THE FINAL RESEARCH PROPOSAL

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Note: The final format and contents will vary depending on the type of proposal, the kind of work
it involves and the specific requirements it calls for. Not all of the following items will need to be
included in every research proposal. You should use the following as a checklist and be guided by
the type of research you are undertaking.
Recall – Banned topics: anything related to “the impact of COVID-19 on…”
WHAT IS A RESEARCH PROPOSAL?
Generally, a research proposal provides a concise summary of your intended research. It serves
to:
• demonstrates your awareness of the research context, and by extension, shows that you
that you have adequate expertise and experience to undertake a research project
• state the central issues or questions your research will address
• demonstrate the significance and originality of your proposed research (that is, how your
research will result in a significant contribution to knowledge).
• ensure that the proposed research is achievable given available resources and required
time
TYPE OF RESEARCH PROPOSAL
In ECON 2029, we are proposing an empirical research project that will use qualitative or
quantitative or mixed (that is both quantitative and qualitative) research methods (see Unit 1A
and Unit 6)
WHAT SKILLS ARE STUDENTS REQUIRED TO DEMONSTRATE IN THEIR
RESEARCH PROPOSAL?
Writing a proposal requires a number of skills. A good research proposal displays
• Mastery of subject knowledge
• Research skills
• Evidence of advanced analysis
• Creativity
• Critical thinking
• Communication skills – ability to express yourself clearly and concisely
It is necessary to keep these skills in mind as you work on your proposal as I will be looking for
evidence of them in your writing.
CONTENT AND STRUCTURE
The required content and structure of a research proposal varies across disciplines and
institutions. The proposal for ECON 2029 must consist of the following elements:
• Title page
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• Table of contents
• Introduction
• Literature Review
• Research design and methodology
• Work plan/timeline
• Expected outcomes/impact
• References
• Appendices (optional)
TITLE PAGE
This includes the title of the proposal, your name, your student ID number, programme name (for
instance: BSc. Economics and Accounting) and date.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
I am not explaining a table of contents to university students…
ABSTRACT
This is a brief, clear and concise summary (between about 75 and 150 words in length) of what
your proposal is about.
PART 1: INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
This section provides readers with a clear idea of what your proposal will cover. It should
motivate the subject so that readers appreciate the importance of the topic and your future
findings.
The introduction usually starts by providing background information regarding your topic, so
the reader understands the key problem being addressed and why it is an issue worth writing
about. This section is also an appropriate place to introduce the reader to key terms and provide
definitions, if required
Students need to indicate the root of the problem being studied. You should provide
appropriate context of the problem in relation to existing research (theories, concepts, empirical
research etc) and/or practice. In addition, indicate the scope, and the extent to which previous
studies have successfully investigated the problem, noting, in particular, where gaps exist that
your study attempts to address. Also, be sure spell out why anyone should care! Your job is to
sell your project. Convince readers of the importance of your topic or potential findings. The
questions you should answer in the background section are
Ø What is the problem you will be addressing?
Ø What is the scope of the problem (e.g., how pervasive is it? how many people are
affected by it? etc.)
Ø What do we know about it and/or not know about it? That is, what is the gap or
deficiency in the existing literature?
Ø What is the purpose/aim of the study? In other words: What will the study do?
Ø What is/are the research question(s)?
Ø What methods/data will you use? (Very brief as you detail this later)
Ø What is the practical, economic and substantive/theoretical significance of your proposed
study? What will its results add to the literature (or existing knowledge)?
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PART 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE
The literature review surveys key academic works in your field of research, such as books and
refereed journal articles. It will be the longest part of the proposal.
The review of related literature should be comprehensive (not necessarily exhaustive). The
review should summarise, analyse, categorise and compare the most significant works. It does
not need to cover everything that has been written on the topic. However, it should provide
information about what is already known (from the theoretical and empirical literature) about the
problem or topic and what is not known. It may blend existing theoretical traditions or may
compare and contrast competing frameworks. Organised topically or thematically, this review
focuses on the main traditions or schools of thought, key authors, books, research studies, or
other sources of knowledge on the relevant topic (and/or sub-topics); the competing perspectives,
their strengths and shortcomings and relevant debates or disagreements between them; the
linkages and gaps in the knowledge; and so on. The literature review should be organised in a
way that logically leads to and provides justification for your own proposed research or project
activity.
Your literature review should conclude with a cogent case for why your proposed study/project
should be done. Here, you are backing up the “significance of your study” from the introduction.
In laymen terms, the last paragraph of your literature review should elaborate on what is missing
in the literature and highlight how the project you are proposing adds to the literature.
PART 3: PROPOSED METHODOLOGY
This section describes the specific approach you plan to to answer your question(s) or to carry
out your proposed project objectives. It is important that you explain the the proposed
methodology in a clear and logical way. Your reader should be able to clearly see what you will
do and how will you do it, and how this combination of data/sources and methods will allow you
to address your research problem. It must be in sufficient detail that someone else could fully
replicate your study or project.
a. Introduction: Overall design or approach: Describe the type of research or project design to be
used and the rationale for its selection. Of critical importance is whether the design is consistent
with the specific aim(s) and/or research question(s). (This should normally be no more than one
paragraph.)
b. Data Collection and Analysis: This section describes in detail the steps you will perform in your
collection of data, your analysis of the data collected, and/or your performance of project tasks.
(Depending on the type of research you are proposing to do, the following sections may or may
not be relevant.)
Sample and sampling procedure: If collecting primary data, describe the procedure for
sampling in detail; label it in something approaching conventional descriptors, e.g., “This
is a stratified, random sample of…”; “This is a purposive sample of….”, etc. State what size
sample you will use, from what population the sample will be drawn, how participants will
be selected, and what the criteria are for inclusion or exclusion in the sample. Include a
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description of the study site as appropriate. Describe how you will gain entry into the
research setting, what participants will be told, what participants will be asked to do, and
so on. Discuss how participant attrition or non-participation will be handled.
Data Producing Instruments: Identify the indicators that will be used to reflect each variable
expressed in the hypotheses or research question(s). These are your operational definitions.
The choice of indicators should reflect the concepts being studied, and the state of
knowledge and measurement regarding that particular concept or variable.
Data Collection (secondary data): Be sure to list the kinds of data you will collect, source
of the data, the nature of the data (cross-sectional, time series or panel), the time span
covered by the data etc. Again, anyone reading your proposal should be able to carry out
the study.
Data Analysis: Describe the methods you will use to analyse the data you have collected
(for instance, quantitative methods such as descriptive statistics, regression analysis, et or
qualitative methods such as content analysis, thematic analysis etc or even mixed methods).
If you have more than one research question or hypothesis, specify the intended statistical
or other analytic approaches as appropriate for each question or hypothesis.
d. Resources, facilities, equipment, transportation, et al.: This section describes in detail what
specific resources, facilities, and equipment you will make use of, how you will gain access to it,
your transportation needs, and any other requirements.
e. Budget: A detailed breakdown of estimated expenses and any income from grants, donors, and
other sources. (This may go separately in an appendix.)
f. Risk management and ethical issues: This section discusses any potential risks that may be
incurred by yourself or others in the process of conducting your research or project, and all steps
you have taken or will take to ensure a minimisation of such risk. Describe the risks and benefits
to be gained by study participants. (Include consent forms, university-required ethics forms, etc.
in the appendix.)
g. Limitations: Describe any limitations (usually ones that limit the generalisability of findings)
related to your sampling, measurement, or data collection procedures. Discuss any biases related
to the ways your own position as researcher and your own assumptions may affect the research
findings. Discuss any implications of these limitations on the outcomes of your research or project.
h. Contingencies and alternatives: Discuss any reasonable potential obstacles and uncontrollable
circumstances which may delay or disrupt your research or project plans. Describe any alternative
plans or ways in which you will go about mitigating the effects of those circumstances, should
they arise.
PART 4: WORK PLAN
Describe in detail the specific steps to be taken in performing the proposed research or project,
and an appropriate timeline for performing them. These steps should follow logically. (This may
be in the form of a list or table, or it may be a summary)
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PART 5: ANTICIPATED OUTCOMES AND IMPACT
Conclude your research proposal by stating your expected outcomes or research hypotheses. At
this stage in the research process, what arguments and conclusions do you expect to reach? Also,
what is the impact that you expect the research to have?
This will allow your reader to further assess the significance and validity of your project. It will
also indicate to your reader that you have thought ahead and considered the potential outcomes
and implications of your research.
PART 6: REFERENCES
List of references cited in your proposal.
The proposal should contain a minimum of 20 references that are directly related proposal .
Style: The Faculty of Social Sciences uses the Chicago Style. In this course, use the 17th Edition
for references (not the one with the footnotes…)
Use a citation software: Eg Zotero or Mendeley are free…
APPENDICES
It is customary to attach any relevant supplementary documents to your research proposal.
These may include consent forms, data collection forms and instruments, or anything else that is
appropriate (e.g., letters granting access to facilities, letters of agreements to allow you to
conduct research at a fieldwork site, etc.).
MARK SCHEME AND FORMATTING GUIDELINS
Document format:
• Font: Times New Roman
• Font size: 12
• Margins: 1” all around
• Spacing: double
• Paper size: letter
Marks will be deducted if the formatting guidelines are not followed (see mark allocation on the
next page).
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Mark allocation of individual components of the Final Proposal:
Title page -3 if there is no title page
Table of Contents -3 if there is no Table of contents
Abstract (75 to 150 words) 5 marks
Introduction 25 marks
Literature review 25 marks
Proposed methodology 25 marks
Research timeline/ Work plan 10 marks
Expected outcomes or impact 10 marks
References (a minimum of 20 references) Penalty of -5 if students use the
wrong reference style used or
missing references.
Appendices (optional) If an appendix was needed needed
and none were provided, a penalty
of -2 will be incurred.