The Research Whisperer

Just like the thesis whisperer – but with more money, how to make a simple research budget.

A napkin diagram of the basic concepts in a project: interviews in South East Asia and trails with a Thingatron

Every research project needs a budget*.

If you are applying for funding, you must say what you are planning to spend that funding on. More than that, you need to show how spending that money will help you to answer your research question .

So, developing the budget is the perfect time to plan your project clearly . A good budget shows the assessors that you have thought about your research in detail and, if it is done well, it can serve as a great, convincing overview of the project.

Here are five steps to create a simple budget for your research project.

1. List your activities

Make a list of everything that you plan to do in the project, and who is going to do it.

Take your methodology and turn it into a step-by-step plan. Have you said that you will interview 50 people? Write it on your list.

Are you performing statistical analysis on your sample?  Write it down.

Think through the implications of what you are going to do. Do you need to use a Thingatron? Note down that you will need to buy it, install it, and commission it.

What about travel? Write down each trip separately. Be specific. You can’t just go to ‘South East Asia’ to do fieldwork. You need to go to Kuala Lumpur to interview X number of people over Y weeks, then the same again for Singapore and Jakarta.

Your budget list might look like this:

  • I’m going to do 10 interviews in Kuala Lumpur; 10 interviews in Singapore; 10 interviews in Jakarta by me.
  • I’ll need teaching release for three months for fieldwork.
  • I’ll need Flights to KL, Singapore, Jakarta and back to Melbourne.
  • I’ll need Accommodation for a month in each place, plus per diem.
  • The transcription service will transcribe the 30 interviews.
  • I’ll analysis the transcribed results. (No teaching release required – I’ll do it in my meagre research time allowance.)
  • I’ll need a Thingatron X32C to do the trials.
  • Thing Inc will need to install the Thingatron. (I wonder how long that will take.)
  • The research assistant will do three trials a month with the Thingatron.
  • I’ll need to hire a research assistant (1 day per week for a year at Level B1.)
  • The research assistant will do the statistical analysis of the Thingatron results.
  • I’ll do the writing up in my research allowance time.

By the end, you should feel like you have thought through the entire project in detail. You should be able to walk someone else through the project, so grab a critical friend and read the list to them. If they ask questions, write down the answers.

This will help you to get to the level of specificity you need for the next step.

2. Check the rules again

You’ve already read the funding rules, right? If not, go and read them now – I’ll wait right here until you get back.

Once you’ve listed everything you want to do, go back and read the specific rules for budgets again. What is and isn’t allowed? The funding scheme won’t pay for equipment – you’ll need to fund your Thingatron from somewhere else. Cross it off.

Some schemes won’t fund people. Others won’t fund travel. It is important to know what you need for your project. It is just as important to know what you can include in the application that you are writing right now.

Most funding schemes won’t fund infrastructure (like building costs) and other things that aren’t directly related to the project. Some will, though. If they do, you should include overheads (i.e. the general costs that your organisation needs to keep running). This includes the cost of basics like power and lighting; desks and chairs; and cleaners and security staff. It also includes service areas like the university library. Ask your finance officer for help with this. Often, it is a percentage of the overall cost of the project.

If you are hiring people, don’t forget to use the right salary rate and include salary on-costs. These are the extra costs that an organisation has to pay for an employee, but that doesn’t appear in their pay check. This might include things like superannuation, leave loading, insurance, and payroll tax. Once again, your finance officer can help with this.

Your budget list might now look like this:

  • 10 interviews in Kuala Lumpur; 10 interviews in Singapore; 10 interviews in Jakarta by me.
  • Teaching release for three months for fieldwork.
  • Flights to KL, Singapore, Jakarta and back to Melbourne.
  • Accommodation for a month in each place, plus per diem, plus travel insurance (rule 3F).
  • Transcription of 30 interviews, by the transcription service.
  • Analysis of transcribed results, by me. No teaching release required.
  • Purchase and install Thingatron X32C, by Thing Inc . Not allowed by rule 3C . Organise access to Thingatron via partner organistion – this is an in-kind contribution to the project.
  • Three trials a month with Thingatron, by research assistant.
  • Statistical analysis of Thingatron results, by research assistant.
  • Research assistant: 1 day per week for a year at Level B1, plus 25.91% salary on-costs.
  • Overheads at 125% of total cash request, as per rule 3H.

3. Cost each item

For each item on your list, find a reasonable cost for it . Are you going to interview the fifty people and do the statistical analysis yourself? If so, do you need time release from teaching? How much time? What is your salary for that period of time, or how much will it cost to hire a replacement? Don’t forget any hidden costs, like salary on-costs.

If you aren’t going to do the work yourself, work out how long you need a research assistant for. Be realistic. Work out what level you want to employ them at, and find out how much that costs.

How much is your Thingatron going to cost? Sometimes, you can just look that stuff up on the web. Other times, you’ll need to ring a supplier, particularly if there are delivery and installation costs.

Jump on a travel website and find reasonable costs for travel to Kuala Lumpur and the other places. Find accommodation costs for the period that you are planning to stay, and work out living expenses. Your university, or your government, may have per diem rates for travel like this.

Make a note of where you got each of your estimates from. This will be handy later, when you write the budget justification.

  • 10 interviews in Kuala Lumpur; 10 interviews in Singapore; 10 interviews in Jakarta by me (see below for travel costs).
  • Teaching release for three months for fieldwork = $25,342 – advice from finance officer.
  • Flights to KL ($775), Singapore ($564), Jakarta ($726), Melbourne ($535) – Blue Sky airlines, return economy.
  • Accommodation for a month in each place (KL: $3,500; Sing: $4,245; Jak: $2,750 – long stay, three star accommodation as per TripAdviser).
  • Per diem for three months (60 days x $125 per day – University travel rules).
  • Travel insurance (rule 3F): $145 – University travel insurance calculator .
  • Transcription of 30 interviews, by the transcription service: 30 interviews x 60 minutes per interview x $2.75 per minute – Quote from transcription service, accented voices rate.
  • Analysis of transcribed results, by me. No teaching release required. (In-kind contribution of university worth $2,112 for one week of my time – advice from finance officer ).
  • Purchase and install Thingatron X32C, by Thing Inc . Not allowed by rule 3C. Organise access to Thingatron via partner organistion – this is an in-kind contribution to the project. ($2,435 in-kind – quote from partner organisation, at ‘favoured client’ rate.)
  • Research assistant: 1 day per week for a year at Level B1, plus 25.91% salary on-costs. $12,456 – advice from finance officer.

Things are getting messy, but the next step will tidy it up.

4. Put it in a spreadsheet

Some people work naturally in spreadsheets (like Excel). Others don’t. If you don’t like Excel, tough. You are going to be doing research budgets for the rest of your research life.

When you are working with budgets, a spreadsheet is the right tool for the job, so learn to use it! Learn enough to construct a simple budget – adding things up and multiplying things together will get you through most of it. Go and do a course if you have to.

For a start, your spreadsheet will multiply things like 7 days in Kuala Lumpur at $89.52 per day, and it will also add up all of your sub-totals for you.

If your budget doesn’t add up properly (because, for example, you constructed it as a table in Word), two things will happen. First, you will look foolish. Secondly, and more importantly, people will lose confidence in all your other numbers, too. If your total is wrong, they will start to question the validity of the rest of your budget. You don’t want that.

If you are shy of maths, then Excel is your friend. It will do most of the heavy lifting for you.

For this exercise, the trick is to put each number on a new line. Here is how it might look.

5. Justify it

Accompanying every budget is a budget justification. For each item in your budget, you need to answer two questions:

  • Why do you need this money?
  • Where did you get your figures from?

The budget justification links your budget to your project plan and back again. Everything item in your budget should be listed in your budget justification, so take the list from your budget and paste it into your budget justification.

For each item, give a short paragraph that says why you need it. Refer back to the project plan and expand on what is there. For example, if you have listed a research assistant in your application, this is a perfect opportunity to say what the research assistant will be doing.

Also, for each item, show where you got your figures from. For a research assistant, this might mean talking about the level of responsibility required, so people can understand why you chose the salary level. For a flight, it might be as easy as saying: “Blue Sky airlines economy return flight.”

Here is an example for just one aspect of the budget:

Fieldwork: Kuala Lumpur

Past experience has shown that one month allows enough time to refine and localise interview questions with research partners at University of Malaya, test interview instrument, recruit participants, conduct ten x one-hour interviews with field notes. In addition, the novel methodology will be presented at CONF2015, to be held in Malaysia in February 2015.

Melbourne – Kuala Lumpur economy airfare is based on current Blue Sky Airlines rates. Note that airfares have been kept to a minimum by travelling from country to country, rather than returning to Australia.

1 month accommodation is based on three star, long stay accommodation rates provided by TripAdvisor.

30 days per diem rate is based on standard university rates for South-East Asia.

Pro tip: Use the same nomenclature everywhere. If you list a Thingatron X32C in your budget, then call it a Thingatron X32C in your budget justification and project plan. In an ideal world, someone should be able to flip from the project plan, to the budget and to the budget justification and back again and always know exactly where they are.

  • Project plan: “Doing fieldwork in Malaysia? Whereabouts?” Flips to budget.
  • Budget: “A month in Kuala Lumpur – OK. Why a month?” Flips to budget justification.
  • Budget justification: “Ah, the field work happens at the same time as the conference. Now I get it. So, what are they presenting at the conference?” Flips back to the project description…

So, there you have it: Make a list; check the rules; cost everything; spreadsheet it; and then justify it. Budget done. Good job, team!

This article builds on several previous articles. I have shamelessly stolen from them.

  • Constructing your budget – Jonathan O’Donnell.
  • What makes a winning budget ? – Jonathan O’Donnell.
  • How NOT to pad your budget – Tseen Khoo.
  • Conquer the budget, conquer the project – Tseen Khoo.
  • Research on a shoestring – Emily Kothe.
  • How to make a simple Gantt chart – Jonathan O’Donnell.

* Actually, there are some grant schemes that give you a fixed amount of money, which I think is a really great idea . However, you will still need to work out what you are going to spend the money on, so you will still need a budget at some stage, even if you don’t need it for the application.

Also in the ‘simple grant’ series:

  • How to write a simple research methods section .
  • How to make a simple Gantt chart .

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28 comments.

This has saved my day!

Happy to help, Malba.

Like Liked by 1 person

[…] you be putting in a bid for funding? Are there costs involved, such as travel or equipment costs? Research Whisperer’s post on research budgets may help you […]

I’ve posted a link to this article of Jonathan’s in the Australasian Research Management Society LinkedIn group as well, as I’m sure lots of other people will want to share this.

Thanks, Miriam.

This is great! Humorous way to talk explain a serious subject and could be helpful in designing budgets for outreach grants, as well. Thanks!

Thanks, Jackie

If you are interested, I have another one on how to do a timeline: https://theresearchwhisperer.wordpress.com/2011/09/13/gantt-chart/

[…] really useful information regarding budget development can be found on the Research Whisperer Blog here. Any other thoughts and suggestions are welcome – what are your tips to developing a good […]

[…] it gets you to the level of specificity that you need for a detailed methods section. Similarly, working out a budget for your workshops will force you to be specific about how many people will be attending (venue […]

A friend of mine recently commented by e-mail:

I was interested in your blog “How to make a simple research budget”, particularly the statement: “Think through the implications of what you are going to do. Do you need to use a Thingatron? Note down that you will need to buy it, install it, and commission it.”

From my limited experience so far, I’d think you could add:

“Who else is nearby who might share the costs of the Thingatron? If it’s a big capital outlay, and you’re only going to use it to 34% of it’s capacity, sharing can make the new purchase much easier to justify. But how will this fit into your grant? And then it’s got to be maintained – the little old chap who used to just do all that odd mix of electrickery and persuasion to every machine in the lab got retrenched in the last round. You can run it into the ground. But that means you won’t have a reliable, stable Thingatron all ready to run when you apply for the follow-on grant in two years.”

[…] (For more on this process, take a look at How to Write a Simple Project Budget.) […]

[…] Source: How to make a simple research budget […]

This is such a big help! Thank You!

No worries, Claudine. Happy to help.

Would you like to share the link of the article which was wrote about funding rules? I can’t find it. Many thanks!

Hello there – do you mean this post? https://theresearchwhisperer.wordpress.com/2012/02/14/reading-guidelines

Thank @tseen khoo, very useful tips. I also want to understand more about 3C 3F 3H. What do they stand for? Can you help me find out which posts talk about that. Thank again.

[…] mount up rapidly, even if you are in a remote and developing part of the world. Putting together a half decent budget early on and being aware of funding opportunities can help to avoid financial disaster half way […]

This is so amazing, it really helpful and educative. Happy unread this last week before my proposal was drafted.

Happy to help, Babayomi. Glad you liked it.

really useful! thanks kate

[…] “How to Make a Simple Research Budget,” by Jonathan O’Donnell on The Research Whisperer […]

[…] offering services that ran pretty expensive. until I found this one. It guided me through making a simple budget. The information feels sort of like a university graduate research paper but having analysed […]

[…] Advice on writing research proposals for industry […]

[…] research serves as the bedrock of informed budgeting. Explore the average costs of accommodation, transportation, meals, and activities in your chosen […]

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How to Outline Expenses/Budget in Your Dissertation Plan

How to Outline Expenses/Budget in Your Dissertation Plan

4-minute read

  • 9th May 2023

When drafting your dissertation outline plan , there’s a lot to consider. One crucial section not to overlook is your budget and expenses. A comprehensive budget shows that you have thought through your study thoroughly and are prepared to execute your research plan successfully. Here, we’ll go through the steps you’ll need to take to craft a budget, including a few examples of common budget structures.

Steps to Take to Create Your Budget

1. consult your adviser, committee members, and funding sources for guidelines.

The source or sources responsible for funding your dissertation research will likely have guidelines on what is and isn’t a billable expense. Before defining your projected costs, check your funding organization’s specifications on allowable expenses. It can also help to speak with your adviser and potentially other dissertation committee members about the specifics and general guidelines to ensure everyone’s on the same page when it comes to your anticipated costs.

2. List All of the Costs Associated With Implementing Your Desired Dissertation Plan

Depending on your type of research, setting, and particular project, a wide range of items might be appropriate to add to your budget. Go through your dissertation project plan from beginning to end and list all of the required tasks, along with who will complete them, to ensure you don’t miss any expenses. Although the list below is not comprehensive, and your items might vary depending on your research project, some standard costs to consider are:

●  Salaries and wages for all personnel involved in the project (including time and other resources that will be expected from your adviser and committee members).

●  Equipment and lab fees.

●  Recruitment costs for study participants.

●  Participant compensation.

●  Software costs for data collection, storage, and analysis.

●  Office supplies (including any printing of recruitment materials, study information pamphlets, or conference posters).

●  Travel (including transport to and from field sites, conference registration fees, transportation, lodging, and meals).

●  Journal or conference submission and publication fees for papers created from your dissertation research.

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●  Costs involved with writing, editing, and proofreading services for your dissertation .

Additionally, while it’s advisable to work within the constructs of your funding sources, don’t sell your research study short. After writing down all of the essential costs needed to complete your research plan, ask yourself how you would use any further financial backing. Could you make a good argument as to why supplementary funding would add significant value to your work? If so, consider adding these line items to your budget as well. If you have to negotiate your budget, you can always circle back and reconsider these extra items.

3. Construct Your Budget

The institution overseeing your dissertation project might require your budget to be submitted in a specified structure or template. However, if this isn’t the case, there are several possible approaches to organizing and presenting it – just make sure to check with your institution for any specific guidelines or requirements.

A standard request is to list your expenses by grouping them into direct costs , such as equipment, travel, and wages for people working on the project, and indirect costs , which are expenses that aren’t solely associated with your research project, such as general administration, utilities, and the use of shared services or spaces like libraries. It’s also common to arrange your direct and indirect costs into a Line-Item Budget (LIB) , which simply means that you list each of your projected expenses as a line in your budget.

There are many types of budget templates available for free online. Some designs will include a column to provide more details about each item, while other approaches will list the justifications for the expenses at the end. If you have multiple funding sources, it may be helpful to have columns for each funder and the percentage or amount of each expense they will be expected to be responsible for. Some templates will calculate the total costs for you , but no matter which presentation method you choose, make sure your costs are entered and totaled correctly.

Although the individual items will vary from project to project, these three steps will lead you on your way to preparing a persuasive proposal budget:

●  Consult your adviser, committee members, and funding sources for guidelines.

●  List all the costs associated with implementing your desired dissertation plan (including the items you hope to get funded if they are justifiable).

●  Construct your budget with direct and indirect costs with justifications for each using an appropriate template and confirm your expenses are calculated correctly.

We wish you the best of luck with your budget writing and dissertation proposal. For more help, check out our comprehensive Dissertation Writing Guide . And if you’re interested in using our services here at Proofed, you can try them for free .

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Appendix C: Sample Budget Justification

Costs for project budgets - appendix c.

The budget justification is one of the most important non-technical sections of the proposal, and it is often required by the sponsor. In this section, the Principal Investigator (PI) provides additional detail for expenses within each budget category and articulates the need for the items/expenses listed. The information provided in the budget justification may be the definitive criteria used by sponsor review panels and administrative officials when determining the amount of funding to be awarded.

The following format is a sample only; not all components will apply to every proposal. Many sponsors prefer that budget justifications follow their own format. In all cases, however, it is best to present the justification for each budget category in the same order as that provided in the budget itself.

Salaries and Wages:

Note: The quantification of  unfunded  effort (e.g., "The PI will donate 5% effort...") in the proposal narrative, budget, or budget justification is considered Voluntary Committed Cost Sharing. This is a legal commitment which must be documented in the University's accounting system. Consider quantifying effort  only  for the requested salary support. See  http://www.dfa.cornell.edu/treasurer/policyoffice/policies/volumes/academic/costsharing.cfm  for additional information.

  • Principal Investigator:  This proposal requests salary support for _______% of effort during the academic year and 100% of effort for _______months during the summer.
  • Other Professional Support:  List title and level of effort to be proposed to be funded. Other personnel categories (Research Associates, Postdoctoral Associates, Technicians) may be included here.
  • Administrative and Clerical:  List the circumstances for requiring direct charging of these services, which must be readily and specifically identifiable to the project with a high degree of accuracy. Provide a brief description of actual job responsibilities, the proposed title, and the level of effort. (See note at the end of this Appendix regarding direct charging costs that are normally considered indirect.)
  • Graduate Students:  List number and a brief description of project role. Include stipend, GRA allowance (tuition), and health insurance.
  • Undergraduate Students:  List number and a brief description of project role.
  • Employee Benefits have been proposed at a rate of ______% for all non-student compensation as approved by the Department of Health and Human Services. See  https://www.dfa.cornell.edu/capitalassets/cost/employee .

Capital Equipment:  The following equipment will be necessary for the completion of the project: Include item description(s), estimated cost of each item, and total cost. Provide a brief statement on necessity and suitability.

Travel:  For each trip, list destination, duration, purpose, relationship to the project, and total cost. Indicate any plans for foreign travel.

Technical Supplies and Materials:  Include type of supplies, per unit price, quantity, and cost. When the cost is substantial, provide a brief statement justifying the necessity.

Publications:  Page charges (number of pages multiplied by the per-page charge).

Services:  Include type of services, cost per type, and total cost.

Consultants : Include the consultant's name, rate, number of days, total cost per consultant, and total consultant cost. Provide a brief statement outlining each individual's expertise and justifying the anticipated need for consultant services. Note: Justifying a specific consultant in the proposal may avoid the need to competitively bid consulting services.

Subcontracts:  Include the subcontractor's name, amount, and total cost. Provide a brief description of the work to be performed and the basis for selection of the subcontractor. A separate budget and corresponding budget justification should be completed by the subcontractor, and is required by many agencies. Note: Justifying a specific subcontractor in the proposal may avoid the need to competitively bid subcontracted services. Post-award changes to subcontracts (additions, deletions, scope or budget modification) may require sponsor approval.

Other Expenses:  May include conferences and seminars (see  Appendix D ), Repair and Maintenance, Academic and User Fees.

Facilities and Administrative Costs (F&A) : F&A costs have been proposed at a rate of _____% of Modified Total Direct Cost (MTDC) as approved in Cornell's rate agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services. A copy of this agreement may be found at  https://www.dfa.cornell.edu/capitalassets/cost/facilities . MTDC exclusions include Capital Equipment, GRA Allowance and Health Insurance, and Subcontract costs in excess of $25,000 per subcontract.

Annual escalations are proposed in accordance with University policy as outlined HERE .

Special information for direct charging costs that are normally considered indirect.  Many costs such as administrative and clerical salaries, office supplies, monthly telephone and network charges, general purpose equipment, and postage are not typically considered direct costs. These may be proposed as direct costs where "unlike and different" circumstances exist. In such cases a budget justification detailing the request must be submitted to OSP for review and approval. Please read the University policy at  https://www.dfa.cornell.edu/sites/default/files/policy/vol3_14.pdf  or contact your  Grant and Contract Officer  for additional assistance.

Overview of Costs for Project Budgets (Budget and Costing Guide)

Appendix a: sample budget format showing major categories, appendix b: facilities and administrative (f&a) cost calculation detail, appendix d: sample budget for conferences and seminars, appendix e: cost sharing allowability matrix.

Grad Coach

What (Exactly) Is A Research Proposal?

A simple explainer with examples + free template.

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) | Reviewed By: Dr Eunice Rautenbach | June 2020 (Updated April 2023)

Whether you’re nearing the end of your degree and your dissertation is on the horizon, or you’re planning to apply for a PhD program, chances are you’ll need to craft a convincing research proposal . If you’re on this page, you’re probably unsure exactly what the research proposal is all about. Well, you’ve come to the right place.

Overview: Research Proposal Basics

  • What a research proposal is
  • What a research proposal needs to cover
  • How to structure your research proposal
  • Example /sample proposals
  • Proposal writing FAQs
  • Key takeaways & additional resources

What is a research proposal?

Simply put, a research proposal is a structured, formal document that explains what you plan to research (your research topic), why it’s worth researching (your justification), and how  you plan to investigate it (your methodology). 

The purpose of the research proposal (its job, so to speak) is to convince  your research supervisor, committee or university that your research is  suitable  (for the requirements of the degree program) and  manageable  (given the time and resource constraints you will face). 

The most important word here is “ convince ” – in other words, your research proposal needs to  sell  your research idea (to whoever is going to approve it). If it doesn’t convince them (of its suitability and manageability), you’ll need to revise and resubmit . This will cost you valuable time, which will either delay the start of your research or eat into its time allowance (which is bad news). 

A research proposal is a  formal document that explains what you plan to research , why it's worth researching and how you'll do it.

What goes into a research proposal?

A good dissertation or thesis proposal needs to cover the “ what “, “ why ” and” how ” of the proposed study. Let’s look at each of these attributes in a little more detail:

Your proposal needs to clearly articulate your research topic . This needs to be specific and unambiguous . Your research topic should make it clear exactly what you plan to research and in what context. Here’s an example of a well-articulated research topic:

An investigation into the factors which impact female Generation Y consumer’s likelihood to promote a specific makeup brand to their peers: a British context

As you can see, this topic is extremely clear. From this one line we can see exactly:

  • What’s being investigated – factors that make people promote or advocate for a brand of a specific makeup brand
  • Who it involves – female Gen-Y consumers
  • In what context – the United Kingdom

So, make sure that your research proposal provides a detailed explanation of your research topic . If possible, also briefly outline your research aims and objectives , and perhaps even your research questions (although in some cases you’ll only develop these at a later stage). Needless to say, don’t start writing your proposal until you have a clear topic in mind , or you’ll end up waffling and your research proposal will suffer as a result of this.

Need a helping hand?

budget for thesis proposal

As we touched on earlier, it’s not good enough to simply propose a research topic – you need to justify why your topic is original . In other words, what makes it  unique ? What gap in the current literature does it fill? If it’s simply a rehash of the existing research, it’s probably not going to get approval – it needs to be fresh.

But,  originality  alone is not enough. Once you’ve ticked that box, you also need to justify why your proposed topic is  important . In other words, what value will it add to the world if you achieve your research aims?

As an example, let’s look at the sample research topic we mentioned earlier (factors impacting brand advocacy). In this case, if the research could uncover relevant factors, these findings would be very useful to marketers in the cosmetics industry, and would, therefore, have commercial value . That is a clear justification for the research.

So, when you’re crafting your research proposal, remember that it’s not enough for a topic to simply be unique. It needs to be useful and value-creating – and you need to convey that value in your proposal. If you’re struggling to find a research topic that makes the cut, watch  our video covering how to find a research topic .

Free Webinar: How To Write A Research Proposal

It’s all good and well to have a great topic that’s original and valuable, but you’re not going to convince anyone to approve it without discussing the practicalities – in other words:

  • How will you actually undertake your research (i.e., your methodology)?
  • Is your research methodology appropriate given your research aims?
  • Is your approach manageable given your constraints (time, money, etc.)?

While it’s generally not expected that you’ll have a fully fleshed-out methodology at the proposal stage, you’ll likely still need to provide a high-level overview of your research methodology . Here are some important questions you’ll need to address in your research proposal:

  • Will you take a qualitative , quantitative or mixed -method approach?
  • What sampling strategy will you adopt?
  • How will you collect your data (e.g., interviews, surveys, etc)?
  • How will you analyse your data (e.g., descriptive and inferential statistics , content analysis, discourse analysis, etc, .)?
  • What potential limitations will your methodology carry?

So, be sure to give some thought to the practicalities of your research and have at least a basic methodological plan before you start writing up your proposal. If this all sounds rather intimidating, the video below provides a good introduction to research methodology and the key choices you’ll need to make.

How To Structure A Research Proposal

Now that we’ve covered the key points that need to be addressed in a proposal, you may be wondering, “ But how is a research proposal structured? “.

While the exact structure and format required for a research proposal differs from university to university, there are four “essential ingredients” that commonly make up the structure of a research proposal:

  • A rich introduction and background to the proposed research
  • An initial literature review covering the existing research
  • An overview of the proposed research methodology
  • A discussion regarding the practicalities (project plans, timelines, etc.)

In the video below, we unpack each of these four sections, step by step.

Research Proposal Examples/Samples

In the video below, we provide a detailed walkthrough of two successful research proposals (Master’s and PhD-level), as well as our popular free proposal template.

Proposal Writing FAQs

How long should a research proposal be.

This varies tremendously, depending on the university, the field of study (e.g., social sciences vs natural sciences), and the level of the degree (e.g. undergraduate, Masters or PhD) – so it’s always best to check with your university what their specific requirements are before you start planning your proposal.

As a rough guide, a formal research proposal at Masters-level often ranges between 2000-3000 words, while a PhD-level proposal can be far more detailed, ranging from 5000-8000 words. In some cases, a rough outline of the topic is all that’s needed, while in other cases, universities expect a very detailed proposal that essentially forms the first three chapters of the dissertation or thesis.

The takeaway – be sure to check with your institution before you start writing.

How do I choose a topic for my research proposal?

Finding a good research topic is a process that involves multiple steps. We cover the topic ideation process in this video post.

How do I write a literature review for my proposal?

While you typically won’t need a comprehensive literature review at the proposal stage, you still need to demonstrate that you’re familiar with the key literature and are able to synthesise it. We explain the literature review process here.

How do I create a timeline and budget for my proposal?

We explain how to craft a project plan/timeline and budget in Research Proposal Bootcamp .

Which referencing format should I use in my research proposal?

The expectations and requirements regarding formatting and referencing vary from institution to institution. Therefore, you’ll need to check this information with your university.

What common proposal writing mistakes do I need to look out for?

We’ve create a video post about some of the most common mistakes students make when writing a proposal – you can access that here . If you’re short on time, here’s a quick summary:

  • The research topic is too broad (or just poorly articulated).
  • The research aims, objectives and questions don’t align.
  • The research topic is not well justified.
  • The study has a weak theoretical foundation.
  • The research design is not well articulated well enough.
  • Poor writing and sloppy presentation.
  • Poor project planning and risk management.
  • Not following the university’s specific criteria.

Key Takeaways & Additional Resources

As you write up your research proposal, remember the all-important core purpose:  to convince . Your research proposal needs to sell your study in terms of suitability and viability. So, focus on crafting a convincing narrative to ensure a strong proposal.

At the same time, pay close attention to your university’s requirements. While we’ve covered the essentials here, every institution has its own set of expectations and it’s essential that you follow these to maximise your chances of approval.

By the way, we’ve got plenty more resources to help you fast-track your research proposal. Here are some of our most popular resources to get you started:

  • Proposal Writing 101 : A Introductory Webinar
  • Research Proposal Bootcamp : The Ultimate Online Course
  • Template : A basic template to help you craft your proposal

If you’re looking for 1-on-1 support with your research proposal, be sure to check out our private coaching service , where we hold your hand through the proposal development process (and the entire research journey), step by step.

Literature Review Course

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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51 Comments

Myrna Pereira

I truly enjoyed this video, as it was eye-opening to what I have to do in the preparation of preparing a Research proposal.

I would be interested in getting some coaching.

BARAKAELI TEREVAELI

I real appreciate on your elaboration on how to develop research proposal,the video explains each steps clearly.

masebo joseph

Thank you for the video. It really assisted me and my niece. I am a PhD candidate and she is an undergraduate student. It is at times, very difficult to guide a family member but with this video, my job is done.

In view of the above, I welcome more coaching.

Zakia Ghafoor

Wonderful guidelines, thanks

Annie Malupande

This is very helpful. Would love to continue even as I prepare for starting my masters next year.

KYARIKUNDA MOREEN

Thanks for the work done, the text was helpful to me

Ahsanullah Mangal

Bundle of thanks to you for the research proposal guide it was really good and useful if it is possible please send me the sample of research proposal

Derek Jansen

You’re most welcome. We don’t have any research proposals that we can share (the students own the intellectual property), but you might find our research proposal template useful: https://gradcoach.com/research-proposal-template/

Cheruiyot Moses Kipyegon

Cheruiyot Moses Kipyegon

Thanks alot. It was an eye opener that came timely enough before my imminent proposal defense. Thanks, again

agnelius

thank you very much your lesson is very interested may God be with you

Abubakar

I am an undergraduate student (First Degree) preparing to write my project,this video and explanation had shed more light to me thanks for your efforts keep it up.

Synthia Atieno

Very useful. I am grateful.

belina nambeya

this is a very a good guidance on research proposal, for sure i have learnt something

Wonderful guidelines for writing a research proposal, I am a student of m.phil( education), this guideline is suitable for me. Thanks

You’re welcome 🙂

Marjorie

Thank you, this was so helpful.

Amitash Degan

A really great and insightful video. It opened my eyes as to how to write a research paper. I would like to receive more guidance for writing my research paper from your esteemed faculty.

Glaudia Njuguna

Thank you, great insights

Thank you, great insights, thank you so much, feeling edified

Yebirgual

Wow thank you, great insights, thanks a lot

Roseline Soetan

Thank you. This is a great insight. I am a student preparing for a PhD program. I am requested to write my Research Proposal as part of what I am required to submit before my unconditional admission. I am grateful having listened to this video which will go a long way in helping me to actually choose a topic of interest and not just any topic as well as to narrow down the topic and be specific about it. I indeed need more of this especially as am trying to choose a topic suitable for a DBA am about embarking on. Thank you once more. The video is indeed helpful.

Rebecca

Have learnt a lot just at the right time. Thank you so much.

laramato ikayo

thank you very much ,because have learn a lot things concerning research proposal and be blessed u for your time that you providing to help us

Cheruiyot M Kipyegon

Hi. For my MSc medical education research, please evaluate this topic for me: Training Needs Assessment of Faculty in Medical Training Institutions in Kericho and Bomet Counties

Rebecca

I have really learnt a lot based on research proposal and it’s formulation

Arega Berlie

Thank you. I learn much from the proposal since it is applied

Siyanda

Your effort is much appreciated – you have good articulation.

You have good articulation.

Douglas Eliaba

I do applaud your simplified method of explaining the subject matter, which indeed has broaden my understanding of the subject matter. Definitely this would enable me writing a sellable research proposal.

Weluzani

This really helping

Roswitta

Great! I liked your tutoring on how to find a research topic and how to write a research proposal. Precise and concise. Thank you very much. Will certainly share this with my students. Research made simple indeed.

Alice Kuyayama

Thank you very much. I an now assist my students effectively.

Thank you very much. I can now assist my students effectively.

Abdurahman Bayoh

I need any research proposal

Silverline

Thank you for these videos. I will need chapter by chapter assistance in writing my MSc dissertation

Nosi

Very helpfull

faith wugah

the videos are very good and straight forward

Imam

thanks so much for this wonderful presentations, i really enjoyed it to the fullest wish to learn more from you

Bernie E. Balmeo

Thank you very much. I learned a lot from your lecture.

Ishmael kwame Appiah

I really enjoy the in-depth knowledge on research proposal you have given. me. You have indeed broaden my understanding and skills. Thank you

David Mweemba

interesting session this has equipped me with knowledge as i head for exams in an hour’s time, am sure i get A++

Andrea Eccleston

This article was most informative and easy to understand. I now have a good idea of how to write my research proposal.

Thank you very much.

Georgina Ngufan

Wow, this literature is very resourceful and interesting to read. I enjoyed it and I intend reading it every now then.

Charity

Thank you for the clarity

Mondika Solomon

Thank you. Very helpful.

BLY

Thank you very much for this essential piece. I need 1o1 coaching, unfortunately, your service is not available in my country. Anyways, a very important eye-opener. I really enjoyed it. A thumb up to Gradcoach

Md Moneruszzaman Kayes

What is JAM? Please explain.

Gentiana

Thank you so much for these videos. They are extremely helpful! God bless!

azeem kakar

very very wonderful…

Koang Kuany Bol Nyot

thank you for the video but i need a written example

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  • How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates

How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates

Published on 30 October 2022 by Shona McCombes and Tegan George. Revised on 13 June 2023.

Structure of a research proposal

A research proposal describes what you will investigate, why it’s important, and how you will conduct your research.

The format of a research proposal varies between fields, but most proposals will contain at least these elements:

Introduction

Literature review.

  • Research design

Reference list

While the sections may vary, the overall objective is always the same. A research proposal serves as a blueprint and guide for your research plan, helping you get organised and feel confident in the path forward you choose to take.

Table of contents

Research proposal purpose, research proposal examples, research design and methods, contribution to knowledge, research schedule, frequently asked questions.

Academics often have to write research proposals to get funding for their projects. As a student, you might have to write a research proposal as part of a grad school application , or prior to starting your thesis or dissertation .

In addition to helping you figure out what your research can look like, a proposal can also serve to demonstrate why your project is worth pursuing to a funder, educational institution, or supervisor.

Research proposal length

The length of a research proposal can vary quite a bit. A bachelor’s or master’s thesis proposal can be just a few pages, while proposals for PhD dissertations or research funding are usually much longer and more detailed. Your supervisor can help you determine the best length for your work.

One trick to get started is to think of your proposal’s structure as a shorter version of your thesis or dissertation , only without the results , conclusion and discussion sections.

Download our research proposal template

Prevent plagiarism, run a free check.

Writing a research proposal can be quite challenging, but a good starting point could be to look at some examples. We’ve included a few for you below.

  • Example research proposal #1: ‘A Conceptual Framework for Scheduling Constraint Management’
  • Example research proposal #2: ‘ Medical Students as Mediators of Change in Tobacco Use’

Like your dissertation or thesis, the proposal will usually have a title page that includes:

  • The proposed title of your project
  • Your supervisor’s name
  • Your institution and department

The first part of your proposal is the initial pitch for your project. Make sure it succinctly explains what you want to do and why.

Your introduction should:

  • Introduce your topic
  • Give necessary background and context
  • Outline your  problem statement  and research questions

To guide your introduction , include information about:

  • Who could have an interest in the topic (e.g., scientists, policymakers)
  • How much is already known about the topic
  • What is missing from this current knowledge
  • What new insights your research will contribute
  • Why you believe this research is worth doing

As you get started, it’s important to demonstrate that you’re familiar with the most important research on your topic. A strong literature review  shows your reader that your project has a solid foundation in existing knowledge or theory. It also shows that you’re not simply repeating what other people have already done or said, but rather using existing research as a jumping-off point for your own.

In this section, share exactly how your project will contribute to ongoing conversations in the field by:

  • Comparing and contrasting the main theories, methods, and debates
  • Examining the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches
  • Explaining how will you build on, challenge, or synthesise prior scholarship

Following the literature review, restate your main  objectives . This brings the focus back to your own project. Next, your research design or methodology section will describe your overall approach, and the practical steps you will take to answer your research questions.

To finish your proposal on a strong note, explore the potential implications of your research for your field. Emphasise again what you aim to contribute and why it matters.

For example, your results might have implications for:

  • Improving best practices
  • Informing policymaking decisions
  • Strengthening a theory or model
  • Challenging popular or scientific beliefs
  • Creating a basis for future research

Last but not least, your research proposal must include correct citations for every source you have used, compiled in a reference list . To create citations quickly and easily, you can use our free APA citation generator .

Some institutions or funders require a detailed timeline of the project, asking you to forecast what you will do at each stage and how long it may take. While not always required, be sure to check the requirements of your project.

Here’s an example schedule to help you get started. You can also download a template at the button below.

Download our research schedule template

If you are applying for research funding, chances are you will have to include a detailed budget. This shows your estimates of how much each part of your project will cost.

Make sure to check what type of costs the funding body will agree to cover. For each item, include:

  • Cost : exactly how much money do you need?
  • Justification : why is this cost necessary to complete the research?
  • Source : how did you calculate the amount?

To determine your budget, think about:

  • Travel costs : do you need to go somewhere to collect your data? How will you get there, and how much time will you need? What will you do there (e.g., interviews, archival research)?
  • Materials : do you need access to any tools or technologies?
  • Help : do you need to hire any research assistants for the project? What will they do, and how much will you pay them?

Once you’ve decided on your research objectives , you need to explain them in your paper, at the end of your problem statement.

Keep your research objectives clear and concise, and use appropriate verbs to accurately convey the work that you will carry out for each one.

I will compare …

A research aim is a broad statement indicating the general purpose of your research project. It should appear in your introduction at the end of your problem statement , before your research objectives.

Research objectives are more specific than your research aim. They indicate the specific ways you’ll address the overarching aim.

A PhD, which is short for philosophiae doctor (doctor of philosophy in Latin), is the highest university degree that can be obtained. In a PhD, students spend 3–5 years writing a dissertation , which aims to make a significant, original contribution to current knowledge.

A PhD is intended to prepare students for a career as a researcher, whether that be in academia, the public sector, or the private sector.

A master’s is a 1- or 2-year graduate degree that can prepare you for a variety of careers.

All master’s involve graduate-level coursework. Some are research-intensive and intend to prepare students for further study in a PhD; these usually require their students to write a master’s thesis . Others focus on professional training for a specific career.

Critical thinking refers to the ability to evaluate information and to be aware of biases or assumptions, including your own.

Like information literacy , it involves evaluating arguments, identifying and solving problems in an objective and systematic way, and clearly communicating your ideas.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

McCombes, S. & George, T. (2023, June 13). How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates. Scribbr. Retrieved 15 April 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/the-research-process/research-proposal-explained/

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How to plan and write a budget for research grant proposal?

Medical research can have an enormous positive impact on human health. Health research improves the quality of human lives and society which plays a vital role in social and economic development of the nation. Financial support is crucial for research. However, winning a research grant is a difficult task. A successful grant-winning application requires two key elements: one is an innovative research problem with best probable idea/plan for tackling it and appropriate planning of budget. The aim of the present paper is to give an insight on funding agencies providing funding for health research including traditional Indian medicine (from an Indian perspective) and key points for planning and writing budget section of a grant application.

1. Introduction

Why health science research is important and why should it to be funded? Science and technology innovations and health research can have an enormous impact on human health. They improve public health, quality of human lives, longevity and have made society better [1] , [2] . Healthy humans with better quality of life are crucial for the social and economical development of the nation [3] . Medical research led to the expansion of knowledge about health problems/conditions and their mechanism, risk factors, outcomes of treatments or interventions, preventive measures and proper management. Clinical studies or trials provide important information about the safety and efficacy of a drug/intervention. Innovative basic science research had led to the discovery of new technology, efficient diagnostic and therapeutic devices. So, currently, an effort with multidisciplinary approach is a demand for better understanding of clinical conditions and providing safest health care to the community [2] , [4] .

Whether it is basic or applied, clinical or non-clinical, all research needs financial support. Considering the importance of research in economic growth of a nation, many countries are increasing their budget for research and development in science. A study on impact of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) on research and development in science among Asian countries has found that one who spends more on research has more research outcomes in the form of total number of research documents, citations per documents and h-index [5] . About 95% of the NIH (National Institutes of Health, USA), budget goes directly to research awards, programs, and centers; training programs; and research and development contracts [6] . Total expenditure carried out for research in India is too less than USA and China. Percentage of GDP for research and development in India is 0.88%, while South Korea, USA and China have 4.292%, 2.742 and 2.1% respectively [7] .

Owing to the increasing competition among the researchers, especially the young ones, for their academic growth, preparing and planning a winning research proposal becomes very essential. A successful grant-winning application requires two key elements: (1) innovative research problem with best probable idea/plan for tackling it and (2) appropriate planning of budget. The aim of the present paper is to give an insight on funding agencies (from an Indian perspective) and key points for planning and writing budget section of a grant application.

2. What is the purpose of the budget plan in a grant application?

A budget is the quantitative expression of a financial plan for future expenses on the project in a given period of time [8] . Budget plan is a key element of a grant application. It demonstrates the required cost for the proposed project. It is a prediction of expenses and serves a plan for funders on how the organization will operate the project, spend the money in a given set of period and where their money will go. It shows the funders exactly what they can support and also helps the institution and investigating team in management of the project. Moreover, budget plan requires for accountability [9] .

3. Which are the funding agencies that sponsor health research in India?

Various national and international sponsoring agencies have identified health problems of priority for funding a research. Some of the leading funding agencies providing grant for health research including alternative systems of medicine in India are given in Table 1 . State Universities/deemed Universities also have a provision of funding for medical research.

Table 1

List of funding agencies those promote health research.

4. What constitutes a research project budget?

Proforma of the research grant applications and presentation of budget section may vary among the sponsoring agencies. However, major parts of budget plan in the applications of the above mentioned funding agencies are quite similar. The budget section is broadly divided into two categories: direct and indirect costs.

4.1. Direct costs:

These are the costs incurred specifically to carry out a project [10] . Direct costs include expenses towards personnel, materials, equipments, consumables and travel. These particulars are further categorized into recurring and non-recurring expenses on the basis of their occurrence during the study period. A brief description of the sub-sections under direct cost is given below:

4.1.1. Personnel:

Budget for personnel can be mentioned in this section in case human resources are required for the study and as per funding agency guidelines. Salaries with allowances can be budgeted for human resources such as site manager, research assistant, junior research fellow (JRF), senior research fellow (SRF), research associate, technician, data entry operator and attender. Most of the Indian funding agencies do not have a provision for salaries for the principal investigator (PI) and co-investigators (Co-PI). Ministry of AYUSH [11] and Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Science (RGUHS), Karnataka [12] provide one-time minimal fees for investigators and supporting staff respectively. There is a provision for salaries of investigators in Wellcome trust-DBT India alliance grants [13] .

4.1.2. Recurring expenses:

Recurring expenses are those which are variable and which keep on occurring throughout the entire project duration. Particulars categorized in this category are consumables, chemicals, glasswares, laboratory test charges, diagnostic kits, stationery, prints, photocopies, communication, postage, telephone charges, survey tools, questionnaires, publication charges, reprints, binding etc. Other expenses could be allowances for patients/participants, food charges and physician fees.

4.1.3. Non-recurring expenses:

Non-recurring expenses are those which are one-time in nature or which do not recur at regular intervals. Particulars included in this category are equipments or instruments with its accessories, software's, computer, printer, electrical and electronic items and accessories of the existing instrument in your lab. Percentage of budget allocated for equipment varies among the funding agencies from 25% to 90% of the entire budget. Some of the agencies do not have provision for equipment in budget. Vision Group on Science and Technology allocated their maximum grant (up to 90%) for development of infrastructure of laboratories [14] .

4.1.4. Traveling expenses:

Budget allocated for traveling can be used for attending meetings, conferences, workshops and training programs. Foreign travel is not allowed by any Indian funding agency. Traveling expenses for collection of data, survey and visit to other centers in multicentric study can be budgeted in this sub-section.

4.2. Indirect costs:

These are the costs which cannot be directly attributed to specific expenses of a project, but are required to run a project. It is also termed as overhead charges. Laboratory, electricity, water, library and other facilities are provided by the institution to run a proposed research project. Therefore, a fixed cost (usually) of about 5–15% of the total budget is provisioned as institutional overhead charges which goes to the institution directly. The range may, however, be flexible on the basis of the type of funding agency.

5. Budget justification

Most of the funding agencies require submission of a budget justification with all the items described above. Sometimes it is also called as budget narrative. Explanation of need for each line item in the budget with item-wise and year-wise breakdown has to be provided. Quantification of total costs of each line-item and document cost calculation should be done. When writing a budget justification, it is important to follow the same order as that in an itemized budget. For example, if equipment such as color doppler is required, then justify the need of a device with respect to the proposed methodology of the study. Similarly, for non-recurring expenses, breakdown the consumables item-wise and year-wise with its cost and calculation according to the protocol of the study and justify accordingly.

6. Budget summary

An item-wise and year wise summary of the total budget is usually required in most of the applications. Budget summary outlines the proposed grant and often (most of the format) appears at the beginning of the proposal. It should always be prepared at the end, after the grant proposal has been completely developed. A sample budget summary (as an example) for a proposed study for the duration of three years is shown in Table 2 . In the personnel section, a research fellow salary with allowances is budgeted year-wise. The salary of the research fellow for the first and second year is Rs. 2,30,000 per year (JRF) with an enhancement to Rs 2, 59,000 for the third year (SRF) as per the guidelines of the funding agency. As non-recurring expenses are one time in nature, a budget for equipment was budgeted only for the first year. Under the section of recurring expenses, more budgets are allocated in the second year for consumables because recruitment of subjects in large number will be done during the second year of the proposed study. Similarly, expenses toward travel, investigator fee and other miscellaneous costs year-wise have been budgeted. The emoluments and guidelines on service conditions for research personnel employed in research project by ICMR has been given in reference section [15] , [16] .

Table 2

Sample budget summary (year wise).

7. How to plan a simple research budget?

Planning of the research budget begins with an innovative research question, objectives and design of the study. Before starting to write a budget plan, it is essential to understand the expectations of funding agencies, University/Institute and the team of researchers. It is imperative to keep in mind that the research proposal will be reviewed by both scientific and financial (non-scientific) experts. Hence, the proposal should be prepared in such a way that it can be easily understood by even non-scientific experts.

Firstly, a list of what is essential and would add value for research such as focus of research, primary and secondary outcomes of the study, the source of the sample, study setting, sample design and sample size, techniques used to collect data, method of data analysis and available resources should be made [17] .

Secondly, the instructions, format of the application and rules of the funding agency should be read thoroughly. Budget specifications, limitations of recurring and non-recurring costs, and necessity of budget justification with cost breakdown should be checked. Note that one should not deviate or modify the proforma of the funding agency.

Thirdly, a list of items should be made and categorized into recurring and non-recurring expenses. Breakdown of the budget into item-wise and year-wise with cost calculation should be done. It should be ensured that costs are reasonable, allowable and related to the research proposal, so that the budget appears realistic. Travel expenses should be calculated as per the rules of the funding agency.

Fourthly, item-wise and year-wise justification of the requirement in a same sequence of format should be provided. A well-justified budget can enhance the evaluation of the research proposal by reviewers and funding body.

The last most important part is to review the budget and verify the costs and calculation. It is better, if other research team members can review the budget plan and re-calculate the costs thoroughly. Remember, too high budget and too low budget with respect to the research proposal are suspicious and chances of receiving a grant are less.

Sources of funding

Conflict of interest.

Peer review under responsibility of Transdisciplinary University, Bangalore.

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Top 7 Research Budget Templates with Samples and Examples

Top 7 Research Budget Templates with Samples and Examples

Tejas Prasanna

author-user

There is no magic formula for creating a research budget. Depending on the kind of research and the potential changes it can bring about, careful planning and allocation is necessary. Budgets can, thus, vary depending on the sponsors, besides other factors. However, every research budget has some essential guidelines. 

Research budgets depend on the project deliverables, timelines, and milestones. The resources required also depend on the scope of the projects and sponsors.

Best Templates for Planning Your Research Budget

Designing a research budget is not easy. You will need to consider the resources required and categorize them according to guidelines to ensure funding is not a problem. The categories may include the project’s necessary supplies and equipment and the wages you must pay your assistants. Research budgets are allocated for a year, but you can also plan for a quarter, depending on the project.

At SlideTeam, we have taken care of all these pain points and designed content-ready presentation templates that address each of these points. You save the time, the resources, and the tedium in having to make these presentations from scratch. 

What is even better is that each of the templates is 100% editable and customizable. The content-ready nature means you get a starting point and a structure to guide your presentation; the editability feature means you can customize the template to audience profile. 

Let’s explore these templates now. 

Template 1 - Impact matrix evaluation research solution budget

This PPT Template is the perfect solution for your research budgeting needs. The matrix suggests what solutions are essential with the help of relevant keys that assign priority levels. Priorities go from low to highest influence with increasing importance. They are color-coded, with white being the lowest and red being the highest influence. For instance, Maintain Awareness and Evaluation are red in many cases, as shown in the slide. So, that means that they bear a significant impact on the research budget. Similarly, Strategic and Budget Planning are color-coded white, which means they don't impact the research budget as much in some cases.

With the impact matrix and heatmap, mapping out your research budget will be a breeze.

Impact Matrix Evaluation Research Solution Budget

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Template 2  Half-yearly research and development departmental budget

Research and Development departments can plan the budget required for projects for the two halves of the year using this PPT Template. The presentation template highlights areas for which you will need funding such as research and development, skills, innovation and patenting, and cooperation. You can also list your requirements for each area. For instance, under R&D and skills, you may need funding for medical research, chemical research, etc. Similarly, for innovation and patenting, you may need funding for product innovation and to cover patenting costs. Likewise, cooperation may involve setting up new laboratories and research centers. With this outlined, you can split the budget required for your research project for the two halves of the year.

Half Yearly Research and Development Departmental Budget

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Template 3 - Budget Estimate for Research and Development Project

This presentation template for the budget estimate for your research and development project is apt for arriving at the calculation for the four quarters in a year. You can define and assign tasks as per the requirements of the project and allocate a set budget for each. The tasks may involve conducting market research and competitive analysis or be innovative or developmental. In either case, you can use this template to set a fixed budget for each task in the research project.

Budget estimate for research and development project

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Template 4 Clinical Trial Phases with Communication and Budget Research Design for Clinical Trials

Clinical trials involve many phases, and you should let your research associates know about each step. For instance, you could post the information on the company website and provide relevant insights during the pre-trial phase. Similarly, you can offer the welcome letter and training materials during the trial start-up. During the trial, you can send newsletters to your associates, giving them relevant information and other valuable insights. All this requires funding, and you will need to allocate a budget. However, you don't need to worry, as this PPT Preset has you sorted, with dedicated sections for the pre-trial, trial start-up, during-trial, and trial-end phases. It also has communication, insights summary, and budget sections. You can use the budget section in the matrix to allot a budget for each trial phase and each section, including communication and insights. 

Clinical Trial Phases with Communication and Budget

Download here!

Template 5  Market research strategy with budget and area

The PPT Template has all the core elements required for your market research strategy, including the budget and area. This slide lets you list your clients, the items, and when to send them. You can also list background information related to your research, the aim and objectives of the project, the areas covered, and the budget.

The presentation template also provides a dedicated space to list your brands and products and a timeline for completing the research.

Market Research Strategy with Budget and Area

Template 6 - Determine Budget for Psychology Research Proposal One-Pager Sample Example Document

This presentation template is an easy-to-use tool for determining the budget required for psychology research. With this slide, you can allocate a budget for each area, including diagnostic assessment, training, technology and tools, supplies, travel, and workforce. It is a practical, hands-on template with information required to plan the budget for conducting psychological tests and evaluations. Please note that depending on your geography, taxes might or might not deserve a separate column.  

Determine Budget for Psychology Research Proposal

Template 7 - Budgeting for Product Launch Market Research

Every company needs to conduct market research before launching a new product. The PowerPoint Presentation that you have here can help you plan the budget required for conducting such market research. It includes necessary information, including business and research objectives, priorities, methodologies, and forecasts. The presentation template also has the metrics required for the research, such as improving customer engagement, introducing new products, and increasing market share. For example, to improve customer engagement, you may be looking to improve marketing approaches and gather customer feedback. The methods you may use include conducting marketing mix studies and tests. Similarly, you may want to optimize your social media posts and profiles and conduct A/B tests when introducing new products. Improving your market share may involve analyzing the competition. You may even use this handy template for conducting market research, estimating, and forecasting budgets.

Budgeting for product launch market research

RESEARCH IS IMPORTANT BUSINESS

You can plan your research and the budget required using these templates. Remember that each new product launch has lots of research behind it. When going for a new launch, don’t just research the products and its uses, but also the markets – particularly, your target audience and how they will benefit from your brands. When allocating the budget for your research, don't forget to note your total resources and try to be as cost-effective as possible. You must consider the expected costs that you may incur and use these templates to work out a research budget that fits within your resources.

FAQs on Research Budget

What should be included in a research budget.

Research budgets should include all direct costs, and facilities and administrative costs (F&A). The facilities and administrative expenses are needed to achieve the primary objectives of the research. The project description should state the proposed budget and serve as a financial expression for the research. The idea is to ensure that the budget is comprehensive.

How do you create a research budget?

You can create a simple research budget by following these steps:

  • List activities that will help you carry out the research.
  • Check the rules for getting the funding required.
  • Check all costs involved.
  • Lay out the costs using a spreadsheet.
  • Justify your budget by asking why and for what you need the money and where you got your figures.

What is the role of budget in research?

A budget can provide a detailed and clear picture of the structure of the research project, not to mention that it also lets you know how well it can be managed. The research project budget usually lets you see whether it will go according to plan and if it is feasible. So, it must be complete and reasonable.

What is the average budget for a research project?

The budget for a research project depends on the type of research and the proposed difference it could make to a field of study. For instance, the average budget for a market research project may vary between $20,000 and $50,000. Similarly, larger scientific research projects may cost millions or even billions of dollars, as in pharmaceuticals.

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Sample Budget Justifications

Sponsor requirements differ, and sample budget justifications should be seen only as a starting point. Guidelines for sponsor requirements are in the annotated budget justifications. Read the solicitation and the sponsor’s proposal preparation guidelines for each proposal's requirements.

For Research Sponsors

  • Sample Budget Justification for Non-Federal Research [DOCX]  - April 6, 2023
  • Annotated Budget Justification - Non-Federal Research
  • Sample Budget Justification for Federal Research  [DOCX]  - April 6, 2023
  • Annotated Budget Justification - Federal Research

For Non-Research Sponsors:

  • Sample Budget Justification for Non-Federal Non-Research [DOCX]  - July 29, 2022
  • Annotated Budget Justification - Non-Federal Non-Research
  • Sample Budget Justification for Federal Non-Research [DOCX]  - July 29, 2022
  • Annotated Budget Justification - Federal Non-Research
  • Uniform Guidance Fixed Rate Requirements
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  • Fund Account Overhead Rates
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36+ SAMPLE Research Budgets in PDF | MS Word

Research budgets | ms word, 36+ sample research budgets, what is a research budget, the components of a complete research budget, how to set a research budget, why is a research budget important in a grant application, what are the types of budgeting schemes, how much is the standard research project grant amount.

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Why is a research budget important, step 1: brainstorm all research activities, step 2: consider the rules and regulations, step 3: insert the associated costs for each item, step 4: download a sample research budget, step 5: organize your data and format, step 6: justify your research budget.

  • Incremental budgeting – this form of budgeting tackles a previous year’s actual figures while you add or subtract a percentage to answer the acquired budget of the current year. Also, this is the simplest and most common form of budgeting scheme.
  • Activity-based budgeting – the next example focuses on getting the number of inputs necessary to provide the outputs and targets implemented by an organization. A common example is when a business should start recognizing the necessary tasks to take first that will meet the sales target until the costs for each activity to do will be determined.
  • Value proposition budgeting – another budgeting scheme answers the reason for inputting the amount you estimated in a budget, how a value outweighs the expenses, or even why the budget should be justified. And as much as possible, do not include irrelevant expenditures in this section.
  • Zero-based budgeting – lastly, this budgeting plan assumes that every department in a budget is zero and should be rebuilt from the very beginning. But, the expenses should be justified. And this strategy is helpful when you need costs quickly, particularly if a business undergoes an economic downturn.

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Proposal template bundle, 12+ research budget proposal templates in pdf | ms word, 1. research budget proposal template, 2. project research proposal and budget, 3. school research budget proposal template, 4. sample student research budget proposal, 5. science research proposal budget form worksheet, 6. free research budget grant proposal template, 7. research paper proposal budget template, 8. research thesis proposal budget example, 9. printable research budget plan proposal.

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11. Undergraduate Research Budget Proposal Template

12. research budget management proposal format, 13. standard draft research budget proposal template, 14. free research project budget proposal, classification of research proposal budget, how to make a research budget proposal, budget templates, 12+ research budget proposal templates in pdf | ms word | apple pages.

A research proposal is a paper that proposes a research project , usually in the sciences or academia and generally constitutes a funding request for that study. A budget is one of the key components of a research proposal and serves as a blueprint for spending the funds from the project. An effective budget for the proposal outlines the proposed project in fiscal terms and helps reviewers determine how the project is to be carried out.

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Direct Costs

Indirect costs, 1. list your activities.

  • Interviews: 20 in Sydney; 10 in Perth; 15 in Melbourne.
  • I’ll need three months of teaching release for fieldwork.
  • Flight tickets for travel required.
  • Accommodation for at least a month in each place.
  • The results will need to be transcribed.
  • A research assistant will be required.

2. Check the rules again

3. cost each item, 4. put it in a spreadsheet, 5. justify it, more in budget templates, editable research flowchart template, research poster template for keynote, education research agenda template, research agenda template, legal research methodology ppt template, medical research template, research template, qualitative research template, psychology research template, college research template.

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Thesis Helpers

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How to Write a Great Thesis Proposal The Easy Way

Thesis proposal

Table of Contents

  • 1. What Is A Thesis Proposal?
  • 2. Thesis Proposal Template
  • 3.1. Craft Your Abstract
  • 3.2. Choose Topic and Working Title
  • 3.3. Create Your Introduction
  • 3.4. Write the Thesis Research Questions
  • 3.5. Present Your Literature Review
  • 3.6. Write Down the Methodology
  • 3.7. Provide Your Timeline
  • 3.8. Craft A Conclusion
  • 4. Thesis Proposal Example
  • 5. Thesis Proposal FAQ

What Is A Thesis Proposal?

A thesis proposal is the link-bridge to the main thesis, laying out the plan of how you will conduct the research.  This way, the professors (assessment committee) will know that you are on the right path and got the right tools to get to the final destination.

The first step is developing a thesis proposal outline, commonly referred to as a thesis proposal template, which will help you do your project. It provides a clear thesis proposal format so that you can easily know what to do at what stage. Your proposal should be structured on a number of key elements, each of which should assist you to define the main project.

Thesis Proposal Template

  • Abstract . This is a summary of the entire proposal.
  • Define the topic of the proposal. The topic is the title of the project and gives the reader a general idea of what the thesis is all about.
  • Write the introduction . The introduction helps to bring out the main issues in the thesis as well as its significance.
  • Craft your research questions. These are the questions that you will be seeking to answer in the thesis.
  • Review the related literature. This is a comprehensive analysis of existing literature on the topic you are working on.
  • Methods . These are the theoretical approaches and methods that will be used to do the study.
  • Timeline . In this part, you outline the time required for doing your study.
  • Conclusion . This is the last part of your proposal and is used to give the anticipated results from the study.

How to Write a Thesis Proposal

A thesis proposal requires comprehensive research, preparation, and a well-defined final destination. Here is a step-by-step guide to help you craft thee best proposal for your thesis.

“ The differences in communication styles between men and women have been a topic of interest in the research world for many years. These differences may lead to miscommunication, conflict, and even dissatisfaction between couples. This study analyzes the communication styles among genders, more specifically among married couples. It questions how differences in communication styles between married couples married five years or less affect marital satisfaction. …”

Discuss the topic with your supervisor. Your supervisor can help you to refine the topic further, and give you the assurance that you are headed in the right direction. He/she will also assist you in grasping the complexities to anticipate along the way and the best way to approach them. See a good thesis proposal example topic.

“ A Detailed History of Halloween and King of Gourds: A Study of Horror Symbolism”
“ The first spooky faces were carved on pumpkins by rats, although considered inferior, mimics were later done by people. When rats brought the dangerous Black Death, people started connecting pumpkins to plague. Pumpkins were also used to scare off the spirits of the dead person to prevent further deaths. Soon after, Jack o lanterns were adopted across the globe as common Halloween talismans. ”
“ What effect does daily use of Facebook have on the Attention span of adolescents?” “What effect do legal approaches have on people who drink and drive in the UK?”
“ Noller (1980) comprehensively compared the effectiveness of women and men as nonverbal communicators. Being an effective communicator involves both encoding and decoding messages. Noller argued that w omen have a natural tendency to be more expressive. He added that men tend to make more errors than women when encoding messages.”
Theoretical approaches. Analytical framework. Formulas and equations. Experiments. Philosophies.

dissertation schedule

“Pumpkins are crucial Jungian symbols used to indicate the desire of the subconscious mind to control and change the feeling of horror and fear of the people’s desire to understand the unknowable. This study will expand the field of pumpkinology, while fellowship with rats will further be expanded. This will herald a new era of plague-less companionship.”

Thesis Proposal Example

Check out this thesis proposal sample from our dissertation proposal writing services to get an idea of how a good thesis proposal is supposed to look and to give you a better idea of what to do.

Significant advances in technological capacity have brought the world closer. While this is a positive aspect, it has also introduced a new kind of problem. Cyber-attacks are common features in the present internet age. Individuals and governments are at risk of being targeted, leading to studies involved in alleviating possible breakdown of society owing to its dependence on technology. The paper aims at determining the United States’ preparedness for cybercrime by looking at the nation’s best law enforcement agencies, the CIA and the FBI. By understanding the inner workings of these bodies with relation to cybercrime, the research aims at eliciting an understanding of issues that have been dealt with and showcasing emerging issues that threaten existing cybersecurity measures in a bid to improve them. Cybercrime has shown considerable advancement over the past, necessitating nationwide attention, where the Federal government should use its resources to ensure it is always up to date on matters concerning cybersecurity. In this way, the avenues used by cybercriminals are destroyed.

  • Introduction

The significant advancement made in internet technology has yielded a lot of aid in the development of certain aspects of the world relating to information technology. Ranging from medical studies to an intricate internet monetary system (Bitcoin has grown significantly over the past few years) internet development is at the core of modern civilization. As such, issues relating to the internet are of particular concern, especially to developed nations such as the U.S.A. In recent years, a new form of crime has developed due to the growth in internet usage. Cybercrime is a relatively new threat in the American system. Nations such as China and Russia have evidenced an inclination towards technological development, therefore, it is important to determine America’s preparedness for issues that deal with cyber-attacks. The issue can be seen to have dire consequences for economies as cybercriminals have in the past hacked into American corporations (incidences have been blamed on Russia and China). Well-established protocols should be put in place to deal with the growing threat that cannot be alleviated by traditional means of defense. The paper aims at determining if the U.S. is prepared in case of future cyberattacks as cybercriminals continue to increase on a global scale.

Therefore, cybercrime can be deemed as the newest threat to the development of nations in the internet era, which leads to the purpose of this study. It entails an intricate knowledge of writings on the issue and methods that can be used to determine the level of risk faced by an organization or government with regard to cyber attacks. In this way, the researcher aims at ascertaining the relevance of U.S.A. security against cybercrime.

Literature Review

Many scholars argue that governments, as seen by efforts of agencies such as FBI, have limited interest in developing countermeasures for cyber threats. While these institutions confer that the next leading global giants will undoubtedly have the best virtual network connectivity, most of them do not consider cybercrime as serious. In recent years, the United States (U.S) government has come up with various legislations regarding crime committed on cyberspace. While they have elicited some kind of response from the public, enacted legislation is inadequate in curbing cybercriminals. A good example of the limited focus on cyber security is evidenced in the restrictions placed on the FBI with regard to an iPhone that had potentially useful information due to a confidentiality clause.

Such issues should be considered when coming up with legislation concerning cybercrime. Nevertheless, such an issue showcased instances where the public views technological advancements of the government in curbing crime as the FBI hacked the suspect’s phone. It is important to note that a large portion of legislation targeting cyber criminals has been developed after individuals have committed a crime. This is particularly visible in the nation’s interest in cyberspace which developed after leaked information revealed that the Chinese government had hacked government systems in the U.S.A. for an unknown period of time. As such, the FBI has failed in this regard to protect citizens from cybercriminals. A large number of crimes dealing with the internet have led to leaked information concerning individuals such as social security numbers and credit card information. Therefore, loss of such information has led to an increase in crime where identity theft plays a crucial role in highlighting cyber-crime effects. Nevertheless, governments continue to downplay the importance of cyber security, since there is no clearly accepted definition of cyber warfare, cyberattacks and cybercrime. This leads to hackers being provided the opportunity to continue with their tasks unhindered, allowing them to progress faster than the law in this respect.

Furthermore, it is necessary to point out the diversity of cybercrime to better develop the issue. Cybercrime targets anyone without any form of consideration for age, sex, or financial status. A young child whose information has been stolen could be the victim in a social security fraud case. In this case, individuals use the child’s documents to open up new lines of credit thereby giving criminals revenue to conduct their activities which negatively affects the individuals in the future and the country. For such a victim, it is difficult to determine the source of the hack since most people realize these issues when they require credit such as when applying for a loan. In the same way, an organization may be threatened with leakage of information regarding a particular product that could potentially lead to loss of revenue. Multiplier effects of such hacks are immense, cutting across the economy as some people are at risk of losing their livelihoods.

Therefore, new laws enacted to protect people against cybercrime have led to a unanimous agreement by nations. This concerns the role of cyber security in eradicating cybercrime, showcasing its importance in a country. Mohammed and Mariani also agree as they emphasize for governments to adopt better measures of cybersecurity. To deter criminals, nations need to understand the implications of cybercrime in the communities involved. Rather than wait for a criminal occurrence to develop good countermeasures, they should invest a sizeable quantity of resources to the attainment of peak cybersecurity measures.

Theoretical Framework/Approach

A large number of studies related to cybercrime have focused on the ability of a country to mitigate cybercrime based on existing research and technological capabilities. However, this study aims to develop an understanding of the American system with regard to its readiness to deal with this form of crime. In this respect, the research will focus on the government’s primary law enforcement agency tasked with interior security (F.B.I) and their ability to prevent cybercriminals from operating in the U.S. It is important to ascertain the agency’s level of development in terms of computer expertise. Moreover, the CIA is tasked with external protection of the nation. The study will thus include measures taken by the CIA. in their pursuit of a nation without cybercriminals.

However, the key to determining the relevance of a nation’s systems in curbing cybercrime is the legislature where it needs to come up with severe penalties for perpetrators of these acts. As such, individuals who wish to become hackers will be less receptive to the allure of hacking as they consider the penalty as extremely high. This requires a nation to develop strong foreign policies dealing with cybercrime. Such systems act as a deterrent to foreign nationals who would wish to hack a country such as America due to the potential legal ramifications. In this manner, the number of white hat hackers is likely to increase thus contributing to a nation’s systems to counter cybercrime. As a large pool of individuals possesses skills that could potentially aid a government to prevent future attacks, it is important to look at the criminal system and how it deals with cybercriminals. Some of these individuals possess a significant number of skills that could improve cybersecurity when used in a positive manner. Therefore, rather than work against people with good computer skills, the government will work with them to boost the nation’s cyber security. This reduces the number of people in the prison system and provides the government with a proper labor force to maintain cyber security.

Nevertheless, it is necessary to consider the impact of integrating criminals into the justice system since it might have detrimental effects. These may arise because of nationalism. Individuals who hack American systems are less likely to be of American descent. Therefore, providing them with access to sensitive information could be disastrous if they continue exhibiting radical tendencies. However, for an agency or bureau to develop proper measures of security, there is a need to understand the mindset of cybercriminals. Offering these individuals incentives such as monetary compensation and reduced jail sentences could help mitigate against the aforementioned issues.

Research Design & Methods

The research will differ from the majority of studies by concentrating on non-experimental methods, specifically correlational research where the focus is on reduction of cybercrime in the nation as security systems continue to improve. With a certain focus on the American system, the study will encompass various studies in an attempt to find a connection between them. In this way, it will be possible to determine the manner in which the U.S. has survived a myriad of cyber attacks based on existing technology. Furthermore, this approach aids in showcasing a trend of the manner in which cybercrime is developing in contemporary societies. As such, the CIA and FBI come into focus. They are deemed the paramount institutions established by the U.S. in dealing with threats, both externally and internally and thus a review of the processes employed by both institutions is helpful in gauging American readiness for cyber warfare.

In recent years, various internet-based institutions have taken over the global markets. Bitcoin threatens the very existence of conventional financial instruments as it continues on an upward trend. Other actors such as Google have grown considerably over the past decade to become giant corporations. As such, the internet continues to broaden in its application to normal day life. It is, therefore prudent that the US government improve its cyber security to protect its organizations.

Moreover, it is impossible to come up with an accurate depiction of the nation’s state in terms of cybersecurity. This is because information regarding systems used by the CIA and FBI is highly classified. As such, the study can only base its arguments on technologies used by the F.B.I., that is, those that they evidence to the public as opposed to the one’s they do not reveal. It is also important to gauge the direction in which government institutions have gone in their attempts to deviate cybercriminals from criminal behavior. A recent issue concerning the hack of an iPhone belonging to the San Bernadino shooter is proof of the advancement in hacking technology within the government. It is possible to come up with an insightful view of the focus placed by governments, particularly the American government concerning cyber security by looking at budget records and trends in recent past. A rise in the value assigned to local agencies to deal with cyber threats shows increased interest in cyber security.

Cybercrime plays a huge role in modern societies. Many nations have claimed that whomever leads in technological capacity wields a large power. As such, while governments focus on physical threats, the study intends to ascertain their readiness for a cyber attack. With the U.S. as the primary source of information, the paper aims at developing an understanding into the digital world and ways that the government has, and should, use resources in creating impenetrable cyber security systems.

Seek Thesis Proposal Help

At this point, it is important to point out that writing a thesis proposal is never easy. Indeed, many are university students who get stuck even before getting started. But you cannot give up because the proposal is the gateway to crafting a great thesis. Therefore, you should seek writing help from professionals.

The experts have been writing thesis proposals and other tasks that students fund tough to handle. In addition to being experts in different fields, they know what works and what does not. So, they are your best bet to crafting a great proposal and, finally, the best thesis to impress the evaluation committee. We are the best master thesis writing service online, and are as reliable as it gets!

Thesis Proposal FAQ

  • How long should a thesis proposal be? Although the length of a thesis proposal may differ from one university to another, the average length is about ten pages.
  • What is the best formatting and citation for a proposal and thesis? Well, there is no standard formatting and citation method when it comes to writing proposals and thesis. However, your department will give the recommended formatting and citation style that students should use for their proposal. If your department does not provide a clear guideline on formatting and citation, consider checking the best sample thesis proposal to see how the best students did it.
  • How long does it take to draft a thesis proposal? It depends on the type of research paper you are writing and the requirement for the proposal. You can dedicate an entire day to draft a proposal. But, the average amount of time you should spend on a thesis proposal should not exceed three days.
  • Literature review
  • Research methodology
  • Ethical consideration
  • Research timeline
  • Is Writing a thesis proposal stressful? Definitely, writing a thesis proposal requires ample time for research and preparation to avoid being rejected. It might take your time but when you have an idea of what you’re working on, it isn’t too stressful.
  • Best way on how to write a thesis proposal? It is very simple. Research. Doing a thorough research before starting your proposal makes the work easier. The secret to every thesis proposal or research paper that is properly written is the amount of research that went into producing the paper. Therefore, when starting your proposal, carry out an extensive research on your topic to build up more information.
  • Is Writing a thesis proposal hard? Aside from researching, most times, putting together a thesis proposal even after extensive research can be a bit difficult. It could be the challenge of not knowing how to start or “how to put pen on paper”. Every researcher or student experiences this at the initial stage. But, the important thing to note is that you don’t need to get it right in your first draft. Just write. You can structure it later.

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Sample budgets

Justification.

Bumblebee colonies will be obtained from Koppert Biological Systems (MI, USA) and shipped overnight to Nevada. An emerging standard for publication is the utilization of three to five colonies for testing so as to minimize individual colony biases and to acquire a sufficient data set. In order to maintain the colonies I will need pollen to feed them on a daily basis. Additionally I will use the chemical octopamine hydrochloride to explore neuroendocrine relationships between gustatory responsiveness, learning, and octopamine.

I estimated shipping costs to the best of my knowledge.

* Costs are estimated based on average costs of the material; final cost may be slightly different.

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FREE 11+ Research Budget Proposal Samples & Templates in PDF | MS Word

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The greatest research laboratories in the world are not self-sufficient. For example, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, we famously know as NASA, get its annual budget from the US government. On a report posted by Planetary.org, NASA’s total budget for the fiscal year 2020 is increased to 5.3% from the previous fiscal year, which now totals to 22.629 billion US dollars. The budget is 0.48% of the overall US government spending. In other words, to attain successful space explorations, funding is needed. With that said, budget proposals must come in first before a research project has to take place. It will ensure enough financial resources to land again on the moon or launch satellites to discover more planets in the solar system. If that interests you, continue reading this article for more information about a research budget proposal.

Research Budget Proposal

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A budget proposal is a professionally-written document provided by an organization to layout a financial budget plan for a particular time. It is a budget request projects, campaigns, events, and more. This proposal is significant to the financial accounting department because it will carry on the amount needed to continue the company’s operations. Furthermore, a budget proposal contains relevant details about an organization’s undertakings, expenses, the reason for the spending, and an approval signature. Usually, the expenses come from the need of employees, materials, supplies, travel, workshops, conferences, utilities, etc.

According to Small Business Chron, a budget proposal is a budget plan supported by professional sales research paper , whether in corporate, academic, or non-profit organizations. It helps an enterprise to understand the true scope of a project before it takes place. And pitch an accurate representation of the cost involved. But you have to keep close attention to your proposal to make it a valuable outcome.

How will a research laboratory conduct studies without advanced equipment? Do research laboratories pay a salary to scientists? Why do some research projects fail without a fund? By that, you can easily think of research as a money-driven undertaking. That is true. Without funding, it would not be possible to treat influenza or bottle up ranch sauces. Even mobile phones would not exist if Motorola did not fund its research. You see, every development we experience these days is a result of financial enrichment. Also, a budget proposal is crucial in finding answers to the questions of the ever-curious human brains.

Based on an article published on the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) website, before World War II, research and development (R&D) in the United States was at its most basic sample form. Several scientific research laboratories were not associated with the government. In those years, philanthropic support groups often funded the industry in its venture towards scientific and technical findings. However, when WWII happened, military needs such as scientific and technical requirements gave the government a reason to engage with engineering and science institutions to produce weapons in support of fighting the war. The post-war effect made it clear that successful coordination with R&D to aid WWII technical problems could continue to promote the country’s health, economic stability, and national security. The total R&D expenditures shown in another NCBI report reached 220.6 billion US dollars in 1998. It includes spending by industry, government, universities, and colleges—the figure increased to 5.3% from the previous year’s total expenditure.

The challenges of completing a budget proposal sample are many. You have to consider a lot of things—materials, workforce, and the budget. But most importantly, you have to learn how to write this document. So, we made a list of steps that will guide in making one. Here is how:

Set your goals first before making a budget proposal. It will be your guidepost as you complete your budget sample plan . Ask yourself, “Why is there a need to make a budget proposal?” “What are the expectations after the proposal is made?” and “What will be the benefits of making the budget proposal?” Furthermore, to ensure the clarity in your budget proposal, acknowledge your mission in its first part. Composing the mission is easy. Try to answer the what, when, where, why, and how of your budget plan. With that, you can easily elaborate on the effects of your proposal.

The next crucial part of the proposal is the direct cost. Why? It is directly related to the proposal you are making, which means it has a linear impact on your budget. An example of this is the cost of materials and services for the research report . Moreover, the planning process, production, launch, and completion of the project are also part of the budget proposal.

Sponsorships and grants will not recognize some other costs, because some funding has expense limitations. And it includes facilities use, utilities, support staff, insurance, and legal and accounting expenses. These expenses should be listed separately in the proposal. Moving forward, since you are proposing a budget for a research project work , it means you have a beneficial goal. With that, separate the cost of producing the benefits from day-to-day expenses.

After noting all the expected expenses, finish the proposal with a detailed description of the expected benefits of completing the sample research report. Sample Estimate the currency value of the benefits and convert it to the number of revenue. Now, you have to remember that the benefits must be greater than the cost. Hence, so not shy away in describing the benefits, or your budget may not be approved.

A proposal outline contains the synopsis of the project. On top of that, the rationale, objectives, experimental approach, and potential significance of the project must be present too.

A basic proposal outline contains the following: abstract, problem statement, methodology, evaluation, dissemination, budget, and continuation funding.

A proposal has a conclusion, but it varies in tone and information. The conclusion of the proposal should summarize the benefits of the project it is working on, including the problems, motivation, and proposed solution.

Research is more than just discovering the space above us—it covers all the things our eyes can see, and our bodies can feel. But before that is possible, research projects, scientific or technical, needs strong financial pillars. To achieve that, you need to present a research budget proposal. With a well- writing proposal , a research project will be possible.

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The Budget Lab at Yale Launches to Provide Novel Analysis for Federal Policy Proposals

The Budget Lab logo on dark blue background

The  Budget Lab at Yale , a nonpartisan policy research center, launched on April 12 to provide in-depth analysis for federal policy proposals impacting the American economy. For too long, according to the center’s founders, policy analysis has been narrowly focused on short-term cost estimates, or traditional budget scores, according to the center’s founders. The Budget Lab aims to fill a critical gap in policy evaluation, particularly focusing on the long-term effects of proposed policies on the economy, the income distribution, and recipients. The Budget Lab’s initial analysis , released today, examines both the Tax Cut and Jobs Act (TCJA) and the Child Tax Credit (CTC) through this broader lens.  

The Budget Lab is co-founded by leading economic advisors and academics whose goal is to bring fresh ideas and new methods to policy making. 

  • Natasha Sarin, Co-founder and President, is a Professor of Law at Yale Law School with a secondary appointment at the Yale School of Management in the Finance Department. She served as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic Policy and later as a Counselor to the U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. 
  • Danny Yagan, Co-founder and Chief Economist, is an Associate Professor of Economics at UC Berkeley and a Research Associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. He was the Chief Economist of the White House Office of Management and Budget.
  • Martha Gimbel, Co-founder and Executive Director, is a former Senior Advisor at the White House Council of Economic Advisers, Senior Policy Advisor to the U.S Secretary of Labor, and Senior Economist and Research Director at Congress’s Joint Economic Committee. 

“For many of the greatest policy challenges of our time — investing in children, combating climate change — their most important impact is not on short-run GDP. We need to understand the effects on poverty, on emissions reduction, on the income distribution,” said Sarin. “We are excited to share the tools we have built to analyze the fiscal and social impacts of government policies so policymakers can make better choices.”

The Budget Lab’s work will look at issues not included in current budget policy assessment methods, particularly in evaluating the full scope of costs and returns related to policies including the child tax credit, tax cuts, paid family leave, deficit reduction, and universal pre-K. The Lab’s innovative approach bridges this gap by offering a combination of existing open-source models and our microsimulation tax model to provide fast, transparent, and innovative estimates that unlock deeper insights.

“Our approach implements a new lens to improve existing conventions for distributional impacts by showing how policies affect families over time,” added Yagan. 

One key aspect of the Budget Lab’s commitment to transparency is its open-access model code. The code used to produce analysis is publicly available, fostering trust and allowing policymakers to understand how the Budget Lab arrives at its results. It also allows for the infrastructure of the budget model the team is developing to be leveraged by others interested in similar analysis. 

“Our aim is to provide rapid responses to important policy questions with the ability to think not only about the costs of policies but also about benefits and the return on investments,” said Martha Gimbel.  “Our tax microsimulation model, budget estimates, and interactives will paint a broader and more realistic picture of how Americans will benefit from proposed government initiatives.”  

The Budget Lab is hosting a launch event at the National Press Club on April 12 where the leadership team will share new research on budget scoring for TCJA and CTC. The event will include remarks by Shalanda Young, Director of the Office of Management and Budget and a panel discussion with Joshua Bolten, former Director of the Office of Management and Budget and White House Chief of Staff for President George W. Bush; Doug Holtz-Eakin, former Director of Congressional Budget Office and economic policy advisor to Sen. John McCain; and will be moderated by Greg Ip of The Wall Street Journal .   

Budget Lab Team

In addition to the Budget Lab co-founders, the team includes leading economists who have extensive experience in the public sector. 

Ernie Tedeschi, Director of Economics, was most recently the chief economist at the White House Council of Economic Advisors. Rich Prisinzano, is the Director of Policy Analysis, previously served at the Penn Wharton Budget Model and for over a decade as an economist in the Office of Tax Analysis in the U.S. Department of Treasury. John Ricco, Associate Director of Policy Analysis, is an economic researcher with a decade of experience building microsimulation models to inform public policy debates and was formerly with the Penn Wharton Budget Model and also a research analyst at the International Monetary Fund. Harris Eppsteiner, Associate Director of Policy Analysis, was a Special Assistant to the Chairman and research economist at the White House Council on Economic Advisors. 

In the Press

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McCarthy budget would slash 60,000 teachers, 'undermine education,' Biden administration says

budget for thesis proposal

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona slammed House Speaker Kevin McCarthy for a Republican  budget proposal  the White House estimates would cut 22% from the nation's budget and tighten funding for America's schools, going as far as to call it an attempt to "undermine education."

On a call with reporters Tuesday, Cardona said the budget cuts would hurt students and student loan borrowers in part by eliminating loan forgiveness, "pulling 60,000 educators and support staff from schools" and "derail(ing) the response to the youth mental health crisis in this country." 

"Today we face a moment of truth in education. One that calls for all of us to come together and raise the bar for our education system and our children," Cardona said. "But while this administration is meeting the moment with urgency and resolve, it's clear that Republicans are planning to meet it with staggering recklessness, prioritizing extreme politics over practice policies to help our nation's students."

McCarthy's office did not immediately respond Tuesday to a message seeking comment.

What is McCarthy's proposal?

McCarthy last week  revealed the GOP's plan to raise the debt ceiling , which proposes $4.5 trillion in cuts. The "Limit, Save, Grow Act" would in part reallocate unspent COVID-19 relief money and limit other government spending and return discretionary funding to fiscal year 2022 levels, McCarthy said. 

"President Biden has a choice. Come to the table and stop playing partisan political games, or cover his ears, refuse to negotiate and risk bumbling his way into the first default in our nation's history," McCarthy said in a speech from the House floor Wednesday.

President Joe Biden opposes any spending cuts tied to raising the debt ceiling, which is needed for the U.S. government to continue to borrow and avoid a default.

Biden said Wednesday that he would veto McCarthy’s bill if it is sent to his desk. A vote is expected this week in the Republican-controlled House, where its fate is uncertain. The legislation is likely dead on arrival in the Democratic-controlled Senate.

McCarthy, GOP debt limit plan: Proposes $4.5 trillion in cuts, eliminates student loan forgiveness

Speaker McCarthy and House GOP race: To unveil and unite behind debt ceiling proposal

The GOP's plan comes in response to a $6.9 trillion budget proposal from Biden, which would increase funding for Title I schools and help alleviate teacher shortages.

At the SXSW EDU conference in Austin, Texas, Cardona praised the administration for committing funding to diversifying the teaching profession.

“I’ve never seen this kind of commitment to education," he said. 

Tax the rich. Cut the deficit.: Takeaways from Biden's $6.9 trillion budget proposal

What does the Education Department say would be impacted?

The Education Department said in a news release Tuesday that the budget cuts would affect the most disadvantaged students, including those who live in rural and low-income areas, those who are enrolled in special education programs, and those who need mental health support.

"The proposal would cut approximately $4 billion in funding for schools serving low-income children, impacting an estimated 26 million students and reducing program funding to its lowest level in almost a decade — a cut equivalent to removing more than 60,000 teachers and specialized instructional support personnel from classrooms," the release reads .

The proposed funding reductions could also lower Pell Grant award amounts for students from low-income families who rely on them to attend college and slash the number of awards, according to the Education Department. The department also said the GOP's proposal would also "eliminate" Biden's student debt relief plan. 

Contributing: Joey Garrison. 

Contact Kayla Jimenez at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter at @kaylajjimenez.

COMMENTS

  1. PDF Writing a Proposal Budget

    What is a Proposal Budget and why is it needed? Before we get started talking about all the pieces of a budget, let's make sure that we're on the same page about what a budget actually is. A budget is a financial proposal that reflects the work proposed. It outlines the expected project costs in detail, and should mirror the project description.

  2. How to make a simple research budget

    A good budget shows the assessors that you have thought about your research in detail and, if it is done well, it can serve as a great, convincing overview of the project. Here are five steps to create a simple budget for your research project. 1. List your activities. Make a list of everything that you plan to do in the project, and who is ...

  3. How to Outline Expenses/Budget in Your Dissertation Plan

    Although the individual items will vary from project to project, these three steps will lead you on your way to preparing a persuasive proposal budget: Consult your adviser, committee members, and funding sources for guidelines. List all the costs associated with implementing your desired dissertation plan (including the items you hope to get ...

  4. How to Write a Research Proposal

    Example research proposal #1: "A Conceptual Framework for Scheduling Constraint Management" Example research proposal #2: "Medical Students as Mediators of Change in Tobacco Use" Title page. Like your dissertation or thesis, the proposal will usually have a title page that includes: The proposed title of your project; Your name

  5. How to Write a Dissertation or Thesis Proposal

    While a thesis proposal is often only 3-7 pages long, a prospectus for your dissertation is usually much longer, with more detailed analysis. Dissertation proposals can be up to 25-30 pages in length. Note Sometimes, a research schedule or detailed budget may be necessary if you are pursuing funding for your work. Dissertation prospectus examples

  6. Research Proposal Example (PDF + Template)

    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

  7. Appendix C: Sample Budget Justification

    The budget justification is one of the most important non-technical sections of the proposal, and it is often required by the sponsor. In this section, the Principal Investigator (PI) provides additional detail for expenses within each budget category and articulates the need for the items/expenses listed. The information provided in the budget justification may be the definitive criteria used ...

  8. How to Develop a Budget for a Research Proposal

    Abstract. Novice investigators may be intimidated by the task of proposal budget preparation. Often a basic understanding of the mechanics of budgeting, paired with a good working relationship with the institution's sponsored programs office, can alleviate much of the stress investigators encounter in developing budgets.

  9. Proposal Budgets

    Proposal Budgets. The budget should list all cost details for the year or another appropriate period of time. It should include any applicable salaries & wages, fringe benefits, services, supplies, equipment, publications, travel, other direct expenses, and any facility and administrative costs. A brief outline for developing a budget is ...

  10. What Is A Research Proposal? Examples + Template

    The purpose of the research proposal (its job, so to speak) is to convince your research supervisor, committee or university that your research is suitable (for the requirements of the degree program) and manageable (given the time and resource constraints you will face). The most important word here is "convince" - in other words, your ...

  11. How to Write a Research Proposal

    The length of a research proposal can vary quite a bit. A bachelor's or master's thesis proposal can be just a few pages, while proposals for PhD dissertations or research funding are usually much longer and more detailed. Your supervisor can help you determine the best length for your work. ... Budget. If you are applying for research ...

  12. How to Write a Thesis Proposal, Thesis Proposal Outline

    Gather all the necessary information before you start writing, and stick to formats that highlight the value of your proposal. The usual flow of writing a thesis proposal is as follows. 1. Outline. Start by coming up with a detailed description of the major points you'll be making in your thesis. 2.

  13. How to plan and write a budget for research grant proposal?

    Budget summary outlines the proposed grant and often (most of the format) appears at the beginning of the proposal. It should always be prepared at the end, after the grant proposal has been completely developed. A sample budget summary (as an example) for a proposed study for the duration of three years is shown in Table 2. In the personnel ...

  14. The Budget Calculation (Qualitative Research Proposal Series)

    This is Part 2 of a four-part series on proposal writing for qualitative research. Please read Part 1 of this series, which covers crafting an overview as a starting point of conversation with the…

  15. Top 7 Research Budget Templates with Samples and Examples

    This presentation template is an easy-to-use tool for determining the budget required for psychology research. With this slide, you can allocate a budget for each area, including diagnostic assessment, training, technology and tools, supplies, travel, and workforce. It is a practical, hands-on template with information required to plan the ...

  16. Sample Budget Justifications

    Sample Budget Justifications. Sponsor requirements differ, and sample budget justifications should be seen only as a starting point. Guidelines for sponsor requirements are in the annotated budget justifications. Read the solicitation and the sponsor's proposal preparation guidelines for each proposal's requirements.

  17. 36+ SAMPLE Research Budgets in PDF

    What Is a Research Budget? A research budget showcases the allocated expenses in research, and it is usually represented in tables or charts. Oftentimes, the research budget is discussed twice: (1) it is used to discuss the overall budget plan for a grant or research proposal in case an organization approves of funding the research budget, and (2) it displays the associated expenses involved ...

  18. 12+ Research Budget Proposal Templates in PDF

    A research proposal is a paper that proposes a research project, usually in the sciences or academia and generally constitutes a funding request for that study. A budget is one of the key components of a research proposal and serves as a blueprint for spending the funds from the project. An effective budget for the proposal outlines the proposed project in fiscal terms and helps reviewers ...

  19. How To Write A Thesis Proposal

    Abstract. This is a summary of the entire proposal. Define the topic of the proposal. The topic is the title of the project and gives the reader a general idea of what the thesis is all about. Write the introduction. The introduction helps to bring out the main issues in the thesis as well as its significance.

  20. PDF A PROPOSAL FOR A MASTER'S THESIS

    A Thesis Proposal is a document that sets forth what is to be studied as a thesis project, why and in what way. It contains a number of important sections. The purpose of the proposal is to communicate the plan for the work to the faculty of the Division of Emerging Media Studies via the First Reader (principal thesis advisor) and a Second Reader.

  21. Sample Budgets

    Misc. funding is for unexpected expenses. $60. Total. $987.94. I estimated shipping costs to the best of my knowledge. * Costs are estimated based on average costs of the material; final cost may be slightly different. View examples of budgets for undergraduate research proposals at the University of Nevada, Reno.

  22. FREE 11+ Research Budget Proposal Samples & Templates in PDF

    On a report posted by Planetary.org, NASA's total budget for the fiscal year 2020 is increased to 5.3% from the previous fiscal year, which now totals to 22.629 billion US dollars. The budget is 0.48% of the overall US government spending. In other words, to attain successful space explorations, funding is needed.

  23. The Budget Lab at Yale Launches to Provide Novel Analysis for Federal

    The Budget Lab at Yale, a nonpartisan policy research center, launched on April 12 to provide in-depth analysis for federal policy proposals impacting the American economy.For too long, according to the center's founders, policy analysis has been narrowly focused on short-term cost estimates, or traditional budget scores, according to the center's founders.

  24. Student debt borrowers could be harmed by GOP budget proposal: Cardona

    What is McCarthy's proposal? McCarthy last week revealed the GOP's plan to raise the debt ceiling, which proposes $4.5 trillion in cuts. The "Limit, Save, Grow Act" would in part reallocate ...