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Purpose of Research Proposal + Definition, Importance, & Writing Steps

Published on November 6, 2025

Purpose of Research Proposal + Definition, Importance, & Writing Steps - Data analytics blog post by SRS TECH FLY

The purpose of a research proposal is to convince the reader of your project’s significance. This is a piece where you must prove that:

  • You have a plan for your work.
  • There is a solid chance that your project will be successful.

    • Your reader has to be sure that it is a profound research work that has clear outcomes and practicality. K. Sudheesh et al. (2016) emphasize that a proposal must follow clear logic, from the introduction to the appendices, showing the author’s knowledge of the field and methods.

    Yet, many students don’t fully understand why research proposals are significant. That is why the experts of Custom-Writing.org created this guide. Here, we thoroughly explain the importance of a research proposal and how to make it step-by-step.

    Contents

  • 🔤 Definition
  • 🎯 Purpose
  • ❗ Importance
  • 🤔 Length
  • ✏️ Outline
  • 👣 Writing Steps
  • 💡 Writing Tips
  • 💯 Evaluation Criteria
  • 🔗 References

    • 🔤 What Is Research Proposal?

    A research proposal is a document that proposes a particular research project, usually in academia or sciences, intending to get funding from an institution. A typical research proposal addresses a range of points:

  • A research question(s) that the proposed research seeks to answer
  • The data & methods that will be used to answer the questions
  • The time and financial costs for the research
  • The prior research in the field
  • Potential benefits for the sponsoring institution

    • Research proposals are usually required when one plans to write a thesis, dissertation, or research paper. The format is similar to that of a research paper, with an introduction, a literature review, a methods section, and a conclusion.

    A well-crafted research proposal must not only comprise the listed elements but also demonstrate the value of the study to the scientific community. Writing such a proposal from scratch requires careful planning and a deep understanding of the field. Sounds challenging? No worries: our research proposal writing service is here to help. Get assistance at any step of the process, from formulating a research question to outlining methods.

    🎯 Purpose of Research Proposal

    The primary goal of any research proposal is to convince a sponsoring institution that a particular research project is worthwhile. The document usually aims to cover the aspects below.

  • Relevance. Convince the reader that your project is original, interesting, and essential for the research field you’re working in.
  • Context. Demonstrate your familiarity with the research field. Show that you know its current state and have a deep understanding of the scholarly literature.
  • Approach. Explain your methodology. Show that your data and methods are well thought out.
  • Feasibility. Talk about the practical aspects of your project. Confirm that you’re able to complete the research within the limits of the program or the institution you’re applying to.

    • In other words, the purpose of a research proposal is to answer the following questions about your research project:

  • What do you want to achieve? Try to be as clear as possible in defining the research problem and what aspect of it you intend to investigate.
  • Why do you want to do it? You must thoroughly analyze the literature and present compelling evidence that the topic is worth researching.
  • How are you going to do it? Make sure you have the time, finances, and competence to complete what you want to accomplish.

    • ❗ Importance of Research Proposal

    A research proposal is important for several reasons:

  • It helps identify the research focus. A research proposal defines the topic, outlines methods, and clarifies your research objectives.
  • It assists in research planning. You can use a research proposal as an overview of the work to be done, making the research process smoother and easier.
  • It allows researchers to secure funding. Research proposals are essential for getting money to fund research projects. These documents help persuade internal and external agencies of the project’s significance and feasibility.
  • It demonstrates the student’s communication skills. The way a proposal is worded and structured shows the student’s ability to organize their thoughts and communicate complex ideas.
  • It shows the researcher’s competence. The research proposal demonstrates a scholar’s ability to select appropriate methods, justify the choice of topic and methodology, conduct a literature review, and address ethical and budget considerations.

    • 🤔 How Long Should a Research Proposal Be?

    Research proposal length varies by academic level and discipline. Here is a standard breakdown of word counts for different types of proposals:

  • Arts and humanities proposals (1,000-1,500 words). This word count usually takes 4-5 pages and allows you to cover the gist of your planned study, including the research aims, questions, and planned design.
  • Law and social sciences (1,500-2,500 words). These subjects usually required a more detailed presentation of the planned study’s specifics, relevant theories, and underlying assumptions.
  • Sciences and engineering (2,000-3,000 words). Such studies typically involve more complex experiments and advanced methodologies using sophisticated tools. The proposal should outline these details to convey the study’s significance and feasibility.
  • PhD proposals (2,000-3,500 words, all disciplines). Proposals for a PhD-level study are expected to present the research objectives, the methodology, and a literature review that justifies the study’s significance, original contribution, and research gaps.

    • ✏️ Research Proposal Outline

    The core components of any research proposal are:

  • A well-formulated, relevant, and answerable research question
  • Information about the data required to answer the research question
  • A detailed methodology outlining how data will be collected and analyzed
  • An estimate of the time, cost, and human resources needed to complete the project
  • A concise evaluation of prior research in this field, with identified research gaps.
  • Potential benefits of completing this project (important for sponsored research proposals)

    • To organize all this data into a readable and impactful proposal, you may use the following structuring tips and outline suggestions:

  • Introduction. The opening section introduces readers to the background and context of your study. It should set the stage by explaining the key concepts and outlining the significance of the research.
  • Literature review. This section presents the outcomes of your systematic preliminary research. It should give a proper account of seminal studies and recent findings. Conclude with a summary of research gaps you have identified and are planning to address in your study.
  • Research objectives. Clearly define the research aims, hypotheses, and questions. These should logically stem from the identified gaps.
  • Research design and methods. Next, you need to outline how you will answer your questions, what data you need for that, where you will get it, and how you will analyze it.
  • Ethical considerations. All research should be conducted in full compliance with ethical academic conduct principles. So, your proposal needs to clarify how you will address ethics, such as getting informed consent from study participants, anonymizing data, storing it in a restricted-access repository, etc.
  • Budget estimates. Calculate the financial needs of your project, such as buying specific software, hiring people for data collection, study participant compensations, and any other expenses. Make sure your study is financially feasible.
  • Appendices (optional). In this section provide your data collection methods, consent forms, and other documents relevant to the study. Appendices doesn’t add to the proposal’s word count but serve as a technical section with vital supplements.
  • References. Give credit to all sources you’ve relied on and format the citations in the assigned referencing style.

    • 👣 Writing a Research Proposal in 10 Steps

  • Determine your research area. The first and probably the easiest thing to do is to identify a general study topic or subject area to investigate.
  • Study literature. At the second stage, you need to read as much literature on the general topic as possible. Make notes and summarize each study’s purpose and findings.
  • Find the gap in the literature. The purpose of the previous step is to determine what studies have already been done on the subject of your research proposal and then identify any obvious gaps in the literature. Find where you can add to the existing body of knowledge.
  • Make a purpose statement. The purpose of the research proposal is to sell your idea to the funding agency. At this stage, the task is to explain why you are investigating this topic, what you propose to do, and why others should be interested in your research.
  • Formulate a question and hypotheses for your study. Research hypotheses determine what you will investigate and what you expect to find in your study. They are your supposed answers to the research question.
  • Write an introduction. The research proposal’s introduction should include the components that you created at the previous stages: a problem statement, a summary of the literature (you can use our summary maker for that), a concise description of the gap in the literature, a purpose statement, and a research question.
  • Enumerate your methods. In your methods section, you should outline the procedures you plan to follow to complete the proposed study. The section generally includes an explanation of the research design and some information on the data collection process.
  • Describe your research design. Outline the research design of your academic research proposal. You should describe two or three possible alternatives for each part of the design.
  • Introduce your data collection procedures. In this section, describe how you are going to collect your data. Explain the scheme of analyzing the collected data and reporting the results.
  • Provide a timeline and budget. At the final stage, you need to give some information on the estimated budget and schedule of your research.

    • Research Proposal Topics

  • A research proposal on staff attitudes to physician orders for life-sustaining treatment (POLST).
  • Research the aspects of corporate social responsibility integration for multinational companies.
  • Explore the efficacy of speaker recognition technology for the crime rate reduction.
  • Analyze the peculiarities of Nigeria’s healthcare system and the problems it faced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • Marketing research proposal: study the skill deficiencies of the students of the current occupational training programs and their influence on the job perspectives.
  • Write a research proposal on the examination of asthma risk factors for African immigrants.
  • Research proposal on the connection between hypertension and chronic kidney disease.
  • Conduct research on cyber terrorism as a political weapon.
  • Explore the effective programs for asthma education among adolescents.
  • Research proposal on the controversy of the second amendment.
  • Examine the impact of Nokia’s marketing strategy on its product popularity and the company’s share price.
  • Analyze the current situation of VEGA medical center and the necessity to implement sustainable change.
  • Formulate a research proposal on the sustainable innovation strategy implementation methods for logistics companies.
  • Research proposal on homeland security in the United States.
  • Study the most efficient ways to implement a harm reduction approach in healthcare practice.
  • Research the efficacy of current procedures of early ventilator-associated pneumonia diagnostics.
  • Explore and compare the consumer behavior of generation Y in the USA and China.
  • Research proposal on the usefulness of the mobile app English at Hands implementation in educational establishments’ curricula.
  • Justice in healthcare: a research proposal.
  • Analyze whether watching movies can be considered an effective method of foreign language practice.
  • Examine the most widespread reasons for medical personnel shortage in low-income countries.
  • Research proposal on the current state of McDonald’s company.
  • Study the effect of lowering high-calorie food consumption on human health and life quality.
  • Write a research proposal on the effect of technology on human health and living conditions.