research proposal by pdf

Have a language expert improve your writing

Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free.

• Knowledge Base
• Starting the research process
• 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

Here's why students love Scribbr's proofreading services

Discover proofreading & editing

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

Receive feedback on language, structure, and formatting

Professional editors proofread and edit your paper by focusing on:

• Academic style
• Vague sentences
• Style consistency

See an example

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.

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 Citation Generator.

McCombes, S. & George, T. (2023, November 21). How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates. Scribbr. Retrieved July 10, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/research-process/research-proposal/

Is this article helpful?

Shona McCombes

Other students also liked, how to write a problem statement | guide & examples, writing strong research questions | criteria & examples, how to write a literature review | guide, examples, & templates, get unlimited documents corrected.

✔ Free APA citation check included ✔ Unlimited document corrections ✔ Specialized in correcting academic texts

What’s Included: Research Proposal Template

Our free dissertation/thesis proposal template covers the core essential ingredients for a strong research proposal. It includes clear explanations of what you need to address in each section, as well as straightforward examples and links to further resources.

The research proposal template covers the following core elements:

• Introduction & background (including the research problem)
• Literature review
• Research design / methodology
• Project plan , resource requirements and risk management

The cleanly-formatted Google Doc can be downloaded as a fully editable MS Word Document (DOCX format), so you can use it as-is or convert it to LaTeX.

PS – if you’d like a high-level template for the entire thesis, you can we’ve got that too .

Research Proposal Template FAQS

What types of research proposals can this template be used for.

The proposal template follows the standard format for academic research projects, which means it will be suitable for the vast majority of dissertations and theses (especially those within the sciences), whether they are qualitative or quantitative in terms of design.

Keep in mind that the exact requirements for the introduction chapter/section will vary between universities and degree programs. These are typically minor, but it’s always a good idea to double-check your university’s requirements before you finalise your structure.

Is this template for an undergrad, Master or PhD-level proposal?

This template can be used for a research project at any level of study. Doctoral-level projects typically require the research proposal to be more extensive/comprehensive, but the structure will typically remain the same.

How long should my research proposal be?

The length of a research proposal varies by institution and subject, but as a ballpark, it’s usually between 1,500 and 3,000 words.

To be safe, it’s best to check with your university if they have any preferences or requirements in terms of minimum and maximum word count for the research propsal.

How detailed should the methodology of the proposal be?

You don’t need to go into the fine details of your methodology, but this section should be detailed enough to demonstrate that your research approach is feasible and will address your research questions effectively. Be sure to include your intended methods for data collection and analysis.

Can I include preliminary data or pilot study results in my proposal?

Generally, yes. This can strengthen your proposal by demonstrating the feasibility of your research. However, make sure that your pilot study is approved by your university before collecting any data.

Can I share this template with my friends/colleagues?

Yes, you’re welcome to share this template in its original format (no editing allowed). If you want to post about it on your blog or social media, we kindly request that you reference this page as your source.

What format is the template (DOC, PDF, PPT, etc.)?

The research proposal template is provided as a Google Doc. You can download it in MS Word format or make a copy to your Google Drive. You’re also welcome to convert it to whatever format works best for you, such as LaTeX or PDF.

Do you have templates for the other chapters?

Yes, we do. We are constantly developing our collection of free resources to help students complete their dissertations and theses. You can view all of our template resources here .

Can Grad Coach help me with my dissertation/thesis?

Yes, you’re welcome to get in touch with us to discuss our private coaching services .

Further Resources: Proposal Writing

The template provides step-by-step guidance for each section of your research proposal, but if you’d like to learn more about how to write up a high-quality research proposal, check out the rest of our free proposal-related resources:

• Research Proposal 101
• Examples of research proposals
• How To Find A Research Topic
• How To Find A Research Gap
• Developing Your Golden Thread
• How To Write A Research Proposal
• 8 Common Proposal Writing Mistakes

You can also visit the Grad Coach blog for more proposal-related resources.

If you’d prefer 1-on-1 support with your research proposal, have a look at our private coaching service , where we hold your hand through the research process, step by step.

Academia.edu no longer supports Internet Explorer.

To browse Academia.edu and the wider internet faster and more securely, please take a few seconds to  upgrade your browser .

Enter the email address you signed up with and we'll email you a reset link.

• We're Hiring!
• Help Center

How to Write Research Proposal: 13 Elements of Research Proposal

The Research Proposal is a concise document of your proposed research project with clearly stated objectives, expected challenges, study execution plan to achieve milestones and it must be supported with valid scientific citations. The research proposal is a document created with the intention of convincing a prospect that the research project being proposed by the candidate is worthwhile which must also focus on the candidate's capability to successfully execute the project by outlining the clear research plan to achieve set goals [1]. The inclusion of unnecessary information that is not relevant to the research being proposed also becomes the cause of the chaos that ultimately results in proposal rejection [2]. The details in a research proposal have to be extremely relevant to the subject. It must be noted as per previous studies that the research proposals are considered of good quality if and only if the writer has focused on the subject by qualitatively selecting citations to support the claims instead of quantitatively adding partial or fully irrelevant literature as in references; as of just to increase the word count of the document [3]. Research Proposal Format and Sections The research proposal is a document intended to convince the prospect that you have a worthwhile research project and capability with an organized research plan to achieve the targeted goals. Most of the research proposals lack the necessary information by skipping on essential sections in a research proposal as per previous studies and that becomes the reason for their proposal rejection. This article provides insights into writing a well-structured research proposal that contains all the essential sections. This article spotlights the major elements that must be covered in a research proposal document. These sections are the title, abstract, introduction, statement of objectives, analysis of literature, research methodology, research plan, budget estimations, research team particulars, funding source, co-worker acknowledgments, and references. Sections of a Research Proposal A well-composed research proposal begins with a short and to the point (self-explanatory) title. Whereas the introduction part must demonstrate in-depth but clearly supportive literature review to highlight the problems or challenges, objectives and significance of the research study being proposed. The research proposal needs to include all the significant elements of the proposed research project and adequate information to enable the prospect to accurately evaluate the merits and feasibility of the proposed project and the writer must be aware of the dynamic trends that may influence proposal writing by keeping the most updated scientific terms in the proposal.

Loading Preview

Sorry, preview is currently unavailable. You can download the paper by clicking the button above.

•   We're Hiring!
•   Help Center
• Find new research papers in:
• Health Sciences
• Earth Sciences
• Cognitive Science
• Mathematics
• Computer Science
• Academia ©2024

Get science-backed answers as you write with Paperpal's Research feature

Research Funding Basics: What Should a Grant Proposal Include?

A grant proposal for research is like a formal request sent to an organization, asking for money to support a research project. It is a document or a group of papers that explains what the research is about and why it is important. Writing a grant proposal can be tough, especially for someone new to research. Because many funding agencies have less money to give out, and lots of researchers are asking for it, it’s crucial to write a perfect grant proposal to stand out and increase the chances of getting the needed funding.[1][2]  

Elements of a grant proposal    

A grant proposal has several essential elements or sections. These may go by different names depending on the guidelines of varying grant agencies, but they serve similar purposes. The cover letter acts as a polite introduction, while the executive summary provides a quick overview of the project. Organizational qualifications focus on why the applying group is suitable for the project, and a short overview offers a summary.    

The statement of need explains why the project is vital by outlining the problem it addresses. The project narrative is the main part, detailing the project’s plans and methods. Finally, the budget section breaks down the requested funds, demonstrating how they will be used for the project.[1][2]   

Let us examine how to write a grant proposal by taking up each of these elements.   

How to Write a Grant Proposal for Research[ 1][4][7]  

• Cover Letter: In a grant proposal, a cover letter is like a friendly introduction before the main request. It introduces you and your organization and aims to show that you are serious and professional about your project. The cover letter briefly talks about your project and expresses your excitement for it and gratitude for the people considering your funding request.  
• Executive Summary: The executive summary is a brief, condensed overview of your proposal, addressing critical questions about the project’s purpose, need, expected outcomes, methods, success measurement, and significance. It’s usually written last, serving as a concise introduction.   
• Problem Statement: The significance of your project lies in addressing a notable gap in resources, knowledge, or opportunities that genuinely requires attention. To establish the value of your project, it is crucial to define the need or problem it seeks to resolve clearly. Early in your proposal, provide background information to set the context of this problem. Importantly, emphasize how your project will have a broader, positive impact beyond simply answering an academic question. 
• Project Goals and Objectives: Once you have highlighted the need for your project, it is time to detail the project itself by answering critical questions. Clearly define the goals or research questions, articulate the outcomes your project aims for, and explain the methods to achieve these objectives. Emphasize how you will measure and recognize project achievements, ensuring they align with the identified need. Establishing a realistic timeline is essential. Focusing on the impact your project will have is critical, as funders want to see clear benefits and a robust plan for verifying and assessing the project’s success.  
• Budget: When seeking funding or support, it is crucial to specify exactly what you are requesting for and why you are asking for specific amounts. Budgets are often presented in tables and figures, clearly labelling each amount. Following the budget, you may need a justification statement explaining why each cost, material, and equipment is valid, reasonable, and essential for your project.  
• Organizational Information: This section focuses on the organization or individual requesting the grant. When an individual is seeking a grant, all relevant personal details can be included here. This part provides essential information about the key people involved in the project, including their names, backgrounds, and positions. Additionally, it offers a comprehensive history of the organization, detailing its mission and highlighting previous projects. This section helps the grant provider understand who is behind the proposal, their qualifications, and the organization’s track record, fostering trust and confidence in the project’s potential success.
• Supporting Documents: At the end of your grant proposal, you should include various supporting materials, often in the form of appendices. These could consist of extra records, endorsements, tax status information, bios of personnel in your organization, and letters of support from allied organizations or groups involved in your project. All these documents should directly relate to your proposal and may be requested explicitly by the granting institution. Including relevant and explicit supporting materials enhances the credibility and completeness of your proposal.   

References:    

• Grant Proposals (or Give me the money!) – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill   
• How to write a grant proposal – PubMed Central    
• Grant Writing – Purdue University   
• Planning and Writing a Grant Proposal: The Basics – University of Wisconsin – Madison   
• How to Begin Developing a Statement of Need – Funding for Good – Funding for Good   
• What are the critical elements of a successful grant proposal, and how do you write one? – LinkedIn   
• Writing a Research Grant Proposal – University of Winnipeg   

Paperpal is a comprehensive AI writing toolkit that helps students and researchers achieve 2x the writing in half the time. It leverages 21+ years of STM experience and insights from millions of research articles to provide in-depth academic writing, language editing, and submission readiness support to help you write better, faster.  

Get accurate academic translations, rewriting support, grammar checks, vocabulary suggestions, and generative AI assistance that delivers human precision at machine speed. Try for free or upgrade to Paperpal Prime starting at US$19 a month to access premium features, including consistency, plagiarism, and 30+ submission readiness checks to help you succeed.  

Experience the future of academic writing – Sign up to Paperpal and start writing for free!  

Related Reads:

• How to Write the First Draft of a Research Paper with Paperpal? 
• 7 Ways to Improve Your Academic Writing Process

How to Write Dissertation Acknowledgements?

• How to Use Paperpal to Generate Emails & Cover Letters?

Top 7 AI Tools for Research 2024

Maintaining academic integrity with paperpal’s generative ai writing features, you may also like, maintaining academic integrity with paperpal’s generative ai writing..., how to write an abstract in research papers..., how to structure an essay, leveraging generative ai to enhance student understanding of..., how to write a good hook for essays,..., addressing peer review feedback and mastering manuscript revisions..., how paperpal can boost comprehension and foster interdisciplinary..., what is the importance of a concept paper..., how to write the first draft of a....

Heat-related risk at Paris 2024: a proposal for classification and review of International Federations policies

• British Journal of Sports Medicine
• This person is not on ResearchGate, or hasn't claimed this research yet.

• World Athletics

Discover the world's research

• 25+ million members
• 160+ million publication pages
• 2.3+ billion citations

No full-text available

To read the full-text of this research, you can request a copy directly from the authors.

• Cem O. Yaldiz

• Curr Sports Med Rep

• J APPL PHYSIOL

• Takayuki Goto
• Yuki Kobayashi
• Mitsuharu Kaya

• J SPORT MED PHYS FIT

• Glenda Anderson

• Caroline F Finch

• THEOR APPL CLIMATOL

• BRIT J SPORT MED

• Kirk R. Smith

• INT J BIOMETEOROL

• J AM COLL CARDIOL

• Liron Gershovitz
• Sami Viskin

• Dato' Gurcharan Singh

• J ATHL TRAINING

• Hiroyuki Yokota
• Takao Akama
• Mathew G Wilson

• PHYSIOL REV

• Micheal T. Murphy
• Keith F. Polston
• Michael Carroll

• Brady Tripp

• Julie K DeMartini

• Christian Stammel

• David J. Hunter

• H.S. Belding
• A. Bouchama

• Jonathan C Reeser
• Recruit researchers
• Join for free
• Login Email Tip: Most researchers use their institutional email address as their ResearchGate login Password Forgot password? Keep me logged in Log in or Continue with Google Welcome back! Please log in. Email · Hint Tip: Most researchers use their institutional email address as their ResearchGate login Password Forgot password? Keep me logged in Log in or Continue with Google No account? Sign up

• Search Research
• Eindhoven Artificial Intelligence Systems Institute
• Institute for Complex Molecular Systems
• Eindhoven Hendrik Casimir Institute
• Eindhoven Institute for Renewable Energy Systems
• Artificial Intelligence
• Smart Mobility
• Engineering Health
• Integrated Photonics
• Quantum Technology
• High Tech Systems Center
• Data Science
• Humans and Technology
• Future Chips
• Research Groups
• Other labs and facilities
• Researchers
• Applied Physics and Science Education
• Biomedical Engineering
• Built Environment
• Chemical Engineering and Chemistry
• Eindhoven School of Education
• Electrical Engineering
• Industrial Design
• Industrial Engineering and Innovation Sciences
• Mathematics and Computer Science
• Mechanical Engineering
• National Grants
• International Grants
• TU/e Distinctions
• Sectorplans
• Research assessments
• Winners TU/e Science Awards
• Research Support Network

Information Systems IE&IS

The Information Systems (IS) group studies novel tools and techniques that help organizations use their information systems to support better operational decision making.

Create value through intelligent processing of business information

Information Systems are at the core of modern-day organizations. Both within and between organizations. The Information Systems group studies tools and techniques that help to use them in the best possible way, to get the most value out of them.

In order to do that, the IS group helps organizations to: (i) understand the business needs and value propositions and accordingly design the required business and information system architecture; (ii) design, implement, and improve the operational processes and supporting (information) systems that address the business need, and (iii) use advanced data analytics methods and techniques to support decision making for improving the operation of the system and continuously reevaluating its effectiveness.

We do so in various sectors from transportation and logistics, mobility services, high-tech manufacturing, service industry, and e-commerce to healthcare.

Against this background, IS research concentrates on the following topics:

• Business model design and service systems engineering for digital services.
• Managing digital transformation.
• Data-driven business process engineering and execution.
• Innovative process modeling techniques and execution engines.
• Human aspects of information systems engineering.
• Intelligent decision support through Artificial Intelligence and Computational Intelligence.
• Data-driven decision making.
• Machine learning to optimize resource allocation.
• All IS news

Research Areas

We work on Information Systems topics in three related research areas.

Process Engineering

Process Engineering (PE) develops integrated tools and techniques for data-driven decision support in the design and execution of…

AI for decision-making

AI for Decision-Making (AI4DM) develops methods, techniques and tools for AI-driven decision making in operational business process.

Business Engineering

Business Engineering (BE) investigates and develops new concepts, methods, and techniques - including novel data-driven approaches - for the…

Application domains

We focus on the application of Information Systems in the following domains.

Information Systems focuses on the business architecture design of new mobility solutions that are safe, efficient, affordable and…

Information Systems are the backbone of modern health(care) ecosystems. They are critical for clinical research, clinical operations, and…

Service Industry

Service organizations, including banks, insurance companies, and governmental bodies, fully rely on information provisioning to do their…

Transportation and Logistics

Information Systems facilitate monitoring and planning of transportation and logistics resources. By doing so, they ultimately help to…

Smart Industry

The digital transformation of industry is leveraged by Information Systems providing integrated data and process management and AI-enabled…

Meet some of our researchers

Isel grau garcia, oktay türetken, remco dijkman, alexia athanasopoulou, pieter van gorp, hendrik baier, zaharah bukhsh, laura genga, baris ozkan, sybren de kinderen, laurens bliek, banu aysolmaz.

• Meet all our researchers

Recent Publications

• See all publications

Our most recent peer reviewed publications

Acceptance of Mobility-as-a-Service: Insights from empirical studies on influential factors

A revised cognitive mapping methodology for modeling and simulation, backpropagation through time learning for recurrence-aware long-term cognitive networks, an explainable data-driven decision support framework for strategic customer development, data-driven aggregate modeling of a semiconductor wafer fab to predict wip levels and cycle time distributions.

Open source

We encourage innovation from our research. This is why we share the open-source codes from our research projects.

• Link to our open source codes

Work with us!

Please check out the TU/e vacancy pages for opportunities within our group. 

If you are a student, potential sponsor or industrial partner and want to work with us, please contact the IS secretariat or the Information Systems group chair,  dr.ir. Remco Dijkman

Visiting address

Postal address.