Your DPhil research proposal (approx. 2,000 words) needs to clearly indicate the nature, ambition and primary questions of the proposed research project. It is an essential aspect of your application for a research degree and it is the basis on which your application will be assessed and dissertation supervisors will be allocated in the event of an offer being made.

A strong research proposal:

• formulates a precise, interesting research question
• establishes the relevance and value of the proposed research question in the context of current academic thinking
• describes and evaluates the data or source material your research requires
• outlines a clear and practical methodology which enables you to answer the research question
• states clearly what you hope to discover at the end of your research and what new areas it might open up

Your research proposal should contain the following sections:

INTRODUCTION

The introduction should include a short summary of the central question or thesis behind your research and offer a brief account of the broader academic framework in which the research will be located. It must explain the background of your proposed project, usually starting from a broad picture and narrowing in on your research question. It should indicate the tentative or expected findings of the research.

In sum, it should enable readers to understand what you are attempting to research and why this is significant but without the wealth of detail contained in the main part of the proposal. 

THESIS STATEMENT

Sometimes known as the hypothesis or the central research question, this is perhaps the most important aspect of the proposal as it alerts readers and assessors as to what the overarching argument of the proposed project will be. A well articulated thesis highlights the potential contribution of the project in relation to the particular academic field.

LITERATURE REVIEW

The literature review provides the background and context for the proposed study, exploring and critically evaluating existing and important scholarship in an area. A literature review helps to identify gaps and disagreements. It also helps to identify trends and landmark texts you should be familiar with in the field of study. It should not just be a descriptive list or a set of summaries, but an evaluation of the scholarship to date that provides a context for your own writing. In understanding the field of research, it helps you to place your topic historically and theoretically and develop your own argument.

You may decide not to include a specific literature review section in your proposal but rather to integrate the results of your review in the theoretical framework of your proposal.

Try to be as thorough as possible during your literature review as this will afford you a broader understanding of your own research topic. It is often the case that research proposals are deemed poor because the author has not shown an adequate familiarity with the field in which the topic is located and a critical understanding of the pertinent literatures.

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

This normally includes a critical review of existing theories which are closely related to your research topic. You should make clear how your research relates to existing theories and how these frame ‘research questions’ in this field. How does your own research relate to such framings? You should ensure that your assumptions and theoretical commitments are stated as explicit as possible and that your choice of framework is justified. Your subsequent discussion of methodology should be linked to this theoretical framework.

METHODOLOGY

The methodology section details your assumptions and describes in detail the methods through which you will both undertake the research and also analyse the findings. It should offer a brief note on potential sources, discuss how material or data will be collected and outline any issues of access (to archives, of language, to key participants etc.). It should discuss potential or known limitations of the proposed methodology and specific methods.

ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Outline any ethical concerns which arise from either the specified research topic or your proposed methods. This may be linked to fieldwork and/or may pertain to the interaction with your research subjects. It is advisable to familiarise yourself with existing codes of conduct or research ethics concerns in the social sciences before writing this part of your proposal.

INDICATIVE BIBLIOGRAPHY

This should contain the sources cited in your literature review as well as point to potential sources.

TIPS

• Allow plenty of time to research, draft and redraft your research proposal. A good research proposal takes three to six months to complete, once you have explored ideas about your possible topic and selected a specific area of inquiry.  
• Define your terms and any use of jargon.
• Allow enough time to reflect on and appropriately frame your research question. This is actually the core of your application and the purpose of applying for a place on a doctoral programme. Experiment with the formulation until you are satisfied that it both captures what you want to research and also that is accessible to the prospective readers.
• The assessors of the proposal realise that the hardest aspect of writing it relates to your potential findings (i.e. what you hope to discover), given that you have yet to carry out the research. Similarly they are aware your stated research objectives will change over the course of researching and writing the DPhil. Therefore, you only need to clarify that your question is relevant academically and plausible practically and that you have reflected on issues of feasibility!