library science research proposal sample

Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Assignments

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• Multiple Book Review Essay
• Reviewing Collected Works
• Writing a Case Analysis Paper
• Writing a Case Study
• About Informed Consent
• Writing Field Notes
• Writing a Policy Memo
• Writing a Reflective Paper
• Writing a Research Proposal
• Generative AI and Writing
• Acknowledgments

The goal of a research proposal is twofold: to present and justify the need to study a research problem and to present the practical ways in which the proposed study should be conducted. The design elements and procedures for conducting research are governed by standards of the predominant discipline in which the problem resides, therefore, the guidelines for research proposals are more exacting and less formal than a general project proposal. Research proposals contain extensive literature reviews. They must provide persuasive evidence that a need exists for the proposed study. In addition to providing a rationale, a proposal describes detailed methodology for conducting the research consistent with requirements of the professional or academic field and a statement on anticipated outcomes and benefits derived from the study's completion.

Krathwohl, David R. How to Prepare a Dissertation Proposal: Suggestions for Students in Education and the Social and Behavioral Sciences . Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 2005.

How to Approach Writing a Research Proposal

Your professor may assign the task of writing a research proposal for the following reasons:

• Develop your skills in thinking about and designing a comprehensive research study;
• Learn how to conduct a comprehensive review of the literature to determine that the research problem has not been adequately addressed or has been answered ineffectively and, in so doing, become better at locating pertinent scholarship related to your topic;
• Improve your general research and writing skills;
• Practice identifying the logical steps that must be taken to accomplish one's research goals;
• Critically review, examine, and consider the use of different methods for gathering and analyzing data related to the research problem; and,
• Nurture a sense of inquisitiveness within yourself and to help see yourself as an active participant in the process of conducting scholarly research.

A proposal should contain all the key elements involved in designing a completed research study, with sufficient information that allows readers to assess the validity and usefulness of your proposed study. The only elements missing from a research proposal are the findings of the study and your analysis of those findings. Finally, an effective proposal is judged on the quality of your writing and, therefore, it is important that your proposal is coherent, clear, and compelling.

Regardless of the research problem you are investigating and the methodology you choose, all research proposals must address the following questions:

• What do you plan to accomplish? Be clear and succinct in defining the research problem and what it is you are proposing to investigate.
• Why do you want to do the research? In addition to detailing your research design, you also must conduct a thorough review of the literature and provide convincing evidence that it is a topic worthy of in-depth study. A successful research proposal must answer the "So What?" question.
• How are you going to conduct the research? Be sure that what you propose is doable. If you're having difficulty formulating a research problem to propose investigating, go here for strategies in developing a problem to study.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Failure to be concise . A research proposal must be focused and not be "all over the map" or diverge into unrelated tangents without a clear sense of purpose.
• Failure to cite landmark works in your literature review . Proposals should be grounded in foundational research that lays a foundation for understanding the development and scope of the the topic and its relevance.
• Failure to delimit the contextual scope of your research [e.g., time, place, people, etc.]. As with any research paper, your proposed study must inform the reader how and in what ways the study will frame the problem.
• Failure to develop a coherent and persuasive argument for the proposed research . This is critical. In many workplace settings, the research proposal is a formal document intended to argue for why a study should be funded.
• Sloppy or imprecise writing, or poor grammar . Although a research proposal does not represent a completed research study, there is still an expectation that it is well-written and follows the style and rules of good academic writing.
• Too much detail on minor issues, but not enough detail on major issues . Your proposal should focus on only a few key research questions in order to support the argument that the research needs to be conducted. Minor issues, even if valid, can be mentioned but they should not dominate the overall narrative.

Procter, Margaret. The Academic Proposal.  The Lab Report. University College Writing Centre. University of Toronto; Sanford, Keith. Information for Students: Writing a Research Proposal. Baylor University; Wong, Paul T. P. How to Write a Research Proposal. International Network on Personal Meaning. Trinity Western University; Writing Academic Proposals: Conferences, Articles, and Books. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Writing a Research Proposal. University Library. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Structure and Writing Style

Beginning the Proposal Process

As with writing most college-level academic papers, research proposals are generally organized the same way throughout most social science disciplines. The text of proposals generally vary in length between ten and thirty-five pages, followed by the list of references. However, before you begin, read the assignment carefully and, if anything seems unclear, ask your professor whether there are any specific requirements for organizing and writing the proposal.

A good place to begin is to ask yourself a series of questions:

• What do I want to study?
• Why is the topic important?
• How is it significant within the subject areas covered in my class?
• What problems will it help solve?
• How does it build upon [and hopefully go beyond] research already conducted on the topic?
• What exactly should I plan to do, and can I get it done in the time available?

In general, a compelling research proposal should document your knowledge of the topic and demonstrate your enthusiasm for conducting the study. Approach it with the intention of leaving your readers feeling like, "Wow, that's an exciting idea and I can’t wait to see how it turns out!"

Most proposals should include the following sections:

I.  Introduction

In the real world of higher education, a research proposal is most often written by scholars seeking grant funding for a research project or it's the first step in getting approval to write a doctoral dissertation. Even if this is just a course assignment, treat your introduction as the initial pitch of an idea based on a thorough examination of the significance of a research problem. After reading the introduction, your readers should not only have an understanding of what you want to do, but they should also be able to gain a sense of your passion for the topic and to be excited about the study's possible outcomes. Note that most proposals do not include an abstract [summary] before the introduction.

Think about your introduction as a narrative written in two to four paragraphs that succinctly answers the following four questions :

• What is the central research problem?
• What is the topic of study related to that research problem?
• What methods should be used to analyze the research problem?
• Answer the "So What?" question by explaining why this is important research, what is its significance, and why should someone reading the proposal care about the outcomes of the proposed study?

II.  Background and Significance

This is where you explain the scope and context of your proposal and describe in detail why it's important. It can be melded into your introduction or you can create a separate section to help with the organization and narrative flow of your proposal. Approach writing this section with the thought that you can’t assume your readers will know as much about the research problem as you do. Note that this section is not an essay going over everything you have learned about the topic; instead, you must choose what is most relevant in explaining the aims of your research.

To that end, while there are no prescribed rules for establishing the significance of your proposed study, you should attempt to address some or all of the following:

• State the research problem and give a more detailed explanation about the purpose of the study than what you stated in the introduction. This is particularly important if the problem is complex or multifaceted .
• Present the rationale of your proposed study and clearly indicate why it is worth doing; be sure to answer the "So What? question [i.e., why should anyone care?].
• Describe the major issues or problems examined by your research. This can be in the form of questions to be addressed. Be sure to note how your proposed study builds on previous assumptions about the research problem.
• Explain the methods you plan to use for conducting your research. Clearly identify the key sources you intend to use and explain how they will contribute to your analysis of the topic.
• Describe the boundaries of your proposed research in order to provide a clear focus. Where appropriate, state not only what you plan to study, but what aspects of the research problem will be excluded from the study.
• If necessary, provide definitions of key concepts, theories, or terms.

III.  Literature Review

Connected to the background and significance of your study is a section of your proposal devoted to a more deliberate review and synthesis of prior studies related to the research problem under investigation . The purpose here is to place your project within the larger whole of what is currently being explored, while at the same time, demonstrating to your readers that your work is original and innovative. Think about what questions other researchers have asked, what methodological approaches they have used, and what is your understanding of their findings and, when stated, their recommendations. Also pay attention to any suggestions for further research.

Since a literature review is information dense, it is crucial that this section is intelligently structured to enable a reader to grasp the key arguments underpinning your proposed study in relation to the arguments put forth by other researchers. A good strategy is to break the literature into "conceptual categories" [themes] rather than systematically or chronologically describing groups of materials one at a time. Note that conceptual categories generally reveal themselves after you have read most of the pertinent literature on your topic so adding new categories is an on-going process of discovery as you review more studies. How do you know you've covered the key conceptual categories underlying the research literature? Generally, you can have confidence that all of the significant conceptual categories have been identified if you start to see repetition in the conclusions or recommendations that are being made.

NOTE: Do not shy away from challenging the conclusions made in prior research as a basis for supporting the need for your proposal. Assess what you believe is missing and state how previous research has failed to adequately examine the issue that your study addresses. Highlighting the problematic conclusions strengthens your proposal. For more information on writing literature reviews, GO HERE .

To help frame your proposal's review of prior research, consider the "five C’s" of writing a literature review:

• Cite , so as to keep the primary focus on the literature pertinent to your research problem.
• Compare the various arguments, theories, methodologies, and findings expressed in the literature: what do the authors agree on? Who applies similar approaches to analyzing the research problem?
• Contrast the various arguments, themes, methodologies, approaches, and controversies expressed in the literature: describe what are the major areas of disagreement, controversy, or debate among scholars?
• Critique the literature: Which arguments are more persuasive, and why? Which approaches, findings, and methodologies seem most reliable, valid, or appropriate, and why? Pay attention to the verbs you use to describe what an author says/does [e.g., asserts, demonstrates, argues, etc.].
• Connect the literature to your own area of research and investigation: how does your own work draw upon, depart from, synthesize, or add a new perspective to what has been said in the literature?

IV.  Research Design and Methods

This section must be well-written and logically organized because you are not actually doing the research, yet, your reader must have confidence that you have a plan worth pursuing . The reader will never have a study outcome from which to evaluate whether your methodological choices were the correct ones. Thus, the objective here is to convince the reader that your overall research design and proposed methods of analysis will correctly address the problem and that the methods will provide the means to effectively interpret the potential results. Your design and methods should be unmistakably tied to the specific aims of your study.

Describe the overall research design by building upon and drawing examples from your review of the literature. Consider not only methods that other researchers have used, but methods of data gathering that have not been used but perhaps could be. Be specific about the methodological approaches you plan to undertake to obtain information, the techniques you would use to analyze the data, and the tests of external validity to which you commit yourself [i.e., the trustworthiness by which you can generalize from your study to other people, places, events, and/or periods of time].

When describing the methods you will use, be sure to cover the following:

• Specify the research process you will undertake and the way you will interpret the results obtained in relation to the research problem. Don't just describe what you intend to achieve from applying the methods you choose, but state how you will spend your time while applying these methods [e.g., coding text from interviews to find statements about the need to change school curriculum; running a regression to determine if there is a relationship between campaign advertising on social media sites and election outcomes in Europe ].
• Keep in mind that the methodology is not just a list of tasks; it is a deliberate argument as to why techniques for gathering information add up to the best way to investigate the research problem. This is an important point because the mere listing of tasks to be performed does not demonstrate that, collectively, they effectively address the research problem. Be sure you clearly explain this.
• Anticipate and acknowledge any potential barriers and pitfalls in carrying out your research design and explain how you plan to address them. No method applied to research in the social and behavioral sciences is perfect, so you need to describe where you believe challenges may exist in obtaining data or accessing information. It's always better to acknowledge this than to have it brought up by your professor!

V.  Preliminary Suppositions and Implications

Just because you don't have to actually conduct the study and analyze the results, doesn't mean you can skip talking about the analytical process and potential implications . The purpose of this section is to argue how and in what ways you believe your research will refine, revise, or extend existing knowledge in the subject area under investigation. Depending on the aims and objectives of your study, describe how the anticipated results will impact future scholarly research, theory, practice, forms of interventions, or policy making. Note that such discussions may have either substantive [a potential new policy], theoretical [a potential new understanding], or methodological [a potential new way of analyzing] significance.   When thinking about the potential implications of your study, ask the following questions:

• What might the results mean in regards to challenging the theoretical framework and underlying assumptions that support the study?
• What suggestions for subsequent research could arise from the potential outcomes of the study?
• What will the results mean to practitioners in the natural settings of their workplace, organization, or community?
• Will the results influence programs, methods, and/or forms of intervention?
• How might the results contribute to the solution of social, economic, or other types of problems?
• Will the results influence policy decisions?
• In what way do individuals or groups benefit should your study be pursued?
• What will be improved or changed as a result of the proposed research?
• How will the results of the study be implemented and what innovations or transformative insights could emerge from the process of implementation?

NOTE:   This section should not delve into idle speculation, opinion, or be formulated on the basis of unclear evidence . The purpose is to reflect upon gaps or understudied areas of the current literature and describe how your proposed research contributes to a new understanding of the research problem should the study be implemented as designed.

ANOTHER NOTE : This section is also where you describe any potential limitations to your proposed study. While it is impossible to highlight all potential limitations because the study has yet to be conducted, you still must tell the reader where and in what form impediments may arise and how you plan to address them.

VI.  Conclusion

The conclusion reiterates the importance or significance of your proposal and provides a brief summary of the entire study . This section should be only one or two paragraphs long, emphasizing why the research problem is worth investigating, why your research study is unique, and how it should advance existing knowledge.

Someone reading this section should come away with an understanding of:

• Why the study should be done;
• The specific purpose of the study and the research questions it attempts to answer;
• The decision for why the research design and methods used where chosen over other options;
• The potential implications emerging from your proposed study of the research problem; and
• A sense of how your study fits within the broader scholarship about the research problem.

VII.  Citations

As with any scholarly research paper, you must cite the sources you used . In a standard research proposal, this section can take two forms, so consult with your professor about which one is preferred.

• References -- a list of only the sources you actually used in creating your proposal.
• Bibliography -- a list of everything you used in creating your proposal, along with additional citations to any key sources relevant to understanding the research problem.

In either case, this section should testify to the fact that you did enough preparatory work to ensure the project will complement and not just duplicate the efforts of other researchers. It demonstrates to the reader that you have a thorough understanding of prior research on the topic.

Most proposal formats have you start a new page and use the heading "References" or "Bibliography" centered at the top of the page. Cited works should always use a standard format that follows the writing style advised by the discipline of your course [e.g., education=APA; history=Chicago] or that is preferred by your professor. This section normally does not count towards the total page length of your research proposal.

Develop a Research Proposal: Writing the Proposal. Office of Library Information Services. Baltimore County Public Schools; Heath, M. Teresa Pereira and Caroline Tynan. “Crafting a Research Proposal.” The Marketing Review 10 (Summer 2010): 147-168; Jones, Mark. “Writing a Research Proposal.” In MasterClass in Geography Education: Transforming Teaching and Learning . Graham Butt, editor. (New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2015), pp. 113-127; Juni, Muhamad Hanafiah. “Writing a Research Proposal.” International Journal of Public Health and Clinical Sciences 1 (September/October 2014): 229-240; Krathwohl, David R. How to Prepare a Dissertation Proposal: Suggestions for Students in Education and the Social and Behavioral Sciences . Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press, 2005; Procter, Margaret. The Academic Proposal. The Lab Report. University College Writing Centre. University of Toronto; Punch, Keith and Wayne McGowan. "Developing and Writing a Research Proposal." In From Postgraduate to Social Scientist: A Guide to Key Skills . Nigel Gilbert, ed. (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2006), 59-81; Wong, Paul T. P. How to Write a Research Proposal. International Network on Personal Meaning. Trinity Western University; Writing Academic Proposals: Conferences , Articles, and Books. The Writing Lab and The OWL. Purdue University; Writing a Research Proposal. University Library. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

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Examples of Successful Proposals from Berkeley

Are you thinking about applying for a LAUC research grant, but you aren’t sure what types of proposals are successful, or you’re wondering how recipients spend their grant funds? Take a look at these recent research projects from UC Berkeley that received funding. 

Ann Glusker, Celia Emmelhainz, Natalia Estrada, and Bonita Dyess*

Project abstract:

We propose to address a gap in our knowledge of librarian and library staff morale by obtaining answers to the questions of how a librarian or staff person’s place in their library’s hierarchy, combined with their personal career background and aspirations, affects their morale in the workplace.

We intend to do this by following the methodology used by Kaetrena Davis Kendrick in her seminal work “The Low Morale Experience of Academic Librarians: A Phenomenological Study” (2017). Adapting Kendrick’s methodology to instead focus on staff, we will use a purposive sample of academic library staff to conduct qualitative phone interviews nationally, and code the resulting transcripts using qualitative data analysis software, to extract themes and meaning which indicate factors that contribute to varying levels of staff morale. We anticipate that results from this pilot project will help us to improve staff morale at the UC Libraries, and can also be shared out in publications and presentations to assist organizational development at other academic libraries.

View the complete proposal

* At the time of application, co-author Natalia Estrada was not eligible to be listed as a grant applicant, as she was staff and not part of the librarian series. Bonita Dyess is a staff member.

Jeremy Ott, Mohamed Hamed, and Liladhar Pendse 

Revealing the Use of Library Collections in International and Area Studies Scholarship through Citation Analysis

We currently know very little about how scholars in International and Area Studies (IAS) departments use university library collections despite the potential of citation analysis to provide insight. Previous research employing citation analysis has focused on the top journals in general, non-IAS fields, and less frequently the publications of non-IAS academic departments, but with rare exceptions, the scholarship of IAS departments has not been investigated directly. The proposed study seeks to shed light on the use of library collections in the research of IAS scholars by analyzing the scholarly output of three UC Berkeley departments, the Department of German, the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures, and the Department of Near Eastern Studies, from 2013 to 2017. We will consider not only the publications of current faculty members but also the work produced by emeritus faculty and lecturers during the same interval. One student assistant will be assigned to assess a sample of approximately 2000 citations from each department and will be supervised by the librarian-investigator who is responsible for the collections of that department. Categories of assessment include aspects of the source publication, bibliographic data specific to the citation, language, and local library data such as the format of holdings, locations, and call numbers. Through our analysis of this evidence, we hope to significantly increase our knowledge not only of how local collections are used, but more broadly the kinds of materials and the extent of interdisciplinarity that define each IAS department and characterize IAS research across fields.

Virginia Shih 

CORMOSEA (Committee on Research Materials on Southeast Asia): Reflections, Challenges, and Opportunities

Expected Length of Project: July 1, 2020 – June 30, 2021

Email address: [email protected]

Project Abstract:

The Committee on Research Materials on Southeast Asia (CORMOSEA) was founded in 1969 by the late Professor Fred W. Riggs at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa as a national committee under the auspices of the Southeast Asia Council of the Association for Asian Studies (AAS).

CORMOSEA is the professional organization for Southeast Asia librarians in the US to work together in curating scholarly content, and in cataloging, preserving, and delivering information to the Southeast Asia academic community at anytime from anywhere in the world. In June 2019, CORMOSEA received a 5-year grant of $1.2 million from the Henry Luce Foundation to create a digital, open-access Southeast Asia Library. The purpose of this research is to examine the corpus of AAS records (1947-1988) held in the Bentley Historical Library in Ann Arbor, Michigan, which includes a significant amount of CORMOSEA archive and relevant Southeast Asian studies files.

This research is expected to shed new light on the founding history of CORMOSEA, as well as the leadership decisions of pioneering faculty and librarians in spearheading viable national and international projects for Southeast Asia scholarship and curatorship in the US during the early years of

CORMOSEA’s history.

This research will be published as a paper tentatively titled CORMOSEA: Reflections, Challenges, and Opportunities as part of an effort to preserve CORMOSEA’s intellectual legacy. It will also serve as an invaluable, insightful, and impactful research reference source for training the next generation of US Southeast Asia librarians.

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Sample Proposal Library

The Office of Sponsored Programs and Research Development has compiled a library of successful proposals submitted by Cornell faculty members to external sponsors. These proposals are available to Cornell faculty members to provide insight and ideas for successful proposal writing.

We also recommend speaking to colleagues who have had success with specific programs.

• The sponsors for which we have sample proposals are listed below.
• Click the sponsor name to view the list of proposals for that sponsor.

Go to DOD Proposals   -  Go to NIH Proposals   -  Go to NSF Proposals   -  Go to Foundation Proposals

If you have suggestions for additional sponsors or programs to include in the library, or if you would like to donate a proposal, please contact Research Development .

To request access to a proposal

Email  Research Development  stating your name, NetID, and the proposal you would like to access. Once access is granted our staff will email you a link to the proposal.

Proposal access is limited to full-time members of the Cornell faculty with the following titles:

• Associate Professor
• Assistant Professor
• University Professor
• Senior Scientist
• Senior Scholar
• Research Scientist
• Principal Research Scientist

Federal Sponsors

Many of the proposals in this library may have utilized now outdated or specific programmatic guidelines. You should always refer to the current program related guidelines when writing your proposal.

Department of Defense (DOD)

Sample proposals awarded in recent years from DoD are listed below, organized by the office from which they were awarded.

Air Force Office of Scientific Research

• Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) 
• Standard AFOSR Grants
• Young Investigator Research Program

Army Research Office

• Standard ARO Grants

Office of Naval Research

• Standard ONR Grants
• Young Investigator Program

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Sample proposals awarded in recent years from NIH are listed below, organized by award type. Although every effort has been made to use only standard NIH proposals in the Sample Proposal Library, some proposals may contain elements that respond to a specific Request for Applications announcement. (NIH current  How to Apply - Application Guide .)

Career Awards

Program:  

• Pathway to Independence Award (Parent K99/R00)

Director's Awards

• Director's Pioneer Award (DP1) 
• Director's New Innovator Award (DP2)

Research Awards

• National Human Genome Research Institute (Parent R01, Renewal) 
• National Institute on Aging (Parent R01)
• National Institute on Aging (Parent R21)
• National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (Parent R01)
• National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (Parent R01)
• National Institute on Drug Abuse (Parent R01)
• National Institute of General Medical Sciences Maximizing Investigators' Research Award (MIRA) (R35) Early Investigators award
• National Institute of General Medical Sciences (Parent R01, Renewal)
• National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (Parent R01)

Training/Fellowship Awards

• Ruth L. Kirschstein Individual Postdoctoral Fellowship (Parent F32)
• Ruth L. Kirschstein Individual Predoctoral Fellowship (Parent F31): 

*Coming Soon*

National Science Foundation (NSF)

Sample proposals awarded in recent years from NSF are listed below, organized by Directorate and division. Although every effort has been made to use only standard NSF proposals in the Sample Proposal Library, some proposals may contain elements that respond to a specific solicitation or may have been written and awarded prior to the most recent set of guidelines issued by NSF. (Current NSF  Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide )

CAREER Awards

Division:  

• Chemistry (CHE)
• Division of Materials Research (DMR)
• Integrative Organismal Systems (IOS)
• Social and Economic Sciences (SES)

Computer & Information Science & Engineering (CISE)

• Computing and Communication Foundations (CCF)
• Computer and Network Systems (CNS)

Engineering (ENG)

• Chemical, Bioengineering, Environmental, and Transport Systems (CBET)
• Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems (ECCS)

Geosciences (GEO)

• Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences (AGS)
• Earth Sciences (EAR)
• Ocean Sciences (OCE)

Major Research Instrumentation (MRI)

• Division of Chemistry (CHE)

Mathematical & Physical Sciences (MPS)

• Astronomical Sciences (AST)
• Materials Research (DMR)
• Mathematical Sciences (DMS)

Partnerships for Innovation (PFI)

• Accelerating Innovation Research (AIR)

Social, Behavioral & Economic Sciences (SBE)

• Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences (BCS)
• National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES)

Non-Federal Sponsors

As with Federal Sponsors, you should always refer to the current program related guidelines when writing your proposal.

Foundations

Sample proposals awarded from several Foundations are listed below in alphabetical order. These proposals may have been written using older, outdated guidelines.

• Beckman Foundation
• Burroughs Wellcome Fund
• Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation
• Esther A. and Joseph Klingenstein Fund
• Helen Hay Whitney Foundation
• Packard Foundation
• Pew Charitable Trusts
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
• Russell Sage Foundation

Pre-Award Research Operations (PRO)

Additional things to consider when preparing a proposal, find my gco (grant & contract officer), proposal review guidelines, limited submissions funding opportunities, pi eligibility, institutional profile, duns, and uei numbers, rass (form 10 is phased out), nfa (non-financial agreements).

Research Proposal Writing for Fine Arts and Music

Where to start, phase 1- go deep, phase 2- give yourself some structure, phase 3- writing your research question, phase 4- finalising your research question, research methodologies, key research texts.

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Your creative project is well underway and now it is time to research and write about it. But how do you turn your ideas into a  research question?

Use the tabs on this page to work through  Phases 1, 2, 3 and 4 . These may help you identify themes and questions you would like to explore in your project, and how to turn these into successful library search strategies.

The library also has many resources available to help you learn more about Practice-Based Research and other research methodologies. There are links to these in the  Research Methodologies  and  Key Research Texts  tabs.

1) Reflect on your current creative project. Write down your motivations and aims for creating the project. Write down any significant discoveries you have made along the way. 

2) Ask yourself, have there been any issues arising from the project that I could research? These issues may be based around the concept, themes or technical aspects of your work or a combination of these. 

3) If you are struggling to identify any issues, talk with peers who know your work and ask them for feedback. Explain to them your motivations, aims and discoveries. Ask them if your work effectively achieves what you set out to do. Write down any issues related to your work that come from this discussion. 

4) Based on the issues you and your peers have identified, select one or two issues that are the most interesting and important for you. These issues will form the basis of your research question. 

1) Using the 1 or 2 issues you have identified, you can narrow the focus of your research question. Here are a few questions to ask:

• Time period (Is my work related to a specific period?)
• Person (Is my work related to a specific director, composer, choreographer, performer or writer?)
• Technical tool (Does my work use any particular technique?)
• Social or political issue (Does my work address a social issue such as war, disease, love, race or sexuality?)
• Contemporary issue (Does my work explore an issue in contemporary music theatre? Eg. music, writing, performance venues, lyrics, acting or dancing)
• What kind of role does my creative project have in the broader context of contemporary music theatre?

2) Make a list of responses to these questions. Select which responses are most interesting and relevant to your creative project.

You will now have a narrower idea for your research question.

1) Play around with your research question. Write it down as a question or statement in a number of different ways. Try to get to at least ten different statements, but no pressure! Not all of them will be good. You might:

• Change around the phrasing of the issue
• Change your original words for synonyms
• Say the question out loud
• Explain it to one of your peers and write down your explanation.

2) Highlight the questions that seem clearest to you. 

3) Forget about your question or topic for 24 hours. Instead, reflect on your creative project, watch some documentation or perform part of the project.

4) Return to your list of questions with fresh eyes. Make a list of the best three questions/topic sentences. If you have already identified that one question is the best one for you, stick with that one. 

1) For each question, spend 10 minutes searching  Discovery . Use an  Information Search Planner  to help you search effectively (download one from the link below). 

2) Assess the results of your searches as you go and use these results to help you choose one of your three questions. Ask yourself:

• Is there a lot of information available on this topic?
• Has my question already been answered?
• Who is writing about the topic of my question?
• Which of my searches is finding results that are the most interesting and relevant to my creative project?

3) By answering the questions above, you will be able to select a suitable question.  If not, reassess your question and repeat Phase 2 onwards. Alternatively, you may wish to discuss your question with your lecturer or supervisor.

REMEMBER:  Your question will change over time. When you are making work and researching, your ideas will change and your question can too!

The Library collections offer many resources on research methods. Doing a simple keyword search in the  Library Catalogue  will give you a list of many. You can use the keywords below as a starting point:

• Practice-led research
• Practice based research
• Research-led practice
• Artistic research

You can also  modify your search  to limit it to resources held at Southbank Library, or to our Online Resources if you're interested in an ebook.

Subject Headings in the Catalogue

The links below will launch a search in the library catalogue for specific subject headings:

Arts -- Research

Qualitative Research

Quantitative Research

Mixed Methods Research

Research Method

SAGE Research Methods

SAGE Research Methods is a research tool to help you design your research project.  Search by keywords or use the visual interface in the  Methods Map . Its main focus is research in the social sciences.

• SAGE Research Methods SAGE Research Methods is a research methods tool which links SAGE’s renowned book, journal and reference content with truly advanced search and discovery tools. Researchers can explore methods concepts to help them design research projects, understand particular methods or identify a new method, conduct their research, and write up their findings. SAGE Research Methods Cases is a collection of case studies of real social research that faculty can use in their teaching. Cases are original, specially commissioned, and designed to help students understand often abstract methodological concepts by introducing them to case studies of real research projects.

• Next: Graduate Research >>
• Last Updated: May 10, 2024 9:50 AM
• URL: https://unimelb.libguides.com/proposalwritingcreativearts

Research Proposal Example/Sample

Detailed Walkthrough + Free Proposal Template

If you’re getting started crafting your research proposal and are looking for a few examples of research proposals , you’ve come to the right place.

In this video, we walk you through two successful (approved) research proposals , one for a Master’s-level project, and one for a PhD-level dissertation. We also start off by unpacking our free research proposal template and discussing the four core sections of a research proposal, so that you have a clear understanding of the basics before diving into the actual proposals.

• Research proposal example/sample – Master’s-level (PDF/Word)
• Research proposal example/sample – PhD-level (PDF/Word)
• Proposal template (Fully editable) 

If you’re working on a research proposal for a dissertation or thesis, you may also find the following useful:

• Research Proposal Bootcamp : Learn how to write a research proposal as efficiently and effectively as possible
• 1:1 Proposal Coaching : Get hands-on help with your research proposal

PS – If you’re working on a dissertation, be sure to also check out our collection of dissertation and thesis examples here .

FAQ: Research Proposal Example

Research proposal example: frequently asked questions, are the sample proposals real.

Yes. The proposals are real and were approved by the respective universities.

Can I copy one of these proposals for my own research?

As we discuss in the video, every research proposal will be slightly different, depending on the university’s unique requirements, as well as the nature of the research itself. Therefore, you’ll need to tailor your research proposal to suit your specific context.

You can learn more about the basics of writing a research proposal here .

How do I get the research proposal template?

You can access our free proposal template here .

Is the proposal template really free?

Yes. There is no cost for the proposal template and you are free to use it as a foundation for your research proposal.

Where can I learn more about proposal writing?

For self-directed learners, our Research Proposal Bootcamp is a great starting point.

For students that want hands-on guidance, our private coaching service is recommended.

Psst… there’s more!

This post is an extract from our bestselling short course, Research Proposal Bootcamp . If you want to work smart, you don't want to miss this .

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A Guide to Research Proposals

• What is a research proposal?
• Searching for journal articles
• Glossary of Research

Contact info

The Story of Research 

If you have ever read a news article online where it included the phrase "In a recent study..." you got a small glimpse of a parallel world. Out in this world, scholars and scientists are putting the scientific method to good use. Unless you know to look for it, you wouldn't know it was there.

Think about where you get your information on a daily basis. It's probably the internet, tv, social media, and from your friends and family. There are other sources of information that you might have never encountered (directly) before coming to SHU. As you enter college, you meet your professors who are here to teach you, yes, but they have other responsibilities too. Outside of their teaching duties, your professors must continue their research which means publishing articles in peer-reviewed journals, chapters in books, or even entire books.

Before diving into a research project, scholars (including your professors) often have to write research proposals. Even experts need to prove that their research is important and valuable. Research proposals are required when applying for grant money from different organizations, so scholars need to make a good argument that proves their project deserves to be funded. Sometimes there is fierce competition for limited funds. Even a good research project (because, let's be honest, some are bad) needs a good research proposal to help it be completed.   

Your Research Proposal

You might be thinking to yourself, "I am not applying for a grant, why is my professor making me do a research proposal?"

A research proposal is a great way to introduce you to research without making you write a long research paper (sounds nice, no?). It is preparing you for future classes where you might have to write a paper whether you research the same topic or not. If you do research the same topic, a research proposal gives you a huge head start because you end up having done a lot of prep work for the final project. This makes the entire process less stressful for you. If you don't use the same topic, you still have a better idea of how the process works for a new research project.

Research proposals force you to think about why the topic matters, not just to yourself, but to a wider audience. You get to learn about the scholarly conversation already going on and how you might be able to contribute to it with your own research.

Picking a Topic

The first thing you need to do is figure out what you want to research. This is probably going to be the hardest part.

Where do you even start?

You'll be spending some time on this project and you don't want to get bored by it. There are a few places to look when you are stuck on finding an interesting research topic. 

• Your professor probably left some suggestions for you in the syllabus or on the handout for the assignment.
• Are there any examples from class that have stuck with you? Or from another one of your classes?
• Have you read anything in the news, seen something on tv or on social media that seemed like something you wanted to research?

Other things to think about when choosing a topic...

• There is such a thing as being too broad and too specific about a topic. If you are finding too many sources and are getting overwhelmed by the options, you need to narrow it down. If you are not finding anything about it, it is too specific and you need to take a step back.
• If you are having an emotional (anger, happiness) response to a particular topic, ask yourself why. You can still research the topic, but be conscious of your strong reactions and/or opinion. You might be inadvertently only looking at the side of the issue with which you agree.  
• Picking a topic
• Handout: Developing a research Question Worksheet for to help develop a more specific research question from a broad topic. Uses the "4 W" questions: Who, What, Where, When

Writing an Abstract

An Abstract is a concise summary of a research paper or article. It is a 150-250 word paragraph that provides a quick overview of your work and explains how it is organized. It should express your thesis or main idea and your key points. It should also suggest any implications of the research you discuss. 

An abstract describes the work. 

It begins with a brief statement of the research problem or question, followed by a description of the research method and design.

Anatomy of a Research Proposal

Below are three main sections you should have in a Research Proposal.

NOTE: Always refer to the assignment prompt from your class or syllabus. Your professor likely has specified a few things that you need to include in your Research Proposal. 

Introduction

• What is your question? Provide a clear description of the question or problem. Explain the purpose of the research. Why is the issue important and to whom? Is there a specific audience that will want or need to know your findings?

Literature Review/Background information

• A literature review is where you discuss what other people have written about the topic (or a similar one). This means you need to find that research and read it and then be able to explain it briefly.
• You are also looking for something that they are missing/already know that they are missing. You are trying to fill that gap with the research you are proposing.
• The number of articles depends on the assignment your professor gave you. In a situation where you are applying for funding, you would want to find as much research as possible to have a complete literature review. For a class assignment, you might not need to find everything ever written. Double-check the assignment. You want to find the most relevant and most recent literature on the subject to help you with your proposal.

Methodology/Investigatory Procedures

• What methods will you use? Qualitative, quantitative, mixed-methods? You have been learning about the different methods for research throughout the semester, so it is up to you to decide which is best for your topic. For an overview of the methods, and definitions for other terms, see the Glossary of Research .

Research Proposal Length

Again, this depends on your professor. It can be as short as 4 pages or as long as 20. 

This always depends on the subject you are studying. In the Social Sciences, you will probably need to use APA or Chicago Style (Author-Date). 

• Audiovisual/Digital Sources

Here are some examples of research proposals to give you a little inspiration. Just consider the examples and follow format on above.

• Research Proposal Example From University of Waterloo in Canada. Example Research Proposal on environmental policy in Canada and US.
• A Sample Proposal with Comments This research proposal is not political science related, but has some good questions in the comments section that may help you think through your own research proposal.
• Social Sciences Example 1 Example of research proposal in the social sciences.
• Social Sciences Example 2 Example research proposal in the social sciences: Racial and Ethnic minorities
• Social Sciences Example 3 Example Research Proposal in the Social Sciences: Gangs and Criminal Organizations

For more information about research proposal writing, read through the book Research Proposals: A practical Guide. Click on the link below to access the eBook.

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• Last Updated: Jun 7, 2023 3:54 PM
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What is a research proposal

What is a research proposal?

A research proposal is a document that outlines the approach a researcher will take in order to find a solution to a specific problem .  In other words, a research proposal is a summary of what you want to research, why you want to research the problem, as well as how you think the problem will be solved. The research proposal usually justifies the need for the study while presenting already existing literature and information on your topic.  Students and researchers need the research proposal to apply for either sponsorship or approval to embark on the proposed study. 

Useful information

If you wish to contact the Library or have a question, visit our  Ask a Librarian  page.

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Useful links

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The function of a research proposal

The main function of a proposal is to convice the reader that your proposed study is essential and relevant to your field of study.  It is meant to show the focus of your research as well as the methods to be used to achieve the study's objectives .It is important, therefore, that you read widely on your topic to get familiar with the previous research that has been done to be able to refine your project and indicate its relevance and value to existing research.

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RESEARCH proposal in Library and information studies

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Library & Information Science Research Proposal

Introduction, contribution to lis field, significance of lis study, references list.

Over the years, librarians have chosen to view library patrons through a prism of collections they have as opposed viewing collections through the patron’s eyes. To ensure this is done, it is imperative that librarians devise effective strategies to achieve these objectives (Glass & Holyoak, 1986, p. 23). One of the strategies that librarians should consider prioritizing on is in search for literature (Morgan, 1995, p. 15).

Librarian’s main duty is pegged on helping patrons to search for whatever information they want. In circumstances where patrons are conducting research on decision-making, literature search is a requisite in defining research problem as it transforms problems into research designs (Morgan, 1995 p. 15).

Literature search enhances a patron’s awareness about similar problems, which are potentially useful as well as types of analyses techniques available that would make data useful (Morgan, 1995, p. 22). By using the strategy of literature search first, librarians engage in searching and evaluation of results by titles, abstracts, or scanning of texts (Morgan, 1995, p. 45).

This helps in formation of a conceptual framework of the topic thereby making librarians see their collections in the eyes of patrons (Zweizig, Johnson, Robbins & Besant, 1996, p. 55). Through literature search, patrons get to report on similar projects that reveal weaknesses that can be avoided (Morgan, 1995, p. 26).

The patrons also get to report on projects that provide useful data for comparison. Literature search done by librarians also enables patrons to consider replicating or building on published reports. This is very important in setting benchmarks in strategic plans. Other than using printed sources, librarians can use CD-ROM (Trudi & Newkirk, 1996, p. 70) and other online databases in their literature searches.

The Web can also be used in literature searches because many institutions, associations and government agencies share a great deal of information on their websites. Literature search can also be diversified to capture other related disciplines that can help shed light on useful methods and design perspectives for similar problems.

In ensuring that librarians see their collections in the eyes of their patrons, it is imperative that literature search process integrates aspects of preliminary search and retrieval of potentially useful material. In addition, they should not only search but also engage in detailed review of documents to determine their usefulness. It is also imperative that librarians make notes of possible search terms and terms that should be included in the search strategy.

Librarians can also participate in online discussion groups as a strategy for ensuring that they look at their collections in the eyes of their patrons. In this respect, the internet helps librarians to study and solve problems cooperatively. Online discussion forums like Listservs and news groups can be very resourceful to professionals. These have ensured that librarians get to share information regardless of the distance and time that separates them.

Moreover, they can easily seek advice and opinion within their profession from colleagues who gladly offer solutions to issues raised. This puts librarians in better positions relative to their peers who previously suffered similar predicaments. A major advantage of professional online discussions lists is that it maintains web archives of all the postings. These archives serve as sources of information that can be used in solving problems that librarians work on.

Moreover, they act as a service to the profession. For gainful use of these forums, librarians have to join relevant online discussion lists, listen to them for a while, search their archives, gather important information and finally ask questions. Through this, librarians would have several exchanges on the topic.

This is a very important step in ensuring that librarians see their collections through the eyes of their patrons. Furthermore, it ensures that their library experience becomes fruitful. This enhances patron’s experience if the knowledge gained from online discussion forums are used in improving service delivery.

Other strategies include articulation of research information needs where open questions are used to help patrons think systematically about different aspects of project topics. These include topics like what they want to accomplish with the project, what they know about the topic, what they need to know about the topic, and how the information would be useful (Neuman, 2012, p. 15).

Other strategies include collaboration, looking for existing data, engaging in review, revision, and replication. Here, systematic observations are used in place of informal observations (Neuman, 2012, p. 39).

The study of this topic is important to library because it makes librarians to begin thinking in terms of solving problems that patrons encounter (Koenig & Weller, 1998, p.40). This they do by engaging in online discussion forums where they freely interact regardless of differences in distance and time (McDonald & Basney-Micikas, 1994, p. 10).

Professionals who engage in online discussion forums maintain web archives that act as source of information about problems that librarians work on. They also act as useful referrals to resources that are indispensible in improving services that libraries offer to their patrons (Nahl-Jakobovits & Lakobovits, 1987, p.165).

When librarians join online discussion forums in a bid to ensure that they see their collections through the eyes of their patrons, they gather pertinent information that can be used in improving services that the library offers (Nahl-Jakobovits & Lakobovits, 1987, p. 165).

Consequently, studies on this topic are also important in the field of LIS. Instructors can work with librarians to create information literacy components as undergraduates work with graduate LIS students on a project in their course. In this respect, they get to ventilate issues pertaining to information literacy, computer literacy, and librarian-instructor cooperation (Neuman, 2012, p. 65). These are the pillars of concept analysis.

Information literacy integrates aspects of user literacy, library literacy and information technology skills. Computer literacy involves web tutorials, web/internet skills and technology literacy. Librarian-instructor cooperation captures much of course-oriented instruction, course-integrated instruction and teacher involvement.

It is intriguing that library staffs, in spite of their frequent engagements with patrons, do not actually understand them. It is thought provoking that librarians still view their patrons through the prism of material that the libraries stock (Applegate, 1993, p.527).

I have decided to study this topic professionally to compel library managers to contemplate a stop on looking their patrons through the prism of their collections. Instead, they should create a scenario where library service delivery draws from experiences of needs and expectations of patrons (Neuman, 2012, p. 10). I have also decided to conduct this professional study to emphasize on the need for devising strategies that take cognizance of the view of patrons. This, if adopted would enhance patron satisfaction (Cullen, 2001, p.663).

What I know

Libraries normally make use of strategies that view patrons through the prism of collections they have.

What I need to know

In trying to come up with strategies that librarians can use to improve patron’s library experience, it is imperative that these strategies be tailored to respond to different service needs and expectations of patrons (Neuman, 2012, p. 28).

Key concepts, terms and vocabulary utilized

Key concepts that I encountered in the process of working on this proposal worksheet were user literacy, library literacy and information technology skills. Other terminologies encountered were research information needs, online discussion groups, online databases, and CD-ROM (Trudi & Newkirk, 1996, p. 11).

Further reading and research sources

I checked for most information from the websites and journals. The websites are as named below.

Citations/URLs

Some of the links that were resourceful to me included www.ala.org/aasl (Habley, 2012, par. 1), www.ala.org/acrl (About ACRL, 2012, par. 1) and www.arl.org/stats/ (Statistics Assignments, 2012, par. 1).

Difficulties

It is also important to note that literature ventilates strategies that librarians can use to improve experience of patrons in the library. However, this is in scarce. This forces researchers to do a lot of reading and relate whatever has been read into the topic under study. Some journals that have valuable information cannot be used because of subscription requisites. This makes search for existing data a complete nightmare to persons conducts these studies.

In the recent past, librarians have chosen to view library patrons via a prism of collections they have instead of seeing collections through them. This has led to lower efficacies in productivity. However, this trend is about to change with the introduction of new strategies aimed at improving their views and understanding of LIS.

Several issues have been found to affect LIS. These include librarians’ angle of view and search for literature, among others. Other issues that directly affect completion of this project touch on financial support, access to articles, reports and publications. For instance, availability of resources relies heavily on funds. This, among others. Issues, needs to be addressed.

About ACRL . (2012). Retrieved from: www.ala.org/acrl

Applegate, R. (1993). Models of User Satisfaction: Understanding False Positives. RQ, 32 (4), 525-539.

Cullen, R. (2001). Perspectives on User Satisfaction Surveys. Library Trends , 49 (4), 662-686.

Glass, A.L., & Holyoak, K.J. (1986). Problem Solving and Creativity . New York: Random House.

Habley, J. (2012). Tekeuchi to speak on how families matter in the digital age . Retrieved from: www.ala.org/aasl

Koenig, H., & Weller, A.C. (1998). Using Transaction Log Analysis to Improve OPAC Retrieval Results. College & Research Libraries, 59(I), 39-50.

McDonald, J. A., & Basney-Micikas, L. (1994). Academic Libraries: The Dimensions Of their Effectiveness. Westport, C.N: Greenwood.

Morgan, S. (1995). Performance Assessment in Academic Libraries. New York: Mansell.

Nahl-Jakobovits, D., & Lakobovits, L. (1987). Teaching the Analysis of Titles: Dependent and Independent Variables in Research Articles. Research Strategies, 5(4), 164-171.

Neuman, W. L. (2012). Basics of social research: Qualitative and quantitative approaches . 3rd ed. Boston: Pearson: Prentice Hall.

Statistics Assignments . (2012). Retrieved from: www.arl.org/stats/

Trudi, E.J., & Newkirk, J.G. (1996). The Effect of CD-ROM Instruction on Search Operator Use. College & Research Libraries, 57(1), 68-76.

Zweizig, D., Johnson, D.W., Robbins, J., & Besant, M. (1996). The Tell It! Manual: The Complete Program for Evaluating Library Performance. Chicago: American Library Association.

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IvyPanda. (2024, April 23). Library & Information Science Research. https://ivypanda.com/essays/library-information-science-research-proposal-worksheet-proposal/

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WCER Sample Proposal Library (SamPL)

WCER maintains a library of funded proposals submitted by our UW investigators to federal and foundation grantmakers. These proposals are available to current faculty, staff, and students in the UW–Madison School of Education as examples of successful grant writing. The investigators who donate their proposals for this library are helping WCER live into its values of continuous improvement, innovation, and excellence. To share a proposal, please contact the WCER Editing Team .

The sponsors for which we have sample proposals are listed below.

To request access to a proposal

Email WCER Editing Team stating your name, affiliation with UW–Madison School of Education, and the proposal you would like to access. Once access is granted, our staff will email you a link to the proposal.

Federal Sponsors

Some of the proposals in SamPL may use outdated programmatic guidelines or guidelines specific to a particular topic or funding year. Always refer to the current program-related guidelines when writing your proposal.

U.S. Department of Education (DoED)

• 2015 (Good). Javits Gifted & Talented Students Program; $2.1M

Institute of Education Sciences (IES)

• 2015 (Christensen). Enhanced Assessment Grant 84.368A. Advancing ALTELLA; $1M
• 2018 (Asmus). Empirical analysis of problem-solving teams to improve team functioning and student outcomes; $361K
• 2019 (Christensen). Enhanced Assessment Grant 84.368A. Advancing ALTELLA; $4M
• 2019 (Wilkerson). Addressing emergency certification in rural education settings (Project ACRES) [resubmission, incl. response to reviewers]; $1.4M
• 2020 (Kaplan). Bayesian dynamic borrowing: A method for utilizing historical data in education research; $802K
• 2021 (Nguyen). English Acquisition State Grant 84.365. Rural educators self-reflecting and practicing equity-centered teaching with English learners; $2.7M
• 2021 (Kaplan). Bayesian probabilistic forecasting with international large-scale assessment [resubmission, incl. response to reviewers]; $897K

National Science Foundation (NSF)

Sample proposals awarded from NSF are listed below. When writing your proposal, please always consult the most current NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide .

• 2014 (Wang). Factors influencing transfer in STEM fields from two-year to four-year institutions; $1.4M
• 2015 (Vlach). ECR / The role of timing in children’s science learning; $530K
• 2016 (Wang). Preparing faculty toward math contextualization for student success in advanced technological education; $800K
• 2017 (Shaffer). AISL / Local environmental modeling: A toolkit for incorporating place-based learning into virtual internships - A scalable, informal STEM learning environment; $2M
• 2018 (Matthews). Cultivating knowledge of mathematical equivalence; $671K
• 2019 (Rau). Support for individual and collaborative learning of internal visualization skills for complex engineering concepts in active learning classes; $300K
• 2020 (Shaffer). ECR / nCoder+ - A tool for subgroup-fair coding of STEM learning data at scale; $2.5M
• 2021 (Wolfgram). Racial Equity in STEM / Longitudinal mixed-methods study of the STEM experiences of Hmong American college students; $2.2M
• 2022 (Eagan). ECR: BCSER / Building capacity for equitable research on STEM learning processes using quantitative ethnography; $1M

National Endowment for the Arts (NEA)

• 2020 (Lashley). UW Community Arts Collaboratory Research Lab; $146K

Non-Federal Sponsors (Foundations)

Sample proposals awarded from several foundations are listed below in alphabetical order. These proposals may have been written using older, outdated guidelines. Always refer to the current program-related guidelines when writing your proposal.

Futures Forum on Learning

• 2021 (Wright). Learning Engineering Tools Competition / Scaffolding students’ experience with assessment results; $250K

Spencer Foundation

• 2021 (Bal). Implementation and sustainability of a culturally responsive behavioral support system to address the racialization of school discipline; $50K

Wallace Foundation

• 2021 (Halverson, R.) A CALL for equity-centered leadership; $8M

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WCER SamPL: Collection of funded research proposals submitted by our UW investigators.

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Proposal library - Samples of successful grant proposals and project overviews

Research & Proposal Development Services maintains a library of recent successful grant proposals and project overviews written by University of Nevada, Reno faculty. This library has been created to support our faculty in their grant writing and has been made possible by recent award recipients who have generously agreed to share their work. These proposals are available for viewing only, and only to full-time University of Nevada, Reno faculty members.

If you are interested in viewing a successful sample from any of the funding programs listed below, please submit a request, and our office will contact you to discuss the loan.

Request a proposal or project overview

Currently the library includes samples for these funding programs:

• American Council for Learned Societies – Fellowship
• American Political Science Association – Centennial Center Grant
• Department of Defense – Office of Naval Research
• Department of Energy – Office of Fusion Energy Sciences
• Fulbright U.S. Scholar
• Mountain West CTR-IN – Pilot Grant
• National Aeronautics and Space Administration
• National Endowment for the Humanities – Fellowship
• National Endowment for the Humanities – Public Scholars
• National Endowment for the Humanities – Summer Stipend
• National Institutes of Health – COBRE Phase I – overviews and Cores
• National Institutes of Health – K01
• National Institutes of Health – R01
• National Institutes of Health – R03
• National Institutes of Health – R21
• National Institutes of Health – R35
• National Science Foundation – CAREER award
• National Science Foundation – EPSCoR Track 4 Fellowship
• National Science Foundation – Major Research Instrumentation
• Sloan Foundation – Fellowship

Project overviews

Request a sample overview, or contact us to discuss best practices in writing overviews and white papers.

• Department of Defense – Executive summary (Office of Naval Research)
• Department of Energy – Office of Science preproposal
• Fulbright Scholar Program – Overview
• National Institutes of Health – Specific aims
• National Science Foundation – CAREER proposal overview
• National Science Foundation – Core proposal overview
• United State Department of Agriculture – Logic model
• M. Keck Foundation – Concept paper

Successful sample proposals are also available on the following websites: NIH - National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and the National Endowment for the Humanities . We caution our faculty about proposals available at websites like Jabberwocky and Open Grants – these sites contain both funded and unfunded proposals, often out of date.

Request a sample proposal or other service

Library Research Paper: Example & Writing Guide [2024]

What is a library research paper? It’s nothing more than an academic writing project that summarizes the information on a specific topic taken from primary and secondary sources.

Our specialists will write a custom essay specially for you!

There are numerous library research examples you can find online. But to complete this assignment, you should simply follow these essential steps:

• Find relevant sources.
• Collect the necessary data from them.
• Synthesize all the information.
• Form the main points to present in the paper.
• Find evidence to support every claim.

Just as with essay writing, creating a library research paper is full of challenges and obstacles. You can overcome them without a struggle if you check the tips gathered by our team . Stay on our page and find library research paper examples, outlines, and useful guidelines.

• 📚 Introduction
• 📝 The Main Body
• 🗞️ Conclusion

📓 Bibliography

🔗 references, 📃 library research paper: choosing the title.

Just like any other academic work, a library research paper should start with a compelling title. Don’t worry if you don’t know how to create one. You’ll find it out in this section!

The compelling title should fit the following criteria:

• reflects the core topic of the research paper;
• contains up to 15 words;
• identifies the purpose of research;
• grabs the readers’ attention;
• doesn’t include unknown abbreviations, too complex lexical and grammar constructions;
• clear, concise, mistakes-free.

Library Research Title Examples

Here are some examples of library research paper titles:

Just in 1 hour! We will write you a plagiarism-free paper in hardly more than 1 hour

• American Female Artists in the Nineteenth and Twenty-First Centuries Overview
• The Influence of Different Types of Advertising on Children and Adults
• The Impact of Rapid Digitalization on Modern Art and Music
• The Role of Community Library in Civic Involvement
• Leadership Elements of the California State Library
• Unique Aspects of Running a Business in South Africa.
• The Crucial Role of Ethics in Medical Research on Humans
• How to Reduce the Rates of Injuries and Deaths Among Childhood Pedestrians
• The Importance of Qualitative Research in Healthcare Practice
• Small and Medium Businesses in South Africa
• Advantages and Disadvantages of Computerization of Medicine
• Benefits of Computer Technology for Criminal Investigations
• The Study of the Roman Road System and Its Importance
• Overview of the Homelessness Issue and the Ways to Eliminate It
• The Definition and Role of Action Research in Healthcare
• The Causes of Cultural Shifts in the United States in the Twentieth Century
• The Importance of Library Services for Community Building
• Comparison of Qualitative and Quantitative Research Efficacy in Healthcare
• The Emergence and Development of British Abolitionism
• The Effect of Current Laws on the Wellbeing of Indigenous People.
• The Peculiarities of Cross-Cultural Negotiations and Conflict Mitigation
• Analysis of Social Rights in the United States in the Early Nineteenth Century
• The Impact of Psychopathy Research on the Western Criminal Justice System
• Overview of Causes That Led to Airline Industry Crises
• The Effect of Confounding Variables on the Results of the Research
• Examination of the Nature and Possible Issues of Qualitative Research
• The Positive and Negative Impact of Culturally Diverse Team on Project Success
• The Peculiarities and Challenges of Product Launch Strategy
• What Inspires Scientists to Conduct Their Research?
• The Analysis of Food Service in Hospital
• Analysis of the Most Effective Leadership Models
• The Nature of Groupthink and Its Impact on Problem-Solving
• Stereotypes and Prejudices in Perception of Japan
• The Cause of Juvenile Delinquency and the Ways to Prevent It
• The Origin and Development of Video Games
• The Workplace Challenges of Transgender Employees
• Work-Life Balance and Its Impact on Employee Performance
• How to Find Knowledge in the Digital Library Haystack
• Nelson Mandela , His Leadership Style, and Contribution to South Africa’s Development
• The Significance of New Cybersecurity Solutions for the World’s Safety
• The Impact of Domestic Animals on Human Mental Health
• Is It Necessary to Reform Campaign Financing System?
• Criminal Mythology and Its Influence on Society
• The Distinctive Aspects of Various Types of Business Structures
• Benefits of Information Technology Infrastructure Library
• Cryptography and Mathematics : From Scytales Cylinders to Bitcoin
• The Effect of Obesity on Physical and Mental Health
• The Connection Between Alcohol Abuse During Pregnancy and Child’s Mental Health
• The Necessity of Mental Health Services for Healthcare Providers of Critical Patients
• The History and Role of Pop Art

📚 Library Research Paper Introduction

Start your scientific research essay with an overview—an introductory part of your work. Here, you have to use secondary literature to provide a general background.

An overview helps the author to establish the context and to introduce the hypothesis. Your thesis statement should clearly and concisely answer the research question and be easily understandable for the reader.

Your overview shouldn’t be too long—3 paragraphs max.

Now, let’s figure out how to conduct research.

First and foremost, it is crucial to develop a strategy. One of the research methods is to go from general to specific ideas.

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See some useful tips that will make your research process smoother:

• Use keywords. Start searching the info in a database using broad terms to get the general ideas. Then, narrow it down by inserting more specific keywords into the search tool to find clear examples, essential studies, statistics, etc.
• Start with broad context. Use the same strategy as above for providing the background of your issue. First, present the general knowledge of your field of study. Then, go to more specific facts, details, and examples. Overall, your reader is supposed to dive into your topic gradually.
• Check multiple databases. Don’t forget that there are plenty of them, and you can examine several. It’s always possible to find enough info. You should know the basics of digital library management and search for sources properly and effectively.

Take a look at our example of library research hypothesis:

It may seem that the twenty-first century with its democratic values and the strive for equality opened up limitless horizons for women. Nevertheless, female artists still face various challenges that can restrict their activity and creativity. This paper compares the peculiarities of female artists’ professional activity in the nineteenth and twenty-first centuries from the feminist perspective.

Overall, by the end of your overview, the readers should know two things:

• the background of the issue you are going to investigate;
• your hypothesis.

Note that you aim to present the previous investigations in your research paper and demonstrate your position. Make sure you have your well-developed arguments and supportive details.

📝 The Main Body of a Library Research Paper

The next step of your writing process is the presentation of the recent results. Here, you need to use primary sources to find evidence to support your claims. Keep in mind that you can also use resources that contradict your position. They are useful for the rebuttal.

Get an originally-written paper according to your instructions!

Follow our tips to get credible sources :

• Find books through the catalog. Use the citation (author, title, year) to find it quickly. Remember that some books may not be available in public libraries because another student has already taken them. So, check the book’s circulation status.
• To search for an e-book, use the library’s main digital catalog.
• Use scholarly databases to find journals and peer-reviewed articles.
• If you need news or magazine articles, go to the online newspaper or magazine edition.
• For dictionaries (to find definitions) and encyclopedias (to find meanings), search in reference source databases.

The evaluation of the sources is another crucial part of research paper writing. To do it properly, answer three simple questions: who, when, why?

• Who created the work?
• What are their credentials?
• Who published the book/article?
• Who are the readers?
• When was the work created?
• When was the work published?
• What is the historical context of the work’s creation period?
• Why is the work valuable for your library research paper?
• Why might the source be inappropriate for your assignment? (Biased authors, outdated information, etc.).
• Why the authors created this work?
• How can it change your readers’ views?

Are you unsure about how to use primary sources in your project? Take a look at the part of our library research paper sample:

Although many female artists are able to display their works and be successful in their profession, equality in fine arts is still unattained. Borowiecki and Dahl (2020) analyzed census and statistical data from 1850 to the present day and explored the peculiarities of female artists’ careers. The authors found that time constraints, financial aspects, and racial inequality were some of the most influential factors affecting female artists’ choices.

🗞️ Library Research Paper Conclusion

The last element of your paper is the summary. In this part, you need to summarize your arguments and make a clear conclusion regarding your findings.

See some insightful tips:

• Connect the last paragraph to your introduction. The summary starts with a well-paraphrased thesis statement. It should highlight all the keywords and the core idea of the paper. For this task, you can utilize a paragraph shortener that will practically do the same thing, only faster. Then you list your findings from the body.
• Motivate your readers. In your summary, you can also cause your readers to investigate your issue further. Suggest new ways of thinking, expand their horizons, and make them interested in your field of study.
• Prove the significance of your work. Explain why your ideas are relevant and how they can help the readers.

Take a look at our example of library research summarizing sentences to have a clear understanding of how a conclusion looks like:

Women have created numerous masterpieces that shed light on the aspects of human life that have been ignored or misunderstood by male artists. There are still views that the limited engagement of female artists is natural and meets the needs of this population. Hence, the role female artists play and should perform in the development of world fine arts is still open to debate.

This section presents a list of the sources used in the process of writing. It proves that your work is not plagiarized and filled with reliable information.

What’s vital is:

Don’t include the literature that you didn’t cite in your work in your reference list. You might have read it before. Yet, the source shouldn’t be in the bibliography if there is no in-text citation.

While dealing with referencing and citing sources, it is enough to answer three questions:

WHY DO YOU NEED TO CITE?

• to avoid plagiarism;
• to prove to your readers that you have completed research;
• to demonstrate the reliability of your sources;
• to let your readers find the sources for further investigation of your topic.

WHEN DO YOU NEED TO CITE?

• when you are using direct quotes;
• when you are taking the ideas, beliefs, and opinions of another person;
• when you are taking statistics, facts, visuals form the other sources;
• when you are paraphrasing the other thoughts using your own words.

HOW DO I FORMAT MY CITATIONS?

• Figure out what citation style is required. It has to be done even before writing the paper as there are a lot of them. The most popular ones are MLA format and APA style .
• Investigate the aspects of the required citation style. If you are unsure about something, ask your instructor or find a formatting manual.
• Always proofread and double-check. Ensure that your in-text citations and reference list are neat and free of mistakes.

Look at the references from our library research sample:

• In-text citations:

According to Borowiecki and Dahl (2020), … or The life and art of Cecilia Beaux can serve as an appropriate illustration of these constraints (McGuirk, 2017).

• References:

Borowiecki, K. J., & Dahl, C. M. (2020). What makes an artist? The evolution and clustering of creative activity in the US since 1850. Regional Science and Urban Economics, in \ press. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0166046220302994?via%3Dihub

McGuirk, H. D. K. (2017). Mary Cassatt and Cecilia Beaux: An analytical comparison of two new women and issues surrounding femininity, modernity, and nineteenth-century feminism. [Master’s thesis, College of Fine Arts of Ohio University]. College of Fine Arts of Ohio University.

✅ Library Research Example

Writing a library research paper can be an exciting task as it allows you to delve deep into a topic of interest and explore various intriguing sources. To inspire you even more, we have prepared an example of a library research paper showcasing excellent research, analysis, and writing. You can download the PDF file by clicking the link below. 

The realm of American art has been profoundly influenced by the contributions of female artists across centuries, from the 19th to the 21st. The paper delves into the societal and cultural factors that influenced female artists’ representation and recognition while also highlighting prominent artists’ groundbreaking works. It analyzes the evolution of women’s roles in art, examining their struggles, triumphs, and lasting influence on the artistic landscape.

Thank you for visiting our page! Use our tips, share them with your friends, and don’t forget to check other articles on our website.

• Library Research Process: Elmer E. Rasmuson Library
• Library Research Basics: LibGuides at Conrad N. Hilton Library
• Writing a College Research Paper: Rentschler Library
• Finding articles, Library Research Skills Tutorial: Concordia University Library
• Basic Steps in the Research Process: North Hennepin Community College
• Writing the Research Paper: Writing@CSU, Colorado State University
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Library and information Science Project Topics, thesis, seminars, research papers termpapers. Project topics in Library and information Science for students, undergraduates, MSc, HND, NCE.

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Strategies for combating book theft and vandalism in academic libraries (a case study of futo library), the importance of internet to students of academic institutions in nigeria (a case study of imo state univeristy owerri), the role of ict in the of reference services to library users in nigeria (a case study of imo state library), use of information and communication technology in academic libraries in nigeria (a case study of nnamdi azikiwe university awka), challenges in the education and training of library and information science students in nigerian, the effects of poor funding of public libaries in nigeria (a case study of imo state public library owerri), the role of ict in the effective management of students academic record (a case study of department of record and statistics federal polytechnic nekede), acquisition and management of serial in academic libraries in imo state (a case study of imo state university library), the relevance of ict in modern library setting of information and communication technology facilities in academic (a case study of federal university of technology library owerri), effects of poor implementation of collection development policy in academic libraries in imo state (a case study of federal polytechnic nekede owerri), evaluation of academic library services, the problems of acquisition of material and services to users in special libraries in nigeria (a case study of imo state house of assembly), the impact of information and communication technology (ict) in nigerian university libraries, choosing librarianship as a career choice by secondary school students (a case study of some selected secondary schools in lokoja metropolis), problems of book acquisition in academic libraries in imo state (a case study of imo state univeristy owerri (imsu)).

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