Scientific Research Proposal

 

Upon completion of the course, students..
 

1. understand how to identify scientific or societal problems to be tackled and approach an innovative geographical or planning topic that may serve as the basis for writing a research proposal;
2. develop skills in writing a well-structured proposal for national and international funding agencies, such as NWO, scholarship and job applications as a PhD or a professional researcher;
3. be able to reflect on and formulate the scientific and societal relevance of the proposed research;
4. understand and incorporate Open Science principles and impact pathways in the research design/proposal;
5. develop skills in presenting a proposal to a professional/scientific audience

This course will introduce the do’s and don’t’s of writing research proposals, with a particular attention for acquisitions (grants, positions). Academics generally spend a great deal of time discussing and writing research proposals to acquire funding for research projects, setting up PhD and other research positions for early career scholars, or applying for such positions to develop their career. The skills needed to write good research proposals are also imperative in professional research positions outside the academia such as at consultancy firms and public offices. This course focuses on the scientific and professional criteria for writing a research proposal that can be fundable by a funding agency, to acquiring financial support for a PhD position and/or to be acceptable for PhD positions that require a PhD proposal submission.
In this course, students learn how to approach an innovative geographical (or planning) topic and establish problem statement that may be the basis for writing a research proposal. The student chooses a topic and establishes the scientific and societal relevance of this topic. The student then designs the research both conceptually (theoretical framework) and technically (methods and techniques) and drafts the proposal. In seminars, the students present and discuss each other’s proposals. Further, they learn how to structure the proposal and address key problems in the writing process.


The final proposal should contain:

• Title
• Abstract (250 words)
• Body of 3,000 words
• Max. 1-page literature references

The body of the proposal should pay attention to the following aspects:

1. 1. Introduction. In this part, you must position your project as worthwhile and novel. Make the case that your project will deliver fundamentally new insights and will respond to a knowledge gap, advancing science and policy/planning. This means that you have to BRIEFLY describe three aspects: (i) the state-of-the art (which is done more extensively in the literature review) and make very clear how your project will be different or novel. Think for instance of combining theories from different disciplines (e.g. psychology and geography, ecology and economics). (ii) the real-life situation that resonates the research you are proposing. It is thus important to state the urgency of your research, including societal relevance: your project may help to solve major societal issues, or investigate emerging societal topics; and (iii) the policy context in which your research will respond to or be shaped by if different from the real-life situation. The introduction should lead to a description of research questions and/or research objectives.
   2. State of the art (literature review). This part may also be integrated with the introduction. If separate, it served to underpin your research questions further. The literature should not be exhaustive but sketch relevant schools of research in the topic area. It is important to show gaps in the literature or note the disconnect of certain schools of research to date. The literature review also serves to demonstrate your knowledge of the problem area. So, make sure to refer to the key publications in the field.
   3. Research design. In this section, you have to make clear from what theoretical framework you depart (or which theories you will connect/confront), which research methods you will use, where and in what way you will collect data, and how you will analyse your data. This part will resemble the decisions taken during the course Master’s Thesis: Developing a Research Design (GEO4-3631). It is important to underpin every decision and convince the reviewers that you thought about it and made the best decision.
   4. Discussion. In this section you need to briefly discuss the expected results of your research, as well as the limitations and risks of the research. Ethical issues need to be discussed if applicable.
   5. Time planning. You need to make a time plan for your research. Plan for data collection, analysis, publishing of results as well as presenting in conferences and other events. This part of the research proposal should also list potential risks that can burden your time planning.

Your master thesis can provide the base for the research proposal. You are now an expert on your thesis topic, but resist the temptation to stay within the same comfortable domain. So, think about more fundamental questions that emerge from your master thesis – or develop further what could not be covered during your master. 
Your proposal should not only make clear that your research needs to be funded, but also that you are the person to do it. Thus, make sure that your expertise and achievement are made clear in the text. Mention articles and conference papers you have produced, attendance of conferences and international workshops, your study period abroad, to name a few.