example phd proposal

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Examples of research proposals

How to write your research proposal, with examples of good proposals.

Research proposals

Your research proposal is a key part of your application. It tells us about the question you want to answer through your research. It is a chance for you to show your knowledge of the subject area and tell us about the methods you want to use.

We use your research proposal to match you with a supervisor or team of supervisors.

In your proposal, please tell us if you have an interest in the work of a specific academic at York St John. You can get in touch with this academic to discuss your proposal. You can also speak to one of our Research Leads. There is a list of our Research Leads on the Apply page.

When you write your proposal you need to:

• Highlight how it is original or significant
• Explain how it will develop or challenge current knowledge of your subject
• Identify the importance of your research
• Show why you are the right person to do this research
• Research Proposal Example 1 (DOC, 49kB)
• Research Proposal Example 2 (DOC, 0.9MB)
• Research Proposal Example 3 (DOC, 55.5kB)
• Research Proposal Example 4 (DOC, 49.5kB)

Subject specific guidance

• Writing a Humanities PhD Proposal (PDF, 0.1MB)
• Writing a Creative Writing PhD Proposal (PDF, 0.1MB)
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How to write a research proposal

What is a research proposal.

A research proposal should present your idea or question and expected outcomes with clarity and definition – the what.

It should also make a case for why your question is significant and what value it will bring to your discipline – the why. 

What it shouldn't do is answer the question – that's what your research will do.

Why is it important?

Research proposals are significant because Another reason why it formally outlines your intended research. Which means you need to provide details on how you will go about your research, including:

• your approach and methodology
• timeline and feasibility
• all other considerations needed to progress your research, such as resources.

Think of it as a tool that will help you clarify your idea and make conducting your research easier.

How long should it be?

Usually no more than 2000 words, but check the requirements of your degree, and your supervisor or research coordinator.

Presenting your idea clearly and concisely demonstrates that you can write this way – an attribute of a potential research candidate that is valued by assessors.

What should it include?

Project title.

Your title should clearly indicate what your proposed research is about.

Research supervisor

State the name, department and faculty or school of the academic who has agreed to supervise you. Rest assured, your research supervisor will work with you to refine your research proposal ahead of submission to ensure it meets the needs of your discipline.

Proposed mode of research

Describe your proposed mode of research. Which may be closely linked to your discipline, and is where you will describe the style or format of your research, e.g. data, field research, composition, written work, social performance and mixed media etc. 

This is not required for research in the sciences, but your research supervisor will be able to guide you on discipline-specific requirements.

Aims and objectives

What are you trying to achieve with your research? What is the purpose? This section should reference why you're applying for a research degree. Are you addressing a gap in the current research? Do you want to look at a theory more closely and test it out? Is there something you're trying to prove or disprove? To help you clarify this, think about the potential outcome of your research if you were successful – that is your aim. Make sure that this is a focused statement.

Your objectives will be your aim broken down – the steps to achieving the intended outcome. They are the smaller proof points that will underpin your research's purpose. Be logical in the order of how you present these so that each succeeds the previous, i.e. if you need to achieve 'a' before 'b' before 'c', then make sure you order your objectives a, b, c.

A concise summary of what your research is about. It outlines the key aspects of what you will investigate as well as the expected outcomes. It briefly covers the what, why and how of your research. 

A good way to evaluate if you have written a strong synopsis, is to get somebody to read it without reading the rest of your research proposal. Would they know what your research is about?

Now that you have your question clarified, it is time to explain the why. Here, you need to demonstrate an understanding of the current research climate in your area of interest.

Providing context around your research topic through a literature review will show the assessor that you understand current dialogue around your research, and what is published.

Demonstrate you have a strong understanding of the key topics, significant studies and notable researchers in your area of research and how these have contributed to the current landscape.

Expected research contribution

In this section, you should consider the following:

• Why is your research question or hypothesis worth asking?
• How is the current research lacking or falling short?
• What impact will your research have on the discipline?
• Will you be extending an area of knowledge, applying it to new contexts, solving a problem, testing a theory, or challenging an existing one?
• Establish why your research is important by convincing your audience there is a gap.
• What will be the outcome of your research contribution?
• Demonstrate both your current level of knowledge and how the pursuit of your question or hypothesis will create a new understanding and generate new information.
• Show how your research is innovative and original.

Draw links between your research and the faculty or school you are applying at, and explain why you have chosen your supervisor, and what research have they or their school done to reinforce and support your own work. Cite these reasons to demonstrate how your research will benefit and contribute to the current body of knowledge.

Proposed methodology

Provide an overview of the methodology and techniques you will use to conduct your research. Cover what materials and equipment you will use, what theoretical frameworks will you draw on, and how will you collect data.

Highlight why you have chosen this particular methodology, but also why others may not have been as suitable. You need to demonstrate that you have put thought into your approach and why it's the most appropriate way to carry out your research. 

It should also highlight potential limitations you anticipate, feasibility within time and other constraints, ethical considerations and how you will address these, as well as general resources.

A work plan is a critical component of your research proposal because it indicates the feasibility of completion within the timeframe and supports you in achieving your objectives throughout your degree.

Consider the milestones you aim to achieve at each stage of your research. A PhD or master's degree by research can take two to four years of full-time study to complete. It might be helpful to offer year one in detail and the following years in broader terms. Ultimately you have to show that your research is likely to be both original and finished – and that you understand the time involved.

Provide details of the resources you will need to carry out your research project. Consider equipment, fieldwork expenses, travel and a proposed budget, to indicate how realistic your research proposal is in terms of financial requirements and whether any adjustments are needed.

Bibliography

Provide a list of references that you've made throughout your research proposal. 

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• How to Write a Great PhD Research Proposal | FindAPhD.com

How to Write a Great PhD Research Proposal

Written by Mark Bennett

You'll need to write a research proposal if you're submitting your own project plan as part of a PhD application. A good PhD proposal outlines the scope and significance of your topic and explains how you plan to research it.

It's helpful to think about the proposal like this: if the rest of your application explains your ability to do a PhD, the proposal demonstrates the actual PhD you plan to do. Of course, being able to effectively plan and explain a research project is one of the key qualifications for being able to complete one, which is why the proposal is such an important part of the PhD application process.

Thankfully, the secret to writing a good research proposal isn't complicated. It's simply a case of understanding what the proposal is for, what it needs to do and how it needs to be put together.

On this page

What is a phd research proposal.

First things first, do you need a research proposal for your PhD? It depends on the kind of project you want to do:

• If your PhD is advertised by a university, you probably won't need to submit a research proposal for it. The broad aims and objectives for your PhD will already be defined: you just need to prove you're the right person to do it.
• But, if you're proposing your own research topic to research within a university's PhD programme, you will need to write a proposal for it (the clue is in the word "proposing")

As a rule, advertised PhDs are very common in STEM subjects, whereas Arts, Humanities and Social Science students are more likely to propose their own PhDs.

Some PhD programmes actually wait and ask students to develop their research proposal during the degree (usually after they've completed some initial training). This is normal in the USA , but it's becoming more common for some UKRI-funded UK PhDs.

For the purposes of this guide we're going to assume that you do need to write a good research proposal for your PhD application. So let's explore what's involved in that.

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What should a research proposal for PhD admission include?

It's natural to be a little intimidated at the thought of structuring a PhD proposal, particularly if you've never written anything like this before.

But here's the thing: a research proposal isn't a fiendish test designed to catch you out and stop you ever doing a PhD. It's actually much more boring than that.

All a research proposal really is is a document that demonstrates three things:

• Your PhD is worthwhile
• Your PhD is feasible
• You are capable of completing it at this university

Or to put it even more simply: the PhD is worth doing, it's doable and you can do it.

Demonstrate your PhD is worthwhile (the what and the why)

A successful PhD project has to make a significant original contribution to knowledge. If it doesn't, it won't meet the criteria for a doctoral degree and will probably fail the viva exam .

Your PhD proposal itself doesn't have to meet those criteria (or pass a viva!) but it does need to indicate that your PhD project eventually will.

It does that by first demonstrating that your research topic is original. That means nobody else has studied this same topic (or one very similar) before.

There are all sorts of ways a PhD can be original. You might examine new data or primary sources, to look at existing material from a fresh perspective, or deal with the impact of new events. It doesn't matter how your project is original, so long as your proposal is really specific about what makes it original.

You also need to explain why your proposed research will be academically significant. To do this properly, you'll need to acknowledge relevant existing scholarship and explain how your research will relate to it. You don't need to be exhaustive at this point, but you should be able to show how your PhD will contribute to its field and – ideally – indicate some of the gaps in knowledge it will aim to fill.

The final step in demonstrating your PhD is worthwhile is to suggest what will become possible as a result of your research. How could other researchers use or build upon your results? What might closing those gaps in academic knowledge mean for audiences outside the unviversity?

Demonstrate your PhD is feasible (the how)

It isn't enough just to show that your research is worth doing; it also needs to actually be doable.

The length of a full-time PhD is around three to four years in most countries (it's longer in for a PhD in the USA , but you don't spend all that time doing research).

Three years may seem like a long time, but researching a PhD is a lot of work and you'll probably spend at least some of your time on other activities like teaching, conference presentations or even publication.

So, one of the things your proposal needs to do is demonstrate that your project is feasible: that it fits within the scope of a PhD.

The most important criteria for this is to be clear about what you plan to do. It should be obvious from your proposal what the scope of your project is – what is and isn't included within it.

You also need to outline how you plan to go about your research. Where will you start and what order do you expect to proceed in? Is the logic for that obvious? If not, it's probably a good idea to explain it.

Finally, you need to explain the methodology you plan to use. This could include techniques for collecting data and sources, theoretical perspectives for analysing them – or both. You may also need to detail specific equipment you expect to use or fieldwork you'll need to undertake (including trips to archives or other external resources).

None of this needs to be exact or completely final. The key word here is 'plan' – but you do need to have one.

Demonstrate that you can complete it at this university (the who and the where)

So far we've thought about the project itself: what makes it worth doing and how it's going to get done. But your proposal also needs to address the who and the where: why are you the right person to carry out this research, and why do you want to do it at this particular university?

The first part of this is easier than it probably looks. Writing a good research proposal demonstrates enthusiasm for your project much more convincingly than simply saying you're very interested in it (a classic case of 'show, don't tell').

You also don't need to repeat your grades and academic achievements (other parts of your PhD application will cover those). Instead, try to underline experiences that relate to this project. Has a particular module or Masters dissertation topic prepared you with useful subject knowledge or methodological skills? If so, highlight it.

It's also fine, within reason, to be honest about the skills you don't have and to identify your training needs. This shows you're being practical about your project and thinking seriously about what it will require. Just make sure you can realistically acquire the skills and training you need within the time available (this goes back to the feasibility).

Showing your project is a good fit for the university is also relatively simple. There should already be some reasons why you've chosen this university for your PhD so make sure you explain what they are. Perhaps there's a particular supervisor you'd like to work with , or facilities and resources your research could use. The key is to emphasise the fit between the project and the university – so don't just say you want to research there because it's highly ranked .

PhD research proposal structure

Hopefully the above sections have given you a few ideas for the things your proposal needs to include. Let's be honest though, the scariest thing about a proposal isn't deciding what to include: it's actually writing it.

But, if we flip that on its head, we remember that all a research proposal really is is a piece of writing that follows a pretty standard format. And that's a lot less scary.

Research proposal structure

Because proposals for PhD all have to do the same things, they mostly follow a similar structure. Yours will probably go something like this:

• Title – Keep it simple and descriptive: the clever alliteration and quotes can come later when you write up your thesis. For now, you just want the person reading this to know exactly what your research is about and, perhaps, which prospective supervisor to send it to.
• Overview – Start by defining your research question (the what) and explaining how it contributes to current work in your field (the why). This is also a good place to reference one or two pieces of scholarship: the full literature review can wait until your PhD begins, but you should show that you have some understanding of relevant academic research.
• Methodology – Make sure the reader understands the practical and / or theoretical approaches you'll take to your research. What data will you collect, how will you collect it and how will you analyse it? Ideally refer to relevant research methods and models. It's also a good idea to provide some sort of roadmap for how you'll go about things. Don't worry, you can change it later (and you will).
• Outcomes and impact – What will exist as a result of your research (other than just another PhD on a library shelf) and what will it make possible? You don't need to identify every specific outcome from your project (blue sky research is fine) but you should think about what some potential outcomes might be.

You probably won't need to include a specific conclusion - it should be obvious, by now, what your project is doing, how you're going to do it and why that matters. A quick summary sentence is fine though, if you think it will help.

Writing tips

Being able to effectively communicate academic concepts, ideas and results is a key skill for PhD research in all subjects . Think of your proposal as a chance to demonstrate this.

The good news is that the key principles of good proposal writing aren't that different from other work you've probably done as a Bachelors or Masters student:

• Be clear – The person reading your research proposal should know exactly what it is you're proposing to research, with no room for ambiguity and confusion. This is important on a practical level (they need to know where to send it) but it's also important to the success of your application: a confusing proposal suggests a confused project. Try having a friend read it and ask them "do you know what it is I'm proposing to do here?" (even if they don't understand the details).
• Be concise – You will have more ideas than you can include in your proposal. That's fine. Choose the best ones and leave the others for your interview .
• be coherent – Follow something like the structure above. Don't start with your methodology, then say what it is you want to research.

How long should a PhD research proposal be?

Honestly? As long as the university asks for it to be. Most will have guidelines and you should follow them closely if so.

If you honestly can't find a suggested word count for your proposal, then consider asking a prospective supervisor . If you still aren't sure, aim for somewhere between 1,000-2,000 words .

As a very general rule, Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences are a bit longer than STEM proposals (and a lot of STEM students don't have to write one anyway, as we've explained).

Research proposal for PhD admission - dos and don'ts

Research proposals are a popular topic over on the FindAPhD blog , where we've shared stories of how students wrote theirs , along with mistakes to avoid and a counter-intuitive look at the things a PhD proposal doesn't actually need to do .

Here are a few general tips and mistakes to avoid:

#1 Give yourself enough time to do a good job

Preparing to write a PhD proposal takes time and effort. None of this is wasted as the process of evaluating and framing your ideas for a proposal will improve your project plan immensely. So will the need to decide which ideas to include.

But you need time and space to do that, so make sure you get it. How long it will take to write your PhD proposal is heavily dependent on your personal working style, but you'll likely need to give yourself at least a few weeks to do a good job.

#2 Set out to impress

A good proposal isn't a begging letter. You're approaching the university with a great idea that's going to contribute to and enhance their research. Be honest, be realistic, but don't be unnecessarily humble. They should want you and your project.

#3 Demonstrate original thinking!

You may not need to present original research findings yet, but your proposal does need to present original ideas – and it should be clear why and how those ideas are original.

Make sure you indicate how your project is going to expand, enhance or even correct existing work in your field. Remember that making an "original contribution to knowledge" is a key part of what a PhD is .

#1 Send the same proposal to several universities

A good proposal needs to explain why you want to do your research at a particular university. That's a big part of the feasibility (the fit between project, person and place) and methodology (how are you going to use this university's equipment and archives; when and where will you need to travel).

It's OK to apply to more than one university in parallel, but, in that case, you're writing research proposals .

#2 Use online proposal templates (without evaluating them first!)

It can be tempting to search for PhD proposal samples on the internet, but make sure you evaluate what you find. Some websites may host old proposals from previous PhD students, but there's no way of knowing how relevant these are to your subject and university – or if they were even successful! More 'generic' research proposal examples can offer guidance, but they won't be tailored to your specific project.

The best place to look for a PhD proposal sample is your university. Consider asking your supervisor if they can share a good proposal from a previous student in your subject – or put you in touch with a current student you can ask.

#3 Confuse the proposal with the PhD

We've covered this on the blog , but it's simple enough to include here too.

You're setting out to do a PhD, but you (probably!) haven't done one yet. So you don't need to include research findings, in-depth analysis or a comprehesive literature review. You need to make a case for the research and analysis you want to do.

#4 Ignore your university's help and guidance

The advice on this page is necessarily quite general. We're considering adding guides to writing PhD proposals in specific subjects in future but, for now, the best place to get specific advice for your academic field is probably the university you're applying to.

See if you can get some subject-specific tips by contacting a supervisor , or just checking with the admissions team for your department.

And remember: if they give you a structure and a word count, stick to it.

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Getting ready to apply for a PhD? Our guides explain research proposals, references and entry tests for doctoral programmes.

Our guide explains how to contact a potential PhD supervisor to discuss your proposal or ideas with them before applying.

A checklist of the things you'll need to do when making an international PhD application, from meeting the entry requirements to sorting out your visa.

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How to nail your PhD proposal and get accepted

Bethany Fagan Head of Content Marketing at PandaDoc

Reviewed by:

Olga Asheychik Senior Web Analytics Manager at PandaDoc

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A good PhD research proposal may be the deciding factor between acceptance and approval into your desired program or finding yourself back at the drawing board. Being accepted for a PhD placement is no easy task, and this is why your PhD proposal needs to truly stand out among a sea of submissions.

That’s why a PhD research proposal is important: It formally outlines the intended research, including methodology, timeline, feasibility, and many other factors that need to be taken into consideration.

Here is a closer look at the PhD proposal process and what it should look like.

→DOWNLOAD NOW: FREE PHD PROPOSAL TEMPLATE

Key takeaways

• A PhD proposal summarizes the research project you intend to conduct as part of your PhD program.
• These proposals are relatively short (1000-2000 words), and should include all basic information and project goals, including the methodologies/strategies you intend to use in order to accomplish them.
• Formats are varied. You may be able to create your own formats, but your college or university may have a required document structure that you should follow.

What is a PhD proposal?

In short, a PhD research proposal is a summary of the project you intend to undertake as part of your PhD program.

It should pose a specific question or idea, make a case for the research, and explain the predicted outcomes of that research.

However, while your PhD proposal may predict expected outcomes, it won’t fully answer your questions for the reader.

Your research into the topic will provide that answer.

Usually, a PhD proposal contains the following elements:

• A clear question that you intend to answer through copious amounts of study and research.
• Your plan to answer that question, including any methodologies, frameworks, and resources required to adequately find the answer.
• Why your question or project is significant to your specific field of study.
• How your proposal impacts, challenges, or improves the existing body of knowledge around a given topic.
• Why your work is important and why you should be the one to receive this opportunity.

In terms of length when writing a PhD proposal, there isn’t a universal answer.

Some institutions will require a short, concise proposal (1000 words), while others allow for a greater amount of flexibility in the length and format of the proposal.

Fortunately, most institutions will provide some guidelines regarding the format and length of your research proposal, so you should have a strong idea of your requirements before you begin.

Benefits of a strong PhD application

While the most obvious benefit of having a strong PhD application is being accepted to the PhD program , there are other reasons to build the strongest PhD application you can:

Better funding opportunities

Many PhD programs offer funding to students , which can be used to cover tuition fees and may provide a stipend for living expenses.

The stronger your PhD application, the better your chances of being offered funding opportunities that can alleviate financial burdens and allow you to focus on your research.

Enhanced academic credentials

A strong PhD application, particularly in hot-button areas of study, can lead to better career opportunities in academics or across a variety of industries.

Opportunities for networking and research

Research proposals that are very well grounded can provide footholds to networking opportunities and mentorships that would not be otherwise available.

However, creating an incredible proposal isn’t always easy.

In fact, it’s easy to get confused by the process since it requires a lot of procedural information.

Many institutions also place a heavy emphasis on using the correct proposal structure.

That doesn’t have to be the issue, though.

Often, pre-designed templates, like the PandaDoc research proposal templates or PhD proposal templates provided by the institution of your choice, can do most of the heavy lifting for you.

Research Proposal Template

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How to write a Phd proposal with a clear structure

We know that the prospect of writing a research proposal for PhD admission may appear the stuff of nightmares. Even more so if you are new to producing a piece such as this.

But, when you get down to the nitty gritty of what it is, it really isn’t so intimidating. When writing your PhD proposal you need to show that your PhD is worth it, achievable, and that you have the ability to do it at your chosen university.

With all of that in mind, let’s take a closer look at each section of a standard PhD research proposal and the overall structure.

1. Front matter

The first pages of your PhD proposal should outline the basic information about the project. That will include each of the following:

Project title

Typically placed on the first page, your title should be engaging enough to attract attention and clear enough that readers will understand what you’re trying to achieve.

Many proposals also include a secondary headline to further (concisely) clarify the main concept.

Contact information

Depending on the instructions provided by your institution, you may need to include your basic contact information with your proposal.

Some institutions may ask for blind submissions and ask that you omit identifying information, so check the program guidelines to be sure.

Research supervisor

If you already have a supervisor for the project, you’ll typically want to list that information.

Someone who is established in the field can add credibility to your proposal, particularly if your project requires extensive funding or has special considerations.

The guidelines from your PhD program should provide some guidance regarding any other auxiliary information that you should add to the front of your proposal.

Be sure to check all documentation to ensure that everything fits into the designated format.

2. Goals, summaries, and objectives

Once you’ve added the basic information to your document, you’ll need to get into the meat of your PhD proposal.

Depending on your institution, your research proposal may need to follow a rigid format or you may have the flexibility to add various sections and fully explain your concepts.

These sections will primarily be focused on providing high-level overviews surrounding your PhD proposal, including most of the following:

Overall aims, objectives, and goals

In these sections, you’ll need to state plainly what you aim to accomplish with your PhD research.

If awarded funding, what questions will your PHd proposal seek to answer? What theories will you test? What concepts will you explore in your research?

Briefly, how would you summarize your approach to this project?

Provide high-level summaries detailing how you mean to achieve your answers, what the predicted outcomes of your PhD research might be, and precisely what you intend to test or discover.

Significance

Why does your research matter? Unlike with many other forms of academic study (such as a master’s thesis ), doctorate-level research often pushes the bounds of specific fields or contributes to a given body of work in some unique way.

How will your proposed PhD research do those things?

Background details

Because PhD research is about pushing boundaries, adding background context regarding the current state of affairs in your given field can help readers better understand why you want to pursue this research and how you arrived at this specific point of interest.

While the information here may (or may not) be broken into multiple sections, the content here is largely designed to provide a high-level overview of your PhD proposal and entice readers to dig deeper into the methodologies and angles of approach in future sections.

Because so much of this section relies on the remainder of your document, it’s sometimes better to skip this portion of the PhD proposal until the later sections are complete and then circle back to it.

That way, you can provide concise summaries that refer to fully defined research methods that you’ve already explained in subsequent areas.

3. Methodologies and plans

Unlike a master’s thesis or a similar academic document, PhD research is designed to push the boundaries of its subject matter in some way.

The idea behind doctoral research is to expand the field with new insights and viewpoints that are the culmination of years of research and study, combined with a deep familiarity of the topic at hand.

The methodologies and work plans you provide will give advisors some insights into how you plan to conduct your research.

While there is no one right way to develop this section, you’ll need to include a few key details:

Research methods

Are there specific research methods you plan to use to conduct your PhD research?

Are you conducting experiments? Conducting qualitative research? Surveying specific individuals in a given environment?

Benefits and drawbacks of your approach

Regardless of your approach to your topic, there will be upsides and downsides to that methodology.

Explain what you feel are the primary benefits to your research method, where there are potential flaws, and how you plan to account for those shortfalls.

Choice of methodology

Why did you choose a given methodology?

What makes it the best method (or collection of methods) for your research and/or specific use case?

Outline of proposed work

What work is required for PhD research to be complete?

What steps will you need to take in order to capture the appropriate information? How will you complete those steps?

Schedule of work (including timelines/deadlines)

How long will it take you to complete each stage or step of your project?

If your PhDproject will take several years, you may need to provide specifics for more immediate timelines up front while future deadlines may be flexible or estimated.

There is some flexibility here.

It’s unlikely that your advisors will expect you to have the answer for every question regarding how you plan to approach your body of research.

When trying to push the boundaries of any given topic, it’s expected that some things may not go to plan.

However, you should do your best to make timelines and schedules of work that are consistent with your listed goals.

Remember : At the end of your work, you are expected to have a body of original research that is complete within the scope and limitations of the PhD proposal you set forth.

If your advisors feel that your subject matter is too broad, they may encourage you to narrow the scope to better fit into more standardized expectations.

4. Resources and citations

No PhD research proposal is complete without a full list of the resources required to carry out the project and references to help prove and validate the research.

Here’s a closer look at what you’ll need to submit in order to explain costs and prove the validity of your proposal:

Estimated costs and resources

Most doctoral programs offer some level of funding for these projects.

To take advantage of those funds, you’ll need to submit a budget of estimated costs so that assessors can better understand the financial requirements.

This might include equipment, expenses for fieldwork or travel, and more.

Citations and bibliographies

No matter your field of study, doctoral research is built on the data and observations provided by past contributors.

Because of this, you’ll need to provide citations and sources referenced in your PhD proposal documentation.

Particularly when it comes to finances and funding, it might be tempting to downplay the cost of the project.

However, it’s best to provide a realistic estimate in terms of costs so that you have enough of a budget to cover the PhD research.

Adjustments can be made at a later date, particularly as you conduct more research and dive further into the project.

Resources are often presented in the form of a table to make things easier to track and identify.

Using PhD proposal templates

Aside from any guidelines set forth by your institution, there are no particularly strict rules when it comes to the format of PhD proposals.

Your supervisor will be more than capable of guiding you through the process.

However, since everything is so structured and formal, you might want to use a PhD proposal template to help you get started.

Templates can help you stay on track and make sure your research proposal follows a certain logic.

A lot of proposal software solutions offer templates for different types of proposals, including PhD proposals.

But, should you use Phd proposal templates? Here are some pros and cons to help you make a decision.

• Expedites the proposal process.
• Helps you jumpstart the process with a flexible document structure.
• Often provides sections with pre-filled examples.
• Looks better than your average Word document.
• May be limiting if you adhere to it too much.
• Might not be perfectly suited to your specific field of research, requiring some customization.

In our PhD research proposal template , we give you just enough direction to help you follow through but we don’t limit your creativity to a point that you can’t express yourself and all the nuances of your research.

For almost all sections, you get a few useful PhD research proposal examples to point you in the right direction.

The template provides you with a typical PhD proposal structure that’s perfect for almost all disciplines.

It can come in quite handy when you have everything planned out in your head but you’re just having trouble putting it onto the page!

Writing a PhD proposal that convinces

Writing and completing a PhD proposal might be confusing at first.

You need to follow a certain logic and share all the required information without going too long or sharing too much about the project.

And, while your supervisor will certainly be there to guide you, the brunt of the work will still fall on your shoulders.

That’s why you need to stay informed, do your research, and don’t give up until you feel comfortable with what you’ve created.

If you want to get a head start, you might want to consider our research proposal template .

It will offer you a structure to follow when writing a PhD proposal and give you an idea on what to write in each section.

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Research proposals for PhD admission: tips and advice

One of the most important tips for any piece of writing is to know your audience. The staff reviewing your PhD proposal are going through a pile of them, so you need to make sure yours stands within a few seconds of opening it.

The way to do this is by demonstrating value and impact. Academic work is often written for a niche community of researchers in one field, so you need to demonstrate why your work would be valuable to people in that area.

The people reviewing your proposal will likely be in that field. So your proposal should be a little like a sales pitch: you need to write something engaging that identifies with the “customer”, speaks to a problem they’re having, and shows them a solution.

Taking some inspiration from the former University of Chicago professor Larry McEnerney , here are some ideas to keep in mind…

• It’s common for undergraduates and even seasoned academics to write in a specific format or style to demonstrate their understanding and signal that they’re part of the academic community. Instead, you want to write in such a way that actually engages the reader.
• Identify an uncharted or underexplored knowledge gap in your field, and show the reader you have what it takes to fill in that gap.
• Challenge the status quo. Set up an idea that people in your field take for granted — maybe a famous study you think is flawed — and outline how your project could knock it down.
• This is why it’s important to understand who your audience is. You have to write your proposal in such a way that it’s valuable for reviewers. But within your proposal, you should also clearly define which community of researchers your project is for, what problems they have, and how your project is going to solve those problems.
• Every community of researchers has their own implicit “codes” and “keywords” that signal understanding. These will be very different in each field and could be very subtle. But just by reading successful PhD research proposal examples in your field, you can get a sense of what those are and decide how you want to employ them in your own work.
• In this model authors start “at the bottom of the glass” with a very narrow introduction to the idea of the paper, then “fill the glass” with a broader and broader version of the same idea.
• Instead, follow a “problem-solution” framework. Introduce a problem that’s relevant to your intended reader, then offer a solution. Since “solutions” often raise their own new problems or questions, you can rinse and repeat this framework all the way through any section of your proposal.

But how can you apply that advice? If you’re following something like our research proposal template , here are some actionable ways to get started.

• Your title should be eye-catching , and signal value by speaking to either a gap in the field or challenging the status quo.
• Your abstract should speak to a problem in the field, one the reviewers will care about, and clearly outline how you’d like to solve it.
• When you list the objectives of your proposal , each one should repeat this problem-solution framework. You should concretely state what you want to achieve, and what you’re going to do to achieve it.
• While you survey your chosen field in the literature review, you should refer back to the knowledge gap or status quo that you intend to work on. This reinforces how important your proposed project is, and how valuable it would be to the community if your project was successful.
• While listing your research limitations , try to hint at new territory researchers might be able to explore off the back of your work. This illustrates that you’re proposing boundary-pushing work that will really advance knowledge of the field.
• While you’re outlining your funding requirements , be clear about why each line item is necessary and bring it back to the value of your proposed research. Every cent counts!

Frequently asked questions

How long should a phd proposal be.

There really isn’t a specific rule when it comes to the length of a PhD proposal. However, it’s generally accepted that it should be between 1,000 and 2,000 words.

It’s difficult to elaborate on such a serious project in less than 1,000 words but going over 2,000 is often overkill. You’ll lose people’s attention and water down your points.

What’s the difference between a dissertation proposal and a PhD proposal?

There seems to be some confusion over the terms “dissertation” and “PhD” and how you write proposals for each one. However, “dissertation” is just another name for your PhD research so the proposal for a dissertation would be the same since it’s quite literally the same thing.

Does a PhD proposal include budgeting?

Yes, as mentioned, you need to demonstrate the feasibility of your project within the given time frame and with the resources you need, including budgets. You don’t need to be exact, but you need to have accurate estimates for everything.

How is a PhD proposal evaluated?

This will change from one institution to another but these things will generally have a big impact on the reviewers:

• The contribution of the project to the field.
• Design and feasibility of the project.
• The validity of the methodology and objectives.
• The supervisor and their role in the field.

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Originally published June 9, 2023, updated February 6, 2024

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How To Write A Research Proposal

A Straightforward How-To Guide (With Examples)

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) | Reviewed By: Dr. Eunice Rautenbach | August 2019 (Updated April 2023)

Writing up a strong research proposal for a dissertation or thesis is much like a marriage proposal. It’s a task that calls on you to win somebody over and persuade them that what you’re planning is a great idea. An idea they’re happy to say ‘yes’ to. This means that your dissertation proposal needs to be   persuasive ,   attractive   and well-planned. In this post, I’ll show you how to write a winning dissertation proposal, from scratch.

Before you start:

– Understand exactly what a research proposal is – Ask yourself these 4 questions

The 5 essential ingredients:

• The title/topic
• The introduction chapter
• The scope/delimitations
• Preliminary literature review
• Design/ methodology
• Practical considerations and risks 

What Is A Research Proposal?

The research proposal is literally that: a written document that communicates what you propose to research, in a concise format. It’s where you put all that stuff that’s spinning around in your head down on to paper, in a logical, convincing fashion.

Convincing   is the keyword here, as your research proposal needs to convince the assessor that your research is   clearly articulated   (i.e., a clear research question) ,   worth doing   (i.e., is unique and valuable enough to justify the effort), and   doable   within the restrictions you’ll face (time limits, budget, skill limits, etc.). If your proposal does not address these three criteria, your research won’t be approved, no matter how “exciting” the research idea might be.

PS – if you’re completely new to proposal writing, we’ve got a detailed walkthrough video covering two successful research proposals here . 

How do I know I’m ready?

Before starting the writing process, you need to   ask yourself 4 important questions .  If you can’t answer them succinctly and confidently, you’re not ready – you need to go back and think more deeply about your dissertation topic .

You should be able to answer the following 4 questions before starting your dissertation or thesis research proposal:

• WHAT is my main research question? (the topic)
• WHO cares and why is this important? (the justification)
• WHAT data would I need to answer this question, and how will I analyse it? (the research design)
• HOW will I manage the completion of this research, within the given timelines? (project and risk management)

If you can’t answer these questions clearly and concisely,   you’re not yet ready   to write your research proposal – revisit our   post on choosing a topic .

If you can, that’s great – it’s time to start writing up your dissertation proposal. Next, I’ll discuss what needs to go into your research proposal, and how to structure it all into an intuitive, convincing document with a linear narrative.

The 5 Essential Ingredients

Research proposals can vary in style between institutions and disciplines, but here I’ll share with you a   handy 5-section structure   you can use. These 5 sections directly address the core questions we spoke about earlier, ensuring that you present a convincing proposal. If your institution already provides a proposal template, there will likely be substantial overlap with this, so you’ll still get value from reading on.

For each section discussed below, make sure you use headers and sub-headers (ideally, numbered headers) to help the reader navigate through your document, and to support them when they need to revisit a previous section. Don’t just present an endless wall of text, paragraph after paragraph after paragraph…

Top Tip:   Use MS Word Styles to format headings. This will allow you to be clear about whether a sub-heading is level 2, 3, or 4. Additionally, you can view your document in ‘outline view’ which will show you only your headings. This makes it much easier to check your structure, shift things around and make decisions about where a section needs to sit. You can also generate a 100% accurate table of contents using Word’s automatic functionality.

Ingredient #1 – Topic/Title Header

Your research proposal’s title should be your main research question in its simplest form, possibly with a sub-heading providing basic details on the specifics of the study. For example:

“Compliance with equality legislation in the charity sector: a study of the ‘reasonable adjustments’ made in three London care homes”

As you can see, this title provides a clear indication of what the research is about, in broad terms. It paints a high-level picture for the first-time reader, which gives them a taste of what to expect.   Always aim for a clear, concise title . Don’t feel the need to capture every detail of your research in your title – your proposal will fill in the gaps.

Need a helping hand?

Ingredient #2 – Introduction

In this section of your research proposal, you’ll expand on what you’ve communicated in the title, by providing a few paragraphs which offer more detail about your research topic. Importantly, the focus here is the   topic   – what will you research and why is that worth researching? This is not the place to discuss methodology, practicalities, etc. – you’ll do that later.

You should cover the following:

• An overview of the   broad area   you’ll be researching – introduce the reader to key concepts and language
• An explanation of the   specific (narrower) area   you’ll be focusing, and why you’ll be focusing there
• Your research   aims   and   objectives
• Your   research question (s) and sub-questions (if applicable)

Importantly, you should aim to use short sentences and plain language – don’t babble on with extensive jargon, acronyms and complex language. Assume that the reader is an intelligent layman – not a subject area specialist (even if they are). Remember that the   best writing is writing that can be easily understood   and digested. Keep it simple.

Note that some universities may want some extra bits and pieces in your introduction section. For example, personal development objectives, a structural outline, etc. Check your brief to see if there are any other details they expect in your proposal, and make sure you find a place for these.

Ingredient #3 – Scope

Next, you’ll need to specify what the scope of your research will be – this is also known as the delimitations . In other words, you need to make it clear what you will be covering and, more importantly, what you won’t be covering in your research. Simply put, this is about ring fencing your research topic so that you have a laser-sharp focus.

All too often, students feel the need to go broad and try to address as many issues as possible, in the interest of producing comprehensive research. Whilst this is admirable, it’s a mistake. By tightly refining your scope, you’ll enable yourself to   go deep   with your research, which is what you need to earn good marks. If your scope is too broad, you’re likely going to land up with superficial research (which won’t earn marks), so don’t be afraid to narrow things down.

Ingredient #4 – Literature Review

In this section of your research proposal, you need to provide a (relatively) brief discussion of the existing literature. Naturally, this will not be as comprehensive as the literature review in your actual dissertation, but it will lay the foundation for that. In fact, if you put in the effort at this stage, you’ll make your life a lot easier when it’s time to write your actual literature review chapter.

There are a few things you need to achieve in this section:

• Demonstrate that you’ve done your reading and are   familiar with the current state of the research   in your topic area.
• Show that   there’s a clear gap   for your specific research – i.e., show that your topic is sufficiently unique and will add value to the existing research.
• Show how the existing research has shaped your thinking regarding   research design . For example, you might use scales or questionnaires from previous studies.

When you write up your literature review, keep these three objectives front of mind, especially number two (revealing the gap in the literature), so that your literature review has a   clear purpose and direction . Everything you write should be contributing towards one (or more) of these objectives in some way. If it doesn’t, you need to ask yourself whether it’s truly needed.

Top Tip:  Don’t fall into the trap of just describing the main pieces of literature, for example, “A says this, B says that, C also says that…” and so on. Merely describing the literature provides no value. Instead, you need to   synthesise   it, and use it to address the three objectives above.

Ingredient #5 – Research Methodology

Now that you’ve clearly explained both your intended research topic (in the introduction) and the existing research it will draw on (in the literature review section), it’s time to get practical and explain exactly how you’ll be carrying out your own research. In other words, your research methodology.

In this section, you’ll need to   answer two critical questions :

• How   will you design your research? I.e., what research methodology will you adopt, what will your sample be, how will you collect data, etc.
• Why   have you chosen this design? I.e., why does this approach suit your specific research aims, objectives and questions?

In other words, this is not just about explaining WHAT you’ll be doing, it’s also about explaining WHY. In fact, the   justification is the most important part , because that justification is how you demonstrate a good understanding of research design (which is what assessors want to see).

Some essential design choices you need to cover in your research proposal include:

• Your intended research philosophy (e.g., positivism, interpretivism or pragmatism )
• What methodological approach you’ll be taking (e.g., qualitative , quantitative or mixed )
• The details of your sample (e.g., sample size, who they are, who they represent, etc.)
• What data you plan to collect (i.e. data about what, in what form?)
• How you plan to collect it (e.g., surveys , interviews , focus groups, etc.)
• How you plan to analyse it (e.g., regression analysis, thematic analysis , etc.)
• Ethical adherence (i.e., does this research satisfy all ethical requirements of your institution, or does it need further approval?)

This list is not exhaustive – these are just some core attributes of research design. Check with your institution what level of detail they expect. The “ research onion ” by Saunders et al (2009) provides a good summary of the various design choices you ultimately need to make – you can   read more about that here .

Don’t forget the practicalities…

In addition to the technical aspects, you will need to address the   practical   side of the project. In other words, you need to explain   what resources you’ll need   (e.g., time, money, access to equipment or software, etc.) and how you intend to secure these resources. You need to show that your project is feasible, so any “make or break” type resources need to already be secured. The success or failure of your project cannot depend on some resource which you’re not yet sure you have access to.

Another part of the practicalities discussion is   project and risk management . In other words, you need to show that you have a clear project plan to tackle your research with. Some key questions to address:

• What are the timelines for each phase of your project?
• Are the time allocations reasonable?
• What happens if something takes longer than anticipated (risk management)?
• What happens if you don’t get the response rate you expect?

A good way to demonstrate that you’ve thought this through is to include a Gantt chart and a risk register (in the appendix if word count is a problem). With these two tools, you can show that you’ve got a clear, feasible plan, and you’ve thought about and accounted for the potential risks.

Tip – Be honest about the potential difficulties – but show that you are anticipating solutions and workarounds. This is much more impressive to an assessor than an unrealistically optimistic proposal which does not anticipate any challenges whatsoever.

Final Touches: Read And Simplify

The final step is to edit and proofread your proposal – very carefully. It sounds obvious, but all too often poor editing and proofreading ruin a good proposal. Nothing is more off-putting for an assessor than a poorly edited, typo-strewn document. It sends the message that you either do not pay attention to detail, or just don’t care. Neither of these are good messages. Put the effort into editing and proofreading your proposal (or pay someone to do it for you) – it will pay dividends.

When you’re editing, watch out for ‘academese’. Many students can speak simply, passionately and clearly about their dissertation topic – but become incomprehensible the moment they turn the laptop on. You are not required to write in any kind of special, formal, complex language when you write academic work. Sure, there may be technical terms, jargon specific to your discipline, shorthand terms and so on. But, apart from those,   keep your written language very close to natural spoken language   – just as you would speak in the classroom. Imagine that you are explaining your project plans to your classmates or a family member. Remember, write for the intelligent layman, not the subject matter experts. Plain-language, concise writing is what wins hearts and minds – and marks!

Let’s Recap: Research Proposal 101

And there you have it – how to write your dissertation or thesis research proposal, from the title page to the final proof. Here’s a quick recap of the key takeaways:

• The purpose of the research proposal is to   convince   – therefore, you need to make a clear, concise argument of why your research is both worth doing and doable.
• Make sure you can ask the critical what, who, and how questions of your research   before   you put pen to paper.
• Title – provides the first taste of your research, in broad terms
• Introduction – explains what you’ll be researching in more detail
• Scope – explains the boundaries of your research
• Literature review – explains how your research fits into the existing research and why it’s unique and valuable
• Research methodology – explains and justifies how you will carry out your own research

Hopefully, this post has helped you better understand how to write up a winning research proposal. If you enjoyed it, be sure to check out the rest of the Grad Coach Blog . If your university doesn’t provide any template for your proposal, you might want to try out our free research proposal template .

Psst… there’s more!

This post is an extract from our bestselling short course, Research Proposal Bootcamp . If you want to work smart, you don't want to miss this .

30 Comments

Thank you so much for the valuable insight that you have given, especially on the research proposal. That is what I have managed to cover. I still need to go back to the other parts as I got disturbed while still listening to Derek’s audio on you-tube. I am inspired. I will definitely continue with Grad-coach guidance on You-tube.

Thanks for the kind words :). All the best with your proposal.

First of all, thanks a lot for making such a wonderful presentation. The video was really useful and gave me a very clear insight of how a research proposal has to be written. I shall try implementing these ideas in my RP.

Once again, I thank you for this content.

I found reading your outline on writing research proposal very beneficial. I wish there was a way of submitting my draft proposal to you guys for critiquing before I submit to the institution.

Hi Bonginkosi

Thank you for the kind words. Yes, we do provide a review service. The best starting point is to have a chat with one of our coaches here: https://gradcoach.com/book/new/ .

Hello team GRADCOACH, may God bless you so much. I was totally green in research. Am so happy for your free superb tutorials and resources. Once again thank you so much Derek and his team.

You’re welcome, Erick. Good luck with your research proposal 🙂

thank you for the information. its precise and on point.

Really a remarkable piece of writing and great source of guidance for the researchers. GOD BLESS YOU for your guidance. Regards

Thanks so much for your guidance. It is easy and comprehensive the way you explain the steps for a winning research proposal.

Thank you guys so much for the rich post. I enjoyed and learn from every word in it. My problem now is how to get into your platform wherein I can always seek help on things related to my research work ? Secondly, I wish to find out if there is a way I can send my tentative proposal to you guys for examination before I take to my supervisor Once again thanks very much for the insights

Thanks for your kind words, Desire.

If you are based in a country where Grad Coach’s paid services are available, you can book a consultation by clicking the “Book” button in the top right.

Best of luck with your studies.

May God bless you team for the wonderful work you are doing,

If I have a topic, Can I submit it to you so that you can draft a proposal for me?? As I am expecting to go for masters degree in the near future.

Thanks for your comment. We definitely cannot draft a proposal for you, as that would constitute academic misconduct. The proposal needs to be your own work. We can coach you through the process, but it needs to be your own work and your own writing.

Best of luck with your research!

I found a lot of many essential concepts from your material. it is real a road map to write a research proposal. so thanks a lot. If there is any update material on your hand on MBA please forward to me.

GradCoach is a professional website that presents support and helps for MBA student like me through the useful online information on the page and with my 1-on-1 online coaching with the amazing and professional PhD Kerryen.

Thank you Kerryen so much for the support and help 🙂

I really recommend dealing with such a reliable services provider like Gradcoah and a coach like Kerryen.

Hi, Am happy for your service and effort to help students and researchers, Please, i have been given an assignment on research for strategic development, the task one is to formulate a research proposal to support the strategic development of a business area, my issue here is how to go about it, especially the topic or title and introduction. Please, i would like to know if you could help me and how much is the charge.

This content is practical, valuable, and just great!

Thank you very much!

Hi Derek, Thank you for the valuable presentation. It is very helpful especially for beginners like me. I am just starting my PhD.

This is quite instructive and research proposal made simple. Can I have a research proposal template?

Great! Thanks for rescuing me, because I had no former knowledge in this topic. But with this piece of information, I am now secured. Thank you once more.

I enjoyed listening to your video on how to write a proposal. I think I will be able to write a winning proposal with your advice. I wish you were to be my supervisor.

Dear Derek Jansen,

Thank you for your great content. I couldn’t learn these topics in MBA, but now I learned from GradCoach. Really appreciate your efforts….

From Afghanistan!

I have got very essential inputs for startup of my dissertation proposal. Well organized properly communicated with video presentation. Thank you for the presentation.

Wow, this is absolutely amazing guys. Thank you so much for the fruitful presentation, you’ve made my research much easier.

this helps me a lot. thank you all so much for impacting in us. may god richly bless you all

How I wish I’d learn about Grad Coach earlier. I’ve been stumbling around writing and rewriting! Now I have concise clear directions on how to put this thing together. Thank you!

Fantastic!! Thank You for this very concise yet comprehensive guidance.

Even if I am poor in English I would like to thank you very much.

Thank you very much, this is very insightful.

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• 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

Receive feedback on language, structure, and formatting

Professional editors proofread and edit your paper by focusing on:

• Academic style
• Vague sentences
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See an example

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

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

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.

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How to write a successful research proposal

As the competition for PhD places is incredibly fierce, your research proposal can have a strong bearing on the success of your application - so discover how to make the best impression

What is a research proposal?

Research proposals are used to persuade potential supervisors and funders that your work is worthy of their support. These documents set out your proposed research that will result in a Doctoral thesis. They are typically between 1,500 and 3,000 words.

Your PhD research proposal must passionately articulate what you want to research and why, convey your understanding of existing literature, and clearly define at least one research question that could lead to new or original knowledge and how you propose to answer it.

Professor Leigh Wilson, head of the graduate school at the University of Westminster , explains that while the research proposal is about work that hasn't been done yet, what prospective supervisors and funders are focusing on just as strongly is evidence of what you've done.

This includes how well you know existing literature in the area, including very recent publications and debates, and how clearly you've seen what's missing from this and so what your research can do that's new. Giving a strong sense of this background or frame for the proposed work is crucial.

'Although it's tempting to make large claims and propose research that sweeps across time and space, narrower, more focused research is much more convincing,' she adds. 'To be thorough and rigorous in the way that academic work needs to be, even something as long as a PhD thesis can only cover a fairly narrow topic. Depth not breadth is called for.'

The structure of your research proposal is therefore important to achieving this goal, yet it should still retain sufficient flexibility to comfortably accommodate any changes you need to make as your PhD progresses.

Layout and formats vary, so it's advisable to consult your potential PhD supervisor before you begin. Here's what to bear in mind when writing a research proposal.

Your provisional title should be around ten words in length, and clearly and accurately indicate your area of study and/or proposed approach. It should be catchy, informative and interesting.

The title page should also include personal information, such as:

• academic title
• date of birth
• nationality
• contact details.

Aims and objectives

This is a summary of your project. Your aims should be two or three broad statements that emphasise what you want to achieve, complemented by several focused, feasible and measurable objectives - the steps that you'll take to answer each of your research questions.

You'll need to clearly and briefly outline:

• how your research addresses a gap in, or builds upon, existing knowledge
• how your research links to the department that you're applying to
• the academic, cultural, political and/or social significance of your research questions.

Literature review

This section of your PhD proposal discusses the most important theories, models and texts that surround and influence your research questions, conveying your understanding and awareness of the key issues and debates.

It should focus on the theoretical and practical knowledge gaps that your work aims to address, as this ultimately justifies and provides the motivation for your project.

Methodology

Here, you're expected to outline how you'll answer each of your research questions. A strong, well-written methodology is crucial, but especially so if your project involves extensive collection and significant analysis of primary data.

In disciplines such as humanities, the research proposal methodology identifies the data collection and analytical techniques available to you, before justifying the ones you'll use in greater detail. You'll also define the population that you're intending to examine.

You should also show that you're aware of the limitations of your research, qualifying the parameters you plan to introduce. Remember, it's more impressive to do a fantastic job of exploring a narrower topic than a decent job of exploring a wider one.

Concluding or following on from your methodology, your timetable should identify how long you'll need to complete each step - perhaps using bi-weekly or monthly timeslots. This helps the reader to evaluate the feasibility of your project and shows that you've considered how you'll go about putting the PhD proposal into practice.

Bibliography

Finally, you'll provide a list of the most significant texts, plus any attachments such as your academic CV .

Demonstrate your skills in critical reflection by selecting only those resources that are most appropriate.

Final checks

Before submitting this document along with your PhD application, you'll need to ensure that you've adhered to the research proposal format. This means that:

• every page is numbered
• it's professional, interesting and informative
• the research proposal has been proofread by both an experienced academic (to confirm that it conforms to academic standards) and a layperson (to correct any grammatical or spelling errors)
• it has a contents page
• you've used a clear and easy-to-read structure, with appropriate headings.

Research proposal examples

To get a better idea of how your PhD proposal may look, some universities have provided examples of research proposals for specific subjects, including:

• The Open University - Social Policy and Criminology
• Queen's University Belfast - Nursing and Midwifery
• University of Sheffield - Sociological Studies
• University of Sussex
• University of York - Politics
• York St John University

Find out more

• Explore PhD studentships .
• For tips on writing a thesis, see 7 steps to writing a dissertation .
• Consider your PhD, what next?

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How to Write a PhD Research Proposal

• Applying to a PhD
• A research proposal summarises your intended research.
• Your research proposal is used to confirm you understand the topic, and that the university has the expertise to support your study.
• The length of a research proposal varies. It is usually specified by either the programme requirements or the supervisor upon request. 1500 to 3500 words is common.
• The typical research proposal structure consists of: Title, Abstract, Background and Rationale, Research Aims and Objectives, Research Design and Methodology, Timetable, and a Bibliography.

What is a Research Proposal?

A research proposal is a supporting document that may be required when applying to a research degree. It summarises your intended research by outlining what your research questions are, why they’re important to your field and what knowledge gaps surround your topic. It also outlines your research in terms of your aims, methods and proposed timetable .

What Is It Used for and Why Is It Important?

A research proposal will be used to:

• Confirm whether you understand the topic and can communicate complex ideas.
• Confirm whether the university has adequate expertise to support you in your research topic.
• Apply for funding or research grants to external bodies.

How Long Should a PhD Research Proposal Be?

Some universities will specify a word count all students will need to adhere to. You will typically find these in the description of the PhD listing. If they haven’t stated a word count limit, you should contact the potential supervisor to clarify whether there are any requirements. If not, aim for 1500 to 3500 words (3 to 7 pages).

Your title should indicate clearly what your research question is. It needs to be simple and to the point; if the reader needs to read further into your proposal to understand your question, your working title isn’t clear enough.

Directly below your title, state the topic your research question relates to. Whether you include this information at the top of your proposal or insert a dedicated title page is your choice and will come down to personal preference.

2. Abstract

If your research proposal is over 2000 words, consider providing an abstract. Your abstract should summarise your question, why it’s important to your field and how you intend to answer it; in other words, explain your research context.

Only include crucial information in this section – 250 words should be sufficient to get across your main points.

3. Background & Rationale

First, specify which subject area your research problem falls in. This will help set the context of your study and will help the reader anticipate the direction of your proposed research.

Following this, include a literature review . A literature review summarises the existing knowledge which surrounds your research topic. This should include a discussion of the theories, models and bodies of text which directly relate to your research problem. As well as discussing the information available, discuss those which aren’t. In other words, identify what the current gaps in knowledge are and discuss how this will influence your research. Your aim here is to convince the potential supervisor and funding providers of why your intended research is worth investing time and money into.

Last, discuss the key debates and developments currently at the centre of your research area.

4. Research Aims & Objectives

Identify the aims and objectives of your research. The aims are the problems your project intends to solve; the objectives are the measurable steps and outcomes required to achieve the aim.

In outlining your aims and objectives, you will need to explain why your proposed research is worth exploring. Consider these aspects:

• Will your research solve a problem?
• Will your research address a current gap in knowledge?
• Will your research have any social or practical benefits?

If you fail to address the above questions, it’s unlikely they will accept your proposal – all PhD research projects must show originality and value to be considered.

5. Research Design and Methodology

The following structure is recommended when discussing your research design:

• Sample/Population – Discuss your sample size, target populations, specimen types etc.
• Methods – What research methods have you considered, how did you evaluate them and how did you decide on your chosen one?
• Data Collection – How are you going to collect and validate your data? Are there any limitations?
• Data Analysis – How are you going to interpret your results and obtain a meaningful conclusion from them?
• Ethical Considerations – Are there any potential implications associated with your research approach? This could either be to research participants or to your field as a whole on the outcome of your findings (i.e. if you’re researching a particularly controversial area). How are you going to monitor for these implications and what types of preventive steps will you need to put into place?

6. Timetable

We’ve outlined the various stages of a PhD and the approximate duration of a PhD programme which you can refer to when designing your own research study.

7. Bibliography

Plagiarism is taken seriously across all academic levels, but even more so for doctorates. Therefore, ensure you reference the existing literature you have used in writing your PhD proposal. Besides this, try to adopt the same referencing style as the University you’re applying to uses. You can easily find this information in the PhD Thesis formatting guidelines published on the University’s website.

Finding a PhD has never been this easy – search for a PhD by keyword, location or academic area of interest.

Questions & Answers

Here are answers to some of the most common questions we’re asked about the Research Proposal:

Can You Change a Research Proposal?

Yes, your PhD research proposal outlines the start of your project only. It’s well accepted that the direction of your research will develop with time, therefore, you can revise it at later dates.

Can the Potential Supervisor Review My Draft Proposal?

Whether the potential supervisor will review your draft will depend on the individual. However, it is highly advisable that you at least attempt to discuss your draft with them. Even if they can’t review it, they may provide you with useful information regarding their department’s expertise which could help shape your PhD proposal. For example, you may amend your methodology should you come to learn that their laboratory is better equipped for an alternative method.

How Should I Structure and Format My Proposal?

Ensure you follow the same order as the headings given above. This is the most logical structure and will be the order your proposed supervisor will expect.

Most universities don’t provide formatting requirements for research proposals on the basis that they are a supporting document only, however, we recommend that you follow the same format they require for their PhD thesis submissions. This will give your reader familiarity and their guidelines should be readily available on their website.

Last, try to have someone within the same academic field or discipline area to review your proposal. The key is to confirm that they understand the importance of your work and how you intend to execute it. If they don’t, it’s likely a sign you need to rewrite some of your sections to be more coherent.

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How to Write a PhD Proposal

• December 2017

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How to write a good PhD proposal

Study tips Published 3 Mar, 2022  ·  5-minute read

Want to make sure your research degree starts smoothly? We spoke with 2 PhD candidates about overcoming this initial hurdle. Here’s their advice for how to write a good PhD proposal.

Writing your research proposal is an integral part of commencing a PhD with many schools and institutes, so it can feel rather intimidating. After all, how you come up with your PhD proposal could be the difference between your supervisor getting on board or giving your project a miss.

Let’s explore how to make a PhD research proposal with UQ candidates Chelsea Janke and Sarah Kendall. 

Look at PhD proposal examples

Look at other PhD proposals that have been successful. Ask current students if you can look at theirs.

Nobody’s asking you to reinvent the wheel when it comes to writing your PhD proposal – leave that for your actual thesis. For now, while you’re just working out how to write a PhD proposal, examples are a great starting point.

Chelsea knows this step is easier if you’ve got a friend who is already doing a PhD, but there are other ways to find a good example or template.

“Look at other PhD proposals that have been successful,” she says.

“Ask current students if you can look at theirs.”

“If you don’t know anyone doing their PhD, look online to get an idea of how they should be structured.”

What makes this tricky is that proposals can vary greatly by field and disciplinary norms, so you should check with your proposed supervisor to see if they have a specific format or list of criteria to follow. Part of writing a good PhD proposal is submitting it in a style that's familiar to the people who will read and (hopefully) become excited by it and want to bring you into their research area.

Here are some of the key factors to consider when structuring your proposal:

• meeting the expected word count (this can range from a 1-page maximum to a 3,000-word minimum depending on your supervisor and research area)
• making your bibliography as detailed as necessary
• outlining the research questions you’ll be trying to solve/answer
• discussing the impact your research could have on your field
• conducting preliminary analysis of existing research on the topic
• documenting details of the methods and data sources you’ll use in your research
• introducing your supervisor(s)  and how their experience relates to your project.

Please note this isn't a universal list of things you need in your PhD research proposal. Depending on your supervisor's requirements, some of these items may be unnecessary or there may be other inclusions not listed here.

Ask your planned supervisor for advice

Alright, here’s the thing. If sending your research proposal is your first point of contact with your prospective supervisor, you’ve jumped the gun a little.

You should have at least one researcher partially on board with your project before delving too deep into your proposal. This ensures you’re not potentially spending time and effort on an idea that no one has any appetite for. Plus, it unlocks a helpful guide who can assist with your proposal.

PhD research isn’t like Shark Tank – you’re allowed to confer with academics and secure their support before you pitch your thesis to them. Discover how to choose the right PhD supervisor for you.

For a time-efficient strategy, Chelsea recommends you approach your potential supervisor(s) and find out if:

• they have time to supervise you
• they have any funds to help pay for your research (even with a stipend scholarship , your research activities may require extra money)
• their research interests align with yours (you’ll ideally discover a mutual ground where you both benefit from the project).

“The best way to approach would be to send an email briefly outlining who you are, your background, and what your research interests are,” says Chelsea.

“Once you’ve spoken to a potential supervisor, then you can start drafting a proposal and you can even ask for their input.”

Chelsea's approach here works well with some academics, but keep in mind that other supervisors will want to see a research proposal straight away. If you're not sure of your proposed supervisor's preferences, you may like to cover both bases with an introductory email that has a draft of your research proposal attached.

Sarah agrees that your prospective supervisor is your most valuable resource for understanding how to write a research proposal for a PhD application.

“My biggest tip for writing a research proposal is to ask your proposed supervisor for help,” says Sarah.

“Or if this isn’t possible, ask another academic who has had experience writing research proposals.”

“They’ll be able to tell you what to include or what you need to improve on.”

Find the 'why' and focus on it

One of the key aspects of your research proposal is emphasising why your project is important and should be funded.

Your PhD proposal should include your major question, your planned methods, the sources you’ll cite, and plenty of other nitty gritty details. But perhaps the most important element of your proposal is its purpose – the reason you want to do this research and why the results will be meaningful.

In Sarah’s opinion, highlighting the 'why' of your project is vital for your research proposal.

“From my perspective, one of the key aspects of your research proposal is emphasising why your project is important and should be funded,” she says.

“Not only does this impact whether your application is likely to be successful, but it could also impact your likelihood of getting a scholarship .”

Imagine you only had 60 seconds to explain your planned research to someone. Would you prefer they remember how your project could change the world, or the statistical models you’ll be using to do it? (Of course, you’ve got 2,000 words rather than 60 seconds, so do make sure to include those little details as well – just put the why stuff first.)

Proofread your proposal, then proof it again

As a PhD candidate, your attention to detail is going to be integral to your success. Start practising it now by making sure your research proposal is perfect.

Chelsea and Sarah both acknowledge that clarity and writing quality should never be overlooked in a PhD proposal. This starts with double-checking that the questions of your thesis are obvious and unambiguous, followed by revising the rest of your proposal.

“Make sure your research questions are really clear,” says Sarah.

“Ensure all the writing is clear and grammatically correct,” adds Chelsea.

“A supervisor is not going to be overly keen on a prospective student if their writing is poor.”

It might sound harsh, but it’s fair. So, proofread your proposal multiple times – including after you get it back from your supervisor with any feedback and notes. When you think you’ve got the final, FINAL draft saved, sleep on it and read it one more time the next morning.

Still feeling a little overwhelmed by your research proposal? Stay motivated with these reasons why a PhD is worth the effort .

Want to learn more from Chelsea and Sarah? Easy:

• Read about Chelsea’s award-winning PhD thesis on keeping crops healthy.
• Read Sarah’s series on becoming a law academic .

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• Schools & departments

Writing your PhD research proposal

Find guidance on how to write your PhD research proposal and a template form for you to use to submit your research proposal.

By asking you for an outline  research proposal we hope to get a good picture of your research interests and your understanding of what such research is likely to entail.

The University's application form is designed to enable you to give an overview of your academic experience and qualifications for study at postgraduate level. Your outline research proposal then gives us an idea of the kind of research you want to undertake. This, together with information from your referees, will help us assess whether the Moray House School of Education and Sport would be the appropriate place for you to pursue your research interests.

At  the application stage, you are unlikely to be in a position to provide a comprehensive research proposal; the detailed shaping up of a research plan would be done in conjunction with your supervisor(s). But it is important for us to appreciate what you are hoping to investigate, how you plan to carry out the research, and what the results might be expected to contribute to current knowledge and understanding in the relevant academic field(s) of study. In writing your proposal, please indicate any prior academic or employment experience relevant to your planned research.

In your research proposal, please also ensure that you clearly identify the Moray House research cluster your proposal falls under, as well as two to three staff members  with expertise in this area. We also encourage you to contact potential supervisors within your area of proposed research before submitting your application to gauge their interest and availability.

How to write your research proposal

The description of your proposed research should consist of 4-5 typed A4 sheets. It can take whatever form seems best, but should include some information about the following:

• The general area within which you wish to conduct research, and why (you might find it helpful to explain what stimulated your interest in your chosen research field, and any study or research in the area that you have already undertaken)
• The kind of research questions that you would hope to address, and why (in explaining what is likely to be the main focus of your research, it may be helpful to indicate, for example, why these issues are of particular concern and the way in which they relate to existing literature)
• The sources of information and type of research methods you plan to use (for example, how you plan to collect your data, which sources you will be targeting and how you will access these data sources).

In addition to the above, please include any comments you are able to make concerning:

• The approach that you will take to analyse your research data
• The general timetable you would follow for carrying out and writing up your research
• Any plans you may have for undertaking fieldwork away from Edinburgh
• Any problems that might be anticipated in carrying out your proposed research

Please note: This guidance applies to all candidates, except those applying to conduct PhD research as part of a larger, already established research project (for example, in the Institute for Sport, Physical Education & Health Sciences).

In this case, you should provide a two- to three-page description of a research project you have undertaken, to complement information in the application form. If you are in any doubt as to what is appropriate, please contact us:

Email: Education@[email protected]

All doctoral proposals submitted as part of an application will be run through plagiarism detection software.

Template form for your research proposal

All applicants for a PhD or MSc by Research must submit a research proposal as part of their application. Applicants  must   use the template form below for their research proposal. This research proposal should then be submitted online as part of your application. Please use Calibri size 11 font size and do not change the paragraph spacing (single, with 6pt after each paragraph) or the page margins.

• Graduate School

Oxford PhD Proposal Sample: The Best Proposal

An Oxford PhD proposal sample, like Oxford personal statement examples , should give you an idea of how to structure and write your own PhD proposal, which is a key element of how to get into grad school . Should you pursue a master's or PhD , you should know that, with few exceptions, all graduate programs require that applicants submit a research proposal. It can vary in length (usually between 1,000 and 3,000 words) and must outline your main research goals and methods and demonstrate your facility with the topic. The almost 35,000 applications Oxford received in a recent year should give you some idea of how competitive getting into a master's or PhD program is.

Writing a stellar proposal is important to make your application stand out, so, to that end, this article will show you an expert-approved Oxford PhD proposal sample based on the actual requirements of an Oxford graduate program. 

>> Want us to help you get accepted? Schedule a free initial consultation here <<

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Article Contents 11 min read

Oxford phd proposal sample.

PhD Program : DPhil in Migrant Studies

Research Proposal Length: minimum 2000 - maximum 3000 words

To: Matthew J. Gibney, Professor of Politics and Forced Migration

Name: Adrian Toews

Title: Wired and Hungry Masses: Social Media, Migrants and Cultural Bereavement in the Digital Sphere

Proposed Research Topic: Does social media help migrants cross the cultural barriers of their adopted home and succeed in helping them preserve touchstones of their home culture? 

Abstract: The ascendance of social media platforms has increased and, strangely, decreased interconnectedness among disparate groups in society. But, while social media has been implicated, rightly, as a catalyst for the rise of disinformation, hate speech, and other anti-social behaviors, I would argue that its ubiquity and prevalence provide those experiencing cultural bereavement with a more-effective coping mechanism, as social media is able to replicate, in a non-physical space, the culturally specific mechanisms they know and which, prior to digital communications, could not be replicated in new, adopted countries and cultures.

Objective: I want to present social media as an informal networking tool, expressive outlet, and cultural road map with which migrants who are experiencing cultural bereavement can engage for two specific reasons: 1) to assuage the grief that accompanies anyone who has left their homeland as a migrant or refugee, and 2) to help them assimilate into their new identity by giving them a window into the cultural norms and practices of their new country or culture. 

An Oxford PhD proposal sample like this one is only one version of what a proposal can look like, but it should contain at least these basic elements. You should know how to choose a PhD topic at this point in your career, but if you still feel like you need help, then you can hire PhD admission consultants to help you choose your topic and research interests.

Above all, you should know why you want to do a PhD . Answering this question first will be effective in helping you ultimately decide on a program, which can then make it easier for you to write any number of different doctorate-related texts, such as a PhD motivation letter and a statement of intent .

Understanding your true motivations, passions, and research interests is doubly important when pursuing a PhD since you do not want to invest so much time and resources in a subject you are only partially interested in. If you can honestly answer why you want to pursue a PhD, you can then take concrete steps toward defining your research goals and how they can be fulfilled by the program you choose.

Your Oxford PhD proposal should adhere to the requirements set forth by the program you wish to enter. Regardless of your discipline or field, almost all PhD programs at Oxford require that you submit a research proposal of between 2,000 and 3,000 words. 

A statement of intent is another type of essay that applicants are often asked to submit to graduate schools. It involves talking about your past academic experiences and achievements, what you intend to do in graduate school, and why you want to go there. A PhD proposal, on the other hand, contains no personal details or experiences.

Instead, a PhD proposal should be a focused, concrete road map built around a specific research question. In your proposal, you list the theoretical approaches that you are going to use, research methods, past scholarship on the same topic, and other investigative tools to answer this question or present evidence from this research to support your argument. 

A statement of purpose is another common essay that graduate school applicants must submit. The line between a statement of purpose and a statement of intent is a fine one, but the line between a statement of purpose and a PhD proposal is much more prominent, and there is no mistaking the two. So, you should not read over graduate school statement of purpose examples to learn how to write a PhD proposal.

A statement of purpose can also be research-focused, but in an undefined way. A PhD proposal combines theory and practice and requires that you demonstrate your knowledge of proper scientific research, investigative methods, and the existing literature on your topic. 

You should include a title page where you list your name, the program you are applying to, and a title for your research project. You should address it to a specific faculty member, who can perhaps, if they agree, show you how to prepare for a thesis defense . The proposal itself should include an abstract, an overview of the existing scholarship on your topic, research questions, methods, and a bibliography listing all your sources. 

The usual length of PhD proposals is between 1,000 and 3,000 words, but your program may have different requirements, which you should always follow. 

There are up to 350 different graduate programs at Oxford, all with their own particular requirements, so the university does not set forth a universal set of requirements for all graduate programs. Many of these programs and their affiliated schools offer students advice on how to write a PhD proposal, but there are few, if any, stated requirements other than the implied ones, which are that you have familiarity with how to conduct graduate-level research and are knowledgeable in the field you are researching. 

A majority of programs do, yes. There are always exceptions, but a fundamental part of pursuing a PhD involves research and investigation, so it is normal for any PhD program to require that applicants write a PhD proposal. 

It is quite possible for your research interests and direction to change during your research, but you should not be discouraged. Graduate programs understand that these things happen, but you should still do your best to reflect the current state of research on your topic and try to anticipate any changes or sudden shifts in direction while you research. 

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How to Write a Research Proposal: (with Examples & Templates)

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Before conducting a study, a research proposal should be created that outlines researchers’ plans and methodology and is submitted to the concerned evaluating organization or person. Creating a research proposal is an important step to ensure that researchers are on track and are moving forward as intended. A research proposal can be defined as a detailed plan or blueprint for the proposed research that you intend to undertake. It provides readers with a snapshot of your project by describing what you will investigate, why it is needed, and how you will conduct the research.  

Your research proposal should aim to explain to the readers why your research is relevant and original, that you understand the context and current scenario in the field, have the appropriate resources to conduct the research, and that the research is feasible given the usual constraints.  

This article will describe in detail the purpose and typical structure of a research proposal , along with examples and templates to help you ace this step in your research journey.  

What is a Research Proposal ?  

A research proposal¹ ,²  can be defined as a formal report that describes your proposed research, its objectives, methodology, implications, and other important details. Research proposals are the framework of your research and are used to obtain approvals or grants to conduct the study from various committees or organizations. Consequently, research proposals should convince readers of your study’s credibility, accuracy, achievability, practicality, and reproducibility.   

With research proposals , researchers usually aim to persuade the readers, funding agencies, educational institutions, and supervisors to approve the proposal. To achieve this, the report should be well structured with the objectives written in clear, understandable language devoid of jargon. A well-organized research proposal conveys to the readers or evaluators that the writer has thought out the research plan meticulously and has the resources to ensure timely completion.  

Purpose of Research Proposals  

A research proposal is a sales pitch and therefore should be detailed enough to convince your readers, who could be supervisors, ethics committees, universities, etc., that what you’re proposing has merit and is feasible . Research proposals can help students discuss their dissertation with their faculty or fulfill course requirements and also help researchers obtain funding. A well-structured proposal instills confidence among readers about your ability to conduct and complete the study as proposed.  

Research proposals can be written for several reasons:³  

• To describe the importance of research in the specific topic  
• Address any potential challenges you may encounter  
• Showcase knowledge in the field and your ability to conduct a study  
• Apply for a role at a research institute  
• Convince a research supervisor or university that your research can satisfy the requirements of a degree program  
• Highlight the importance of your research to organizations that may sponsor your project  
• Identify implications of your project and how it can benefit the audience  

What Goes in a Research Proposal?    

Research proposals should aim to answer the three basic questions—what, why, and how.  

The What question should be answered by describing the specific subject being researched. It should typically include the objectives, the cohort details, and the location or setting.  

The Why question should be answered by describing the existing scenario of the subject, listing unanswered questions, identifying gaps in the existing research, and describing how your study can address these gaps, along with the implications and significance.  

The How question should be answered by describing the proposed research methodology, data analysis tools expected to be used, and other details to describe your proposed methodology.   

Research Proposal Example  

Here is a research proposal sample template (with examples) from the University of Rochester Medical Center. 4 The sections in all research proposals are essentially the same although different terminology and other specific sections may be used depending on the subject.  

Structure of a Research Proposal  

If you want to know how to make a research proposal impactful, include the following components:¹  

1. Introduction  

This section provides a background of the study, including the research topic, what is already known about it and the gaps, and the significance of the proposed research.  

2. Literature review  

This section contains descriptions of all the previous relevant studies pertaining to the research topic. Every study cited should be described in a few sentences, starting with the general studies to the more specific ones. This section builds on the understanding gained by readers in the Introduction section and supports it by citing relevant prior literature, indicating to readers that you have thoroughly researched your subject.  

3. Objectives  

Once the background and gaps in the research topic have been established, authors must now state the aims of the research clearly. Hypotheses should be mentioned here. This section further helps readers understand what your study’s specific goals are.  

4. Research design and methodology  

Here, authors should clearly describe the methods they intend to use to achieve their proposed objectives. Important components of this section include the population and sample size, data collection and analysis methods and duration, statistical analysis software, measures to avoid bias (randomization, blinding), etc.  

5. Ethical considerations  

This refers to the protection of participants’ rights, such as the right to privacy, right to confidentiality, etc. Researchers need to obtain informed consent and institutional review approval by the required authorities and mention this clearly for transparency.  

6. Budget/funding  

Researchers should prepare their budget and include all expected expenditures. An additional allowance for contingencies such as delays should also be factored in.  

7. Appendices  

This section typically includes information that supports the research proposal and may include informed consent forms, questionnaires, participant information, measurement tools, etc.  

8. Citations  

Important Tips for Writing a Research Proposal  

Writing a research proposal begins much before the actual task of writing. Planning the research proposal structure and content is an important stage, which if done efficiently, can help you seamlessly transition into the writing stage. 3,5  

The Planning Stage  

• Manage your time efficiently. Plan to have the draft version ready at least two weeks before your deadline and the final version at least two to three days before the deadline.
• What is the primary objective of your research?  
• Will your research address any existing gap?  
• What is the impact of your proposed research?  
• Do people outside your field find your research applicable in other areas?  
• If your research is unsuccessful, would there still be other useful research outcomes?  

  The Writing Stage  

• Create an outline with main section headings that are typically used.  
• Focus only on writing and getting your points across without worrying about the format of the research proposal , grammar, punctuation, etc. These can be fixed during the subsequent passes. Add details to each section heading you created in the beginning.   
• Ensure your sentences are concise and use plain language. A research proposal usually contains about 2,000 to 4,000 words or four to seven pages.  
• Don’t use too many technical terms and abbreviations assuming that the readers would know them. Define the abbreviations and technical terms.  
• Ensure that the entire content is readable. Avoid using long paragraphs because they affect the continuity in reading. Break them into shorter paragraphs and introduce some white space for readability.  
• Focus on only the major research issues and cite sources accordingly. Don’t include generic information or their sources in the literature review.  
• Proofread your final document to ensure there are no grammatical errors so readers can enjoy a seamless, uninterrupted read.  
• Use academic, scholarly language because it brings formality into a document.  
• Ensure that your title is created using the keywords in the document and is neither too long and specific nor too short and general.  
• Cite all sources appropriately to avoid plagiarism.  
• Make sure that you follow guidelines, if provided. This includes rules as simple as using a specific font or a hyphen or en dash between numerical ranges.  
• Ensure that you’ve answered all questions requested by the evaluating authority.  

Key Takeaways   

Here’s a summary of the main points about research proposals discussed in the previous sections:  

• A research proposal is a document that outlines the details of a proposed study and is created by researchers to submit to evaluators who could be research institutions, universities, faculty, etc.  
• Research proposals are usually about 2,000-4,000 words long, but this depends on the evaluating authority’s guidelines.  
• A good research proposal ensures that you’ve done your background research and assessed the feasibility of the research.  
• Research proposals have the following main sections—introduction, literature review, objectives, methodology, ethical considerations, and budget.  

Frequently Asked Questions  

Q1. How is a research proposal evaluated?  

A1. In general, most evaluators, including universities, broadly use the following criteria to evaluate research proposals . 6  

• Significance —Does the research address any important subject or issue, which may or may not be specific to the evaluator or university?  
• Content and design —Is the proposed methodology appropriate to answer the research question? Are the objectives clear and well aligned with the proposed methodology?  
• Sample size and selection —Is the target population or cohort size clearly mentioned? Is the sampling process used to select participants randomized, appropriate, and free of bias?  
• Timing —Are the proposed data collection dates mentioned clearly? Is the project feasible given the specified resources and timeline?  
• Data management and dissemination —Who will have access to the data? What is the plan for data analysis?  

Q2. What is the difference between the Introduction and Literature Review sections in a research proposal ?  

A2. The Introduction or Background section in a research proposal sets the context of the study by describing the current scenario of the subject and identifying the gaps and need for the research. A Literature Review, on the other hand, provides references to all prior relevant literature to help corroborate the gaps identified and the research need.  

Q3. How long should a research proposal be?  

A3. Research proposal lengths vary with the evaluating authority like universities or committees and also the subject. Here’s a table that lists the typical research proposal lengths for a few universities.  

Q4. What are the common mistakes to avoid in a research proposal ?  

A4. Here are a few common mistakes that you must avoid while writing a research proposal . 7  

• No clear objectives: Objectives should be clear, specific, and measurable for the easy understanding among readers.  
• Incomplete or unconvincing background research: Background research usually includes a review of the current scenario of the particular industry and also a review of the previous literature on the subject. This helps readers understand your reasons for undertaking this research because you identified gaps in the existing research.  
• Overlooking project feasibility: The project scope and estimates should be realistic considering the resources and time available.   
• Neglecting the impact and significance of the study: In a research proposal , readers and evaluators look for the implications or significance of your research and how it contributes to the existing research. This information should always be included.  
• Unstructured format of a research proposal : A well-structured document gives confidence to evaluators that you have read the guidelines carefully and are well organized in your approach, consequently affirming that you will be able to undertake the research as mentioned in your proposal.  
• Ineffective writing style: The language used should be formal and grammatically correct. If required, editors could be consulted, including AI-based tools such as Paperpal , to refine the research proposal structure and language.  

Thus, a research proposal is an essential document that can help you promote your research and secure funds and grants for conducting your research. Consequently, it should be well written in clear language and include all essential details to convince the evaluators of your ability to conduct the research as proposed.  

This article has described all the important components of a research proposal and has also provided tips to improve your writing style. We hope all these tips will help you write a well-structured research proposal to ensure receipt of grants or any other purpose.  

References  

• Sudheesh K, Duggappa DR, Nethra SS. How to write a research proposal? Indian J Anaesth. 2016;60(9):631-634. Accessed July 15, 2024. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5037942/  
• Writing research proposals. Harvard College Office of Undergraduate Research and Fellowships. Harvard University. Accessed July 14, 2024. https://uraf.harvard.edu/apply-opportunities/app-components/essays/research-proposals  
• What is a research proposal? Plus how to write one. Indeed website. Accessed July 17, 2024. https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/research-proposal  
• Research proposal template. University of Rochester Medical Center. Accessed July 16, 2024. https://www.urmc.rochester.edu/MediaLibraries/URMCMedia/pediatrics/research/documents/Research-proposal-Template.pdf  
• Tips for successful proposal writing. Johns Hopkins University. Accessed July 17, 2024. https://research.jhu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Tips-for-Successful-Proposal-Writing.pdf  
• Formal review of research proposals. Cornell University. Accessed July 18, 2024. https://irp.dpb.cornell.edu/surveys/survey-assessment-review-group/research-proposals  
• 7 Mistakes you must avoid in your research proposal. Aveksana (via LinkedIn). Accessed July 17, 2024. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/7-mistakes-you-must-avoid-your-research-proposal-aveksana-cmtwf/  

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• Postgraduate Research

How to write a PhD research proposal

Creating a focused and well-written research proposal - a concise and coherent summary of your proposed research - is an essential part of a successful PhD application.

A research proposal is normally required for self-funded PhDs (where you develop your own idea for a thesis), but isn't usually needed for funded studentships or pre-defined research projects.

What is a research proposal?

A research proposal sets out the central issues or questions that you intend to address. It outlines the general area of study within which your research falls, referring to the current state of knowledge and any recent debates on the topic. It should also demonstrate the originality of your proposed research.

What it should include

As a guide, research proposals should be around 2,000-3,000 words and contain:

• A title – this is just tentative and can be revised over the course of your research
• An abstract – a concise statement of your intended research
• Context - a brief overview of the general area of study within which your proposed research falls, summarising the current state of knowledge and recent debates on the topic
• Research questions - central aims and questions that will guide your research
• Research methods - outline of how you are going to conduct your research, for example, visiting particular libraries or archives, field work or interviews
• Research significance - demonstrate the originality of your intended research
• A bibliography.

Crucially, it is also an opportunity for you to communicate your passion for the subject area and to make a persuasive argument about the impact your project can achieve.

Your research proposal will be assessed by our academic schools to assess the quality of your proposed research and  to establish whether they have the expertise to support your proposed area of PhD study.

Thesis writing classes and support for international research students

The University&rsquo;s English Language Centre (ELC) &nbsp;provides thesis writing support for international PhD students. Classes run throughout semesters one and two and are designed to help develop the academic writing skills needed to write up research effectively.

The sessions are taught by tutors with their own research experience. They have PhDs themselves and have many years of experience in analysing writing in different disciplines.

The course also provides an opportunity for students to receive individual feedback on samples of their own writing.

The following classes are available:

• Thesis Writing for Science, Technology, Engineering and Medicine
• Thesis Writing for Humanities and Social Sciences

In addition to these thesis writing classes, the ELC also provides a 1:1 Academic Writing Consultation service.

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University of Bristol Law School

How to write a phd proposal.

We are delighted to consider applications for PhD research. We have a fantastic, diverse and energetic student body who are making the most of fabulous resources for postgraduate students. We welcome you to join us.

In order to help you with your application, the information below aims to give some guidance on how a typical research proposal might look.

Please be aware that if you are applying for   ESRC funding  then the proposal  must be no longer than 1,300 words ,  and if you are applying for  University of Bristol Postgraduate Research Scholarship  then the proposal  must be no longer than 1,000 words (incl. footnotes).

Your aim here is to showcase your ability to carry out postgraduate research. PhD research often travels and what you apply to study for may differ from your ultimate PhD. It is perfectly acceptable for research to move over time in response to findings or changes in preference/supervision.

Please note:  we do not generally have the expertise to supervise PhD proposals that are exclusively in a jurisdiction outside UK, EU or international law. We have many expert supervisors in comparative, international and regional law but if your proposal is only to study the law in your home country, we may not be able to offer you supervision even if you meet the admission requirements.

Title. A short, indicative title is best.

Abstract. This is a succinct summary of your research proposal that will present a condensed outline, enabling the reader to get a very quick overview of your proposed project, lines of inquiry and possible outcomes. An abstract is often written last, after you have written the proposal and are able to summarise it effectively.

Rationale for the research project. This might include a description of the question/debate/phenomenon of interest, and the context(s) and situation in which you think the research will take place; an explanation of why the topic is of interest to you; and an outline of the reasons why the topic should be of interest to research and/ or practice (the 'so what?' question).

Issues and initial research question. What legal or governance question(s) do you intend to investigate? (This may be quite imprecise at the application stage); what might be some of the key literatures that might inform the issues (again, indicative at the application stage); and, as precisely as you can, what is the question you are trying to answer? A research proposal can and should make a positive and persuasive first impression and demonstrate your potential to become a good researcher. In particular, you need to demonstrate that you can think critically and analytically as well as communicate your ideas clearly.

Intended methodology. How do you think you might go about answering the question? At Bristol we supervise an incredibly wide range of PhDs, including doctrinal, theoretical, empirical, historical, comparative or policy-focused work. Even if your methods are, for example, doctrinal, please do make this clear and give some indication why you think this is the best methodology for your proposed study. If you have a key theorist in mind, do please outline this in your application, together with some understanding of any critiques that have been raised. If you are planning to do empirical work, do please give some indication of what your methods might be (quantitative (surveys, statistics etc); qualitative (interviews, ethnography etc)

Expected outcomes and impact. How do you think the research might add to existing knowledge; what might it enable organisations or interested parties to do differently? Increasingly in academia (and this is particularly so for ESRC-funded studentships) PhD students are being asked to consider how their research might contribute to both academic impact and/or economic and societal impact . This is well explained on the ESRC website if you would like to find out more.

Timetable. What is your initial estimation of the timetable of the dissertation? When will each of the key stages start and finish (refining proposal; literature review; developing research methods; fieldwork; analysis; writing the draft; final submission). There are likely to overlaps between the stages.

Why Bristol? Why –specifically - do you want to study for your PhD at Bristol? How would you fit into our research themes and research culture (please see the ’10 reasons to study for a PhD at Bristol’ section on the website for more information). You do not need to identify supervisors at the application stage.

Bibliography. Do make sure that you cite what you see as the key readings in the field. This does not have to be comprehensive but you are illustrating the range of sources you might use in your research.

Scholarships

A  number of scholarships  are available to study for a PhD at Bristol. You can see more information regarding scholarships on our  fees and funding  page. If you have any questions about which scholarship to apply for and how your research might fit in please contact the PGR Director, Yvette Russell   [email protected] .

Tips on writing a successful application

Learn how to write a PhD proposal that will stand out from the rest

Feb 27, 2019

Here, we show you how to write a PhD proposal that will stand out from the hundreds of others that are submitted each day.

Before we do though,  know one thing :

The research you describe when you write your PhD proposal won’t look anything like the research you finally write up in your PhD thesis.

Wait,  what ?

That’s not a typo.  Everyone’s research changes over time.  If you knew everything when you were writing up your proposal there wouldn’t be any point doing the PhD at all.

So,  what’s the point of the proposal?

Your proposal is  a guide, not a contract . It is a plan for your research that is necessarily flexible. That’s why it changes over time.

This means that the proposal is less about the robustness of your proposed research design and more about showing that you have

1. Critical thinking skills

2. An adequate grasp of the existing literature and know how your research will contribute to it

3. Clear direction and objectives. You get this by formulating clear research questions

4. Appropriate methods. This shows that you can link your understanding of the literature, research design and theory

5. An understanding of what’s required in a PhD

6. Designed a project that is feasible

Your PhD thesis. All on one page. 

Use our free PhD structure template to quickly visualise every element of your thesis. 

What is a PhD proposal? 

Your PhD proposal is submitted as part of your application to a PhD program. It is a standard means of assessing your potential as a doctoral researcher.

When stripped down to its basic components, it does two things:

Explains the ‘what’-  t hese are the questions you will address and the outcomes you expect

Explains the ‘why’-  t his is the case for your research, with a focus on why the research is significant and what the contributions will be. 

It is used by potential supervisors and department admission tutors to assess the quality and originality of your research ideas, how good you are at critical thinking and how feasible your proposed study is.

This means that it needs to showcase your expertise and your knowledge of the existing field and how your research contributes to it. You use it to   make a persuasive case   that your research is interesting and significant enough to warrant the university’s investment.

Above all though, it is about   showcasing your passion for your discipline . A PhD is a hard, long journey. The admissions tutor want to know that you have both the skills and the resilience required.

What needs to be included in a PhD proposal?

Exactly what needs to be included when you write your PhD proposal will vary from university to university. How long your proposal needs to be may also be specified by your university, but if it isn’t, aim for three thousand words.

Check the requirements for each university you are applying for carefully.

Having said that, almost all proposals will need to have four distinct sections.

1. Introduction

2. the research context.

3. The approach you take

4. Conclusion

In the first few paragraphs of your proposal, you need to   clearly and concisely state your research questions, the gap in the literature your study will address, the significance of your research and the contribution   that the study makes.

Be as clear and concise as you can be.   Make the reader’s job as easy as possible   by clearly stating what the proposed research will investigate, what the contribution is and why the study is worthwhile.

This isn’t the place for lots of explanatory detail. You don’t need to justify particular design decisions in the introduction, just state what they are. The justification comes later.

In this section, you   discuss the existing literature and the gaps that exist within it.

The goal here is to show that you understand the existing literature in your field, what the gaps are and how your proposed study will address them. We’ve written a guide that will help you to   conduct and write a literature review .

Chances are, you won’t have conducted a complete literature review, so the emphasis here should be on the more important and well-known research in your field. Don’t worry that you haven’t read everything. Your admissions officer won’t have expected you to.  Instead, they want to see that you know the following:

1. What are the most important authors, findings, concepts, schools, debates and hypotheses?

2. What gaps exist in the literature?

3. How does your thesis fill these gaps?

Once you have laid out the context, you will be in a position to  make  your thesis statement . A thesis statement is a sentence that summarises your argument to the reader. It is the ‘point’ you will want to make with your proposed research.

Remember, the emphasis in the PhD proposal is on   what you   intend   to do,   not on results. You won’t have results until you finish your study. That means that your thesis statement will be speculative, rather than a statement of fact.

For more on how to construct thesis statements, read this  excellent guide  from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who, incidentally, run a great academic writing blog you should definitely visit.

3. The approach you will take

This is the section in which you discuss the overall research design and is the most important component of the proposal. The emphasis here is on five things.

1. The overall approach taken (is it purely theoretical, or does it involve primary or empirical research? Maybe it’s both theoretical and empirical?)

2. The theoretical perspective you will use when you design and conduct your research

3. Why you have chosen this approach over others and what implications this choice has for your methods and the robustness of the study

4. Your specific aims and objectives

5. Your research methodology

In the previous section you outlined the context. In this section you explain   the specific detail   of what your research will look like.

You take the brief research design statements you made in the introduction and go into much more detail. You need to be relating your design decisions back to the literature and context discussion in the previous section.

The emphasis here is on   showing that there is a logical flow.   There’s no point highlighting a gap in the literature and then designing a study that doesn’t fill it.

Some of the detail here will only become clear once you have started the actual research. That’s fine. The emphasis in your proposal should be on showing that you understand what goes into a PhD.

So,   keep it general.

For example, when talking about your methodology, keep things deliberately broad and focus on the overarching strategy. For example, if you are using interviews, you don’t need to list every single proposed interview question. Instead, you can talk about the rough themes you will discuss (which will relate to your literature review and thesis/project statement). Similarly, unless your research is specifically focusing on particular individuals, you don’t need to list exactly who you will interview. Instead, just state the types of people you will interview (for example: local politicians, or athletes, or academics in the UK, and so on).

4. Concluding paragraphs

There are a number of key elements to a proposal that you will need to put in the final paragraphs.

These include:

1. A discussion on the limitations of the study

2. A reiteration of your contribution

3. A proposed chapter structure (this can be an appendix)

4. Proposed month-by-month timetable (this can also be an appendix). The purpose of this timetable is to show that you understand every stage required and how long each stage takes relative to others.

Tips to turn an average proposal into one that will be accepted

1. be critical.

When you are making your design decisions in section three, you need to do so critically.   Critical thinking   is a key requirement of entry onto a PhD programme. In brief, it means not taking things at face value and questioning what you read or do. You can   read our guide to being critical   for help (it focuses on the literature review, but the take home points are the same). 

2. Don’t go into too much detail too soon in your proposal

This is something that many people get wrong. You need to   ease the reader in   gradually .   Present a brief, clear statement in the introduction and then gradually introduce more information as the pages roll on.

You will see that the outline we have suggested above follows an inverted pyramid shape.

1. In section one, you present the headlines in the introductory paragraphs. These are the research questions, aims, objectives, contribution and problem statement. State these without context or explanation.

2. When discussing the research context in section two, you provide a little more background. The goal here is to introduce the reader to the literature and highlight the gaps.

3. When describing the approach you will take, you present more detailed information. The goal here is to talk in very precise terms about how your research will address these gaps, the implications of these choices and your expected findings.

3. Be realistic

Don’t pretend you know more than you do and   don’t try to reinvent your discipline .

A good proposal is one that is very focused and that describes research that is very feasible. If you try to design a study to revolutionise your field, you will not be accepted because doing so shows that you don’t understand what is feasible in the context of a PhD and you haven’t understood the literature.

4. Use clear, concise sentences

Describe your research as clearly as possible   in the opening couple of paragraphs. Then write in short, clear sentences. Avoid using complex sentences where possible. If you need to introduce technical terminology, clearly define things. 

In other words,   make the reader’s job as easy as possible.

5. Get it proofread by someone else

We’ve written a post on  why you need a proofreader .

Simple: you are the worst person to proofread your own work.

6. Work with your proposed supervisor, if you’re allowed

A lot of students fail to do this. Your supervisor isn’t your enemy. You can work with them to refine your proposal. Don’t be afraid to reach out for comments and suggestions. Be careful though. Don’t expect them to come up with topics or questions for you. Their input should be focused on refining your ideas, not helping you come up with them. 

7. Tailor your proposal to each department and institution you are applying to

Admissions tutors can spot when you have submitted a one-size-fits-all proposal. Try and tailor it to the individual department. You can do this by talking about how you will contribute to the department and why you have chosen to apply there. 

Follow this guide and you’ll be on a PhD programme in no time at all. 

If you’re struggling for inspiration on topics or research design, try writing a rough draft of your proposal. Often the act of writing is enough for us to brainstorm new ideas and relate existing ideas to one another. 

If you’re still struggling, send your idea to us in an   email   to us and we’ll give you our feedback. 

Hello, Doctor…

Sounds good, doesn’t it?  Be able to call yourself Doctor sooner with our five-star rated How to Write A PhD email-course. Learn everything your supervisor should have taught you about planning and completing a PhD.

Now half price. Join hundreds of other students and become a better thesis writer, or your money back. 

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13 comments.

A wonderful guide. I must say not only well written but very well thought out and very efficient.

Great. I’m glad you think so.

Thanks for sharing. Makes navigating through the proposal lot easier

Great. Glad you think so!

An excellent guide, I learned a lot thank you

Great job and guide for a PhD proposal. Thank you!

You’re welcome!

I am going to start writing my Ph.D. proposal. This has been so helpful in instructing me on what to do. Thanks

Thanks! Glad you thought so.

A very reassuring guide to the process. Thank you, Max

I appreciate the practical advice and actionable steps you provide in your posts.

Glad to hear it. Many thanks.

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PhD Research Proposal Sample

PhD Research Proposal Sample for Your Inspiration

One of the toughest things to do when it comes to completing a voluminous and challenging PhD research project is the proposal. The thing about the PhD research proposal is that you have to encapsulate everything that you want to accomplish, communicate in a concise way what you want to do, the resources that it will require, and finally you have to convince the reader of the viability and necessity of the project. It isn’t easy to know where to begin with something like this, but with the help of a PhD research proposal example from our professional PhD writing service, it’s easier than ever! We’ve got a wide range of samples made by doctoral proposal writer that you can take advantage of to learn all the ins and outs of crafting the highest quality proposal.

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The dynamics of hyperinflation and stabilization policies – the case of zimbabwe.

The dynamics of hyperinflation and stabilization policies

The running of the country can be viewed commercially as a business enterprise by the economists. The business needs to be run in equilibrium; a balance between supply and demand must be stricken if the entrepreneur or the owner of the enterprise is to enjoy any benefits accrued by running a business. In the case of a country, it should be governed in a way that that the prices of goods and services are kept in control.  The stakeholders must not let the prices escalate beyond the ability of a typical citizen. Similarly, the release of cash into the economy should be maintained so that the flow of money is monitored and controlled, hence preserving the value of that particular currency.

This proposal will dig into inflation and find out how inflation has affected economies of a country, in particular, Zimbabwe and the ways to stabilize this condition. The dynamics of hyperinflation will also be looked into in detail to bring out the real picture and the damages it causes to an economy. The proposal will also focus on the causes of inflation in Zimbabwe and the how the theories of hyperinflation have applied in this context. The proposal will also look at the quantity theory of money and how it is associated with hyperinflation.

Introduction

Hyperinflation can be defined as a situation where the prices of goods and services escalate beyond control that the concept of inflation is an understatement. Economically, hyperinflation can be defined to occur when the total inflation over a period of three years is equivalent or exceeds 100%. Countries in hyperinflation usually experience rapid erosion of the real value of local currency prompting the population to hold a relatively stable foreign currency.

Hyperinflation makes the prices of goods and services in an economy to rise rapidly since the value of the local currency loses the real value quickly. Zimbabwe has experienced hyperinflation since 2001 with inflation rates over a whopping 100%.  However, as from 2006, inflation in Zimbabwe has risen to an uncontrollable 1500% annually. It should be observed that Zimbabwe was the only country that was experiencing hyperinflation and the first in the 21st century to have hyperinflation. Inflation in Zimbabwe has been perceived in two ways. First, the private sector speculation which the Zimbabwean authorities argue that the private sector rises up the prices intentionally to maximize profits on to pile pressure on the economy through ruthless price increments.

Secondly, the authorities also believe that the withdrawal of aids and the international economic sanctions have led to an economic decline from the year 2000. This perception has the explanation that the printing and minting of excess money by the government is usually tailored to bridge the gap between the government revenue and the actual receipts. This proposal to examine these concepts in depth.

Literature review

In this section, the Cagan (1956) hyperinflation model will be examined, where he assessed the statistical connection between cash and changes in price by conducting instances of hyperinflation in six different countries across Europe. According to Cagan, the demand for money balances declined with increase in inflation, assuming inflation played a significant role in determining hyperinflation.

Milton Friedman bases his view of hyperinflation in quantity theory of money. This theory states that the relationship between money and the price level is directly proportional.  This relationship implies that inflation will increase with an increase in money supply and the continued trend will lead to hyperinflation. In Zimbabwe, the supply of money and the prices of goods and services increased in tandem, as per the quantity theory of money because people opted to use the available cash immediately, rather than to wait on the depreciating cash. This, in turn, led to the increase of velocity as well as an increase of money through the printing of new currency, hence the exponential increase in prices of goods and services in Zimbabwe.

Methodology

This proposal will seek to clarify the mechanisms through which money, the setting of price behavior and the requirements of government revenue collaborate in Zimbabwe, to examine the explanations put forth by the authorities about the hyperinflation in Zimbabwe. To achieve this goal, the proposal will look at various models and tests that will lead to the understanding of the hyperinflation.

Granger causality test

In general, it is obvious that money engenders the rate of inflation, but the reverse could also be claimed to be true. It can be said that hyperinflation has self-perpetuating tendencies, due to the fact that the rise in prices of goods and services results in the rise in demand for nominal cash. Thus, causation develops from inflation to supply of money. This test investigates the amount of the existing value of money and premium is a utilizable component in the prediction of inflation.

Theoretical model

This model provides the classical quantity theory of money which believes that institutional factors determine the rate of money circulation. The economy is assumed to be or close to the real GDP.  In this case, the growth of money does not have an effect in the real GDP. This implies that holding both variables constant, the growth rate of money is directly proportional to the rate of inflation. Inflation reduces money demand due to an increase in the opportunity cost of holding money. Hyperinflation in Zimbabwe increased the parallel market premium and consequently, a change in the parallel market premium affected the velocity of cash in the circulation. The data used here was derived from various sources including the website of the RBZ.

The inflation data and money supply were collected from RBZ while parallel exchange rate was collected from Carmen M. Reinhart, a Harvard Kennedy School Professor of the International Financial System. The methodology in this paper employs heavily the ARDL co-integration approach for investigating the relationship between the inflation and its determinants.  ARDL was used because it has several advantages over other models of co-integration. ARDL can be used with time series data, can also be employed in a general-to-specific modeling by including insufficient numbers to lags for the data generating and error correction model (ECM) can be derived using ARDL co-integration model.

Theoretical/conceptual framework

Lagged change in the inflation and money supply growth are insignificant in the ARDL framework. Moreover, the ever-increasing prices are not unsustainable in the long-run; hence using the concept of long-run relations could give incorrect results. Zimbabwe had almost all her prices listed in foreign currencies which fully wrote off inflation inertia. In this case, an exchange rate is a useful tool for curbing inflation rates thereby making stabilization of hyperinflation less costly in comparison to moderate methods of dealing with hyperinflation. Through Ordinary Least Squares method, hyperinflation in Zimbabwe is said o have been caused by the rapid growth of paper money. The money demand model will seek to find out if this result is consistent. Additionally, a unit increase in the parallel market premium will result in an equivalent change in inflation.

High rates of interest will deter borrowing and foster saving, slowing the economy and hence disinflationary effects. The Treasury bill by the Zimbabwe government had turned the interest rates negative and this manipulation discouraged savings by the households. As per the Quantity Theory of money, hyperinflation in Zimbabwe could have been a monetary phenomenon and the only way to curb it would be to constrain the unnecessary money supply growth.

Research plan

Hyperinflation in Zimbabwe had severe adverse effects on the economy in regard to wealth, savings and deposits. Prices of essential goods and services became unreachable, especially to those on inflexible incomes. Countermeasures including price controls and foreign currencies ban to control the then escalating levels of inflation and the devaluation of the Zimbabwean currency were taken. Zimbabwe’s hyperinflation was at its peak when the government compelled the RBZ to issue banknotes of higher denominations, hence fuelling the rate of inflation. The Zimbabwean dollar value diminished at a faster rate and the RBZ could not keep up with the printing. This led to the abandonment of the Zimbabwean dollar in favor of the US dollar as well as the SA Rand.

This study aimed at finding the causes of hyperinflation in Zimbabwe by using the right econometric models. Its main aim is to find out if the growth of money has a positive effect on inflation. Additionally, it will be aimed at finding out whether the parallel market premium is directly proportional to the growth of inflation. Whether money supply is the primary driver of hyperinflation in Zimbabwe, the findings of the research will provide the answer.

Works cited

BBC News,. ‘Zimbabwe Abandons Its Currency’. N.p., 2014. Web. 29 Dec. 2014.

Cato Institute,. ‘Measurements of Zimbabwe’s Hyperinflation’. N.p., 2014. Web. 29 Dec. 2014.

Larochelle, C., J. Alwang, and N. Taruvinga. ‘Inter-Temporal Changes In Well-Being During Conditions Of Hyperinflation: Evidence From Zimbabwe’. Journal of African Economies 23.2 (2014): 225-256. Web.

McIndoe Calder, Tara. ‘Hyperinflation In Zimbabwe: Money Demand, Seigniorage And Aid Shocks’. SSRN Journal n. pag. Web.

Makochekanwa, A. ‘A Dynamic Enquiry Into The Causes Of Hyperinflation In Zimbabwe’. The University of Pretoria, Department of Economics (2007): n. pag. Print. Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ),. ‘Bank Annual Reports From 2000-2008’. N.p., 2008. Web. 29 Dec. 2014

Sokic, Alexandre. ‘The Monetary Analysis Of Hyperinflation And The Appropriate Specification Of The Demand For Money’. German Economic Review 13.2 (2011): 142-160. Web.

Works, Anchor. ‘Data’. Carmenreinhart.com. N.p., 2014. Web. 29 Dec. 2014.

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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Understanding users of online energy efficiency counseling: comparison to representative samples in norway.

• 1 Department of Psychology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
• 2 Department of Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway

Introduction: To achieve substantial energy efficiency improvements in the privately owned building stock, it is important to communicate with potential renovators at the right point in time and provide them with targeted information to strengthen their renovation ambitions. The European Union recommends using one-stop-shops (OSSs), which provide information and support throughout the whole process, from planning to acquisition of funding, implementation, and evaluation as a measure to remove unnecessary barriers.

Methods: For this paper, we invited visitors of two Norwegian websites with OSS characteristics to answer an online survey about their renovation plans and energy efficiency ambitions. The participants visited the websites out of their own interest; no recruitment for the websites was conducted as part of the study ( N = 437). They also rated a range of psychological drivers, facilitators, and barriers to including energy upgrades in a renovation project. Their answers were then compared to existing data from representative samples of Norwegian households regarding home renovation in 2014, 2018, and 2023, as well as data from a sample of people who were engaged in renovation projects in 2014, which was collected by the research team with a similar online survey. Furthermore, 78 visitors completed a brief follow-up online survey one year later to report the implemented measures.

Results: We found that visitors of the websites are involved in more comprehensive renovation projects and have substantially higher ambitions for the upgrade of energy efficiency compared to the representative samples. They also perceive stronger personal and social norms, as well as have a different profile of facilitators and barriers.

Discussion: The findings suggest to policymakers that OSSs should be marketed especially to people motivated to upgrade energy efficiency but lack information and are unable to implement their plans alone. Also, the construction industry might refer interested people to such low-threshold online solutions to assist informed and more ambitious decisions.

1 Introduction

Reducing energy use in the building sector by increasing energy efficiency is a key pillar of decarbonising Europe as formulated in the EU’s “Fit for 55” legislation ( Schlacke et al., 2022 , 4). On a global level, the residential sector is the third largest energy consumer, representing 27–30% of the energy consumption, almost at the same level as transportation and industry ( Nejat et al., 2015 , 843; IEA, 2023 ). Also in Europe, the residential sector stands for 26% of final energy consumption, being the second largest consumption sector after transportation ( Tsemekidi et al., 2019 , 1). Whereas the primary energy consumption in the residential sector decreased by 4.6% between 2000 and 2016 ( Tsemekidi et al., 2019 , 9), there is still a substantial untapped potential for further improvement of energy efficiency in the sector. This can be achieved through energy efficiency renovation of the existing building stock ( Pohoryles et al., 2020 , 11–12). Realizing this potential requires that also private house owners invest in energy efficiency measures. However, the annual rate of housing renovation in Europe is only about 1% ( Biere-Arenas and Marmolejo-Duarte, 2022 , 185), which is far too slow to reach the ambitious energy conservation targets. Besides, not all of those renovations include energy efficiency improvements. This raises the question of how property owners make decisions about renovating and energy efficiency measures and how they can be efficiently supported in these processes. To alleviate this problem, one-stop-shops (OSS), which are places where interested citizens can get counseling and support for the whole process of an energy retrofit, have gained a lot of attention lately as a means to support citizens in the matter of energy retrofits also from the European Union (as for example reflected in recently finished EU projects like “EUROPE one stop” or “ProRetro”).

1.1 One-stop-shops in energy counseling

Bertoldi et al. (2021 , 3–12) analysed the role of OSSs across Europe. They concluded that OSSs may be able to address some of the main barriers that households face when deciding about energy efficiency renovations. Often, these barriers can be categorized as economic (upfront costs, need for loan, split incentives between landlords and renters/disagreement between owners), information (information asymmetries, outcome uncertainties, incorrect beliefs), and decision-making (limited attention, social invisibility of the action, cognitive burden, loss aversion, status quo bias). Their analysis of 63 OSSs over Europe showed that the services the OSSs offer differ considerably, as do their business models. Some of them are public entities that often offer services for free, others are commercial enterprises. Their clients are usually homeowners living in relatively old buildings, and only a few of them work with social housing. Also Bagaini et al. (2022 , 3–4) analysed and categorized 29 OSS initiative around Europe and formulated five key elements on which the different OSS differed: (a) value proposition, (b) services, (c) partnership management, (d) revenue stream, and (e) shared value. Based on these dimensions, they destilled three archetypes for OSS models: They refer to them as the Facilitation Model (mostly focused on providing information to homeowners without a revenue generation model behind), the Coordination Model (also taking in a project management role with the contractors and generating revenue by fixed fees), and the Development Model (similar to the Coordination Model but with a revenue generated dynamically from the shared energy savings). Along similar lines, Pardalis et al. (2022) compared publicly and privately funded OSSs. In addition to the facilitation and the coordination model they separate the development model into “all inclusive models” (where the renovation process is fully managed by the OSS under one single contract, but energy savings are not guaranteed) and “ESCO models” (where Energy Service Companies−ESCOs−manage the whole renovation package and also guarantee energy savings). Whereas publicly funded OSSs are evaluated as providing homeowners with crucial services at the right time, privately funded OSSs struggle more with generating revenue and providing access to financing.

According to Bertoldi et al. (2021) , a key activity all of the surveyed OSSs cover is the assessment of the status quo, which is done in different ways (sometimes as a guided online self-assessment). Then, a stage of guidance toward possible measures is started, usually resulting in an individual renovation plan. In the next stage, financing is secured (either directly or indirectly, for example by supporting applications for subsidies). In the implementation stage, OSSs either manage the implementation themselves or recommend contractors who will do that. Often OSSs are involved in quality assurance of the implemented measures afterwards, sometimes certifying the result. Some OSSs also monitor the building after the energy upgrade to support the clients, often through a contract where financial benefits are shared between the OSS and the client (often in ESCO models). Finally, most OSSs also engage in campaigns for energy efficiency in buildings to increase awareness.

McGinley et al. (2020 , 355–57) formulate some key considerations for OSS design. They define OSS as offering full-service retrofitting, including initial building evaluation and thorough analysis, proposal of retrofitting solutions, retrofit execution, and quality assurance. However, they also state that little is known about characteristics and motivations of households that are drawn to OSS and how household decisions are impacted by OSSs, a research gap we aim to fill with this paper.

A number of recent EU projects have addressed the issue of OSSs in detail. In particular, the “EUROPA one stop” project (europaonestop.eu) is interesting as it created an online platform (SUNShINE−savehomesave.eu) to connect homeowners, facility managers, and contractors working on energy efficiency upgrades and provide them with easy access tools to online diagnose their renovation potential. This platform is structurally comparable with the platforms analysed in this paper and can be considered a concept following the facilitation model. However, to understand how homeowners may be affected by OSSs, it is important to take a look at decision-making processes.

1.2 Psychological drivers of implementing energy efficiency in renovation of privately owned dwellings

In a detailed study of decision-making about energy retrofits in Norwegian households data of which was also used as a comparison for this study, Klöckner and Nayum (2017 , 1014) found that an extended Theory of Planned Behaviour ( Ajzen, 1991 , 182; Klöckner, 2013 , 1032) formed a viable theoretical framework to structure these decision processes. They were able to show that personal norms, positive attitudes, and high self-efficacy were the decisive factors for forming intentions to include energy efficiency upgrades in renovation projects. Social norms were closely related to personal norms and an important trigger of these. More distal factors were problem awareness, value orientations, perceived consumer effectiveness, and innovativeness. The most central concepts are briefly introduced in the next paragraph.

In this context, personal norms are a feeling of moral obligation to invest in better energy efficiency. Positive attitudes are the overall evaluation of the pros and cons of the decision to invest. That is how good or bad this would be, all taken into account. Self-efficacy captures how capable one feels to implement the investment, a factor that most likely will be directly affected by engaging with an OSS. Following the theoretical framework as outlined and tested by Klöckner and Nayum (2017 , 1014), an intention to invest will thus be formed: (a) if people feel that they are morally obliged to do that because wasting energy is a bad thing which is more likely; (b) if other people who are important to them support this view. Furthermore, c) a positive attitude to energy efficiency investments d) and a high self-efficacy (i.e., knowing how to implement these measures and/or who to contract to do it) also contribute. As attitudes are a combination of positive and negative beliefs about the behavioral alternatives that people choose between ( Ajzen, 1996 , 385–403), a closer look at assumed barriers and facilitators underlying those alternatives could help in understanding the decision process further, as discussed in the next section.

1.3 Barriers and facilitators of energy efficiency measures in buildings

A number of studies analyzed facilitators of or barriers against implementing energy efficiency in a residential building from different theoretical and methodological perspectives. In his PhD thesis, Pardalis (2021 , 60) finds, based on an online survey with almost 1000 homeowners in Sweden, that the house age and time lived in a house but also energy concern trigger the decision to renovate. These factors are, again, influenced by sociodemographic factors of the occupants. Thus, structural aspects seem of importance as drivers of the retrofit decision.

Digging deeper into the decision process, Xue et al. (2022 , 5) conducted interviews with 39 professionals in the retrofit market to identify barriers to energy retrofitting from the perspective of the public sector, the private sector, and the owners who conduct the retrofit. They found financial issues as the most important barrier in all three groups. For owners who are supposed to implement energy efficiency measures, they further named lack of information, lack of creative models or cases, risks connected to the project, trust, and negative social influence as important barriers. Also, problems of reaching an agreement, time consuming processes, limited added value, and concerns about payback time were named.

Many of these aspects were also reflected in another qualitative study. Klöckner et al. (2013 , 406–408) interviewed 70 Norwegians on drivers and barriers regarding energy efficiency behaviour. They found that economic barriers (e.g., lack of investment money), motivational barriers (e.g., too much effort, loss of comfort, low perceived efficacy), structural barriers (e.g., building structure, ownership), and informational barriers (e.g., lack of trust, uncertainty, lack of specific information) were central.

Departing from practice theory in an ethnographic study of renovation projects, Judson and Maller (2014) interviewed 49 Australians involved in renovation projects and unraveled the process of renovation even more. They found that renovation projects, to a large degree, are shaped and reshaped by the existing or evolving practices people have within their buildings. Energy efficiency is traded off against other needs and meanings, negotiation between different household members occur, and focus shifts dynamically. Some parts of the home have a meaning for its inhabitants as part of their daily practices which cannot just be changed to enhance energy efficiency.

With a quantitative perspective, Klöckner and Nayum (2016 , 5) studied barriers in different stages of renovation processes in a representative sample of Norwegian households. Their findings indicate that facilitators like perceived increase in comfort, anticipated better living conditions or increased marked value were important in the early stages of decision making. Information about subsidy schemes or trustworthy information about the procedures came out as important at a later stage when planning was more advanced. Correspondingly, some barriers like building protection regulations, planning to move soon, or not owning the building were relevant already early in the process before people started even thinking about an energy retrofit, whereas barriers like too much disturbance of everyday life, contractors with a lack of competence, the need to supervise contractors, or a lack of economic resources were turned out to be relevant barriers later in the process. A particularly important barrier appeared to be the feeling that “the right point in time for a larger renovation project has not come, yet”.

In an economic modeling approach comparing expected utility theory (which assumes that decision makers chose the alternative with the best possible utility for them) and cumulative prospect theory (which assumes that decisions about investments are strongly affected by specific decision biases), Ebrahimigharehbaghi et al. (2022) found that cumulative prospect theory, which takes biases like “reference dependence” (utility changes are interpreted differently with respect to difference reference points), “loss aversion” (losses weigh higher than gains of the same size), “diminishing sensitivity” (avoiding risk for positive outcomes but taking risks for negative outcomes), and “probability weighting” (events with low probability but more extreme outcomes are overestimated) is much better equipped to predict homeowners investments in home energy efficiency in a large sample from the Netherlands than classical expected utility theory. This shows that people’s decision-making in such cases takes other aspects than economic utility into consideration to a large degree.

Studies such as the ones briefly mentioned above show that the selection of aspects that can interfere with or facilitate a decision-making process about energy retrofits is plentiful. In addition, they even have different importance depending on where in the process a decision-maker is. This makes it demanding to provide the most helpful support for decision-makers in the residential sector. It seems important to provide the right information at the right time to the right people, which underscores the need for careful targeting and timing of information provision. Flexible and interactive online counseling systems, which can take people through all stages of the process, similar OSSs, may be a way to find a good balance between resources needed and effects achieved in targeted energy counseling. Interestingly, Pardalis (2021 , 66) asked homeowners what would be most important for them with respect to OSSs, and guarantees for costs and quality, as well as having one contact and one contract and a preliminary check and counseling were on top of the list, directly addressing some of the issues identified as barriers in many of the studies above.

1.4 The present study

Summarizing what has been outlined in the introduction, energy efficiency upgrades of residential buildings are a major contributor to reaching the targets of the energy transition of the European Union. However, the private residential sector is lagging behind in this process. Renovation rates of the aging building stock are low. Even when the buildings are renovated, energy efficiency measures are not always implemented. In cases where some energy efficiency measures are included, they are often not to the standard that would be recommendable. One-stop-shops have been heavily promoted recently as a way of removing the burden of planning, financing, and implementing a deep renovation project from the individual house owners. Consequently, many such services have been implemented around Europe with differing business models, financing, and mandate. However, relatively little is known about who uses these services and what effect they have on their users. Especially, it is unknown to a large degree how interacting with a low-threshold digital OSS following a facilitation model shapes its users’ perception of barriers and facilitators of a retrofit decision, and if it affects their motivations and ambitions for this project. This research gap is addressed by the present study. More specifically, we are analysing if visitors of energy efficiency counceling websites differ in their engagement in retrofits, their energy efficiency ambitions, the profile of psychological variables, the drivers and barriers from representative samples of the population and a sample of home renovators.

Our study is, thus, contributing to the literature by providing new insights into how natural users of websites with OSS characteristics differ from the general population of homeowners on a number of psychological and socio-demographic characteristics. This helps on the one hand to identify who are the target group for such low-threshold website services, but on the other hand, we also provide an assessment if their renovation ambitions, and especially the level to which they intend to implement energy efficiency measures in these updates differs after they visited the service. Through a one-year follow-up, we can also provide an assessment of to which degree the planned measures were implemented. Taken together, the focus on primarily psychological drivers and barriers of energy efficiency investments in homes for a very specific target group in comparison to large, representative samples of homeowners paints a new, and informative picture of who the users of these websites are not only socio-demographically, but also psychologically, what they are looking for on these websites, and to which degree the websites support them in their pathway towards more energy efficient homes. Being able to run the comparisons of a relatively large sample of website users to several, large representative comparison samples which were surveyed with the same methodology in the same country over the course of 10 years provides an unique opportunity to understand the target group.

2 Materials and Methods

2.1 study design.

For this study, we collected responses from users of two online energy efficiency counseling websites, which have a similar structure that might be conceptualized as OSS following a facilitating model. These websites offer an analysis of the current energy standard of privately owned residential buildings (either as a guided self-assessment or based on data from the Norwegian building registry). They can also suggest a rough renovation plan and connect the homeowner to potential contractors who can implement energy efficiency measures. Moreover, they can provide information about costs, pay-off rates, subsidies (incl. information on how to apply), etc. Energismart.no is promoted by the environmental organization Friends of the Earth Norway, whereas energiportalen.no is promoted by Viken county. From January 2022 until January 2023, participants for the study were recruited from natural visitors of both websites by messages on the websites and pop-up windows, which promoted participation in our study and provided a link to the online questionnaire. We thus recruited people who visited the websites out of their own interest without promoting using the websites from our end. This sampling strategy was chosen to recruit a ecologically valid group of website users.

In the online survey, participants were then asked about their plans for retrofitting their homes, recently finished or ongoing retrofitting projects, the ambitions for energy efficiency upgrades as part of these retrofits, and psychological drivers and barriers of the decisions.

Since randomization of users of the websites was not possible, as people self-assigned to the websites, we chose a comparison group design, where we compared the means and distributions of key variables in our survey against representative homeowner data collected in 2014, 2018, and 2023 ( Klöckner and Nayum, 2016 , 2017 ; Egner and Klöckner, 2021 ; Egner et al., 2021 ; Peng and Klöckner, 2024 ) with the same survey instrument (see Table 1 for an overview of the survey samples). Because of that design, we are unable to draw causal conclusions, but we can get indications for differences between the samples (for a deeper discussion, see the limitations section below). We were also not able to survey our participants before they entered the websites. Thus, we do not know if the described differences were already there before they used the website, or which differences were caused by the website visit. It is likely that people visit such counseling websites when they already have developed an interest for the information presented there. Thus, some of the differences will have existed already pre-visit. Especially some of the drivers and barriers, but also some parts of the psychological profile might fall into that category and it is important to keep this in mind when interpreting the results. Furthermore, we do not know how long people stayed on the websites, what they read, and how much they used the information to adapt their renovation strategy, which would have given us more insights into their user experience. However, we believe that comparing the visitors to representative homeowners from different historical points in time in the same country surveyed with the same questionnaire can give us some relevant insights and at least input for generating new hypotheses.

Table 1. Overview of sample statistics in the different samples.

Differences between the samples were identified by comparing 95% confidence intervals for the means. Non-overlapping confidence intervals were interpreted as significant mean differences. Effect sizes for the differences are presented in Supplementary Appendix Table 1 .

One year after the participants answered the survey, we approached them again with a short survey asking if and which retrofitting measures had been implemented in the meantime and if not, why. The follow-up survey was sent to every participant who agreed to be contacted again.

The surveys conducted in all different studies compared here were collected through an online survey platform operated by the University of Oslo (Nettskjema.no). The questions used for the analyses presented in this paper composed only part of the questionnaires; we describe only the relevant questions below. The full survey can be found in the data repository together with the dataset. 1

2.2.1 Sociodemographic information

In the surveys, participants were asked about their gender, age, highest education level, gross household income (in the 2023 data collection, individual gross income was recorded), the type of house they lived in, and if they owned or rented etheir dwellings. The categories of these variables can be found in Table 1 .

2.2.2 Deep renovation

To capture if the participants were just finished, engaged in, or planning what we refer to as a “deep renovation” project, we asked them the following questions:

(1) Within the previous three years, were you involved in a renovation project that involved (a) substantial work on the roof like replacing all tiles, (b) replacing at least 50% of the outer walls, (c) replacing at least 50% of the window area, and/or (d) substantial work on the foundation? This definition was developed for the 2014 study in a collaboration of the researchers behind the studies and the Norwegian Energy Efficiency Agency Enova and used in the same form in all data collections since. The aim of this definition was to differentiate larger renovation projects from smaller, more cosmetic renovation projects.

(2) Are you currently involved in a renovation project according to the definition above or are you planning to engage in such a renovation project within the next three years?

However, the definition does not automatically assume that energy efficiency measures are included in the deep renovation project.

The ambition level of these renovation projects was measured by how many of the four components they (are planning to) implement, and it ranges from 1 to 4.

2.2.3 Energy efficiency upgrade

If participants answered “yes” to either or both of the questions presented in the previous section, they were asked if that renovation project included, includes or is planned to include (a) additional insulation of the roof of at least 10 cm, (b) adding additional insulation to the walls of at least 5 cm, (c) energy saving windows with a μ-value of 1.0 or lower, (d) at least 5 cm additional insulation to the foundation walls, (e) installation of mechanical ventilation, and/or (f) installation of balanced ventilation. Also here, the definition of these measures was agreed upon with Enova in 2014 to represent a substantial improvement in the energy standard of the respective building component. For our analyses, we counted the number of these measures that had been/were planned to be implemented in the deep renovation project. The number could thus be between 0 and 6.

2.2.4 Personal norms, social norms, attitudes, and efficiency

Based on the Theory of Planned Behaviour ( Ajzen, 1991 , 182) extended by personal norms from the Norm-Activation Model ( Schwartz and Howard, 1981 ), four psychological variables are central to understand people’s intentions: attitudes, social norms, perceived behavioral control or behavioral efficacy, and personal norms. Each of these variables was measured by two items in the surveys, with a 7-point Likert scale from −3 to +3. Higher values indicate stronger norms, attitudes, or efficacy.

The two items to measure social norms were “People who influence my decisions think I should insulate my home” and “People who are important to me think I should retrofit my home”. The two items to measure perceived efficacy were “I know which person or company I need to contact to have my home professionally insulated” and “I know what I need to do to insulate my home”. The two items to measure personal norms were “Because of my values/principles, I feel obliged to insulate my home” and “I feel personally obliged to retrofit my home”. For each pair of items, the mean score was calculated and used in subsequent analyses.

Attitudes were measured with four semantic differentials: “Increasing the energy standard of my home would be (a) useless−useful, (b) uncomfortable−comfortable, (c) unfavorable−favorable, and (d) bad−good”. Each pair has −3 as the anchor for the negative word and +3 as the anchor for the positive word. For further analyses, the mean of the four items was calculated.

All items had been used in an identical way since the first study in 2014, as documented elsewhere ( Klöckner and Nayum, 2016 , 2017 ). In the 2023 data collection, different answering scales were used, therefore the results are not comparable and are not reported here ( Peng and Klöckner, 2024 ).

2.2.5 Barriers and facilitators

Finally, a list of potential barriers and facilitators of energy efficiency upgrades was presented in random order to the participants, asking how much they agreed with each item. The items can be found in the Supplementary Appendix . These lists were derived from a qualitative study on reasons why Norwegians upgrade or decide not to upgrade energy standards of their dwellings ( Klöckner et al., 2013 ). In the 2023 data collection, different answering scales had been used, therefore the results are not comparable and are not reported here.

2.3 Sample and comparison groups

The sample of counseling website users was recruited from the first week of January 2022 to the first week of January 2023. In total, 437 answers were collected. These answers were not equally distributed over the year, however, as ( Figure 1 ) shows. Whereas relatively many responses were collected in winter and early spring 2022, the interest was reduced in late spring and summer before it skyrocketed after summer 2022, as well as in winter 2023. This coincided with electricity price peaks in Norway (especially in the South) and media discussions about that topic. Thus, a first conclusion can already be that the interest in using energy efficiency counseling websites clearly follows the pattern of the energy price fluctuation and accompanying societal discussion.

Figure 1. Number of participants recruited for the counseling website user survey per week in 2022 (the line is the moving average).

Table 1 below shows the sociodemographic statistics of the sample from the counseling websites in comparison to the existing samples in detail. As can be seen, the samples are comparable on most of the dimensions. All samples contain close to 50% males and females (with the most deviation in the sample of renovators from 2014). The average age is around 50 years in all samples, with the youngest average age in the 2023 population sample and the oldest average age in the sample of the users of the websites. Education varies quite strongly, with the population sample from 2014 being the outlier with far lower education level than all other samples. Participants recruited from the counseling websites had the highest education level. The median household gross income category is the same in most samples. However, it is lower in the 2014 population sample and higher in the sample of people who answered the one-year follow-up after the visit on the counseling websites. Income categories of the 2023 sample cannot be compared, as individual gross income was recorded in that data collection. However, it can be extrapolated that the average household income would be comparable to the other samples. The proportion of people living in detached houses is particularly high in the sample of website users and the renovator sample from 2014. Also, the level of people owning their dwelling is close to 100% in these groups and a little lower in all other groups. As a conclusion, it can be said that the samples are comparable on most dimensions. Meanwhile, the website users are most similar to the people who were recruited as being in a renovation project in 2014. That is, they are more likely better educated, more likely to live in a detached house, and more likely to own their dwelling than representative samples of Norwegian households.

In the following section, we present the results of the comparison of the counseling website users with the other available samples. To do this, we examine the 95% confidence intervals as displayed in the figures for overlaps between the group of website users and the other groups. As the data is partly in separate datasets, we did not calculate formal significance tests, but a non-overlapping 95% confidence interval corresponds to an assumed significant difference between the respective groups. The numbers for the website users are always highlighted in the figures. Effect sizes are reported in Supplementary Appendix Table 1 . An overview of all results can be found in Table 2 .

Table 2. Summary of the differences between the website visitors and the representative homeowner samples from 2014, 2018, and 2023, as well as the renovator sample from 2014.

3.1 Engagement in deep renovation

As can be seen in Figure 2 , the percentage of people who were involved in a deep renovation project is higher in the group of counseling website users than in all three population samples. The same can be said for the ongoing or planned deep renovation projects, which are also more common for people visiting the energy counseling websites. Only the group that was specifically recruited in 2014 to only contain respondents who either just had been, were still, and/or were planning a deep renovation project in the near future has higher numbers (which is not surprising). Interestingly, the number of finished and planned projects in the population sample is lower in 2023 than in 2018 and 2014, likely an effect of renovation saturation after COVID years.

Figure 2. Percentage of households per group who were, are or plan to be in a deep renovation project (see definition in the text). The columns with the bold lines are the users of the counseling websites, whiskers represent 95% confidence intervals (CI), non-overlapping CI are regarded as indicating a statistically significant difference.

Among the users of the energy counseling websites, the ambition level is higher than in any other group, both for finished, ongoing and planned projects (see Figure 3 ). This means that they are engaged in slightly larger projects, involving more of the four different potential measures (walls, windows, roof, foundation). Thus, these people probably are or plan to be involved in more comprehensive renovation projects.

Figure 3. Ambition of the deep renovation (how many different measures are included of walls, windows, roof, and basement). The columns with the bold lines are the users of the counseling websites, whiskers represent 95% confidence intervals (CI), non-overlapping CI are regarded as indicating a statistically significant difference.

3.2 Energy efficiency ambitions

When looking at the level of ambitions for integrating energy efficiency upgrades in the renovation projects, the picture is even more interesting (see Figure 4 ). Among the users of the energy counseling websites, the ambition level is substantially higher than in any other group, both for finished, ongoing, and planned projects. On a side note, even if the total percentage of people involved in deep renovation was lower in the population in 2023 than in 2014 and 2018, the degree to which energy efficiency measures are included is increasing as can be seen in Figures 2 , 4 . This may be an effect of the energy crisis in Europe in 2022.

Figure 4. Ambition of the energy retrofit as part of the renovation (how many different energy efficiency measures are included of more insulation of walls, better windows, more insulation of roof and basement, balanced ventilation system, and heat pump). The columns with the bold lines are the users of the counseling websites, whiskers represent 95% confidence intervals (CI), non-overlapping CI are regarded as indicating a statistically significant difference.

3.3 Psychological drivers

When comparing the psychological profiles of the website users to the population profiles from 2014 and 2018, it can be seen that the website users have substantially higher personal norms. This indicates that they feel more moral pressure to increase the energy efficiency of their dwellings (see Figure 5 ). They also feel stronger social norms, meaning more social pressure from their peers to engage in such energy upgrades. For attitudes, the differences are smaller. Meanwhile, the attitudes are slightly more positive than for the population samples, on the same level as for the renovators in 2014. Interestingly, despite small differences, the website users have the lowest perceived self-efficacy, especially compared to the renovators in 2014. In contrast to renovators in 2014, they feel less convinced that they know how to go about for the renovations.

Figure 5. Means in key psychological variables driving the decision to renovate and energy upgrade. The bold black line is the sample from the counseling websites, whiskers represent 95% confidence intervals (CI), non-overlapping CI are regarded as indicating a statistically significant difference.

3.4 Facilitators and barriers of energy efficiency upgrades

Figures 6 , 7 show how the website users perceive facilitators and barriers of energy efficiency upgrades of their dwellings in comparison to people in the other samples. For some facilitators and barriers, differences are substantial: counseling website users expect more comfort, a cost reduction, a house that is better to live in, increased property value, and less waste of energy as a result of the renovation. They score the lowest of all samples, though, on availability of information, payback time, and availability of subsidy.

Figure 6. Means in key facilitators for an energy upgrade. The bold black line is the sample from the counseling websites, whiskers represent 95% confidence intervals (CI), non-overlapping CI are regarded as indicating a statistically significant difference.

Figure 7. Means in key barriers towards an energy upgrade. The bold black line is the sample from the counseling websites, whiskers represent 95% confidence intervals (CI), non-overlapping CI are regarded as indicating a statistically significant difference.

For the barriers, they score particularly high on perceptions of the renovation taking too much time, on lack of money, difficulty of finding information, a lack of ability to decide what to do, and a lack of capable contractors. They score lower on perceptions of it not being the right time to act.

3.5 Implemented energy efficiency actions

In the one-year follow-up, the participants of the energy counseling website survey were contacted again and asked if they implemented the planned actions. 201 participants (46.0% of all participants) gave permission to be contacted a year after the initial survey was completed, and 78 (38.8% of all who were willing to be contacted) answered the short follow-up survey.

Of the 78 participants, 25 stated that they implemented the energy efficiency upgrades that they were planning to implement (32.1%). 29.2% of these changed at least 50% of the outer walls, 45.8% worked on the roof, 45.8% on the windows, and 37.5% on the foundation walls.

Of the 25 who implemented the measures, 15 added at least 5 cm insulation to the walls, 13 installed highly efficient windows (μ = 1.0 or smaller), 13 installed new mechanical ventilation, 12 insulated the roof with at least 10 cm additional insulation, 10 insulated the foundation walls with at least 5 additional cm of insulation, and 7 installed a balanced ventilation system. In addition to these measures, 11 installed heat pumps, 11 installed clean-burning wood stoves, and 5 installed solar panels on their houses. Overall, the measures taken were fairly ambitious.

The main reasons for not implementing the planned measures among the remaining participants of the follow-up were lack of economic funding (57.1%), lack of subsidies (42.9%), and that the time was not right, yet, to start the renovation, again reflecting some of the main barriers indicated in the introduction.

4 Discussion

The study conducted with the users of two energy efficiency counseling websites had three aims: (a) finding out if users of the website differed from representative samples of Norwegian households in terms of engagement in retrofits and have higher ambitions for their renovation projects and the energy efficiency measures embedded in them, (b) finding out if they differ in the psychological profile in central variables driving the decision-making process, and (c) finding out if they perceive facilitators and barriers in this process differently than representative samples of households. Furthermore, a follow-up study aimed to find out how many participants implement their ambitions up to a year later.

For all three main questions, we find substantial differences. Whereas the website users are mostly comparable to the general population of Norwegian households regarding socio-demographics (but have a higher education level and an even smaller percentage of people renting their dwelling, which reflects well the drivers for renovation projects as identified by Pardalis, 2021 ), their psychological profile differs in two important points. Compared to all other samples (also including the renovators studied in 2014), the website users have far higher levels of personal norms−they feel they really should do something about the energy standard of their homes−and also higher social norms. Considering the importance of these two factors for intentions to implement energy renovations ( Klöckner and Nayum, 2017 , 1014), this finding is relevant. Having such high levels of these two variables makes it more likely that people will form intentions to improve the energy standard of their homes. It also indicates that people like these are a prime target group for interventions like OSSs: They are already motivated to take action because they have high energy-related moral standards, and they feel the social pressure of their peer groups.

Since we could not survey these people before they went to the website, we do not know if they had such high personal and social norm values already before the visit to the website. On the other hand, since one of the websites is promoted by the environmental organization Friends of the Earth Norway, it can be assumed that this is the case. Interestingly, users of the counseling websites had a slightly lower level of self-efficacy, especially compared to the renovators from 2014. This implies that a lower level of self-efficacy might be a barrier to implement the intentions they form, and maybe also a reason for visiting the websites. Again, this means that this group is a very attractive target group for OSS-type interventions: Alleviating the low self-efficacy is something a well-designed OSS can achieve by reducing uncertainties, providing requested information, and not the least making the link between the urge to act on the side of the homeowners and the competence the homeowners are lacking provided by skilled and trustworthy contractors. This finding is, again, very much in line with what Pardalis (2021) found as being the most important features of OSSs from the perspective of potential users.

Also in terms of facilitators and barriers analysed, counseling website users had some values substantially different from the other groups. In particular, increased expected comfort levels, expected cost reductions, and expectations of having a better house to live in after the renovation were more important facilitators for website users than for the population samples or the renovators. Expecting an increased value of the house after the renovation was also higher than for the population samples, but at the same level as for the renovators. Perceiving the current energy standards a waste was standing out again for the website users. This indicates that they enter the process with a different, more energy interested perspective (or they get convinced of that by visiting the website). Interestingly, counseling website users score lower on perceptions that information is easy to find, and that access to subsidy is available. Maybe this is also a reason why they ended up on the websites in the first place.

Among the barriers, the website users mention a lot more often the time demand for supervision and the lack of money as the main barriers. They thereby raise the need to have a facilitator (or even a manager) of the renovation process, again a function OSSs typically fill. The websites we studied are following a facilitation model, but still leave the management of the project to the homeowners. From their answers, we can conclude that many of them would actually prefer a more comprehensive model. Also here, they reiterate that they consider information hard to find, that they cannot decide what to do, and that contractors lack competence. The latter three again might be reasons for being interested in the website services in the first place. The websites seem to partly satisfy their needs, as can be seen in that a significant amount of the website visitors implement their renovation plans within a year. However, some still sit with the same lack of support and the same barriers after a year. Maybe for them, a more comprehensive OSS model with a higher degree of process management would be more appropriate. In line with the renovators from 2014, the website users are to a lesser degree unsure if the right point in time for a renovation project has come. Overall, the order of importance of renovation facilitators and barriers to a large extent reproduces what has been found in earlier studies ( Klöckner et al., 2013 ; Klöckner and Nayum, 2016 , 2017 ; Bertoldi et al., 2021 ; Xue et al., 2022 ).

Most importantly, we found that the visitors of the websites had stronger ambitions for their renovation projects, and in particular for the implementation of energy efficiency measures as part of them. Of course, we do not know if this was caused by visiting the websites or if it was already higher before they visited. Nevertheless, we can assume that there is at least some mutual influence. People with a stronger motivation, but who are unsure about how to implement, visit the websites, which then confirm their motivations and provide hands-on counseling to remove the implementation barriers. This then eventually might result in higher ambitions. This is good news for the OSS concept, even the low-threshold version of it that these websites represent ( McGinley et al., 2020 ). However, not all visitors seem to receive from these websites what they need. For the future, it might be recommendable to use low-threshold OSSs like the ones studied here following a facilitating model as an entry point but implement an (automated, maybe AI-based) detection of who would benefit from more comprehensive OSS models to channel these people to the offers that better suit their needs.

Finally, we could at least tentatively show−even if based upon only relatively few cases and subject to large sample attrition−that about 1/3 of the participants manage to implement their energy upgrade intentions. These people usually combine several measures and implement a deep renovation. For these people, the websites seem to have pushed them in the right direction without too much effort. As such, these websites have their niche as gatekeepers for a deeper process for some people, as the final push and reassurance for others.

5 Limitations and future research needs

Even if the study presented here shows some interesting results in a field where more research is needed, there are a number of limitations that are mostly caused by the design we had to choose. The biggest limitation of this study is that the participants recruited among the website users were, for obvious reasons, not randomly assigned to use the website but self-selected, and they were not surveyed before the visit on the website, a limitation that was already discussed in the methodology section. In addition, the users of the website fall into a narrower sociodemographic category than the population samples, though they seem to be rather comparable with people engaged in renovation projects six years prior to our study. Furthermore, we do not know how long people stayed on the websites, what they read, and how much they used the information to adapt their renovation strategy.

To address these limitations, studies with more controlled experimental designs would be advisable. Assigning participants randomly to different conditions (including no OSS, and different models of OSS) would give a better understanding of what the effects of the OSS are and what differences people come with in the process. Such a study could also test, whether different forms of OSS interact with different sociodemographic and psychological profiles of homeowners. In simple words, it might answer the question, which form of OSS works for which type of homeowner.

6 Conclusion

One-stop-shops have been promoted as a measure to overcome the inertia in energy efficiency retrofitting, especially in the privately owned residential building stock. Results from our study on users of two Norwegian energy efficiency counseling websites, which offer services in many ways similar to an OSS following a facilitator model, show that the users of these websites clearly differ from representative samples of Norwegian households that were surveyed with similar instruments. Their profiles were more like a sample of people who were in the beginning or in the middle of a larger renovation project, which was surveyed in 2014. However, the results also show that they are scoring substantially lower on their perceived access to information and subsidy. Regarding the psychological profiles, they were much more strongly motivated by personal and social norms than average households. Most importantly, it appears that visitors of such low-threshold websites have substantially higher ambitions for the energy upgrades, which about 1/3 of them have implemented a year after they visited the websites. Interest in online energy efficiency counseling services seems to be impacted by societal discussions about energy and/or by energy prices, as suggested by the spike in recruitment to our survey coinciding with an energy price increase during 2022 (however, this intriguing possibility will need to be confirmed in future studies). From a policy perspective, the results are interesting because they indicate that low-threshold OSSs can be gateways capturing people who are motivated for energy efficiency upgrades but not able to make the decision for several reasons. For some of them, the services that these relatively simple online platforms can offer is already enough to reduce their uncertainty and make the missing connections. For those still not satisfied after visiting these platforms, future developments should explore whether they can be automatically directed to more comprehensive forms of OSSs.

Data availability statement

The datasets presented in this study can be found in online repositories. The names of the repository/repositories and accession number(s) can be found below: https://zenodo.org/records/10453810 .

Ethics statement

The studies involving humans were approved by the Norwegian Agency for Shared Services in Education and Research (SIKT). The studies were conducted in accordance with the local legislation and institutional requirements. The participants provided their written informed consent to participate in this study.

Author contributions

CK: Conceptualization, Data curation, Formal analysis, Funding acquisition, Investigation, Methodology, Project administration, Supervision, Validation, Visualization, Writing–original draft, Writing–review and editing. AN: Data curation, Formal analysis, Writing–original draft, Writing–review and editing. SV: Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Writing–original draft, Writing–review and editing.

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of the article. This study has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 957115 as part of the ENCHANT project: www.enchant-project.eu. Data for three of the comparison groups for the analyses was extracted from two previous projects funded by the Norwegian Energy Efficiency Agency, and one comparison group was extracted from data from an ongoing project funded by the Research Council of Norway (BEHAVIOUR, Project No. 308772).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Publisher’s note

All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article, or claim that may be made by its manufacturer, is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

Supplementary material

The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1364980/full#supplementary-material

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Keywords : energy efficiency, renovation, one-stop-shops, counseling, psychological drivers, theory of planned behaviour, personal norms, facilitators

Citation: Klöckner CA, Nayum A and Vesely S (2024) Understanding users of online energy efficiency counseling: comparison to representative samples in Norway. Front. Psychol. 15:1364980. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1364980

Received: 03 January 2024; Accepted: 18 July 2024; Published: 06 August 2024.

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Copyright © 2024 Klöckner, Nayum and Vesely. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) . The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

*Correspondence: Christian A. Klöckner, [email protected]

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.