project. These proposals often emphasize the novelty and significance of the research and its alignment with the goals and objectives of the fellowship program.

Collaborative Research Proposal

In cases where researchers from multiple institutions or disciplines collaborate on a research project, a collaborative research proposal is prepared. This proposal highlights the objectives, responsibilities, and contributions of each collaborator, as well as the overall research plan and coordination mechanisms.

Research Proposal Outline

A research proposal typically follows a standard outline that helps structure the document and ensure all essential components are included. While the specific headings and subheadings may vary slightly depending on the requirements of your institution or funding agency, the following outline provides a general structure for a research proposal:

• Title of the research proposal
• Name of the researcher(s) or principal investigator(s)
• Affiliation or institution
• Date of submission
• A concise summary of the research proposal, typically limited to 200-300 words.
• Briefly introduce the research problem or question, state the objectives, summarize the methodology, and highlight the expected outcomes or significance of the research.
• Provide an overview of the subject area and the specific research problem or question.
• Present relevant background information, theories, or concepts to establish the need for the research.
• Clearly state the research objectives or research questions that the study aims to address.
• Indicate the significance or potential contributions of the research.
• Summarize and analyze relevant studies, theories, or scholarly works.
• Identify research gaps or unresolved issues that your study intends to address.
• Highlight the novelty or uniqueness of your research.
• Describe the overall approach or research design that will be used (e.g., experimental, qualitative, quantitative).
• Justify the chosen approach based on the research objectives and question.
• Explain how data will be collected (e.g., surveys, interviews, experiments).
• Describe the sampling strategy and sample size, if applicable.
• Address any ethical considerations related to data collection.
• Outline the data analysis techniques or statistical methods that will be applied.
• Explain how the data will be interpreted and analyzed to answer the research question(s).
• Provide a detailed schedule or timeline that outlines the various stages of the research project.
• Specify the estimated duration for each stage, including data collection, analysis, and report writing.
• State the potential outcomes or results of the research.
• Discuss the potential significance or contributions of the study to the field.
• Address any potential limitations or challenges that may be encountered.
• Identify the resources required to conduct the research, such as funding, equipment, or access to data.
• Specify any collaborations or partnerships necessary for the successful completion of the study.
• Include a list of cited references in the appropriate citation style (e.g., APA, MLA).

———————————————————————————————–

Research Proposal Example Template

Here’s an example of a research proposal to give you an idea of how it can be structured:

Title: The Impact of Social Media on Adolescent Well-being: A Mixed-Methods Study

This research proposal aims to investigate the impact of social media on the well-being of adolescents. The study will employ a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews to gather comprehensive data. The research objectives include examining the relationship between social media use and mental health, exploring the role of peer influence in shaping online behaviors, and identifying strategies for promoting healthy social media use among adolescents. The findings of this study will contribute to the understanding of the effects of social media on adolescent well-being and inform the development of targeted interventions.

1. Introduction

1.1 Background and Context:

Adolescents today are immersed in social media platforms, which have become integral to their daily lives. However, concerns have been raised about the potential negative impact of social media on their well-being, including increased rates of depression, anxiety, and body dissatisfaction. It is crucial to investigate this phenomenon further and understand the underlying mechanisms to develop effective strategies for promoting healthy social media use among adolescents.

1.2 Research Objectives:

The main objectives of this study are:

• To examine the association between social media use and mental health outcomes among adolescents.
• To explore the influence of peer relationships and social comparison on online behaviors.
• To identify strategies and interventions to foster positive social media use and enhance adolescent well-being.

2. Literature Review

Extensive research has been conducted on the impact of social media on adolescents. Existing literature suggests that excessive social media use can contribute to negative outcomes, such as low self-esteem, cyberbullying, and addictive behaviors. However, some studies have also highlighted the positive aspects of social media, such as providing opportunities for self-expression and social support. This study will build upon this literature by incorporating both quantitative and qualitative approaches to gain a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between social media and adolescent well-being.

3. Methodology

3.1 Research Design:

This study will adopt a mixed-methods approach, combining quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews. The quantitative phase will involve administering standardized questionnaires to a representative sample of adolescents to assess their social media use, mental health indicators, and perceived social support. The qualitative phase will include in-depth interviews with a subset of participants to explore their experiences, motivations, and perceptions related to social media use.

3.2 Data Collection Methods:

Quantitative data will be collected through an online survey distributed to schools in the target region. The survey will include validated scales to measure social media use, mental health outcomes, and perceived social support. Qualitative data will be collected through semi-structured interviews with a purposive sample of participants. The interviews will be audio-recorded and transcribed for thematic analysis.

3.3 Data Analysis:

Quantitative data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics and regression analysis to examine the relationships between variables. Qualitative data will be analyzed thematically to identify common themes and patterns within participants’ narratives. Integration of quantitative and qualitative findings will provide a comprehensive understanding of the research questions.

4. Timeline

The research project will be conducted over a period of 12 months, divided into specific phases, including literature review, study design, data collection, analysis, and report writing. A detailed timeline outlining the key milestones and activities is provided in Appendix A.

5. Expected Outcomes and Significance

This study aims to contribute to the existing literature on the impact of social media on adolescent well-being by employing a mixed-methods approach. The findings will inform the development of evidence-based interventions and guidelines to promote healthy social media use among adolescents. This research has the potential to benefit adolescents, parents, educators, and policymakers by providing insights into the complex relationship between social media and well-being and offering strategies for fostering positive online experiences.

6. Resources

The resources required for this research include access to a representative sample of adolescents, research assistants for data collection, statistical software for data analysis, and funding to cover survey administration and participant incentives. Ethical considerations will be taken into account, ensuring participant confidentiality and obtaining informed consent.

7. References

Research Proposal Writing Guide

Writing a research proposal can be a complex task, but with proper guidance and organization, you can create a compelling and well-structured proposal. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you through the process:

• Understand the requirements: Familiarize yourself with the guidelines and requirements provided by your institution, funding agency, or program. Pay attention to formatting, page limits, specific sections or headings, and any other instructions.
• Identify your research topic: Choose a research topic that aligns with your interests, expertise, and the goals of your program or funding opportunity. Ensure that your topic is specific, focused, and relevant to the field of study.
• Conduct a literature review : Review existing literature and research relevant to your topic. Identify key theories, concepts, methodologies, and findings related to your research question. This will help you establish the context, identify research gaps, and demonstrate the significance of your proposed study.
• Define your research objectives and research question(s): Clearly state the objectives you aim to achieve with your research. Formulate research questions that address the gaps identified in the literature review. Your research objectives and questions should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART).
• Develop a research methodology: Determine the most appropriate research design and methodology for your study. Consider whether quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-methods approaches will best address your research question(s). Describe the data collection methods, sampling strategy, data analysis techniques, and any ethical considerations associated with your research.
• Create a research plan and timeline: Outline the various stages of your research project, including tasks, milestones, and deadlines. Develop a realistic timeline that considers factors such as data collection, analysis, and report writing. This plan will help you stay organized and manage your time effectively throughout the research process.
• A. Introduction: Provide background information on the research problem, highlight its significance, and introduce your research objectives and questions.
• B. Literature review: Summarize relevant literature, identify gaps, and justify the need for your proposed research.
• C . Methodology: Describe your research design, data collection methods, sampling strategy, data analysis techniques, and any ethical considerations.
• D . Expected outcomes and significance: Explain the potential outcomes, contributions, and implications of your research.
• E. Resources: Identify the resources required to conduct your research, such as funding, equipment, or access to data.
• F . References: Include a list of cited references in the appropriate citation style.
• Revise and proofread: Review your proposal for clarity, coherence, and logical flow. Check for grammar and spelling errors. Seek feedback from mentors, colleagues, or advisors to refine and improve your proposal.
• Finalize and submit: Make any necessary revisions based on feedback and finalize your research proposal. Ensure that you have met all the requirements and formatting guidelines. Submit your proposal within the specified deadline.

Research Proposal Length

The length of a research proposal can vary depending on the specific guidelines provided by your institution or funding agency. However, research proposals typically range from 1,500 to 3,000 words, excluding references and any additional supporting documents.

Purpose of Research Proposal

The purpose of a research proposal is to outline and communicate your research project to others, such as academic institutions, funding agencies, or potential collaborators. It serves several important purposes:

• Demonstrate the significance of the research: A research proposal explains the importance and relevance of your research project. It outlines the research problem or question, highlights the gaps in existing knowledge, and explains how your study will contribute to the field. By clearly articulating the significance of your research, you can convince others of its value and potential impact.
• Provide a clear research plan: A research proposal outlines the methodology, design, and approach you will use to conduct your study. It describes the research objectives, data collection methods, data analysis techniques, and potential outcomes. By presenting a clear research plan, you demonstrate that your study is well-thought-out, feasible, and likely to produce meaningful results.
• Secure funding or support: For researchers seeking funding or support for their projects, a research proposal is essential. It allows you to make a persuasive case for why your research is deserving of financial resources or institutional backing. The proposal explains the budgetary requirements, resources needed, and potential benefits of the research, helping you secure the necessary funding or support.
• Seek feedback and guidance: Presenting a research proposal provides an opportunity to receive feedback and guidance from experts in your field. It allows you to engage in discussions and receive suggestions for refining your research plan, improving the methodology, or addressing any potential limitations. This feedback can enhance the quality of your study and increase its chances of success.
• Establish ethical considerations: A research proposal also addresses ethical considerations associated with your study. It outlines how you will ensure participant confidentiality, obtain informed consent, and adhere to ethical guidelines and regulations. By demonstrating your awareness and commitment to ethical research practices, you build trust and credibility in your proposed study.

Importance of Research Proposal

The research proposal holds significant importance in the research process. Here are some key reasons why research proposals are important:

• Planning and organization: A research proposal requires careful planning and organization of your research project. It forces you to think through the research objectives, research questions, methodology, and potential outcomes before embarking on the actual study. This planning phase helps you establish a clear direction and framework for your research, ensuring that your efforts are focused and purposeful.
• Demonstrating the significance of the research: A research proposal allows you to articulate the significance and relevance of your study. By providing a thorough literature review and clearly defining the research problem or question, you can showcase the gaps in existing knowledge that your research aims to address. This demonstrates to others, such as funding agencies or academic institutions, why your research is important and deserving of support.
• Obtaining funding and resources: Research proposals are often required to secure funding for your research project. Funding agencies and organizations need to evaluate the feasibility and potential impact of the proposed research before allocating resources. A well-crafted research proposal helps convince funders of the value of your research and increases the likelihood of securing financial support, grants, or scholarships.
• Receiving feedback and guidance: Presenting a research proposal provides an opportunity to seek feedback and guidance from experts in your field. By sharing your research plan and objectives with others, you can benefit from their insights and suggestions. This feedback can help refine your research design, strengthen your methodology, and ensure that your study is rigorous and well-informed.
• Ethical considerations: A research proposal addresses ethical considerations associated with your study. It outlines how you will protect the rights and welfare of participants, maintain confidentiality, obtain informed consent, and adhere to ethical guidelines and regulations. This emphasis on ethical practices ensures that your research is conducted responsibly and with integrity.
• Enhancing collaboration and partnerships: A research proposal can facilitate collaborations and partnerships with other researchers, institutions, or organizations. When presenting your research plan, you may attract the interest of potential collaborators who share similar research interests or possess complementary expertise. Collaborative partnerships can enrich your study, expand your resources, and foster knowledge exchange.
• Establishing a research trajectory: A research proposal serves as a foundation for your research project. Once approved, it becomes a roadmap that guides your study’s implementation, data collection, analysis, and reporting. It helps maintain focus and ensures that your research stays on track and aligned with the initial objectives.

When to Write Research Proposal

The timing of when to write a research proposal can vary depending on the specific requirements and circumstances. However, here are a few common situations when it is appropriate to write a research proposal:

• Academic research: If you are a student pursuing a research degree, such as a Ph.D. or Master’s by research, you will typically be required to write a research proposal as part of the application process. This is usually done before starting the research program to outline your proposed study and seek approval from the academic institution.
• Funding applications: When applying for research grants, scholarships, or funding from organizations or institutions, you will often need to submit a research proposal. Funding agencies require a detailed description of your research project, including its objectives, methodology, and expected outcomes. Writing a research proposal in this context is necessary to secure financial support for your study.
• Research collaborations: When collaborating with other researchers, institutions, or organizations on a research project, it is common to prepare a research proposal. This helps outline the research objectives, roles and responsibilities, and expected contributions from each party. Writing a research proposal in this case allows all collaborators to align their efforts and ensure a shared understanding of the project.
• Research project within an organization: If you are conducting research within an organization, such as a company or government agency, you may be required to write a research proposal to gain approval and support for your study. This proposal outlines the research objectives, methodology, resources needed, and expected outcomes, ensuring that the project aligns with the organization’s goals and objectives.
• Independent research projects: Even if you are not required to write a research proposal, it can still be beneficial to develop one for your independent research projects. Writing a research proposal helps you plan and structure your study, clarify your research objectives, and anticipate potential challenges or limitations. It also allows you to communicate your research plans effectively to supervisors, mentors, or collaborators.

About the author

Muhammad Hassan

Researcher, Academic Writer, Web developer

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Research Proposal: Components, Structure, Sample, Example

A research proposal is prepared to present the conception of a topic and the research design to the authority for acceptance.

Research works are funded by organizations, development agencies, government organizations, or non-government organizations that generally provide funds for the research. Therefore, the topic of the research should serve their purposes.

A research proposal is a communication prepared to convey and convince the fund-giving authority with detailed elements required to conduct research successfully.

Business students are required to submit a research proposal to the MBA Program Director to obtain approval and conduct research based on it.

This is a special type of communication that contains both theory and methodology. All proposals are typed in double space. The following specimen would be followed systematically to make the proposal meaningful.

Research Proposal

What is a research proposal.

Writing a good research proposal is important for undertaking a higher degree by research, applying for a research grant or fund, and getting a scholarship to pursue higher study. Potential supervisors use a thesis or research proposal for a Ph.D. degree to assess the quality and originality of ideas, the researcher’s critical thinking, and the research project’s feasibility.

Research proposals are also used to assess the researcher’s expertise in the area where he/she wants to conduct research. Having decided to pursue a research study, the researcher must develop a written plan or protocol to guide the study. Such a plan is called a research proposal (RP).

A research proposal is an individual’s or research firm’s formal offer to produce a product or render a service to a client in response to a request from the client. A research proposal is a work plan, prospectus, outline, and statement of intent. It is an agreement between a client and a researcher.

When writing a research proposal, keep in mind that it will enter a competition, being read in line with quite a few other proposals. You have to come up with a document that has an impact on the reader.

Therefore, you must write your proposal clearly and well-structured so your message gets across quickly. Your proposal must explain the study’s purpose and the problem’s definition.

It will systematically outline the particular research methodology and detail the procedures followed at each stage of the research process .

Note that a good proposal must communicate to us:

• Why is it important to know what you are proposing to research?
• What information will be obtained to meet your objectives?
• Where will it be obtained?
• How will it be obtained?
• Why will it be obtained?
• What contribution is it going to make?

Because a research proposal is an outlined plan submitted to a client for consideration, it allows the client to assess your seriousness, sincerity, adequacy of your proposed design, the extent of your background information, competence, and commitment to undertaking the study.

The proposal should have sufficient information to convince your readers that you have an important research idea, a good grasp of the relevant literature and the major issues, and that your methodology is sound.

A poorly written or poorly organized proposal damages the researcher’s reputation. Generally, a research proposal should contain all the critical elements involved in the research process and include sufficient information for the readers to evaluate the proposed study.

In writing a good proposal, one needs to follow a step-by-step process. Even after writing a good proposal, procuring funds could take as long as a year. And even a perfectly written proposal might be rejected for several reasons.

A research proposal is of two types: internal and external.

A company’s experienced staff or research department generates an internal proposal to suit their needs. An external proposal is either solicited or unsolicited. A solicited proposal is often made in response to a ‘request for proposal (RFP).’

Such a proposal will likely compete against several others for a contract or grant. An unsolicited proposal is a suggestion by a contract researcher for research that might be done. Such a proposal has the advantage of not competing against others.

For most outside contracts, proposals are usually submitted in response to a request for bid, or an RFP.

An RFP is a formal document issued by a corporate research department, a decision-maker, or some other sponsor to solicit services from researchers.

Proposals are prepared by the terms of reference (TOR) provided by the client or sponsor and included in the RFP. It becomes almost an obligation on the part of the bidder to follow this TOR in preparing the proposal.

Non- compliance with the specification outlined in the TOR may automatically disqualify the proposal.

If, however, the researcher can demonstrate a superior understanding of the problem and convince the sponsor that their knowledge will benefit the study, the conditions laid down in the TOR may be revised accordingly.

If the sponsor finally agrees with the proposal after reviewing it, it is accepted and approved for execution.

Expression of Interest (EOI)

In most instances, clients request the researchers or research firms to express if they are interested in submitting a formal proposal on pre-selected topics or packages.

This is what we call an Expression of Interest or, in short, EOI.

This EOI aims to identify a researcher or research firm capable of doing the job through an evaluation process following the government procurement rule.

The qualified researchers or research firms are then asked to submit their formal proposals in response to a call for RFP adhering to the TOR. An example of an EOI, adapted from NIPORT, is provided here as an illustration.

Evaluation of the EOIs

The following guidelines were followed to evaluate the EOIs and the firm or consultant. In preparing the guidelines, the World Bank’s Employment of Consultants by World Bank Borrowers, May 2004 was used.

As you see, the EOI is a type of pre-proposal designed to make a self-­evaluation of the respective consultant or firm.

If the consultants or firms are confident in their assessment that they can undertake the job, they might submit the EOI for evaluation by the sponsor.

We are now providing below a sample RFP and the corresponding TOR, as prepared by the National Institute of Population Research and Training (NIPORT) in their recent advertisement for contracting out a few research studies.

How to Write a Research Proposal

Generally, a research proposal outlines the proposed area of research. A completed proposal is “the product of a sustained process of planning and designing the research.” The topic of research should match the interests and capabilities of the researcher.

The research proposal also communicates the researcher’s intentions and research plans to those who approve or allocate funds. A research proposal should contain the context and background of the research, develop a research question, and approach it.

In the case of the doctoral research proposal, it must demonstrate originality and significance and explain how it adds to the existing knowledge.

A research proposal should be persuasive to persuade potential supervisors and funders of the importance of the research work.

The length of research proposals may vary. But ideally, a good research proposal should not be more than two thousand words.

A research proposal should contain research questions and address the following: What? How? Why?

• ‘What’ means the area of research that a researcher is investigating. It points to research questions.
• ‘How’ means how the research proposes to answer the research questions.
• ‘Why’ means why the research is important. It indicates the justification, significance, or expected outcome of the research.

A good research proposal should also contain a clear and concise title, problem statement, why the proposed research is significant, and the limitations of the proposed research.

In addition, key terminologies should be well-defined in the research proposal, and hypotheses and assumptions should be clearly stated.

Structure of a Research Proposal

Introduction or background of the research, aims and objectives, justification or rationale or significance of the research, statement of the problem, research questions, scope of the research, methodological approach, expected outcomes, limitations of the research.

The title of a research proposal should be attractive, interesting, and relevant. On the other hand, long and obscure titles should be avoided.

In an introduction, the researcher should create reader interest in the topic, highlight the research problem, place the study within the larger context of the scholarly literature, and reach a specific audience.

The introduction is considered a starting point to persuade, inform, or indicate the reader’s need for the research.

This attempts to convince the reader that the research will be useful, interesting, or significant for the academic community. A well-written introduction is an important way to attract readers and set the context of the proposed research.

A research proposal should state the aims and objectives of the research. The research aims should be clear, succinct, and realistic because these can be achieved in a reasonable time frame.

This part of the research proposal should demonstrate how the proposed research will refine, revise, or extend existing knowledge in the area under investigation.

• What will be improved or changed as a result of the proposed research?
• Is there a gap in knowledge that the proposed research can help fill or a controversy that might help resolve? In what ways will the research fill the knowledge gap?
• How is the proposed research beneficial, and for whom?
• How will it build on the existing body of knowledge? Is the research timely, innovative, or responding to a new trend?
• Is the research project worth doing?
• Is it significant, and will it make an original contribution to knowledge in the chosen field?
• What ethical issues are raised by the proposed approaches, and how will these be addressed?
• Identification of a gap or deficiency in the existing literature is needed for a good research proposal.

To summarize, the research proposal should demonstrate that a researcher is engaged in genuine and worthwhile inquiry. There is a need for significant research that contributes something original to the field.

The research problem statement should demonstrate a problem or unresolved issues that are yet to be resolved or explored. The problem statement should be described clearly to present a context for the study and identify the area to be investigated.

In addition, the statement of the problem should clearly indicate that the researcher has a comprehensive grasp of the field and are aware of important recent substantive and methodological developments.

There is a difference between the research problem and the question.

A research proposal is largely seen as building or constructing the research problem, and the research question is one of the central components of the problem. The central research question is more general in nature, while related or subsidiary questions are more specific.

A research proposal shall carefully delineate the scope of research to be completed within the relevant timeframe.

However, the research proposal is not final as the research work progresses.

The original proposal may be refined and further developed in light of detailed literature reviews; research approaches consideration, and feedback from the supervisors and other academic staff.

Similarly, the initial title can be modified but should be related to the research proposal. A research proposal should demonstrate the researcher’s understanding of the research issues and identify gaps in the research literature.

A research proposal should be persuasive and address a demonstrable gap in the existing literature.

• How will the research aim achieve?
• What methodology will be applied?
• What methodological issues needed to be addressed by this research?

If the proposed research is quantitative, it should mention which data collection method is appropriate and explain the validity and reliability of data gathering. It will also describe how the data will be used to answer the questions.

In empirical research, data should be linked to concepts and concepts to data, and the links between concepts and data should be tight, logical, and consistent.

The research proposal should indicate the time frame of the completion of research, and it should demonstrate that the research can be completed within the expected or reasonable time frame.

For example, providing a timetable or research action plan explains that each chapter or task is completed within a time frame.

A research proposal should provide the anticipated or tentative outcomes of the research. Expected outcomes are general assumptions about the conclusion to be reached in research work.

Limitations refer to limiting conditions or ‘restrictive weaknesses.’ A limitation identifies potential weaknesses of the study. Every research work has some limitations, and they should be mentioned in the proposal.9

The research proposal should be clear regarding the major approach of the research, including conceptual, theoretical, and empirical approaches, and the rationale and significance of the research.

A good proposal should be forward-looking. It should also state how the research will be communicated to the wider community.

However, a research proposal is an evolving document as it can change over time, and the final research proposal is often radically different from the one originally prepared.

11 Components of the Research Proposal

There is no single format for research proposals. This is because every research project is different. Different disciplines, donor agencies, and academic institutions have various forms and requirements.

There are, however, several key components that must be included in every research proposal. The specific research problem will dictate what other sections are required.

Although this delineation is not necessarily final, a project proposal may be structured under the following headings:

• Executive Summary
• Purpose of the Study
• Significance of the Study
• Problem Statement
• Literature Review
• Benefits of the Study
• Research Objectives
• Methodology
• Project Management

Steps in the Development of the Research Proposal

A brief description of each of the steps listed above is provided in the following sub-sections;

1. Executive Summary

This part of the proposal is the most important section of the entire document. Although it usually appears as the first section of the proposal, it is not written until all other sections are completed.

Here you will provide the reader with a snapshot of what is to follow.

Specifically, it summarizes all of the key information and is a sales document designed to convince the reader that the proposed study should be considered for support.

The executive summary should include all the steps to be followed in executing the study in a very brief manner.

This summary should not be overloaded with unnecessary information. There is a wide general agreement on the structure of a “typical” executive summary. Typically, an executive summary will

• possibly be 5-10% or so of the length of the main report
• be written in language appropriate for the target audience
• consist of short and concise paragraphs
• be written in the same order as the main report
• only include materials present in the main report
• have a brief statement of the problem
• be a statement of objectives
• contain expected implications
• consist of methods followed
• have a conclusion
• make recommendations
• provide a justification
• be able to be read separately from the main report
• sometimes summarize more than one document

2. Purpose of the Study

The purpose is a single statement or paragraph that explains what the study intends to accomplish. A few typical statements are:

The goal of this study is to

• Overcome the difficulty with _.
• Discover what _.
• Understand the causes or effects of _.
• Refine our current understanding of _.
• Provide a new interpretation of _.
• Redesign the existing instruments _.
• Suggest a new method of data collection _.

3. Significance of the Study

The significance section should create a perspective for looking at the problem. It should point out how your study relates to the larger issues and uses a persuasive rationale to justify the reasons for your study.

It makes the purpose worth pursuing. The significance of the study answers such questions:

• Why is your study important?
• To whom is it important?
• What benefits will occur if your study is done?

4. Problem Statement

A clear and well-defined statement of the problem is considered the foundation for the development of the research proposal.

It enables the researcher to systematically point out why the proposed research on the problem should be undertaken and what he hopes to achieve with the findings of the study.

The adage ‘a problem well-defined is a problem half-solved is worth remembering. This emphasizes that a well-defined statement of the problem will lead the researcher.

• To formulate the research objectives ;
• To understand the background of the problem;
• To isolate a research problem from a non-research problem;
• To state the research questions and hypotheses ;
• To identify and define the key variables;
• To construct a conceptual framework of analysis; and
• To select a proper research methodology .

What is the problem you aim to solve, and why is it important enough to be investigated? The problem statement summarizes the topic of your planned research and reviews how your research will affect others in your field.

It deals with such elements as problem identification, prioritizing the problem, analysis, and justifying the problem in response to such questions as “What is the problem, and why should it be studied.”

The problem statement, if narrated logically, will enable the reader to learn more about the issue you are addressing.

It presents the facts and evidence, background, and consequences that justify the need for the study and enhances the chances for final approval of the proposal. This section should be concise yet persuasive.

Assemble all the arguments, and present them logically to convince the reader of their importance. In presenting your arguments, take into consideration the following points:

• Decide which facts or statistics best support the study.
• Be sure that the data you present is updated and accurate.
• Avoid overstatements and overly emotional appeals.
• Determine whether it is reasonable to present the need as acute.

Here you are asking the funder to pay more attention to your proposal because the problem you address is worse than others or the proposed solution makes more sense than others.

Here is an example of a balanced but weighty statement.

While writing this section, take care that the statement does not become too long. Short and concise information captures the reader’s attention.

Contents of Problem Statement

We now turn to enumerate the types of information that should be included in the problem statement. These, among others, should include

• A brief description of the socio-economic and cultural characteristics and an overview of the issue at the macro-level relevant to the problem to be researched;
• A concise description of the nature of the problem (the discrepancy between what is and what should be), and of its size, distribution, and severity (who is affected, where, since when);
• An analysis of the major factors that may influence the problem and a convincing argument that available knowledge is insufficient to solve it;
• A brief description of any attempt in the past to solve the problem, the outcome thereof, and why further research is needed;
• A description of the type of information expected to result from the study and how this information will be used to help solve the problem.

Let us examine the following cases to illustrate the problem statement:

Justifying the Problem

Once the problem situation has been identified and clearly stated, it is important to justify the importance of the problem. Research often is expensive and time-consuming. Most funding agencies are reluctant to support studies unless the results have direct program intervention. Justification of the research topic thus is an important part of any proposal.

It is, therefore, important to know:

• Why is the problem of study important?
• Is the problem of current interest and timely one?
• Will more information about the problem have practical applications?
• How large and widespread is the problem?
• How large is the population affected by the problem?
• How important, influential, or popular is this problem?
• Would this study substantially revise or extend existing knowledge?
• Would this study create or improve an instrument of some utility?
• Would research findings lead to some useful change in best practices?
• Can others be convinced about the importance of the problem?
• Does the problem relate to broad social, economic, business, and health issues?
• Can this be implemented, given the resources and other logistic facilities?

Answers to the above questions should be reviewed and presented in one or two paragraphs that justify the importance of the problem.

Analyzing the Problem

In many instances, a researcher is not very familiar with the problem he is dealing with. This might also be true for those who are directly or indirectly involved in the study.

This calls for a systematic analysis of the various aspects of the problem by the researcher, user, and program manager.

As a first step in analyzing the problem, critical attention should be given to

• Accommodate the viewpoints of the managers, users, and researchers about the problem through threadbare discussions.
• Clarify the issues by listing all the problems in the area of research as they perceive them. The perceived problems should be worded in such a way as to illustrate the discrepancy between the ‘existing {what is)’ and ‘expected {what should be)’ conditions.
• Facilitate decisions concerning the focus and scope of the research.

Once the core problem has been identified, we should attempt to describe it more elaborately.

• The nature of the problem; the discrepancy between ‘what is’ and what you prefer the situation to be, in terms of unsafe abortions and/or complications;
• The distribution of the problem – who is affected, when, and where;
• The size and intensity of the problem – is it widespread, how severer is it, and what are its consequences (such as disability, death, waste of resources)?

While analyzing the problem, it is important to review the focus and scope of the research with particular emphasis on the

• The usefulness of the information to be gathered on the perceived problem;
• Feasibility of the study in terms of the time constraint; and
• Need for the study in the context of currently available information on the issue under investigation.

Soon after we have identified the core problem, we need to

• Identify factors associated with the problem;
• Clarify the relationship between the problem and the contributing factors.

It is helpful to understand these interrelationships in the form of a diagram that will indicate the inter-relationship between the perceived problem and contributing factors.

A diagram called a conceptual or theoretical framework, may help visualize these relationships and hence analyze the problem. It may be pertinent to give a brief outline of a conceptual framework and how to develop it here.

The conceptual framework of a research study is a key part of one’s research design.

Miles and Huberman (1994) defined a conceptual framework as a visual or written product that “explains, either graphically or in narrative form, the main things to be studied—the key factors, concepts, or variables—and the presumed relationships among them.

The most important thing to understand about the conceptual framework is that it is primarily a conception or model of what you plan to study, what is going on with these things, and why—a tentative theory of the phenomena that you are investigating.

The function of this theory is to inform the rest of your design, to help you to assess and refine your goals, develop realistic and relevant research questions, formulate research hypotheses and select an appropriate research design.

A conceptual framework represents the researcher’s synthesis of the literature on how to explain a phenomenon.

It maps out the actions required in the course of the study, given his previous knowledge of other researchers’ points of view and his observations on the subject of research.

In other words, the conceptual framework is the researcher’s understanding of how the particular variables in his study connect with each other.

Thus, it identifies the variables required in the research investigation. It is the researcher’s “map” in pursuing the investigation.

As McGaghieer al. (2001) put it: The conceptual framework “sets the stage” for presenting the particular research question that drives the investigation being reported based on the problem statement. The problem statement of a thesis presents the context and the issues that caused the researcher to conduct the study.

The conceptual framework lies within a much broader framework called a theoretical framework . The latter draws support from time-tested theories that embody the findings of many researchers on why and how a particular phenomenon occurs.

Before you prepare your conceptual framework, you need to do the following things:

• Choose your topic. Decide on what will be your research topic. The topic should be within your field of specialization.
• Do a literature review. Review relevant and updated research on the theme that you decide to work on after scrutiny of the issue at hand. Preferably use peer-reviewed and well-known scientific journals as these are reliable sources of information.
• Isolate the important variables. Identify the specific variables described in the literature and figure out how these are related. Some abstracts contain the variables, and the salient findings thus may serve the purpose. If these are not available, find the research paper’s summary. If the variables are not explicit in summary, get back to the methodology or the results and discussion section and quickly identify the study variables and the significant findings.
• Generate the conceptual framework. Build your conceptual framework using your mix of the variables from the scientific articles you have read. Your problem statement serves as a reference for constructing the conceptual framework. In effect, your study will attempt to answer a question that other researchers have not explained yet. Your research should address a knowledge gap.

The underlying principles of constructing such a diagram are illustrated below:

A real-life example may help understand the concept of a conceptual framework (a framework of analysis) more clearly. Such an example, along with the framework in question, is provided below.

5. Literature Review

A review of relevant literature prompts and strengthens the researcher to assess approaches to the problem and revise the plan accordingly.

A literature review educates a researcher, enhances his knowledge, and increases his confidence, which ultimately contributes to preparing an appealing proposal.

His earned knowledge on the subject of investigation through the reviewing process gives him a fair chance of proving his credibility.

Such a review not only provides him exposure to a larger body of knowledge but also equips him with efficiently setting his objectives, formulating testable hypotheses, identifying the variables to be included, and conceptualizing the theoretical framework for analyzing data.

To summarize, the literature review focuses on the following points:

• It explains the needs of the proposed study.
• It avoids duplication of work.
• It shares with the reader the results of other studies closely related to the study being undertaken.
• It appraises the shortcomings of others’ works
• It documents the accuracy of the secondary data
• It provides a framework for establishing the importance of the study, as well as a benchmark for comparing the results of a study with other findings.
• It examines the weakness (if any) of the methodology used in other studies.

To ensure a good review of the literature.

• Make your review brief.
• Refer to sources only.
• Emphasize the important results of other studies
• Indicate how your study relates to other studies
• Identify the weakness of the methodology adopted by others.
• Say how your study is different from others.

6. Benefits of the Study

This section of the proposal should focus on the importance and urgency of the data needed. It must, therefore, explicitly describe in two to three paragraphs what benefit will be accrued from the proposed study.

In describing this section, you must take care that you can convince the sponsor that your plan can meet its needs.

7. Research Objectives

This module represents an important section of the research proposal focusing on what is being planned in the proposed investigation.

Specifically, research objectives describe what will be demonstrated, tested, evaluated, confirmed, or compared. They communicate:

• Why do we carry out the research?
• What do we hope to achieve from such research?

The research objective section is the basis for judging the remainder of the proposal and, ultimately, the final report.

Because of this reason, objectives should be closely related to the statement of the research problem, giving the sponsor-specific, concrete, and achievable goals.

The research questions must be clearly stated, specifically, and with appropriate inclusiveness.

In addition to research objectives, all proposals should contain a formal and explicit statement of the research questions or hypotheses wherever applicable.

Whether to use research questions or hypotheses will depend on the type of research.

Exploratory or descriptive research does not involve hypothesis testing; it is based on underlying research questions. All proposals for analytical research must explicitly state the hypothesis.

8. Methodology

The methodology section describes your basic research plan. It usually begins with a few introductory paragraphs that restate the purpose and research questions. The phraseology should be identical to that used in Chapter 1.

This section should aim at addressing four broad questions:

• Where do we want to collect the data, how will we select our sample, and how many subjects will be included in the study? (This refers to the coverage, target population, sample design)
• What information do we need to collect to answer the research questions implied in our research objectives? (This refers to the variables we are interested in)
• What approach will we follow to collect this information? (This refers to the research design we want to employ)
• What techniques and tools will we use to collect them? (This refers to the data collection techniques and tools, such as questionnaires, observation check-list)

When more than one way exists to approach the design, discuss the methods you discarded, and justify why your selected approach is superior.

While proposing your methodology, you should explore other methodologies and highlight the comparability of those with the one you propose in terms of interpreting the available data, carrying out investigation and analysis, and suggesting alternative approaches if needed.

Data Collection

Data collection methods should be specified in the proposal. These methods may vary from simple observation to a large-scale field survey.

The specific method or methods to collect data largely depends on the objectives of the survey, the research design, and the availability of time, money, and personnel.

With the variation in the type of data) qualitative or quantitative) to be collected, the method of data collection also varies.

Plan for Data Analysis

The proposal should contain this section to assure the sponsor that you are familiar with the correct and theoretically sound techniques of data analysis procedures.

Keeping this in mind, you need to provide a brief overview of these procedures’ treatment and theoretical basis.

In doing so, you may lay out a sketch of sample graphs, charts, and dummy tables and an overview of the statistical techniques ranging from simple regression to multivariate techniques.

You may also indicate the possible statistical tests that you may employ depending on the nature of the data to verify the research hypothesis that you have formulated.

You are also required to specify the type of data you are anticipating and the tentative interpretation you will make in the analysis process.

Note that the data analysis plan that you are proposing is not a commitment, rather, it is an honest desire to fulfill the commitment as outlined in the proposal.

9. Work Plan

This section elaborates on the work schedule of the proposed study, answering such questions as, who will do what and when it will be done.

A work plan has two major components: personnel and schedule. The major issues that a work plan includes are;

• Preparatory works/questionnaire development
• Recruitment and training of project personnel
• Questionnaire revision
• Field interviews/data collection
• Data editing and data coding
• Data entry and data analysis
• Report writing

Each of these phases should have an estimated time and personnel needed. A chart known as the Gantt chart may be used for this purpose. A Gantt chart is a type of bar chart that illustrates a project schedule.

Gantt charts illustrate the start and completion dates of the terminal elements and summary elements of a project. Terminal elements and summary elements comprise the work breakdown structure of the project.

Some Gantt charts also show the dependency (i.e., precedence network) relationships between activities. As an example, a sample nine-month work plan of a hypothetical study is shown in the following Gantt chart:

The Gantt chart below shows that the planning and preparatory activities will begin at the start of the first month and continue for one month. The second month is devoted to the recruitment and training of the project personnel.

The questionnaire will also be pre-tested and finalized in the second month.

Soon after the finalization of the questionnaire, field teams will be sent for data collection, and the team will remain engaged until the end of the fifth month. During data collection, the editing of data will be started.

Data analysis will be over at the end of the seventh month, and the final report will be available any time during the last month of the project life.

It may be emphasized that the proposed work plan must be consistent with the technical approach and proposed methodology, showing an understanding of the TOR and the ability to translate them into a work plan.

Analysis Plan

The analysis plan should be described at length. Each research objective and hence the research question will require its analysis.

Thus, the research questions should be addressed one at a time, followed by a description of the type of statistical treatment (tables, statistical tests) that will be performed to answer that research question.

State what variables will be included in the analysis and identify the dependent and independent variables if such a relationship exists.

Indicate in advance what analytical techniques (univariate, bivariate, or multivariate) will be employed if data permit.

Reporting Findings

The proposal should indicate what reports and other means of disseminating research findings are planned. The types of reports that are usually included for reporting purposes are

• Progress report (weekly/monthly etc.)
• Final report
• Publications
• Seminar, workshop, conference
• Discussions with policymakers or program managers
• Qualification of the Key Persons

Qualifications of the key persons involved in the study play a vital role in evaluating the proposal.

A proposal with experienced researchers enhances its credibility and assures the program managers and policymakers of a set of policy-oriented recommendations that can ultimately be implemented.

This section should begin with the key qualifications and experiences of the investigators. Particular emphasis should be given to including previous experience doing related work.

Relevant societies to which the researcher belongs can be included in the curriculum vitae. Include the curriculum vitae of other personnel if the RFP desires so.

The budget details should be submitted in the format of the sponsor requests. In some cases, the budget is submitted as a separate proposal for sear reasons for the quality proposal, where the budget is somewhat of secondary importance. In all cases, the budget should be realistic.

Claims for any large and unusual items in the budget should be explained and justified. Arrange the major cost categories under the following major headings:

• Salaries and benefits,
• Materials, equipment, and supplies,
• Dissemination seminar, and
• Miscellaneous expenses.

11. Project Management

All administrative activities should be outlined in a master plan. This plan shows how the study team is organized to complete the work efficiently.

This plan is intended to demonstrate the following;

• the relationship between the researchers and the assistants, and
• who is to keep liaison with the sponsor.

The plan should also focus on the process of record control, fund handling, the mode of preparing and forwarding progress reports, progress monitoring, and project supervision.

Also, the mode of payment frequency and several installments in payment should also be included in the plan.

Legal responsibilities, liabilities, and involvement of the sponsors during the entire period of the project should also be delineated in this master plan.

Bibliography

A bibliography is necessary for many of the projects once you have done a literature review.

Following is a frequently used format for bibliographic citation:

Scope and Limitations

All research studies have limitations of one kind or another and a finite scope. If you anticipate any problem during your study, do not try to conceal it.

It may start with designing a questionnaire to data analysis with intermediate problems in sample size determination, selection of the sample, and data collection. Limitations are often imposed by time and budget constraints.

Fairly list the limitations of the study. Describe the extent to which you believe the limitations might degrade the data quality and your findings.

It is best to recognize these limitations rather than to pretend that they do not exist. Be frank and fair to mention any unprecedented or situational factors that you might encounter during the execution of your study. Study the following example:

A study is designed to assess the attitude of school-going children towards TV programs provided by satellite channels. The study is proposed to be conducted during March-May.

It is apprehended that for such a study, the proposed months are not suitable, because SSC examination is scheduled during these months. The key respondents are busy with their examination and are highly likely to be reluctant to participate despite their interest. This will certainly influence the study findings.

In a study on dowry and discrimination towards women, statistical representation cannot be ensured in determining the size of the sample. It is because such events are rare and localized.

This may be indicated as a limitation, and an alternative suggestion may be made for data collection. One may propose to conduct an in-depth interview, case studies, and FGD.

Any additional information that reinforces the body of the proposal can be included in the appendix.

This includes, for example, a CV of the project personnel, a detailed budget, a draft questionnaire, technical notes, an informed consent form, a list of references, and any other information you think might be helpful to the proposal reviewer.

A simple section consisting of the glossary of the terms should also be included whenever there are many words unique to the research topic. A list of abbreviations should also be provided in the appendix so that nobody faces any difficulty in understanding these acronyms.

Here are some examples of glossaries and abbreviations:

If you use technical terms in writing your proposal, you require clarifying them in non-technical terms to make them understandable to the readers with brief explanations of their meanings. Here are a few examples:

Abbreviations

Proposal Presentation

In many instances, the sponsor/donor wants you to present the proposal for more clarity and an understanding of the research process you have planned to follow in your proposed study.

This gives them an understanding if you have understood the problem they want to investigate and whether the proposal has been written by the guidelines as delineated in terms of Reference (TOR).

The researcher or the research firm also gets an opportunity to identify his proposal’s strengths and weaknesses and get a chance to modify his proposal accordingly.

Evaluation of a Research Proposal

All proposals submitted for funding are subjected to formal review. The criteria for reviewing the proposal are established in advance. Each criterion is given weights or points.

These points are recorded for each category, reflecting the client’s assessment of how well the proposal meets the category’s established criteria.

Usually, more than one reviewer does this job. After the review, the category scores are added to provide a cumulative total. The proposal with the highest score wins the bid.

Here we show how much scoring is done against some pre­fixed criteria.

A research proposal is an individual’s or research firm’s formal offer to produce a product or render a service to a client in response to a request from the client. It serves as a work plan, prospectus, outline, and statement of intent, acting as an agreement between a client and a researcher.

Why is writing a good research proposal important?

A well-written research proposal is crucial for undertaking higher degrees by research, applying for research grants or funds, and securing scholarships for higher studies. It helps assess the quality and originality of ideas, the researcher’s critical thinking, and the feasibility of the research project.

What should a research proposal communicate?

A research proposal should convey the importance of the research, the information that will be obtained to meet objectives, where and how it will be obtained, and the contribution it aims to make. It should be clear, well-structured, and persuasive to convey its message effectively.

What are the two types of research proposals?

Research proposals can be of two types: internal and external. An internal proposal is generated by a company’s experienced staff or research department to meet their needs. An external proposal can be either solicited, often in response to a ‘request for proposal (RFP)’, or unsolicited.

What is an Expression of Interest (EOI) in the context of research proposals?

An Expression of Interest (EOI) is a request made by clients to researchers or research firms to express if they are interested in submitting a formal proposal on pre-selected topics or packages. It aims to identify capable researchers or firms through an evaluation process.

What should be the structure of a research proposal?

A research proposal should have a clear and concise title, an introduction or background of the research, stated aims and objectives, justification or rationale of the research, a problem statement, research questions, scope of the research, methodological approach, time frame, expected outcomes, limitations, and a conclusion.

How does the problem statement differ from the research questions in a proposal?

The problem statement summarizes the topic and reviews how the research will impact others in the field. It presents the issue to be addressed. On the other hand, research questions are central components of the problem, being more specific in nature and guiding the research direction.

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How to prepare a Research Proposal

Health research, medical education and clinical practice form the three pillars of modern day medical practice. As one authority rightly put it: ‘Health research is not a luxury, but an essential need that no nation can afford to ignore’. Health research can and should be pursued by a broad range of people. Even if they do not conduct research themselves, they need to grasp the principles of the scientific method to understand the value and limitations of science and to be able to assess and evaluate results of research before applying them. This review paper aims to highlight the essential concepts to the students and beginning researchers and sensitize and motivate the readers to access the vast literature available on research methodologies.

Most students and beginning researchers do not fully understand what a research proposal means, nor do they understand its importance. 1 A research proposal is a detailed description of a proposed study designed to investigate a given problem. 2

A research proposal is intended to convince others that you have a worthwhile research project and that you have the competence and the work-plan to complete it. Broadly the research proposal must address the following questions regardless of your research area and the methodology you choose: What you plan to accomplish, why do you want to do it and how are you going to do it. 1 The aim of this article is to highlight the essential concepts and not to provide extensive details about this topic.

The elements of a research proposal are highlighted below:

1. Title: It should be concise and descriptive. It must be informative and catchy. An effective title not only prick’s the readers interest, but also predisposes him/her favorably towards the proposal. Often titles are stated in terms of a functional relationship, because such titles clearly indicate the independent and dependent variables. 1 The title may need to be revised after completion of writing of the protocol to reflect more closely the sense of the study. 3

2. Abstract: It is a brief summary of approximately 300 words. It should include the main research question, the rationale for the study, the hypothesis (if any) and the method. Descriptions of the method may include the design, procedures, the sample and any instruments that will be used. 1 It should stand on its own, and not refer the reader to points in the project description. 3

3. Introduction: The introduction provides the readers with the background information. Its purpose is to establish a framework for the research, so that readers can understand how it relates to other research. 4 It should answer the question of why the research needs to be done and what will be its relevance. It puts the proposal in context. 3

The introduction typically begins with a statement of the research problem in precise and clear terms. 1

The importance of the statement of the research problem 5 : The statement of the problem is the essential basis for the construction of a research proposal (research objectives, hypotheses, methodology, work plan and budget etc). It is an integral part of selecting a research topic. It will guide and put into sharper focus the research design being considered for solving the problem. It allows the investigator to describe the problem systematically, to reflect on its importance, its priority in the country and region and to point out why the proposed research on the problem should be undertaken. It also facilitates peer review of the research proposal by the funding agencies.

Then it is necessary to provide the context and set the stage for the research question in such a way as to show its necessity and importance. 1 This step is necessary for the investigators to familiarize themselves with existing knowledge about the research problem and to find out whether or not others have investigated the same or similar problems. This step is accomplished by a thorough and critical review of the literature and by personal communication with experts. 5 It helps further understanding of the problem proposed for research and may lead to refining the statement of the problem, to identify the study variables and conceptualize their relationships, and in formulation and selection of a research hypothesis. 5 It ensures that you are not "re-inventing the wheel" and demonstrates your understanding of the research problem. It gives due credit to those who have laid the groundwork for your proposed research. 1 In a proposal, the literature review is generally brief and to the point. The literature selected should be pertinent and relevant. 6

Against this background, you then present the rationale of the proposed study and clearly indicate why it is worth doing.

4. Objectives: Research objectives are the goals to be achieved by conducting the research. 5 They may be stated as ‘general’ and ‘specific’.

The general objective of the research is what is to be accomplished by the research project, for example, to determine whether or not a new vaccine should be incorporated in a public health program.

The specific objectives relate to the specific research questions the investigator wants to answer through the proposed study and may be presented as primary and secondary objectives, for example, primary: To determine the degree of protection that is attributable to the new vaccine in a study population by comparing the vaccinated and unvaccinated groups. 5 Secondary: To study the cost-effectiveness of this programme.

Young investigators are advised to resist the temptation to put too many objectives or over-ambitious objectives that cannot be adequately achieved by the implementation of the protocol. 3

5. Variables: During the planning stage, it is necessary to identify the key variables of the study and their method of measurement and unit of measurement must be clearly indicated. Four types of variables are important in research 5 :

a. Independent variables: variables that are manipulated or treated in a study in order to see what effect differences in them will have on those variables proposed as being dependent on them. The different synonyms for the term ‘independent variable’ which are used in literature are: cause, input, predisposing factor, risk factor, determinant, antecedent, characteristic and attribute.

b. Dependent variables: variables in which changes are results of the level or amount of the independent variable or variables.

Synonyms: effect, outcome, consequence, result, condition, disease.

c. Confounding or intervening variables: variables that should be studied because they may influence or ‘mix’ the effect of the independent variables. For instance, in a study of the effect of measles (independent variable) on child mortality (dependent variable), the nutritional status of the child may play an intervening (confounding) role.

d. Background variables: variables that are so often of relevance in investigations of groups or populations that they should be considered for possible inclusion in the study. For example sex, age, ethnic origin, education, marital status, social status etc.

The objective of research is usually to determine the effect of changes in one or more independent variables on one or more dependent variables. For example, a study may ask "Will alcohol intake (independent variable) have an effect on development of gastric ulcer (dependent variable)?"

Certain variables may not be easy to identify. The characteristics that define these variables must be clearly identified for the purpose of the study.

6. Questions and/ or hypotheses: If you as a researcher know enough to make prediction concerning what you are studying, then the hypothesis may be formulated. A hypothesis can be defined as a tentative prediction or explanation of the relationship between two or more variables. In other words, the hypothesis translates the problem statement into a precise, unambiguous prediction of expected outcomes. Hypotheses are not meant to be haphazard guesses, but should reflect the depth of knowledge, imagination and experience of the investigator. 5 In the process of formulating the hypotheses, all variables relevant to the study must be identified. For example: "Health education involving active participation by mothers will produce more positive changes in child feeding than health education based on lectures". Here the independent variable is types of health education and the dependent variable is changes in child feeding.

A research question poses a relationship between two or more variables but phrases the relationship as a question; a hypothesis represents a declarative statement of the relations between two or more variables. 7

For exploratory or phenomenological research, you may not have any hypothesis (please do not confuse the hypothesis with the statistical null hypothesis). 1 Questions are relevant to normative or census type research (How many of them are there? Is there a relationship between them?). Deciding whether to use questions or hypotheses depends on factors such as the purpose of the study, the nature of the design and methodology, and the audience of the research (at times even the outlook and preference of the committee members, particularly the Chair). 6

7. Methodology: The method section is very important because it tells your research Committee how you plan to tackle your research problem. The guiding principle for writing the Methods section is that it should contain sufficient information for the reader to determine whether the methodology is sound. Some even argue that a good proposal should contain sufficient details for another qualified researcher to implement the study. 1 Indicate the methodological steps you will take to answer every question or to test every hypothesis illustrated in the Questions/hypotheses section. 6 It is vital that you consult a biostatistician during the planning stage of your study, 8 to resolve the methodological issues before submitting the proposal.

This section should include:

Research design: The selection of the research strategy is the core of research design and is probably the single most important decision the investigator has to make. The choice of the strategy, whether descriptive, analytical, experimental, operational or a combination of these depend on a number of considerations, 5 but this choice must be explained in relation to the study objectives. 3

Research subjects or participants: Depending on the type of your study, the following questions should be answered 3 , 5

• - What are the criteria for inclusion or selection?
• - What are the criteria for exclusion?
• - What is the sampling procedure you will use so as to ensure representativeness and reliability of the sample and to minimize sampling errors? The key reason for being concerned with sampling is the issue of validity-both internal and external of the study results. 9
• - Will there be use of controls in your study? Controls or comparison groups are used in scientific research in order to increase the validity of the conclusions. Control groups are necessary in all analytical epidemiological studies, in experimental studies of drug trials, in research on effects of intervention programmes and disease control measures and in many other investigations. Some descriptive studies (studies of existing data, surveys) may not require control groups.
• - What are the criteria for discontinuation?

Sample size: The proposal should provide information and justification (basis on which the sample size is calculated) about sample size in the methodology section. 3 A larger sample size than needed to test the research hypothesis increases the cost and duration of the study and will be unethical if it exposes human subjects to any potential unnecessary risk without additional benefit. A smaller sample size than needed can also be unethical as it exposes human subjects to risk with no benefit to scientific knowledge. Calculation of sample size has been made easy by computer software programmes, but the principles underlying the estimation should be well understood.

Interventions: If an intervention is introduced, a description must be given of the drugs or devices (proprietary names, manufacturer, chemical composition, dose, frequency of administration) if they are already commercially available. If they are in phases of experimentation or are already commercially available but used for other indications, information must be provided on available pre-clinical investigations in animals and/or results of studies already conducted in humans (in such cases, approval of the drug regulatory agency in the country is needed before the study). 3

Ethical issues 3 : Ethical considerations apply to all types of health research. Before the proposal is submitted to the Ethics Committee for approval, two important documents mentioned below (where appropriate) must be appended to the proposal. In additions, there is another vital issue of Conflict of Interest, wherein the researchers should furnish a statement regarding the same.

The Informed consent form (informed decision-making): A consent form, where appropriate, must be developed and attached to the proposal. It should be written in the prospective subjects’ mother tongue and in simple language which can be easily understood by the subject. The use of medical terminology should be avoided as far as possible. Special care is needed when subjects are illiterate. It should explain why the study is being done and why the subject has been asked to participate. It should describe, in sequence, what will happen in the course of the study, giving enough detail for the subject to gain a clear idea of what to expect. It should clarify whether or not the study procedures offer any benefits to the subject or to others, and explain the nature, likelihood and treatment of anticipated discomfort or adverse effects, including psychological and social risks, if any. Where relevant, a comparison with risks posed by standard drugs or treatment must be included. If the risks are unknown or a comparative risk cannot be given it should be so stated. It should indicate that the subject has the right to withdraw from the study at any time without, in any way, affecting his/her further medical care. It should assure the participant of confidentiality of the findings.

Ethics checklist: The proposal must describe the measures that will be undertaken to ensure that the proposed research is carried out in accordance with the World Medical Association Declaration of Helsinki on Ethical Principles for Medical research involving Human Subjects. 10 It must answer the following questions:

• • Is the research design adequate to provide answers to the research question? It is unethical to expose subjects to research that will have no value.
• • Is the method of selection of research subjects justified? The use of vulnerable subjects as research participants needs special justification. Vulnerable subjects include those in prison, minors and persons with mental disability. In international research it is important to mention that the population in which the study is conducted will benefit from any potential outcome of the research and the research is not being conducted solely for the benefit of some other population. Justification is needed for any inducement, financial or otherwise, for the participants to be enrolled in the study.
• • Are the interventions justified, in terms of risk/benefit ratio? Risks are not limited to physical harm. Psychological and social risks must also be considered.
• • For observations made, have measures been taken to ensure confidentiality?

Research setting 5 : The research setting includes all the pertinent facets of the study, such as the population to be studied (sampling frame), the place and time of study.

Study instruments 3 , 5 : Instruments are the tools by which the data are collected. For validated questionnaires/interview schedules, reference to published work should be given and the instrument appended to the proposal. For new a questionnaire which is being designed specifically for your study the details about preparing, precoding and pretesting of questionnaire should be furnished and the document appended to the proposal. Descriptions of other methods of observations like medical examination, laboratory tests and screening procedures is necessary- for established procedures, reference of published work cited but for new or modified procedure, an adequate description is necessary with justification for the same.

Collection of data: A short description of the protocol of data collection. For example, in a study on blood pressure measurement: time of participant arrival, rest for 5p. 10 minutes, which apparatus (standard calibrated) to be used, in which room to take measurement, measurement in sitting or lying down position, how many measurements, measurement in which arm first (whether this is going to be randomized), details of cuff and its placement, who will take the measurement. This minimizes the possibility of confusion, delays and errors.

Data analysis: The description should include the design of the analysis form, plans for processing and coding the data and the choice of the statistical method to be applied to each data. What will be the procedures for accounting for missing, unused or spurious data?

Monitoring, supervision and quality control: Detailed statement about the all logistical issues to satisfy the requirements of Good Clinical Practices (GCP), protocol procedures, responsibilities of each member of the research team, training of study investigators, steps taken to assure quality control (laboratory procedures, equipment calibration etc)

Gantt chart: A Gantt chart is an overview of tasks/proposed activities and a time frame for the same. You put weeks, days or months at one side, and the tasks at the other. You draw fat lines to indicate the period the task will be performed to give a timeline for your research study (take help of tutorial on youtube). 11

Significance of the study: Indicate how your research will refine, revise or extend existing knowledge in the area under investigation. How will it benefit the concerned stakeholders? What could be the larger implications of your research study?

Dissemination of the study results: How do you propose to share the findings of your study with professional peers, practitioners, participants and the funding agency?

Budget: A proposal budget with item wise/activity wise breakdown and justification for the same. Indicate how will the study be financed.

References: The proposal should end with relevant references on the subject. For web based search include the date of access for the cited website, for example: add the sentence "accessed on June 10, 2008".

Appendixes: Include the appropriate appendixes in the proposal. For example: Interview protocols, sample of informed consent forms, cover letters sent to appropriate stakeholders, official letters for permission to conduct research. Regarding original scales or questionnaires, if the instrument is copyrighted then permission in writing to reproduce the instrument from the copyright holder or proof of purchase of the instrument must be submitted.

Writing a Research Proposal

Parts of a research proposal, prosana model, introduction, research question, methodology.

• Structure of a Research Proposal
• Common Proposal Writing Mistakes
• Proposal Writing Resources

A research proposal's purpose is to capture the evaluator's attention, demonstrate the study's potential benefits, and prove that it is a logical and consistent approach (Van Ekelenburg, 2010).  To ensure that your research proposal contains these elements, there are several aspects to include in your proposal (Al-Riyami, 2008):

• Objective(s)
• Variables (independent and dependent)
• Research Question and/or hypothesis

Details about what to include in each element are included in the boxes below.  Depending on the topic of your study, some parts may not apply to your proposal.  You can also watch the video below for a brief overview about writing a successful research proposal.

Van Ekelenburg (2010) uses the PROSANA Model to guide researchers in developing rationale and justification for their research projects.  It is an acronym that connects the problem, solution, and benefits of a particular research project.  It is an easy way to remember the critical parts of a research proposal and how they relate to one another.  It includes the following letters (Van Ekelenburg, 2010):

• Problem: Describing the main problem that the researcher is trying to solve.
• Root causes: Describing what is causing the problem.  Why is the topic an issue?
• fOcus: Narrowing down one of the underlying causes on which the researcher will focus for their research project.
• Solutions: Listing potential solutions or approaches to fix to the problem.  There could be more than one.
• Approach: Selecting the solution that the researcher will want to focus on.
• Novelty: Describing how the solution will address or solve the problem.
• Arguments: Explaining how the proposed solution will benefit the problem.

Research proposal titles should be concise and to the point, but informative.  The title of your proposal may be different from the title of your final research project, but that is completely normal!  Your findings may help you come up with a title that is more fitting for the final project.  Characteristics of good proposal titles are (Al-Riyami, 2008):

• Catchy: It catches the reader's attention by peaking their interest.
• Positive: It spins your project in a positive way towards the reader.
• Transparent: It identifies the independent and dependent variables.

It is also common for proposal titles to be very similar to your research question, hypothesis, or thesis statement (Locke et al., 2007).

An abstract is a brief summary (about 300 words) of the study you are proposing.  It includes the following elements (Al-Riyami, 2008):

• Your primary research question(s).
• Hypothesis or main argument.
• Method you will use to complete the study.  This may include the design, sample population, or measuring instruments that you plan to use.

Our guide on writing summaries may help you with this step.

• Writing a Summary by Luann Edwards Last Updated May 22, 2023 1119 views this year

The purpose of the introduction is to give readers background information about your topic.  it gives the readers a basic understanding of your topic so that they can further understand the significance of your proposal.  A good introduction will explain (Al-Riyami, 2008):

• How it relates to other research done on the topic
• Why your research is significant to the field
• The relevance of your study

Your research objectives are the desired outcomes that you will achieve from the research project.  Depending on your research design, these may be generic or very specific.  You may also have more than one objective (Al-Riyami, 2008).

• General objectives are what the research project will accomplish
• Specific objectives relate to the research questions that the researcher aims to answer through the study.

Be careful not to have too many objectives in your proposal, as having too many can make your project lose focus.  Plus, it may not be possible to achieve several objectives in one study.

This section describes the different types of variables that you plan to have in your study and how you will measure them.  According to Al-Riyami (2008), there are four types of research variables:

• Independent:  The person, object, or idea that is manipulated by the researcher.
• Dependent:  The person, object, or idea whose changes are dependent upon the independent variable.  Typically, it is the item that the researcher is measuring for the study.
• Confounding/Intervening:  Factors that may influence the effect of the independent variable on the dependent variable.  These include physical and mental barriers.  Not every study will have intervening variables, but they should be studied if applicable.
• Background:   Factors that are relevant to the study's data and how it can be generalized.  Examples include demographic information such as age, sex, and ethnicity.

Your research proposal should describe each of your variables and how they relate to one another.  Depending on your study, you may not have all four types of variables present.  However, there will always be an independent and dependent variable.

A research question is the main piece of your research project because it explains what your study will discover to the reader.  It is the question that fuels the study, so it is important for it to be precise and unique.  You do not want it to be too broad, and it should identify a relationship between two variables (an independent and a dependent) (Al-Riyami, 2008).  There are six types of research questions (Academic Writer, n.d.):

• Example: "Do people get nervous before speaking in front of an audience?"
• Example: "What are the study habits of college freshmen at Tiffin University?"
• Example: "What primary traits create a successful romantic relationship?"
• Example: "Is there a relationship between a child's performance in school and their parents' socioeconomic status?"
• Example: "Are high school seniors more motivated than high school freshmen?"
• Example: "Do news media outlets impact a person's political opinions?"

For more information on the different types of research questions, you can view the "Research Questions and Hypotheses" tutorial on Academic Writer, located below.  If you are unfamiliar with Academic Writer, we also have a tutorial on using the database located below.

Compose papers in pre-formatted APA templates. Manage references in forms that help craft APA citations. Learn the rules of APA style through tutorials and practice quizzes.

Academic Writer will continue to use the 6th edition guidelines until August 2020. A preview of the 7th edition is available in the footer of the resource's site. Previously known as APA Style Central.

• Academic Writer Tutorial by Pfeiffer Library Last Updated May 22, 2023 15600 views this year

If you know enough about your research topic that you believe a particular outcome may occur as a result of the study, you can include a hypothesis (thesis statement) in your proposal.  A hypothesis is a prediction that you believe will be the outcome of your study.  It explains what you think the relationship will be between the independent and dependent variable (Al-Riyami, 2008).  It is ok if the hypothesis in your proposal turns out to be incorrect, because it is only a prediction!  If you are writing a proposal in the humanities, you may be writing a thesis statement instead of a hypothesis.  A thesis presents the main argument of your research project and leads to corresponding evidence to support your argument.

Hypotheses vs. Theories

Hypotheses are different from theories in that theories represent general principles and sets of rules that explain different phenomena.  They typically represent large areas of study because they are applicable to anything in a particular field.  Hypotheses focus on specific areas within a field and are educated guesses, meaning that they have the potential to be proven wrong (Academic Writer, n.d.).  Because of this, hypotheses can also be formed from theories.

For more information on writing effective thesis statements, you can view our guide on writing thesis statements below.

• Writing Effective Thesis Statements by Luann Edwards Last Updated May 23, 2023 226 views this year

In a research proposal, you must thoroughly explain how you will conduct your study.  This includes things such as (Al-Riyami, 2008):

• Research design:  What research approach will your study take?  Will it be quantitative or qualitative?
• Research subjects/participants:  Who will be participating in your study?  Does your study require human participants?  How will you determine who to study?
• Sample size:  How many participants will your study require?  If you are not using human participants, how much of the sample will you be studying?
• Timeline:  A proposed list of the general tasks and events that you plan to complete the study.  This will include a time frame for each task/event and the order in which they will be completed.
• Interventions:  If you plan on using anything on human participants for the study, you must include information it here.  This is especially important if you plan on using any substances on human subjects.
• Ethical issues:  Are there any potential ethical issues surrounding this study?
• Potential limitations:  Are there any limitations that could skew the data and findings from your study?
• Appendixes:  If you need to present any consent forms, interview questions, surveys, questionnaires, or other items that will be used in your study, you should include samples of each item with an appendix to reference them.  If you are using a copyrighted document, you may need written permission from the original creator to use it in your study.  A copy of the written permission should be included in your proposal.
• Setting:  Where will you be conducting the study?
• Study instruments:  What measuring tools or computer software will you be using to collect data?  How will you collect the data?
• How you will analyze the data:  What strategies or tools will you use to analyze the data you collect?
• Quality control:  Will you have precautions in place to ensure that the study is conducted consistently and that outside factors will not skew the data?
• Budget:  What type of funding will you need for your study?  This will include the funds needed to afford measuring tools, software, etc.
• How you will share the study's findings:  What will you plan to do with the findings?
• Significance of the study: How will your study expand on existing knowledge of the subject area?

For more information on research methodologies, you can view our guide on research methods and methodologies below.

• Research Methodologies by Pfeiffer Library Last Updated Aug 2, 2022 15725 views this year
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Research Proposal-Components, Types, Topics, Importance, and Applications

Table of Contents

What is Research Proposal?

A research proposal is a document that outlines the plan and rationale for conducting a research study. It serves as a blueprint for the entire research process and helps researchers communicate their objectives, methods, and expected outcomes effectively.

Components of a Research Proposal

The key components of a research proposal include:

• Title (Concise and informative title that reflects the essence of the research study)
• Abstract (Brief summary of the research proposal, highlighting its key objectives, methods, and expected outcomes)
• Introduction (Overview of the research topic, highlighting its significance and relevance)
• Research Objectives/Questions/Hypotheses (Clear and specific statements that outline the purpose of the study)
• Literature Review (Critical analysis of existing scholarly works related to the research topic)
• Research Methodology (Detailed explanation of the research design, data collection methods, and analysis techniques)
• Significance and Expected Outcomes (Explanation of the potential impact of the research and the expected results)
• Research Timeline (Proposed timeline that outlines the key milestones and activities of the research study)
• References (Comprehensive list of the sources cited in the research proposal)

Also learn about Action Proposal

Types of Research Proposals

Research proposals can vary depending on the field of study and the intended audience. Different types of research proposals can help you determine which format is most appropriate for your specific needs.

Whether responding to a solicitation, submitting an unsolicited proposal, or seeking continuation or renewal funding, each proposal type requires careful consideration and alignment with the sponsor’s objectives and guidelines.

Here are some common types of research proposals:

1.      Solicited Proposals

Solicited proposals are submitted in response to a specific call or request issued by a sponsor. These calls, often referred to as Request for Proposals (RFP) or Request for Quotations (RFQ), outline the sponsor’s specific requirements, objectives, and evaluation criteria.

Solicited proposals must adhere to the provided guidelines and may include technical specifications and terms and conditions set by the sponsor. Broad Agency Announcements (BAAs) are similar but are not considered formal solicitations.

2.      Unsolicited Proposals

Unsolicited proposals are submitted to a sponsor without a specific request or solicitation. In these cases, the investigator believes that the sponsor has an interest in the subject matter. Unsolicited proposals require the researcher to present a compelling case for the significance and relevance of their research, convincing the sponsor of the value and potential impact of the proposed study.

3.      Preproposals

Preproposals are typically requested by sponsors who want to streamline the application process and minimize the effort required by applicants. Preproposals are in the form of a letter of intent or a brief abstract that outlines the main objectives and approach of the research.

After reviewing the preproposal, the sponsor informs the investigator if a full proposal is warranted. This process allows both the investigator and the sponsor to determine if it is worthwhile to proceed with a complete proposal submission.

4.      Continuation or Non-competing Proposals

Continuation or non-competing proposals are submitted for multi-year projects that have already received funding from the sponsor for an initial period, typically one year. These proposals confirm the original proposal’s scope, objectives, and funding requirements for the subsequent period.

The sponsor’s decision to continue funding is contingent upon satisfactory work progress and the availability of funds.

5.      Renewal or Competing Proposals

Renewal or competing proposals are submitted when an existing project is nearing its end, and the investigator requests continued support for the research. From the sponsor’s perspective, these proposals are treated similarly to unsolicited proposals, requiring a thorough presentation of the project’s achievements, impact, and future plans.

Renewal proposals must demonstrate the ongoing relevance and value of the research, highlighting the need for further funding to continue the project’s objectives.

6.      Grant Proposals

Grant proposals are submitted to funding agencies, such as government bodies, foundations, or organizations, to secure financial support for research projects.

These proposals typically require a detailed description of the research project, including the objectives, methodology, expected outcomes, budget, and timeline. Grant proposals often follow specific guidelines provided by the funding agency.

7.      Dissertation Proposals

Dissertation proposals are submitted by doctoral students as part of their research journey. These proposals outline the research topic, objectives, theoretical framework, methodology, and anticipated contributions to the field.

Dissertation proposals also typically include a literature review to establish the context and significance of the proposed research.

8.      Project Proposals

Project proposals are common in academic and professional settings where research projects are undertaken. These proposals outline the objectives, scope, methodology, timeline, and expected outcomes of the project.

Project proposals often include details about the project team, resources required, and the potential impact of the project on stakeholders.

9.      Thesis Proposals

Similar to dissertation proposals, thesis proposals are submitted by students pursuing a master’s degree. These proposals present the research topic, objectives, methodology, and expected contributions to the field.

Thesis proposals also include a literature review that highlights the existing knowledge and research gaps in the chosen area of study.

10.  Research Funding Proposals

Research funding proposals are typically submitted by researchers or research teams within academic institutions or research organizations. These proposals aim to secure funding for ongoing or new research projects.

Research funding proposals often include a detailed description of the research objectives, methodology, expected outcomes, budget, and timeline. They may also require a justification for the need for funding and a demonstration of the potential impact of the research.

11.  Feasibility Study Proposals

Feasibility study proposals are used to assess the practicality and viability of a research project before its full implementation. These proposals outline the research objectives, methodology, timeline, and expected outcomes, with a particular focus on evaluating the feasibility of conducting the research.

Feasibility study proposals often involve preliminary data collection or analysis to inform the decision-making process.

12.  Program Evaluation Proposals

Program evaluation proposals are designed to assess the effectiveness, efficiency, and impact of a specific program, intervention, or policy. These proposals typically outline the evaluation objectives, methodology, data collection methods, analysis techniques, and expected outcomes.

Program evaluation proposals often require collaboration with relevant stakeholders and may involve both qualitative and quantitative research methods.

Steps in Developing a Research Proposal

Following steps are involved in Developing a Research Proposal:

• First of all identify a research topic . Select a research topic that aligns with your interests, expertise, and the existing gaps in knowledge.
• Review existing literature . Conduct a comprehensive literature review to understand the current state of knowledge in your research area and identify research gaps.
• Formulate research objectives/questions/hypotheses . Clearly define the research objectives, questions, or hypotheses that you aim to address in your study.
• Design research methodology . Determine the most appropriate research design, data collection methods, and analysis techniques for your study.
• Develop a research timeline . Create a timeline that outlines the key activities and milestones of your research project, ensuring a realistic and achievable plan.
• Consider ethical considerations and research limitations . Address any ethical concerns associated with your research, such as participant consent and data privacy. Also, acknowledge the potential limitations of your study.
• Write the research proposal . Compile all the components of the research proposal into a cohesive document, ensuring clarity, coherence, and adherence to guidelines.

Selecting Research Proposal Topics

Selecting a suitable research topic is important for the success of your research proposal. Consider the following tips when choosing your research topic:

• Choose an interesting topic . Select a research area aligned with your passions, experiences, or career aspirations to stay engaged and motivated throughout the process.
• Narrow down your topic . Refine your research question to a specific aspect or subtopic to maintain focus and avoid overwhelming amounts of information.
• Familiarize yourself with existing literature to gain insights, identify gaps in knowledge, and refine the scope of your research.
• Tailor your topic selection to meet the specific requirements and expectations outlined in your research assignment.
• Consult with professors or TAs for guidance, insights, and recommendations related to potential research topics within your field of study.
• Discuss your research ideas with classmates or friends to gain different perspectives, identify new angles, and prompt innovative approaches to your topic.
• Consider the “ who, what, when, where, and why ” questions.
• Why did you choose the topic? What aspects of the topic interest you? Do you have a particular opinion or stance on the issues involved?
• Who are the key information providers on this topic? Are there specific organizations, institutions, or experts affiliated with the topic?
• What are the major questions, debates, or issues surrounding the topic? Are there different viewpoints or perspectives to consider?
• Where is your topic significant? Does it have local, national, or international implications? Are there specific geographical regions or communities affected by the topic?
• When is/ was your topic important? Is it a current event or a historical issue? Are you interested in comparing your topic across different time periods?

Examples of Research Proposal Topics

• The impact of social media on mental health among adolescents
• Exploring the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions in reducing stress and anxiety
• Investigating the factors influencing consumer buying behavior in the e-commerce industry
• Assessing the effects of climate change on agricultural productivity in developing countries
• Investigating the Relationship between Exercise and Cognitive Function in Older Adults: A Randomized Controlled Trial.
• Exploring the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Enhancing Customer Experience in the Retail Industry.
• Understanding the Factors Influencing Employee Job Satisfaction and Engagement in the Workplace.
• Examining the Impact of Online Learning on Student Performance and Satisfaction in Higher Education.
• Investigating the Relationship between Parental Involvement and Academic Achievement among Elementary School Students.
• Analyzing the Effects of Early Childhood Education Programs on Long-term Academic Success and Socioeconomic Outcomes.
• Exploring the Factors Influencing Consumer Decision-making in Purchasing Organic Food Products.
• Investigating the Effects of Workplace Diversity on Organizational Performance and Innovation.

Importance and Impact of a Well-Written Research Proposal

Crafting a well-structured and compelling research proposal is essential for several reasons:

• A well-developed research proposal increases your chances of securing funding from organizations and institutions.
• Research proposals are often required for academic programs and can contribute to your academic and professional growth.
• A well-crafted research proposal provides a clear direction and plan for your research study, minimizing ambiguity and ensuring focused efforts.
• A thorough research proposal increases the likelihood of conducting impactful research that contributes to knowledge and addresses real-world problems.

Applications of Research Proposals

Research proposals serve as essential tools for planning and initiating research projects across various fields. They play a crucial role in academic, scientific, and professional settings. Here are some key applications of research proposals:

• In academic research , Research proposals are commonly used in academia to secure grants, scholarships, or to gain approval for research projects.
• Scientific Researchers in various scientific fields use research proposals to obtain funding, collaboration, and ethical clearance.
• In Business and industry , Research proposals are essential in business settings for conducting market research, product development, and process improvement initiatives.
• Research proposals enable non-profit organizations to gather data and evidence to support their mission and programs.
• Research proposals help government agencies gather information for policy development, program evaluation, and decision-making.
• Research proposals are used in healthcare settings to conduct clinical trials , study disease patterns, and evaluate treatment interventions.
• Research proposals assist environmental organizations in studying and addressing environmental issues such as climate change, pollution, and conservation.
• Research proposals are employed in educational settings to study teaching methodologies, curriculum development, and student outcomes.
• Research proposals are utilized in disciplines such as psychology, sociology, and anthropology to investigate human behavior, social phenomena, and cultural practices.
• In Technology and innovation , Research proposals support technological advancements by exploring new technologies, improving existing systems, and solving technological challenges.

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Proposal Components

Categories:

Introduction

A proposal can have various components depending on the sponsor and solicitation requirements. A solicitation is also known as a call for proposals, request for proposals, or funding opportunity. Each agency and even specific programs within an agency may require components that are specific to a funding opportunity.

Basic Components

What follows is a brief description of the typical components a sponsor may require.

Cover Sheet/Face page

Many application packages contain a face page or cover sheet. 

• Summarizes key information for the sponsor such as: the name of the PI, the period of performance, the title of the proposal, the title of the funding agency, the funds requested and key contacts
• Indicates Stanford endorsement of the proposal, typically through a signature block 

Table of Contents

Not all proposals require a table of contents (or their system generates one so you don’t have to) but for those that do, you should list each section of the proposal and associated page numbers.

Abstract or Project Summary

It frames the proposal, and in many instances determines where it will to be sent for review. Since it is a summary of major points it must be able to stand-alone. Although the abstract appears at the beginning of the proposal it is usually written last.

• Usually limited to 200-400 words
• Concisely describes the aims and procedures of the proposed project
• Written in lay terms
• May be used for press releases
• Often placed in a database to indicate to taxpayers how tax dollars were used

Project Description/Research Plan/Statement of Work

The research plan describes:

• the proposed research
• the impact of the project as proposed
• the research methodology 
• the project’s relationship to the sponsor’s purpose and goals

Keep the reviewers in mind. Most proposals go through a preliminary review to ensure that your proposal is complete and that it adheres to all format requirements (many sponsors demand strict adherence to page limits for the narrative). Write and organize your application so the reviewer can readily grasp and explain what you are proposing and advocate for your application.

Biographical Sketch

This section is required for key personnel.  Each agency has its own guidelines, which are updated at least once a year, with very specific instructions of what information should be provided and explicit page limitations. The most frequently used bio sketches are for the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). NSF has a dedicated page to provide guidance for creating a bio sketch (including step-by-step videos and FAQs). For NIH proposals, review their specific guidance, check the FAQs and look at their sample bio sketches.

Bibliography and References Cited

Provide a bibliography of all references cited in the research plan. Different sponsors have different formats. Citations for literature should be complete. Read the application instructions for this section carefully.

Budget and Budget Justification

The budget contains estimated costs for the entire proposal period. Project costs must be allowable, allocable, reasonable, and consistent. Budget Basics provides an in-depth overview of creating a budget. The budget is generally divided into the following categories: Total Direct Costs, Modified Total Direct Costs, and Indirect Costs.

The National Institute of Health uses 2 different formats for budget submission depending on the total direct costs requested and the activity code used. See NIH A Guided Tour for more information.

Pay special attention to the justification for clerical and administrative expenses, or for general-purpose (non-scientific) equipment. Stanford policy requires a budget justification for all administrative expenses See RPH: 15.4 Charging for Administrative and Technical Expenses.

All expenses should be justified. If your budget includes a subaward to another institution, make sure to include their budget and budget justification as well.

The best strategy is to request a reasonable amount of money to do the work.

• Reviewers look for reasonable costs and will judge whether your request is justified by your aims and methods.
• Reviewers will consider the “person months” you've listed for each of the senior/key personnel and will judge whether the figures are in sync with reviewer’s expectations, based on the research proposed.
• Significant over- or under-estimating suggests you may not understand the scope of the work.
• Despite popular myth, proposing a cost-sharing (matching) arrangement where you only request that the sponsor support some of the funding while your organization funds the remainder does not normally impact the evaluation of your proposal. Only a few select programs require cost-sharing, and these programs will address cost-sharing in the FOA.
• NSF prohibits cost sharing unless explicitly stated in the FOA.

Facilities, Equipment and Other Resources 

The sponsor may require a separate description that addresses the attributes of the facilities and available equipment that will be used to support the project. It is an opportunity to promote the research environment laboratories, other facilities, equipment, and office space at Stanford. Make sure that the space proposed for your project is approved for that use by the facilities manager in your department/school. 

Key Personnel

List all senior or key personnel and their roles.  These individuals are vital to the technical execution of the project. Depending on the sponsor, consultants and subrecipients must be included. Attach Curriculum Vitae or Biographical Sketches for each to establish competency. Some sponsors, e.g.., NSF, limit CVs to two pages.

Current and Pending Support

Most sponsors ask for a list of all other sources of support for ongoing projects, as well as pending support from proposals submitted elsewhere. This information is available from SeRA system. List the other projects requiring a portion of PI or senior personnel time. Include:

• Project title, sponsor
• Period of performance
• Percentage of effort, amount of award (or amount requested). 

Some agencies require the Current and Pending Support to be submitted not at proposal submission time but prior to making an award. This is called Just In Time Information (JIT).  The National Institutes of Health uses JIT for the submission of Current and Pending Support.

Some sponsors prohibit or require prior approval to submit appendices. The appendix may not be used to circumvent the page limitations of the Research Plan. Essential information should be included within the body of the application. The appendices should contain supportive or supplemental information such as the following.

• Photographs

Federal Assurance and Certifications (Institutional Rep completes)

Federal assurances and certifications must be signed by the Stanford Institutional Official when proposals are submitted. Standard federal assurances include:

• Certification regarding lobbying
• Drug-Free workplace
• Delinquency on federal debt
• Civil rights
• Debarment and suspension

Sponsor Checklist

Many sponsors provide proposal checklists. Be sure to complete it and include it in the proposal, if required. The National Institutes of Health requires the checklist to be a component of the proposal.

Minimum Proposal Components

In cases where the sponsor does not require specific proposal components, Stanford requires a SOW (Statement of Work) and an internal budget and a budget justification to be attached to a PDRF.

SOW (Statement of Work)

The statement of work describes the what, why, how, and when of the research project. It shows how the project relates to the sponsor’s purpose and goals. For the proposal to succeed in peer review, it must win over the assigned reviewers. The application has two audiences: a small number who are familiar with the field, and the majority of reviewers who are probably not familiar with the proposed research techniques or field. All reviewers are important because each reviewer gets one vote. The proposal should be written and organized so all the reviewers can readily grasp and explain what is proposed and advocate for the proposal. 

The statement of work should provide a clear description of the work to be undertaken and must include:

• objectives for the period of the proposed work
• expected significance of the proposed work
• relation to longer-term goals of the PI's project
• relation to the present state of knowledge in the field
• relation to work in progress by the PI under other support
• relation to work in progress elsewhere.

The statement of work should outline the general plan of work, including the broad design of activities to be undertaken, and, where appropriate, provide a clear description of experimental methods and procedures.

Proposers should address

• What they want to do
• Why they want to do it
• How they plan to do it
• How they will know if they succeed
• What benefits could accrue if the project is successful

The project activities may be based on previously established and/or innovative methods and approaches, but in either case must be well justified. These issues apply to both the technical aspects of the proposal and the way in which the project may make broader contribution.

Brevity will assist reviewers in dealing effectively with proposals. Therefore, many agencies have page limitations on the Project Description.

The Budget and Budget Justification

Develop a detailed internal budget and attach it to the PDRF. An internal budget requires that all the cost components be broken into detail. You will use it to complete the sponsor's budget in the sponsor's format. 

All proposals must contain a budget for each year of support requested, unless a particular program solicitation stipulates otherwise. The amounts for each budget line item requested should be documented and justified in the budget justification. If you are submitting a modular NIH proposal you must follow very specific instructions.

The proposal may request funds so long as the item and amount are considered necessary, reasonable, allocable, and allowable under the applicable cost principles, agency policy, and/or the program solicitation. Amounts and expenses budgeted also must be consistent with Stanford's policies and procedures.

The budget must include the following:

• Estimated costs for the entire project period broken into Direct and F&A costs
• Separate budgets for any portion of the work  that is to be done under a subaward
• Separate budgets for any cost sharing proposed

The best strategy is to request a reasonable amount of money to do the work, not more and not less.

• Reviewers look for reasonable costs and will judge whether your request is justified by your aims and methods
• Reviewers will consider the person months you've listed for each of the senior/key personnel and will judge whether the figures are in sync with reviewer expectations, based on the research proposed
• Significant over or under estimating suggests you may not understand the scope of the work

About the Budget Justification

The budget justification is a brief description of each of the cost categories included in the budget. It helps the potential sponsor understand the thought process behind the costs proposed. It also helps the institutional representative determine the allowability of the expenses proposed.

Stanford policy requires a budget justification for all administrative salaries. Pay special attention to the justification for general purpose (non-scientific) equipment. 

Sponsor Proposal Preparation Guidelines

Before you prepare an application, obtain and thoroughly read the current sponsor guidelines specific to the funding opportunity.

Key Sponsor Proposal Preparation Guidelines

Before you prepare a proposal, study and follow the current specific agency/sponsor guidelines to understand your responsibilities. Proposal Preparation Guidelines for key agencies include:

National Institutes of Health Application Guide

National Science Foundation PAPPG 

Created: 04.01.2021

Updated: 04.07.2021