THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL TEMPLATE

This document has been set up to assist students in preparing the text for their research proposal.
It is NOT intended as a document to guide you through your research proposal development, but
to assist you in setting out the proposal, in terms of text layout, section headings and sub-sections.

The Research Proposal is a complete description of the intended research, developed under the
supervision of the assigned supervisor. Through the full proposal, the student needs to
demonstrate convincingly that the study will make a contribution to the society issue or problem.
The full research proposal must be between 5 and 10 pages and should present the following:

 Abstract
 Title
 Brief Introduction, background and statement of the problem (this in the light of a thorough
literature review)
 Research questions, aim and objectives
 Study design (type of study)
 Study population and sampling
 Data collection methods and instruments
 Data analysis methods – if applicable statistical planning must be fully addressed, or the
candidate should provide evidence that statistics are not required.
 Study period - Timetable for completion of the project
 Participants in the study – all people involved in the study, and the role they play, should be
identified.*
 Ethical considerations
 Resources required for the study, including budget if applicable
 References
 Appendices (copy of questionnaire, consent forms, etc.)
 TYPE THE TITLE OF YOUR RESEARCH ARTICLE HERE

STUDENT NAME: Type your name here

PROFESSOR: Type your professor name here

DATE OF SUBMISSION: DD MM 20YY

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 CONTENTS
ABSTRACT ...................................................................................................................................................................... 4
INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................................ 5
USE HEADING 1 FROM THE SELECTION ABOVE FOR YOUR MAIN HEADING. USE ALL CAPS, DO
NOT USE ANYTHING ELSE AS THE TABLE OF CONTENTS HAS BEEN AUTOMATED TO USE THIS
SETTING .......................................................................................................................................................................... 5
SUB HEADING ................................................................................................................................................................. 5
Sub-Sub-Heading ....................................................................................................................................................... 5
PROBLEM STATEMENT .............................................................................................................................................. 6
OVERVIEW ...................................................................................................................................................................... 6
RESEARCH QUESTION/HYPOTHESIS ................................................................................................................................ 6
OBJECTIVES AND AIMS .............................................................................................................................................. 7
OVERALL OBJECTIVE ...................................................................................................................................................... 7
SPECIFIC AIMS ................................................................................................................................................................ 7
BACKGROUND AND SIGNIFICANCE ....................................................................................................................... 8
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS ....................................................................................................................... 9
OVERVIEW ...................................................................................................................................................................... 9
POPULATION AND STUDY SAMPLE .................................................................................................................................. 9
SAMPLE SIZE AND SELECTION OF SAMPLE ...................................................................................................................... 9
SOURCES OF DATA .......................................................................................................................................................... 9
COLLECTION OF DATA .................................................................................................................................................... 9
DATA ANALYSIS STRATEGIES ......................................................................................................................................... 9
ETHICS AND HUMAN SUBJECTS ISSUES ................................................................... ERROR! BOOKMARK NOT DEFINED.
TIMEFRAMES ................................................................................................................................................................... 9
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE STUDY.............................................................................................. 10
BUDGET AND MOTIVATION .................................................................................................................................... 11
REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................................................... 12
APPENDICES ................................................................................................................................................................. 13
APPENDIX 1: QUESTIONNAIRE ....................................................................................................................................... 13

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 ABSTRACT

Background

Methods

Results

Discussion and Conclusion

Do not use abbreviations or insert tables, figures or references into your abstract. You abstract
generally should not exceed about 300 words.

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 INTRODUCTION

USE HEADING 1 FROM THE SELECTION ABOVE FOR YOUR

Sub Heading
Use Heading 2 from the selection of styles on the menu bar above. Do NOT use all capitals, but
write as is shown above. Do not use anything else as the Table of Contents has been automated
to include this style for a subheading.

Sub-Sub-Heading
Use Heading 3 from the selection of styles on the menu bar above. Do NOT use all capitals, but
write as is shown above. Do not use anything else as the Table of Contents has been automated
to include this style for a sub-subheading.

Referencing
When do your referencing, use the automatic system provided by Microsoft Word. To use this,
from the Menu bar, go to Insert > Reference > Footnote. Now select Endnote > end of document.
For the options, select Number format > 1, 2, 3; Custom mark > leave blank; Start at > 1;
Numbering > continuous. If you do this, you will see a superscript inserted at the point of your
cursor, as in this example, with the cursor automatically going to the end of your document for you
to insert your reference details1. This keeps a continuous numbering system as you progress
through your proposal. Once you are done, you could move this from the last page to the last page
before the Appendices.

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 PROBLEM STATEMENT

Overview

Research Question

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 OBJECTIVES AND AIMS

Overall Objective

Specific Aims

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 BACKGROUND AND SIGNIFICANCE

This is your literature review. Use Headings 2 and 3 to provide sub headings in your review

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 RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS

Overview
Use headings 2 and 3 as appropriate, and use these headings if appropriate.

Population and Study Sample

Sample Size and Selection of Sample

Sources of Data

Collection of Data

Data Analysis Strategies

Timeframes

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STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF THE STUDY

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BUDGET AND MOTIVATION

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 REFERENCES
Use the Vancouver Style of referencing. This is found at this website:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/bv.fcgi?rid=citmed.TOC&depth=2 or a less detailed website:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html

References should be numbered consecutively in the order in which they are first mentioned in the
text. Identify references in text, tables, and legends by Arabic numerals in parentheses. The titles
of journals should be abbreviated according to the style used in Index Medicus. Consult the list of
Journals Indexed for MEDLINE, published annually as a separate publication by the National
Library of Medicine. The list can also be obtained through the Library's web site..

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 APPENDICES

Appendix 1: Questionnaire

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1 Naidoo R. Showing you how to do automatic referencing. Proposal Template. 2008

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