PYR research proposal - Template 1

1. Summary or abstract

A substantial paragraph (approximately 350 words) summarising what you will do in the research project, and how you will do it. Write it last.

2. Research question

This short section states what the research project will deal with. Clearly state your research problem in the form of a central question, perhaps some sub-questions, or an hypothesis/hypotheses, along with its/their rationale.

3. Importance of the research topic

A requirement of a doctoral thesis is that it makes an original contribution to knowledge, so you need to show how the proposed research is sufficiently important to justify your efforts (and the efforts of those you involve in your research). This should include a statement of how the answer to the central question, or the confirmation or otherwise of your hypothesis, might influence educational theory and/or practice.

4. Significant prior research/literature review

This considerably long section (likely including several sub-sections) should be comprehensive enough to demonstrate that you are aware of the major relevant sources of literature. Most research projects arise out of considerable prior research, which should be summarized here. Close this section by making the relationship between your question or hypothesis (in 2 above) and the prior research clear. (For this reason, some writers like to put their research question section immediately after the literature review rather than before it.)

5. Research design

This (also considerably long) section describes how you intend to find the answer/s to your research question and it should be as explicit as possible. It will often include an opening over-arching methodology sub-section as well as further sub-sections addressing methods, participants, data analysis or interpretation.

The notion of methodology (the ‘why’ of your research design) incorporates a wide range of possible orientations or approaches to the collection and analysis of ‘data’ (information to analyse or interpret) for your project – from the experimental method in psychological research, to the study of archives for historical research, to the detailed analysis of concepts in philosophical research, to the collection and analysis of empirical data or policies (etc) in sociological research.

The choice of method/s (the ‘how’ of your research design) should be justified in terms of the question being asked. The particular methods you choose should be described as explicitly as possible, showing evidence of your reading about the pros and cons of each method. Such description doesn’t mean you can’t make later changes in method, but you should demonstrate at this early stage that you have given considerable thought to the practicalities of the conduct of your research.

Certain methods lend themselves to far more advance specification than others. For example, if a sample of people or documents is to be drawn, procedures for choosing the sample should be described and justified. If a questionnaire or interview is to be used, it should be explained and possible examples of the major types of questions be asked should be described. If an experimental situation is to be used to collect data, there should be a description of the types of subjects (e.g., age, school level, number to be selected, the method of selection to be adopted), types of materials to be used (e.g., describe measures of achievement, self concept, attitudes, beliefs, etc.), types of data collection (e.g., self report, observation, clinical diagnosis, etc.), etc. If there are major questions yet to be decided, these should be noted. This is perhaps the most important section of your proposal because it demonstrates your understanding of the steps and skills necessary to undertake the research.

In a final sub-section of your research design, describe how you propose to analyse or interpret the data you collect; in other words, describe for the readers how you will determine the answer(s) to your question from the evidence you have gathered. For example, if you plan to use some kind of discourse analysis to make sense of qualitative data (e.g., interview transcripts, policy documents), describe the version that you think you will use. Or, if you plan to collect quantitative data with a questionnaire and apply subsequent statistical analyses, you should carefully describe the likely method/s of analysis and possible outcomes. Or, if you plan to use a case study approach, describe how you plan to identify the key themes and patterns in the data you will collect and the procedures you will use to check the validity of your analysis.

6. Ethical considerations

Proposals for research which involves human participants must be approved by the University of Auckland Human Participants Ethics Committee before the research begins. Areas of responsibility towards research participants – for example, securing informed consent, confidentiality, preservation of anonymity, avoidance of deception or adverse effects, etc – need to be thought through at the research design stage and strategies for addressing these issues should be written about (briefly) in this section. (The application itself will address them in full.)

A proposal for research involving Maori or particular minority groups/communities should demonstrate that the researcher has adequate background preparation for working with those communities. It should also indicate the extent to which members of that group/community will be involved or consulted in the overall supervision of the project and the dissemination of the research findings.

7. Limitations

It is common for new researchers to try to do too much, so this brief section describes some of the (planned) limitations of your research.

8. Timeline

Include a timeline showing the stages of your project and approximate completion dates for each stage. (The final submission date should correspond with that shown on your Registration Summary.)

9. References

All readings cited in the proposal should be listed at the end and formatted consistently. APA 6th is recommended in the faculty but, if you are working in an area such as philosophical or historical research, you might be advised to use the referencing system employed in those disciplinary spaces and their journals. Talk to your main supervisor about which system is most suitable for your research.