student research proposal example pdf

student research proposal example pdf

The Importance of Student Research in Academic Development

1. Introduction

The reason is, over the last five to six years, there has been a slow but steady increase in the numbers of students seeking guidance from me on how they might turn their work assignments or whatever into learning experiences. Some have been postgraduate students and experienced professionals who found academic study to be more difficult than they’d expected. But the majority have been students studying their first degree and have realized somewhere along the way that simply getting assignments done and out of the way leaves them with little learned and very little to show for all the time they’ve spent at university.

In the first instance, it is implied but not specifically stated that the essay is written for academics, i.e. lecturers and tutors who are in a position to confer valuable learning experiences on their students. Its second implied audience is students themselves, and it’s really this group which has prompted the writing of the essay.

This essay is extremely important in part because, on the face of it, it may seem that the title is “The Importance of Student Research in Academic Development.” Surely, it’s a no-brainer – research and learning go hand in hand.

2. Benefits of Student Research

A major benefit of involving students in research is the potential for significant learning. Applying the real-world material that is learned in class is often difficult for students. Research provides students with a chance to use the scientific process, discovery technique, analysis, and synthesis that are fundamental to their learning. Research can demonstrate the ambiguity of results, the value of data and its interpretation, and the creativity and innovative nature of science. With a well-structured project, students can take ownership of their learning and have an organic and profound learning experience. In particular, research can provide an opportunity for talented and motivated students to excel. Independent research or working with a professor can allow students to delve deeply into an area of interest and expand their expertise well beyond the level of their peers. This sort of experience can be invaluable in building the student’s confidence in their own abilities and cultivating them as the next generation of scientists. Finally, research helps students learn how to learn. In today’s rapidly changing society, the ability to continually update knowledge is an essential skill. An undergraduate research experience can be an effective way to learn skills and habits that will lead to lifelong learning.

3. Components of a Successful Research Proposal

Title page – consists of students’ ID number, proposed title, word count, and a brief description of the proposal’s objective. Contents – consists of a hierarchy of the research proposal, helping researchers to know how to structurally arrange their proposal. Introduction (1 page) – Briefly describe and define the area that you are researching. Explain the importance of the research and justify your reasons for wanting to do the research. Background (2-3 pages) – Provide a brief review of the definitions, concepts, and theories related to the problem. Present what is already known about the area and explain why the research is important. Problem statement – Frame your research in the form of a problem expressed in declarative form. The problem could be of interest to the scientific community or to the public at large. It should provide persuasive evidence that the problem is important and worthwhile to be answered. Ideally, the problem should make the reader question if the problem is really that bad and how they have not known about it before. Objectives – Insert a 1-2 paragraph that outlines and lists the objectives of the research. The objectives should specifically address the research problem and consist of general and specific objectives. General objective – The overall goal of the research. It is a statement that addresses a broad understanding with the aim to solve the problem. Usually, there is only one general objective. Specific objectives – Statements that address more specific aims. Each specific objective must answer a research question. Try to limit the number of specific objectives to around 3-6 objectives.

4. Examples of Student Research Proposals

Another well-scored research proposal came from a different discipline by the name of “Characteristics of Adaptive Memory” written by Carolyn Rames. This research proposal similarly goes in depth to explain and describe each aspect of research and conducts the same hard work for organization, with a timeline and budget included. A defining difference between the two proposals is that on top of meeting with her professor, Carolyn took the extra step to meet with former recipients of IMSD program in order to gain advice. Although Carolyn was aware of the expected standards of a research proposal, she used her resourcefulness and collaborated with other professionals to actually get a better understanding of what a high-quality research proposal is. This would show that there is always room for guidance and improvement in any proposal. Later in the template, it can be seen that Carolyn too had revised the IMSD research proposal, making the draft more refined and clearer. With Carolyn so driven and now having seen how revisions and improvements are made, she can set higher goals in the qualities of her research proposal, and the proposal would undoubtedly meet them. This would be the type of development Lehmann sees fit to prepare student researchers for.

One such research proposal that scored over 90 points according to Lehmann’s rubric was the following one: “Neurocognitive and Interpersonal Impairments in Schizotypal Personality Disorder”. This research proposal, composed by David Bakan under his graduate student Angela Barbato, thoroughly discusses the concepts and background of this research, including literature review, and goes into depth to describe each test hypothesis and prediction. He includes a timeline for completion of research and a proposed budget, displays proper organization throughout all sections, and has taken the initiative to collaborate with professionals in the field. Although this proposal scored high, there appears to be constant revisions done by the group to improve their proposal. The group has shown the capacity to better their understanding of their research and how it is to be accomplished. As a result, they have set higher standards for themselves and their proposal. A proposal that constantly seeks improvement would essentially mean a more effective research in the end, and the group would inadvertently meet its high standards. This, in essence, is something all students engaged in research should aim for.

Kay Lehmann’s rubric for research proposals can be very useful for both faculty and students, as it serves as a guide for students early on in their research project. The rubric has eight components: research effort, planning, creativity, organization, cogency, collaboration, preparedness, and professionalism. Each of the eight components is individually graded and scored, yielding a total possible score of 100 points. This also allows students to know ahead of time what is expected of them and how their proposal will be graded. It might be beneficial for students to actually see an example of a research proposal that has been graded, in order to see how the rubric fits into the proposal’s outcome. An improvement to the rubric would be if there were specific aspects of the proposal that correspond more directly to the eight components, and mutually graded, thereby making the grading process more focused and clear to the students.

5. Conclusion

The conclusion to this study is the opinion that there is a need for the implementation of research into the academic infrastructure at school or university level. It is of the opinion of the writer that with the ever-improving and competitive world that we live in today, there is a need to consistently improve the current infrastructure that we have in place to teach and prepare the future generation for the reality of what’s to come in terms of work and life. In the current day, studies and research papers are prepared with the sole intention of clearing an examination, but the future workforce primarily in certain fields involves a vast amount of research and development, where it is key to have a mindset and knowledge on how to find, process, and absorb relevant information in an effective manner. This leads to a possibility of a shift from the current theory-based learning environment to a more practical approach, which would involve a vast amount of internships or co-op programs, working as a research assistant or further onto the career it could involve part-time or full-time postgraduate studies. With a future scenario looking to be a reality, it is essential that there are the skills for self-taught learning so as to not be left behind in an ever-evolving technical age, and this is a basic platform to be able to produce and excel in a self-learning environment.