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Whether you choose a full cover page or a quarter page header for your research proposal, you must include your:

• Name
• Address, telephone and email
• Degree for which you are a candidate
• Names of your supervisor and co-supervisor
• Thesis proposal title
• Date.

Introduce the reader to the general subject area and explain how your topic is related. Briefly indicate why your topic is significant and what contribution your work will make.

Set out the specific objectives of your research.

The format of a literature depends upon the field being studied, however its purpose remains the same across all study areas. You should aim to:

• Place your proposed research topic clearly in its relevant research context
• Demonstrate your awareness of significant similar or relevant research.Ìý

In a sense, the literature review for your proposal should be incomplete because you will continue to expand and update it a your research progresses. Your final literature review will be included in your thesis.Ìý

How do I focus my literature review?

Make qualitative judgements concerning the literature. Be careful not to allow the evaluation of previous work to become a large open-ended task. Consult with your supervisors on the types of questions you need to be asking and the boundaries you should place on your literature review.Ìý

General investigations for literature reviews including asking yourself:

• Which pieces of research have been the most successful or promising and which are less so?
• What major lines of criticism from previous work can you attempt to level?
• Are there any major omissions, gaps or neglected emphases in the literature?

State the basic idea of your topic:

1. What are the various theoretical approaches taken in your topic? Which one do you propose to use in your research and why? Where, tentatively, do you stand on the topic?
2. If there are different theories on your topic, which one(s) will inform the conceptual framework of your thesis?
3. Which terms or trends do you wish to follow up from this literature review?
4. Do you have any fresh suggestions of an explanatory, interpretative or programmatic kind?

Think it through carefully. Write down your main insights, hypotheses, hunches or even hopes about your topic. Consider past theory and research, as well as emerging issues, and recognise the areas you would expect to have findings in. Formulate explicit hypotheses, especially for empirical theses.

Describe your proposed method(s) in sufficient detail, making clear:

• What kind of information you will use
• Where you will source the information
• What resources you will require
• How you will approach your investigation
• Why you have selected this approach
• What ethical and safety issues you have identified and how you propose to proceed.

Timelines and milestones are important tools for planning your research project effectively and completing your thesis on time.Ìý

Milestones are the steps you need to take to meet your goals.ÌýTimelines help you plan out when your key goals and milestones will be completed.Ìý

You can format your timeline as a table or a list, including start and finish dates for important aspects of your research, such as:

• Literature research
• Required training or coursework
• Stages of experiments or investigations
• Goals to begin and complete chapters
• Reviews and seminars you will give
• Thesis completion.

Ask your supervisor if this section is required for your research proposal.Ìý

Present the chapter outline as a draft contents page with brief annotations of expected content or stages. Follow the standard sections relevant to your type of research. You can base these on past theses in your research area and discuss ideas with your supervisor.

List all publications cited in your proposal using the recommended by your school or supervisor.