Research Title: The title of the research proposal must be concise and clear.

Executive Summary / Abstract (maximum of 500 words):

This section must contain the overall purpose, basic study design, major findings, summary of interpretations and conclusion. It should be in one paragraph.

Introduction/ Background (maximum of 700 words):

The research topic must be clearly described in this section to formulate research objectives and questions.  Please provide the background of the study, emphasizing the importance of the research topic.

Significance of the Research (maximum of 100 words):

In this section the following questions should be addressed:

       a. Why would you like to conduct this research?

       b. How will the findings of the research be used or useful? 

Research Objectives (maximum of 100 words):

1. Research objectives must be clearly delineated as they are different from hypotheses.
2. These objectives usually refer to the specific aims of the study and should be clear. A researcher may have multiple hypotheses to achieve an objective.
3. Please specify which SDG goals your research will explore.

Literature Review (maximum of 750 words):

An extensive review of the relevant literature will be required and a critical review of what has been written on the issue should be included in the proposal. The review of the literature should help determine the methodology of the research, avoid duplication (of research), and add value to society/community and academia.

Expected Outcomes of the Research (maximum of 150 words):

Please clearly articulate the expected outcomes of the research.

Hypothesis / Research Question (maximum of 150 words):

Research questions or hypotheses should be clearly stated in the proposal:          

1. Hypothesis proposes a causal linkage between dependent and independent variables.
2. Hypothesis must be derived from the existing theoretical framework/ literature review.
3. A research hypothesis is a testable proposition or predictive statement about possible outcomes of a scientific research study.

Research Methodology (maximum of 750 words):

Research method(s) is used to answer research questions. Please state the procedures and techniques that you will use to collect the data.  Sampling methods and selection of sample size must be well justified. In addition, you need to focus on the data analysis process and analytical framework. In the proposal, you also need to justify the research design you choose.

Ethical Concern (maximum of 100 words):

Please write a short paragraph mentioning the key ethical concerns of your study like how the participants’ privacy and confidentiality will be protected, how participants’ consent will be taken, how environmental hazards will be minimized and so on. All submitted research proposals will undergo a Turnitin plagiarism check before being sent to reviewers and prior to funding approval. A research proposal will be accepted only if both AI-generated content and similarity index are below 20%, respectively. Research projects involving human participants, risks to the university’s reputation, externally funded research, evaluation studies, high-risk non-human subjects, animal experimentation, use of protected animal tissues, pathogen or microbe research, genetically modified microorganisms, and similar activities must be approved by the EWU Research Ethical Committee (EWUREC). For details of the ethical clearance policy and procedure, please visit the following link:

                                 https://crtewu.org/research-grant/ethical-guideline

Limitations and Future Research (maximum of 150 words):

Specify the weakness or constraint of the research recommending future research that needs to be addressed to overcome the identified limitations.

References method

a)  Research proposals in Liberal Arts, Social Sciences, and Business may follow the APA style. In APA (American Psychological Association) style, citations must be accompanied by citing the author’s last name, year of publication, and page number in parenthesis. If the author’s name is mentioned in the text, the date and page number should be cited in parenthesis. For additional information on APA style documentation, please consult APA’s website (www.apa.org)

b) Research Proposal related to the legal issue(s) may follow the OSCOLA (Oxford Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities) referencing style, where citations are put in footnotes at the bottom of the page. For details, please visit the following link:

https://onlinelibrary.london.ac.uk/support/referencing/referencing-styles-oscola#:~:text=OSCOLA%20stands%20for%20the%20Oxford,to%20use%20this%20referencing%20system.

c) Research proposal in Sciences and Engineering may follow the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) referencing style.  For details, please visit the following link:

          https://ieeeauthorcenter.ieee.org/wp-content/uploads/IEEE-Reference-Guide.pdf

Milestones and Time Frame

Please set the milestones of your research activities and prepare a Gantt chart, accordingly, covering a one-year time frame. However, under certain circumstances, the timeline may be extended.

Budget and timeline

The proposal must include a schedule (timetable) and a detailed budget. Every expense in the budget must be justified in the specific column.

*Some of the above questions may be readdressed for experimental research such as clinical study.  However, the research proposal must be clear in formulating objectives and research questions or hypotheses.  Furthermore, the proposal should clearly define its expected output.