Fall 2021

ROYAL UNIVERSITY OF DHAKA

ASSIGNMENT
Program: B.Sc. (HON’S) in CSE (EVE)

Course Code & Title

GED 102: Research Project Proposal

Submitted to: Ahmed Abdullah

Submitted by
ABUL BASHAR MD. MASUM Date
Batch: 54
Student ID: 21-03-12-0512 26.10.2021
 Definition of A Research Project
Proposal
“... the meaning of proposal ... suggests looking forward, to what the researcher plans to
do in the future. ... The proposal lays out the problem for research, describes exactly how
the research will be conducted, and outlines in precise detail the resources – both factual
and instrumental – the researcher will use to achieve the desired results.”
Paul D. Leedy & Jeanne Ellis Ormrod
Or,

A research proposal is defined as, “A document that is typically written by researcher

which describes the ideas for an investigation on a certain topic. It is like an outline of the
entire research process that gives a reader a summary of the information discussed in a
project. The research proposal outlines the process from beginning to end, explains what is
the plan to research (i.e. research topic), why it’s a worth researching (i.e. justification),
and how researcher plans to investigate it (i.e. practical approach) and may be used to
request financing for the project, certification for performing the research.”

Purpose of Research Proposal

Generally, a research is a quest for knowledge through experimentation, investigation and diligent
search. It is aimed at discovery and interpretation of new knowledge or at resolving debatable existing
knowledge.
The purpose of the research proposal is to convince the research supervisor, committee or university
that the researcher has chosen the topic after great consideration, carried out sufficient preliminary
reading on the topic, possesses sound information of the issues involved and is capable of providing
broad details of the area under investigation, means the research is suitable and manageable.

What Does a Research Project Proposal Address?

Research proposals are written for various reasons, such as requesting a budget for the research they
describe, certification requirements for research, as a task in tertiary education, or as a condition for
employment at a research institution.
The quality of the research proposal conveys a lot about the project. Many a times, researchers run the
risk of rejection, not because their research idea is irrational but because the research proposal is poorly
written. Therefore, the tone of the proposal must be compelling, clear and coherent. Research
proposals generally address several key points:
 What research question(s) will be addressed and how they will be addressed?
 How much time and expense will be required for the research?
 What prior research has been done on the topic?
 How the results of the research will be evaluated?
 How the research will benefit the sponsoring organization and other parties?
The Structure of a Research Proposal
Research proposals are written in future tense and have different points of emphasis. Although, there is
no universal format for research proposal but following are the standard elements which must be
present in a proposal to earn it acceptance by the Research Supervisor, Committee or University:

 Title: Statement of the Research Hypothesis

The title of the research must be clear and succinct. This will provide a preliminary (or proposed)
title for the research. Other details such as Name, University name, and Supervisor’s name may
also appear here.

 A Summary or Abstract
One or two paragraphs that summarise what the Researcher will do in the research project and how
he/she will do it.

 Table of Contents
The table of contents is an organized listing of a document’s chapters, sections and often figures,
clearly labeled by page number. Readers should be able to look at the table of contents page and
understand immediately how the paper is organized, enabling them to skip to any relevant section
or sub-section. The table of contents should list all front matter, main content and back matter,
including the headings and page numbers of all chapters and the bibliography. A good table of
contents should be easy to read, accurately formatted and completed last so that it is 100%
accurate.
When adding the finishing touches to the dissertation, the table of contents is one of the most
crucial elements. It helps the reader navigate through the argument and topic points.

 Introduction
After the title and abstract, the introduction is the next thing the audience will read, so it's vital to
begin strongly. The introduction is the opportunity to show readers and reviewers why the research
topic is worth reading about and why the paper warrants their attention.
The introduction serves multiple purposes. It presents the background to the study, introduces the
topic and aims, and gives an overview of the paper. A good introduction will provide a solid
foundation and encourage readers to continue on to the main parts of the paper—the methods,
results and discussion.
The goal of the introduction is to let the reader know what he or she can expect from the paper. The
readers can have an idea about the following text before they start to read it.

 Literature Review
A literature review is a comprehensive summary of previous research on a topic. The review
should enumerate, describe, summarize, objectively evaluate and clarify this previous research. The
literature review acknowledges the work of previous researchers and in so doing, assures the reader
that the work has been well conceived. It is assumed that by mentioning a previous work in the
field of study, that the author has read, evaluated, and assimilated that work into the work at hand.
 Problem, Question or Hypothesis
 The key details, approaches or framings the research project will focus on. If hypotheses are
appropriate they should be stated along with a rationale. If a hypothesis isn’t appropriate, the
research problems or questions should be clearly stated and examined.

 Significant prior research

This should comprehensively demonstrate that the Researcher is aware of the major relevant
sources of information in the chosen area. Most research projects arise out of considerable prior
research, which should be summarised. The Researcher also needs to show the relationship
between the question or problem and this prior research.

 Significance of the Research Project

Thesis must make an original contribution to knowledge. Thus, the Researcher must show how
his/her proposed research is important enough to justify his/her efforts (and the efforts of anyone
else involved in the research). The Researcher should also include a statement about how the
solution to the problem, or the answer to the question, can influence educational theory or practice.
Mention the importance and rationale of the research topic which have undertaken. Explain the
significance of the project in terms of its contribution to existing studies. If the Researcher are
applying for financial funding then he/she need to elaborate on reasons which justify financial help.

 Research methodology
The methodology section is one of the most important sections of the proposal. It demonstrates the
Researcher’s understanding of the steps and skills necessary to undertake his/her intended research.
It should be as explicit as possible, detailing how will collect, analyse and present the data or
research.
Researcher choice of methodology should be justified by his/her research questions. For example,
if he/she is examining the relationship between two or more phenomena, a correlational
methodology would be appropriate.
Alternatively, a case study methodology would be appropriate for researching complex phenomena
in their natural setting.
Be sure to describe the intended data collection and analysis techniques with as much detail as
possible. They might change as the Researcher conducts his/her research, but he/she must still
demonstrate that he/she has given a lot of thought into the practicalities of his/her research at this
early stage.
Researcher should also note any major questions yet to be decided upon. If the Researcher is
gathering a sample of people or documents, he/she should outline his/her procedures for choosing
this sample.
If he/she intend on giving interviews or handing out questionnaires, he/she should provide
examples of the types of questions he/she will ask.
If the Researcher intend on using experimental situations to collect data, he/she should describe as
many of its elements as possible.

 Analysis of information
 How the Researcher intends to analyse his/her gathered information is a vital part of the assessment
of his/her research proposal. He/she should clearly describe how he/she can answer his/he research
questions based on the information he/she has gathered. For example, if he/she plans to collect
evidence by a questionnaire and subsequent statistical analysis, he/she should describe the likely
method of analysis and possible outcomes. In another example, if he/she plans to use a case study
approach, describe how he/she plans to identify the key themes and patterns in your data and the
procedures he/she will use to check the validity of his/her analysis.

 Background Analysis and Information

Under the caption of background, you need to describe the research problem under investigation.
Explain why you think the research topic you have chosen is worth doing. Give both personal and
business reasons to support your argument. The reasons you provide must be scientific and logical
and supported by evidences. You may also write down the major issues the research topic will be
addressing.

 Limitations and key assumptions

This section should contain a paragraph or two that defines the limits of your research. It’s
common for students to try to do too much. This section is useful in defining how much you will
undertake and the key assumptions that you will follow in building your arguments, models, or
experiments.

 Ethical considerations
Ethical considerations are the principles that must be followed in conducting any type of research.
Ethical considerations make sure that no human rights are violated, and research being conducted
has no hidden agenda. All research is expected to conform to acceptable ethical standards and
proposals. Ethical concerns can arise in how research is conducted and the ways these research
findings may later be used. Researcher should mention any ethical issues the research will give rise
to and how he/she intend to handle them. Also write how would be avoiding plagiarism.
Ethical considerations play an essential role, especially in research. Researcher’s whole efforts of
research may get wasted if he/she miss following any of the ethical considerations. The following
are the ethical issues that must be considered while performing the research study:
 The validity of the research
 The research method used for the research
 Consent of participants
 Confidentiality
 The risk to the participant
 The anonymity of the participants
 A sampling of the participants
 Accessibility to only relevant information
 Integrity and transparency
 Benefits of the Study
 Avoidance of deception or adverse effects
Most Universities have their own Code of Ethical Practice. It is critically important for the
Researcher to thoroughly adhere to this code in every aspect of research and declare his/her
adherence in ethical considerations part of his/her dissertation.
 Conclusion
While your introduction, literature review and significance of the study has already justified your
research project, a conclusion explicitly states the importance and implication of your coursework.
 References or Bibliography
The Reference or Bibliography section gives full details of any sources cited in the research
proposal. Reference and Bibliography is an important part of any project under study because it
helps in acknowledging other’s work and also help the readers in finding the original sources of
information. It not only prevents plagiarism but also indicates that the writer has done good
research on the subject by using a variety of sources to gain information.

 Appendices
An appendix contains supplementary material that is not an essential part of the text itself but
which may be helpful in providing a more comprehensive understanding of the research problem or
it is information that is too cumbersome to be included in the body of the paper. A separate
appendix should be used for each distinct topic or set of data and always have a title descriptive of
its contents.
Appendices contain material that is too detailed to include in the main report, such as long
mathematical derivations or calculations, detailed technical drawings, tables of raw data, diagrams
and results necessary to address the research problem. The key point to remember that, an appendix
is the information that is non-essential; if it were removed, the paper would still be understandable.