39+ Sample Research Proposals

What is a Research Proposal?

A research proposal is a document that outlines a research plan to investigate a certain topic in a field of study. It has more stringent criteria than writing an ordinary project proposal. The research proposal should provide a concise and coherent summary of the proposed study—the rationale behind the issues or research problems that you intend to address and how these problems will be addressed. The research proposal should be able to capture how well you can think critically and concisely communicate complex ideas.

As an important document that you need to submit during the application process, the research proposal should articulate the current landscape when it comes to the body of knowledge or recent debates about the topic. It should be able to answer the following questions:

  1. What is the issue or problem that needs to be addressed?
  2. What has been done so far?
  3. What do we know now about the issues?
  4. What more can be or should be done?

These questions will help you come up with a proposal that will help you to demonstrate your skills and aptitude when it comes to a higher level of graduate or post-graduate research study especially when presenting the detailed methodology for conducting the research.

A research proposal is also a tool used to help you match with the appropriate supervisor that shares the same interest as you or is an expert in the field of study you are investigating.

Common Mistakes to Avoid When Writing a Research Proposal

Like any other write-ups, a research proposal needs to be proofread, revised, redrafted and edited for clarity before submitting. First-time applicants have a lesser success rate than repeat applications, 9%-10%, and 14%-15%, respectively. To increase your chances of getting your grant proposal approved, note the following sample research proposal mistakes that you should avoid.

Lengthy proposals. Research proposals must be concise and convey your ideas in a smaller number of words as much as possible. You can see from example research proposals that it’s focused and does not digress to unrelated topics without a sense of purpose. No references. Citing references is very important. Failure to give credit to an idea is a huge red flag.Failure to provide context and boundaries of your research. This means that the proposed research study missed informing its reader how and in what way the study will address the issues raised in the proposal.Incoherent and unpersuasive arguments for the proposed research. In many grant-giving body or research funding agencies, they treat the research proposal as a document in which the proponents can argue why a study should be funded. Failure to give a convincing argument will most likely result in the rejection of the proposal.Unclear writing and incorrect grammar. Despite being a preliminary paper about the study, proponents are expected to deliver quality and well-written papers. It should follow the style and rules of academic writing or standard marketing report format.Information overload on minor issues but not enough on major issues. The proposal should focus on major issues about the topic presented. It should answer key research questions to support the argument presented on why it’s relevant to conduct the research and investigate them. Minor issues, despite their validity, may be mentioned but should not dominate the overall narrative.

How to Write a Research Proposal

Every year, billions of dollars are spent on grants and research funding for marketing, academic, and nonprofit research, among others. And a good research proposal can help you get the funding that you deserve. When writing your proposal, bear in mind that a research proposal has two goals: justify the need to investigate a research problem and present practical methods on how the study should be conducted. These two goals should be kept in mind when writing a research proposal.

Step 1: Select a Topic and Create a Title

A good place to start writing your research proposal is yourself. You may begin by asking yourself a series of questions such as what you’re interested in, its significance in the field, and the problems it will solve. It will also help if, at the onset, you already think about how it can build upon and contribute to the current body of work and what you’re planning to do given the timeframe.

After deciding on a topic, think of a catchy title. It should be good, but one that also gives a clear indication of your proposed research is better. Remember that the best titles are the ones that are catchy and at the same time tell what the research approach is or the key questions to be answered by the research study.

Step 2: Background and Rationale

This part of the proposal serves as an introduction to your research topic. It should be able to paint a picture of the current marketing landscape or status of the area of study. A short literature review should be written in and should be referenced properly. It would also be helpful if a summary of key debates and developments in the field are included in the research proposal template.

Step 3: Formulate Research Questions

Issues and problems being investigated must be formulated around the gaps found from the extensive literature of the field of study. Each problem should be explained why these need to be explored as well as why they are worth exploring. It should be noted that these research questions will contribute to the body of knowledge to move the industry or area of study further.

Step 4: Describe the Research Design and Methodology

One of the most important parts of the research proposal is the research design and methodology. In this section, you will have to demonstrate that you have the skills and ability to turn concepts into actionable plans. Your theoretical frameworks drawn from theoretical resources should have a tangible approach and the research methods are appropriate for the proposed research. You also need to discuss the advantages of the methods as well as set parameters to the limitations of using such methods.

Step 5: Specify Plan of Work and Time Schedule

The technical panel that will be vetting your research proposal needs to see your schedule. Therefore, you must include in your outline various stages of the and its corresponding timeline in the development and implementation of the research study, including the time spend in writing the final paper. You also have to indicate if it’s full-time research or a part-time one.

Step 6: Include References

Research studies are original work that gets inspiration and influences from other studies. To prevent issues with plagiarism, you should include a reference list. This section should list down all key articles and texts that were discussed and referenced in your proposal. Make sure that this list is a selection of a body of works that’s appropriate to the current work.

Research Proposal Structures

Research proposals are typically organized in a manner that reads naturally and follows a usual flow. Each section of the research proposal should document your knowledge of the topic and highlight your interest in studying the topic and leave its readers feeling excited and hooked on the topic. In general, your research proposal should have the following sections:

Introduction

After reading the Introduction, the reader should already have an understanding of what it is you intend to do and have a sense of your interest in the topic and your enthusiasm to do the project as well as get them excited about the possible outcomes of the study. Your introduction should be a narrative about the central research problem, a topic related to the problem, and methods that will be used to analyze the research problem. It should also state the importance of the current study and how it will impact the status quo.

Background and Significance

Although this can be included in the introduction, this section can have a place of its own to help with the organization of your thoughts and the flow of your proposal. This section explains the context of the project and outlines its importance in addressing every major issue described. For every problem statement, there should be a corresponding detailed explanation about the purpose of the study.

Review of Related Literature

Literature review connects to the background and significance of the study. It is a more deliberate review of the current body of knowledge available in the field of study being investigated. This section is also a synthesis of prior studies related to the research problems under investigation. But the main purpose of the literature review is to find the place of the current study in the larger picture and demonstrate that the proposed study is original and innovative.

Research Design and Methodology

Your planned design and methodology are your gateways to convincing the panel that to approve your research or grant proposal. This section must be well-written and follows a logical flow and be written in the future tense. You are not actually doing the research yet, so the objective here is to convince your reader that your chosen research design and methodology will address the problems stated in the earlier sections.

Preliminary Suppositions and Implications

Your hypotheses about the topic being investigated go here. It doesn’t have to contain analysis since you don’t have the results yet, but you need to illustrate the possible implications of a topic to the entire field or industry. This is your chance to convince your panel that your research study will refine, revise, or extend the existing knowledge about the field.

Conclusion

This section is not about the conclusion to the study since no data have been collected yet. But this is a reiteration of the significance and importance of the study you are proposing. It should also provide a quick recap of the proposal. This should be concise and encapsulate the ideas presented in each section of the proposal in one or two paragraphs emphasizing the uniqueness and relevance of the topic.

FAQs

What are the common reasons for rejecting a proposal?

There are many valid reasons why a proposal is rejected but most of all, it’s because the deadline was not met, the proposal topic was inappropriate, and the instructions or guidelines for proposal submission, format, and length were not followed. Furthermore, it could also be because the proposal was not persuasive enough and lacks citations.

Is there a way to increase your chances of getting the proposal approved?

It is important to follow the guidelines of the funding agency exactly. If any instructions are unclear, it is best to connect with someone from the funding agency to clarify them by giving them a call or sending an email before writing the proposal.

What can be done if proposals are rejected?

Because of the competitive nature of research grants, especially academic grants, many proposals get rejected despite taking all the necessary steps. Rejection may sting, but you can read the comments carefully and assess where you need to improve in your proposal. If a resubmission is possible, you can rework your proposal while taking into account the comments. However, if the resubmission is not possible, you may find some other agencies that better fit your study.

Ultimately, every research proposal and grant application are learning experiences. You must keep in mind that the research proposal is a tool to convince your reader of the importance of the issues you’re tackling and how your research study will contribute to the current work in the field. To help you get started, browse through our selection of research proposal templates and download them now.