How to Write a Research Proposal - An Ultimate Guide

If you are assigned a research paper to write for the first time, it is obvious that you will be worried about writing it. Before you submit your research paper, you are to submit the research proposal.

It is normal that you will be paranoid because you don’t even know how to write a research proposal. Continue reading this blog to know how an effective and winning research proposal is written.

1. What is a Research Proposal?

A research proposal is a piece of writing that is often asked by an instructor to submit before the research paper. This work is a description of your research paper.

It basically presents what your research is going to be, why it is important, and how the research will be conducted.

Like all other formal writings, this piece of writing follows a format and a structure to clearly present the objectives. The format of the research proposal varies from subject to subject and field to field.

Generally, a good research proposal has the following elements in it:

• Cover Page or a Title Page
• Introduction to the topic
• Literature Review
• Research Methods
• References

1.1 Writing a Research Proposal

A research proposal is written for a number of reasons. As a student, a research proposal is written to get approval of your thesis, research, or a dissertation. A research proposal is always drafted to persuade or convince the audience which, in a student's case, is an instructor.

A research proposal is written for the following reasons:

• It strengthens the thinking and designing skills used in research
• The study of the literature and its review helps you understand the importance of the topic
• Increases your analyzing, research, and writing skills
• It helps you organize your points in a logical order to achieve goals.

To write a research proposal add the following information:

• Draft a critical review of the research paper
• Examine the methods used to gather data
• Analyze the collected data to address the problem that is being researched

A good and perfectly drafted research proposal can pave the way to writing an effective research paper.

2. How to Write a Research Proposal?

To write a research proposal perfectly, an easy way is to answer some research questions. To begin with, just answer these questions to make a research proposal:

• What are you to accomplish from the research that you are conducting? Be definite and clear about defining the research problems you chose to conduct your research on. Put forward what you will do research on.

• Why are you conducting the research particularly? This is the most important thing to be mentioned in the research proposal. This will let you review the research and literature thoroughly. Also, it states why the problem or topic is important to study.

• What are the solutions that you can give for the problems discussed? Give solutions that are practical to solve a problem. Be clear and specific.

To write a research proposal there is a whole process. This is the outline that lets you design and draft the research proposal in a structured way. Your research proposal should contain the things mentioned below in detail.

2.1 Title Page

Like other academic writings as a thesis and a dissertation, a research proposal has a title or a cover page. This is the first page of your research proposal which usually includes the following information:

• The topic or title of your project or research
• Researcher's name
• Name of the instructor
• The institution's name
• Your department

It is important to first go through and understand the guidelines and instructions provided by the instructor. This is to provide everything that your instructor requires from you and your research. Be clear what format you are required to write your research paper in.

2.2 Table of Content and Abstract

If you know your research prop[osal is going to be lengthy and in detail then write an abstract of it before.

Another thing is to make a table of content that includes the page number, headings, and subheadings in your research proposal. This is done to give an idea to your instructor that your research proposal has the following content in it.

2.3 Introduction

The first part of your research proposal is the introduction. This is the point where you set the pitch for your project so make sure it is attractive and clearly written. The section carries the introduction of an issue or the topic of your research, its background and context, and a thesis statement.

To write an interesting introduction include the following information:

• Who will be interested in the topic? Whether the research is done for a scientist, a policymaker, or just the members of the society in general.

• What information already exists about the topic? Present the mainstream or available information or solutions that are already being discussed.

• What are the things missing from the already existing knowledge? Talk about how the previous knowledge is not enough and put forward new ideas and points.

• What is the importance of research? Present and highlight why this research is so valuable.

You might be needing different sections for this information if the research proposal is lengthy and in detail.

2.4 Literature Review

The literature review is written to show that you are aware of the findings on the research topic and you have studied them thoroughly. A literature review persuades the audience to believe that the topic or issue of research is important to be studied and discussed in detail.

This basically provides a foundation for your research and you have a strong argument because there is a theory to support your research.

In the literature review, clearly state how your research will contribute to a certain field.

2.5 Research Methods and Designs

After writing a literature review, it is important to draw back the attention of the reader towards your project and presenting its objectives.

This section includes information and content about the research design and the methodology that a researcher uses and states the basic approach and practical steps that he takes to solve the research problem or an issue.

There are two types of research; qualitative and quantitative. All the research is done in either of the types. The research method is the method of collecting data for the research that a researcher uses.

The research type is selected according to the type of topic and field of study. For scientific research, a quantitative method of research is done while for the humanities and social sciences field, qualitative research is conducted.

To state the methods, do not just list them down. Form an argument to tell why the method you choose is appropriate for your research, its validity, and reliability.

2.6 Implications and Contributions

To write a strong and effective research proposal, explore the implications of the research practice and theory that are potential and lay emphasis on how your study and research will contribute to the existing knowledge.

2.7 Limitations

You can not present only the good side of your research. To be honest and reliable, state the limitations of the research as well.

The limitation section includes the explanation of the unavailable resources for your research if any. It includes the shortcomings and flaws that your research has. Explicitly mention if the methods chosen are wrong or if the sample size taken from the population was small.

Talking about the limitations of your research shows how well you understand the topic.

2.8 Bibliography

This section is essential in the research proposal as it saves you from the accusations of plagiarism. Proper citation of the sources you used to take information for your research is important.

In the reference list, that is presented at the end of a research proposal and paper, write all the publication details. To easily create citations for your research proposal you can use citation generator online.

In some cases, a researcher is asked to provide the bibliography as well. This is the list of all the sources you considered and consulted before writing the proposal. State here the sources that you did not cite in the text or content.

2.9 Research Schedule

Some instructors ask to provide the schedule and a detailed timeline of the research project as well. This timeline shows what a researcher will do at a certain stage and how much time will be taken.

2.10 Proofreading

Every piece of writing should go through this process in order to be flawless and most effective. Proofreading is the process of checking for mistakes and errors in the content. Before you submit your research proposal proofread it and make editings if required.

Check for your proposal's formatting, its structure, spelling mistakes in the content, punctuation, grammar, citation, syntax, vocabulary, etc.

3. Research Proposal Example

Examples are important to get a better understanding of everything. Similarly, to know and understand the research proposal and its writing process better look at the example provided below.

Research Proposal Sample (PDF)

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