Writing a research proposal is not an easy thing. It is key to your further investigation of a specific topic. So, you should introduce the issue effectively and provide argumentations, which support your central idea. Here are some simple tips that can help to become an excellent essay writer and practice your writing skills.
Table of Contents
Be Careful with the Instructions
The first thing you should do is to read the instructions carefully. Sometimes, students forget about it, which results in a bad mark. If you do not want to fail your next assignment, look through the list of requirements and figure out the key one.
A number of pages and sources, the format of the paper, font style, and size — all these can affect your grade. Make sure that you follow everything before starting to write a research proposal.
Think About the Importance of Your Proposal
When you choose the topic for your research paper, you should think about your proposal’s importance. Search for several arguments that highlight that researching this issue is essential. Ask yourself such questions as “Why?” and “For what purpose?”.
The research proposal’s primary purpose is to show that you understand the subject and what you will investigate. Also, the research proposal helps to convey the need to conduct research. After you have a clear argumentation, it will be easier to be more persuasive and clearly express your opinion.
Search the Sources and Analyze the Information
It’s recommended not to start from writing itself. After you choose the topic for your research proposal, search for the sources related to the research paper’s chosen topic. Remember that all information should be from credible sources.
Books, articles, reports are the most appropriate and valid data sources for your investigation. Do not forget to cite all the information according to the rules of the required paper format.
Make an Outline
The next step is to make an outline for your research proposal. The structure of the proposal is quite similar to essay one. There should be a short introduction to introduce your topic and the objective of your proposal. Then, enumerate the main arguments that support your opinion. Finish with a brief conclusion by summarizing the key ideas.
Outlining is an excellent way to practice your writing skills. It helps you make the proposal’s structure well-organized and precise. Also, you will be sure that you haven’t missed the vital information.
Do Not Forget About Coherence
Coherence is an essential feature of every piece of writing. Your paragraphs should be logically structured and discuss only one idea. Also, there should be transitions between the sentences. But do not overload the paragraph with linking devices, as it can make the text wordy.
Search for the list of useful linking devices and verbs to apply them in the research proposal. Place them only when it’s necessary but not in every sentence. In this way, you will keep the academic tone and make all paragraphs coherent.
Be Persuasive
The most important thing for the research proposal is to be persuasive. Clearly define your opinion and provide several arguments to support the idea. Provide also a strong thesis, which is usually placed at the end of the introduction.
Don’t forget that a thesis consists of two parts: a topic and the controlling idea. Thus, the thesis is the tool for providing a persuasive argument, which is your research proposal’s objective.
Do Not Overload the Paper with Terms
One more useful recommendation is not to overuse the proposal with the terminology. Usually, terms are not clear without an exact explanation. If you apply a lot of terms, then it will take a paragraph to explain them.
Also, you will need to provide a citation for the terminology, which is not good for the research proposal. Still, the main aim is to introduce the topic and tell why it is essential, but not overload the paragraph with terms.
Forget About Lots of Citing
Remember this simple rule: the cited information in your paper should take approximately 10% from the whole paper. That’s why do not overuse citing in your research proposal. Also, it’s better to leave the cited data and statistics for the research itself.
It’s better not to use the information from outside sources in the research proposal. But if you need to mention some statistics for a clear argumentation, cite everything correctly. Remember also about useful apps for students, which can help you with homework help.
Academic Tone is a Key to Success
You should write a research proposal in an academic tone. Forget about informal vocabulary, weak words, contractions, sentence fragments, idioms, phrasal verbs, and so on. To adhere to the formal writing style is the primary requirement of academic papers. Also, it affects the final grade for your research proposal.
You can consult some useful academic websites. For instance, Purdue OWL can consult you about writing in an academic tone and formatting your paper according to your professor’s requirements.
Proofread Everything
After you finish writing your research proposal, do not rush to submit the paper. Even if you think that everything is alright, re-read the text several times to exclude the mistakes. You should not only write but edit your essay. You can find some minor errors or typos while proofreading, which is a typical students’ mistake.
Proofreading and further editing are also important to understand whether the text is coherent. You can add some liking devices if it’s necessary. Although it’s quite boring, do not skip this step. Indeed, editing is as important as writing.
Final Words
All these recommendations will help you finish your writing assignment with flying colors. Do not forget to follow the instructions and format the paper according to the rules. Also, clearly define the topic and provide solid argumentation. Remember about formatting style, and cite everything according to the requirements. Finally, keep the text coherent and include only relevant citations, if necessary.