Misplaced Pages

Part of a series on
Research
Research design Ethics Proposal Question Writing Argument Referencing
Research strategy Interdisciplinary Multimethodology Qualitative Art-based Quantitative
Philosophical schools Antipositivism Constructivism Critical rationalism Empiricism Fallibilism Positivism Postpositivism Pragmatism Realism Critical realism Subtle realism
Methodology Action research Art methodology Critical theory Grounded theory Hermeneutics Historiography Human subject research Narrative inquiry Phenomenology Pragmatism Scientific method
Methods Analysis Case study Content analysis Descriptive statistics Discourse analysis Ethnography Autoethnography Experiment Field experiment Social experiment Quasi-experiment Field research Historical method Inferential statistics Interviews Mapping Cultural mapping Phenomenography Secondary research Bibliometrics Literature review Meta-analysis Scoping review Systematic review Scientific modelling Simulation Survey
Tools and software Argument technology Geographic information system software Library and information science software Bibliometrics Reference management Science software Qualitative data analysis Simulation Statistics
Philosophy portal
v t e

A research proposal is a document proposing a research project, generally in the sciences or academia, and generally constitutes a request for sponsorship of that research. Proposals are evaluated on the cost and potential impact of the proposed research, and on the soundness of the proposed plan for carrying it out. Research proposals generally address several key points:

• What research question(s) will be addressed, and how they will be addressed
• How much time and expense will be required for the research
• What prior research has been done on the topic
• How the results of the research will be evaluated
• How the research will benefit the sponsoring organization and other parties

Types

Research proposals may be solicited, meaning that they are submitted in response to a request with specified requirements, such as a request for proposal, or they may be unsolicited, meaning they are submitted without prior request. Other types of proposals include "preproposals", where a letter of intent or brief abstract is submitted for review prior to submission of a full proposal; continuation proposals, which re-iterate an original proposal and its funding requirements in order to ensure continued funding; and renewal proposals, which seek continued sponsorship of a project which would otherwise be terminated.

Academic research proposals are generally written as part of the initial requirements of writing a thesis, research paper, or dissertation. They generally follow the same format as a research paper, with an introduction, a literature review, a discussion of research methodology and goals, and a conclusion. This basic structure may vary between projects and between fields, each of which may have its own requirements.

References

1. "Research proposal". BusinessDictionary.com. Archived from the original on 5 February 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
2. Wong, Paul T. P. "How to Write a Research Proposal". International Network on Personal Meaning. Archived from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
3. Yousaf, Saeed T. P. "Keypoints of a Research Proposal". Scholarshipfellow.com. Archived from the original on 30 March 2023. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
4. "Writing a Research Proposal". University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Archived from the original on 22 June 2016. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
5. "How to Write Academic Research Proposal". A Jonson Hillviews Magazine Editor. Archived from the original on 20 December 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2018.

• Proposals
• Research