THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL

After proper and complete planning of a research, the plan should be written down. A proposal
is also known as a work plan, prospectus, outline, statement of intent, or draft plan. So the
proposal tells us what, why, how, where, and to whom the research will be done. It is the
detailed plan of study. The term "research proposal" indicates that a specific course of action
will be followed. It is a document which sets out the researchers ideas in an easily accessible
way. The intent of the written research proposal is to present a focused and scholarly
presentation of a research problem and plan. The objective in writing a proposal is to describe
what the researcher will do, why it should be done, and how the researcher will do it. A clean,
well thought-out, proposal forms the backbone for the research itself.
Structure or Elements of a Research Proposal
The major components of a proposal include:
Title Page (See Page 6)
A title ought to be well studied, and give a definite and concise indication of what is to come.
The title of the research proposal should state the topic exactly in the smallest possible number
of words.
All words in the title should be chosen with great care, and association with one another must
be carefully managed. A good title is defined as the fewest possible words that adequately
describe the contents of the study. Title is a label: it is not a sentence. Titles should almost never
contain abbreviations.
Put your name, the name of your department/faculty/college, the name of your advisor(s) and
date of delivery under the title. First impressions are strong impressions: make your title an
attention grabber.
Summary/Abstract
The abstract is a one page brief summary of the research proposal (most of the time less than
300 words). It should be concise, informative and should provide brief information about the
whole problem to be investigated. The abstract should not include any information that is not in
the main text of the research proposal. Do not put references, figures, or tables in the abstract.
Though it appears at the front of the proposal, it is written last.
The abstract of a proposal should contain the following points:
 Title or topic of the research
 Statement of the problem and objective
 Methodology of investigation
 Expected results ( tentative only if a researcher starts with a formulated hypothesis)
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Introduction/Background of the Study
The introduction/background of the study is the part of the proposal that provides readers with
the background information for the research proposal. Its purpose is to establish a framework
for the research, so that readers can understand how it is related to other research. Be sure to
include a hook at the beginning of the introduction. This is a statement of something sufficiently
interesting to motivate the reader to read the rest of the proposal, it is an important/interesting
scientific problem that the study either solves or addresses. The introduction should cite those
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who had the idea or ideas first, and should also cite those who have done the most recent and
relevant work. The researcher should then go on to explain why more work is necessary
(his/her work of course.)
1.2 Statement of the problem
Most research proposals are considered as responses to a problem. A problem might be defined
as the issue that exists in the literature, theory, or practice that leads to a need for the study. The
prospective researcher should think on what caused the need to do the research (problem
identification). The question that he/she should ask him/herself is: Are there questions about
this problem to which answers have not been found up to the present? The research problem
should be stated in such a way that it would lead to analytical thinking on the part of the
researcher with the aim of possibly concluding solutions to the stated problem. The problem
statement describes the context for the study and it also identifies the general analysis approach.
It is important in a proposal that the problem stand out—that the reader can easily recognize it.
Effective problem statements answer the question “Why does this research need to be
conducted?
1.3 Research Questions and/or Hypotheses
Hypotheses and questions are linked to the speculative proposition of the problem statement,
can be inferred from the overall conceptual framework of a study, and are of critical importance
to data analysis and interpretation. In research studies, the term hypotheses imply a derivation,
within a hypothetic-deductive theoretical system, of a particular assertion or prediction. The
hypothesis is subject to test, i.e., to confirmation or rejection on empirical grounds. The term
question implies an interrogative statement that can be answered by data, which is logically
related to the same conceptual framework, but which does not necessarily stem from that
framework through logical deduction.
1.4 Objective of the study
The objectives of a research delineate the ends or aim which the inquirer seeks to bring about as
a result of completing the research undertaken. An objective may be thought of as either a
solution to a problem or a step along the way toward achieving a solution; an end state to be
achieved in relation to the problem. The objectives of a research project summarize what is to be
achieved by the study. Objectives should be closely related to the statement of the problem.
Commonly, research objectives are classified into general objectives and specific objectives.
Objectives should be
 simple (not complex),
 specific (not vague),
 stated in advance (not after the research is done), and
 stated using “action verbs” that are
 Specific enough to be measured.
1.5 Significance of the Study
By including this section, the researcher creates a rationale for conducting the study and a
statement of why the results will be important. It expands on the introduction (i.e. statement of
the problem) in which the researcher briefly mention the importance of the problem for
audiences. In contrast, a significance section elaborates on the importance and implication of a
study for researchers, practitioners and policy makers

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 1.6 Scope/Delimitation of the Study
The scope of the study refers to the boundaries or limits within which the study needs to be
kept. The researcher focuses on the precise issue he/she intends to consider. This helps the
researcher to focus and exhaustive. Frequently, setting limits on the sample size, extent of the
geographic region from which data are collected, response formats included in data-collecting
instruments, or the time frame for the study makes the study feasible for the researcher, and
such delimitations should be noted here.
1.7 Limitation of the Study
Provide limitation to identify potential weakness of the study. At the proposal stage, it often
difficult to identify weakness in the study before it has began. However, advisors like students
to anticipate the potential weakness of their studies. For example, all statistical procedures have
limitations; so also do research strategies.
An example of limitation of a study: The purposive sampling procedure decrease the
generalizability of the findings
1.8 Organization of the Study
The final section in Chapter 1 summarizes the contents of each of the chapters that will
comprise the study. This permits readers to know what information will be found in each
chapter and facilitates finding specific information without searching through the dissertation
page by page to do so. This section also provides a logical transition into the next chapter of the
dissertation. The following presents an example of this section:
Chapter 1 has presented the introduction, statement of the problem, research questions,
significance of the study, definition of terms, scope, and limitations of the study. Chapter 2
contains the review of related literature and research related to the problem being investigated
(be specific – summarize the actual contents of the review). The methodology and procedures
used to gather data for the study are presented in Chapter 3. The results of analyses and
findings to emerge from the study are (will be) contained in Chapter 4. Chapter 5 contains (will
contain) a summary of the study and findings, conclusions drawn from the findings, a
discussion, and recommendations for further study.
CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Literature review is not a compilation of every work written about a topic. It is not simply a list
of sources reviewed separately for their own merit. A literature review is a description of the
literature relevant to a particular field or topic. It gives an overview of what has been said, who
the key writers are, what are the prevailing theories and hypotheses, what questions are being
asked, and what methods and methodologies are appropriate and useful. As such, it is not in
itself primary research, but rather it reports on other findings.
2.1.
2.2.

CHAPTER 3: RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY

The methods or procedures section is really the heart of the research proposal. The researcher
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must decide exactly how he/she is going to achieve the stated objectives: i.e., what new data is
need in order to shed light on the problem the researcher have selected and how he/she is
going to collect and process this data. The activities should be described with as much detail as
possible, and the continuity between them should be apparent.
3.1 Research Design
This section describes the research mode whether it is experimental design, descriptive or
survey research, case study research, qualitative research, and etc.
3.2 Data source and Collection Methods
This section describes in detail what type of data and how the data will be/were (proposal/final
research report) obtained and the timelines involved in collecting the data. Information
commonly provided in this section includes what materials will be/were distributed, how and
when they will be/were distributed This explains the specific type of research instrument used
such as questionnaire, checklist, structured interview, and standardized instrument, which are
adopted or borrowed with permission from the author or from other sources. Beginning and
ending dates for data collection are often included in this section.
3.3 Population, Sampling Technique and Sample Size
This section describes the target population and the sample frame (list of elements in the
population). It specifies the sampling technique used and how the sample size is determined.
Unless the population is extremely small, a sample usually will be drawn from the population.
The sample should be small enough to provide a manageable volume of data, but the sample
must accurately represent the population if any valid inferences are to be drawn from the
sample results. In general, the sample will accurately represent the population from which it is
drawn if (a) sample selection carefully follows an appropriate sampling design, (b) the sample is
randomly selected from the population, (c) a large enough sample is selected in relation to the
total population, and (d) the sample size is adequate for the data-collecting instrument being
used.
3.4 Data Analysis and Presentation
This section of Chapter 3 describes in detail analysis of the collected data. Methods of data
analysis are primarily determined by the hypotheses to be tested or research questions to be
answered (which also determine the format of the instrument and how the data are gathered)
and the level of data being gathered (nominal, ordinal, and/or interval).
The most commonly used descriptive statistics include means, standard deviations, frequency
counts, and percentages. Among the most commonly used inferential statistics are chi-square, t
test, analysis of variance (ANOVA), and various correlation coefficients.
Work Plan / Timeline
 Work plan is a schedule or chart that summarizes the different components of a research
proposal and how they will be implemented.

 In the work plan

 Different components/phases/stages of the study should be stated
 Description of activities in each phase
 Time required to accomplish the various aspects of the study should also be indicated
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Budget/ Cost Breakdown
 Budget items need to be explicitly stated
 Cost for every budget item should be quantitatively shown
 There might be a need for budget justification of certain costs whose requirement
is not obvious
 REFERENCES: in this section full citation of materials used/ to be used in the
preparation of the study has to be made. It should contain the full name of the author,
year of publication, title of the material, publishing company, page number for articles
and magazines.
 APPENDIX: Contains research questionnaire, interview schedule, financial statements
etc. that should be attached with the paper.

ALKAN HEALTH SCIENCE, BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY

COLLEGE
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 FACULTY OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS
DEPARTMENT OF ACCOUNTING AND FINANCE

TITLE OF THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL

A RESEARCH PROPOSAL SUBMITTED FOR THE PARTIAL FULLFILLMENT

OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF BA DEGREE IN ACCOUNTING AND FINANCE

PREPARED BY:
NAME OF GROUP MEMBERS ID. NO.
1. ___________________________ ______________
2. ___________________________ ______________
3. ___________________________ ______________

ADVISOR: XXX YYY (MSC/MBA/PhD)

DECEMBER, 2016
DESSIE, ETHIOPIA

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