WritingaResearchProposal

Graduate School
TheGraduateSchoolsupports postgraduatestudentsinthefollowing areas:
Fundingopportunities Support Training: o skillsandpersonaldevelopment Networkingopportunities Presentingyourresearch: o GradTV,eportfolios,postercompetition

WhatisaResearchProposal?
Adocumentexplainingwhatyouwould liketoresearchforyourPhD Theproposalneedstoaddress:
o Whyyourproposedresearchisimportant o Whatgapincurrentliteratureyouplantofill o Whatrelevanceyourproposedresearchhas

Itshouldbeabout2000wordslong Itsachallengingprocess,butif successful,youwilldoyourPhData worldclassUniversity

OutlineoftheProposal
Intendedareaofresearch Coreresearchquestions Possiblemethodologies Approachproposed HowwillyoucompletethePhDinthe timeavailable Potentialsupervisor(ifyouhave identifiedone)
Alwayscheckwithyourprospectivedepartmentor supervisoraboutanyspecificrequirementsthey mayhaveaboutyourresearchproposal.

HowdoIstart?
Remember: Ittakestimetoputtogethera successfulresearchproposal Startbyaskingandanswering questionssoyoufullyunderstand whereyourinterestslie Seekadvicefromanacademicif necessary Organise yourthoughtsandnotes beforeyoubeginyourfirstdraft

Statementofresearch question
Yourresearchquestionshould addressthefollowing:
Whatyourresearchintendstoshowor find Whatspecificquestionsyourresearch willattempttoanswer Whattherelevanceisofthetopic withinthedisciplineandmorewidely Whyyourresearchisofacademicor practicalimportance

Aboutyou
Statewhatmakesyouinterestedin thisareaofresearchand Whatknowledgeandprevious experienceyouwillbringtothe research Alsoprovideevidenceofyour awarenessofkeytextsandtheir relevancetotheproposedresearch

Methodology
Explainbrieflyhowyouproposeto conducttheresearch Statewhatresourcesyouwillrequire (e.g.accesstospecialistlibraries, equipment,proposedfieldwork) Highlightanyproblemsyoumay encounterandhowyouhopetosolve them. Demonstrateanawarenessof planningandthetimescaleofthe research.

Referencesand Bibliography
Alistoftextsyouplantoconsult. Marksourcesthatareparticularly useful. Listthereferencesusedinyour proposal

Commonproblems
Somereasonsforrejection:
a. Theresearchtopicistoogeneral youneedtobespecificaspossible b. Theproposaldoesnotdemonstrate strongcriticalinsightintocurrent academicdebates c. Thefocusoftheresearchdoesnotfit withoursupervisorycompetencies

The final check

Before you submit your research proposal:
Check the structure Make sure the department to which you are applying does not have any requirements you have missed Ensure you have included a complete list of references If possible, ask someone else to read it through

The research proposal: Overview

Provide an overview of your research question, explaining why it is of academic and or practical importance Outline the main objectives of your research, providing details of two or three key aspects Indicate the importance of previous related research and how your own research question might make a useful contribution to the area Briefly state the main research techniques (interviews, case studies, modelling etc.) you might use Indicate your suggested data collection procedures, indicating sources and any possible difficulties Briefly explain any analytical techniques you intend to use Add your proposed timetable of activities Finally, list the references in your proposal or provide a short bibliography.

Applying to Warwick
Online application complete it as fully as possible 2 academic referees Degree transcripts English language test certificate (if appropriate) Research proposal www.warwick.ac.uk/go/pg/apply

Othersources
www.warwick.ac.uk
GraduateSchool StudyPages Researchpagesofdepartments

www.findaphd.com www.vitae.ac.uk/ www.educationuk.org