Thesis/Project Writing

A Project report is a form of written communication prepared by a professionals at

the completeness of his research work. It records all the data and its analysis and
findings in objective style which contains all usual elements such as cover page ,
title page, table of contents, summary, introduction, conclusion and
recommendations.

A Thesis is a long research report. It may span over a period of 2 to 5 years. It

provides detailed written account of the data after conducting some survey in
particular field which includes data analysis, findings or conclusion derived by the
researcher. It is divided into chapters.

Components of a Research Proposal

Introduction

The introduction sets the tone for what follows in your research proposal – treat it
as the initial pitch of your idea. After reading the introduction your reader should:

 understand what it is you want to do;

 have a sense of your passion for the topic; and
 be excited about the study’s possible outcomes

Within those one to three paragraphs, it is important to briefly answer the

following questions:

 What is the central research problem?

 How is the topic of your research proposal related to the problem?
 What methods will you utilize to analyze the research problem?
 Why is it important to undertake this research? What is the significance of
your proposed research? Why are the outcomes of your proposed research
important? Whom are they important?

Background and significance

The purpose of this section is to explain the context of your proposal and to
describe, in detail, why it is important to undertake this research. Assume that the
 person or people who will read your research proposal know nothing or very little
about the research problem. While you do not need to include all knowledge you
have learned about your topic in this section, it is important to ensure that you
include the most relevant material that will help to explain the goals of your
research.

While there are no hard and fast rules, you should attempt to address some or all of
the following key points:

1. State the research problem and provide a more thorough explanation about the
purpose of the study than what you stated in the introduction.
2. Present the rationale for the proposed research study. Clearly indicate why this
research is worth doing. Answer the “so what?” question.
3. Describe the major issues or problems to be addressed by your research. Do not
forget to explain how and in what ways your proposed research builds upon
previous related research.
4. Explain how you plan to go about conducting your research.
5. Clearly identify the key or most relevant sources of research you intend to use and
explain how they will contribute to your analysis of the topic.
6. Set the boundaries of your proposed research, in order to provide a clear focus.
Where appropriate, state not only what you will study, but what will be excluded
from your study.
7. Provide clear definitions of key concepts and terms. Since key concepts and terms
often have numerous definitions, make sure you state which definition you will be
utilizing in your research.

Literature review

This key component of the research proposal is the most time-consuming aspect in
the preparation of your research proposal. T he literature review provides the
background to your study and demonstrates the significance of the proposed
research. Specifically, it is a review and synthesis of prior research that is related to
the problem you are setting forth to investigate. Essentially, your goal in the
literature review is to place your research study within the larger whole of what has
been studied in the past, while demonstrating to your reader that your work is
original, innovative, and adds to the larger whole.

Here are some suggestions on how to approach the writing of your literature
review:
1. Think about what questions other researchers have asked, what methods they used,
what they found, and what they recommended based upon their findings.
2. Do not be afraid to challenge previous related research findings and/or
conclusions.
3. Assess what you believe to be missing from previous research and explain how
your research fills in this gap and/or extends previous research.

Research design and methods

The objective of this section of the research proposal is to convince the reader that
your overall research design and methods of analysis will enable you to solve the
research problem you have identified and also enable you to accurately and
effectively interpret the results of your research. Consequently, it is critical that the
research design and methods section is well-written, clear, and logically organized.
This demonstrates to your reader that you know what you are going to do and how
you are going to do it. Overall, you want to leave your reader feeling confident that
you have what it takes to get this research study completed in a timely fashion.

While it is important to consider the methods that other researchers have

employed, it is equally, if not more, important to consider what methods have not
been but could be employed. Remember, the methods section is not simply a list of
tasks to be undertaken. It is also an argument as to why and how the tasks you have
outlined will help you investigate the research problem and answer your research
question(s).

Preliminary suppositions and implications

The purpose of this section is to argue how you anticipate that your research will
refine, revise, or extend existing knowledge in the area of your study. Depending
upon the aims and objectives of your study, you should also discuss how your
anticipated findings may impact future research. For example, is it possible that
your research may lead to a new policy, theoretical understanding, or method for
analyzing data? How might your study influence future studies? What might your
study mean for future practitioners working in the field? Who or what might
benefit from your study? How might your study contribute to social, economic or
environmental issues? While it is important to think about and discuss possibilities
such as these, it is equally important to be realistic in stating your anticipated
findings. In other words, you do not want to delve into idle speculation. Rather, the
purpose here is to reflect upon gaps in the current body of literature and to describe
how you anticipate your research will begin to fill in some or all of those gaps.

Conclusion

The conclusion reiterates the importance and significance of your research

proposal, and provides a brief summary of the entire proposed study. Essentially,
this section should only be one or two paragraphs in length. Here is a potential
outline for your conclusion:

Discuss why the study should be done. Specifically discuss how you expect your
study will advance existing knowledge and how your study is unique.

Explain the specific purpose of the study and the research questions that the study
will answer.

Explain why the research design and methods chosen for this study are appropriate,
and why other designs and methods were not chosen.

State the potential implications you expect to emerge from your proposed study,

Provide a sense of how your study fits within the broader scholarship currently in
existence, related to the research problem.

Citations and references

As with any scholarly research paper, you must cite the sources you used in
composing your research proposal. In a research proposal, this can take two forms:
a reference list or a bibliography. A reference list lists the literature you referenced
in the body of your research proposal. All references in the reference list must
appear in the body of the research proposal. Remember, it is not acceptable to say
“as cited in …” As a researcher you must always go to the original source and
check it for yourself. Many errors are made in referencing, even by top researchers,
and so it is important not to perpetuate an error made by someone else. While this
can be time consuming, it is the proper way to undertake a literature review.
Technical Proposal
Proposal is derived from the word “propose” which means to suggest, to offer a solution, or to forward a
new idea. Proposal is an act of proposing, or anything proposed. It is a form of business letter or a
formal report written to draw the attention of the public to any issue. Proposal is nothing but a way to
sell one’s ideas. The main objective of writing a proposal is persuasion. It is the first step towards a new
business. The aim of a proposal is to bring new benefits to the organization and it may be used within as
well as outside the organization.

Types of Proposals:

here are four main ways to categorize proposals:

1. Formal vs. informal

2. Internal vs. external
3. Solicited vs. unsolicited
4. Grant vs. sales

Formal Vs. Informal Proposals

Formal proposals are proposals to people that one would normally speak to or treat
more formally. When speaking to the CEO and Board of Directors in a meeting, it
would usually be in a more formal way than when speaking to a friend in the next
cubicle about his plans for lunch. In the same way, written communication would
be more formal or informal depending on what the communication is about and to
whom it is directed.
Proposing something from one company to another would almost always be a
formal proposal, as it is about a formal business transaction, and everything needs
to be documented precisely and clearly.
If the matter is internal to the company, an informal proposal is often good enough.
Informal proposals may be handwritten notes, memos, emails, or text messages.
Examples
1. Formal proposal

 A written document to another company trying to sell a new product.

 A proposal to the Board of Directors, explaining how the IT section can be
restructured so that it will function better.

2. Informal proposal
  A text message from an employee to the supervisor, asking to change the
time of the early morning meeting as she is stuck in a traffic jam.
 An email to the team leader to ask if it would be possible to take leave next
week Friday.
 A handwritten note to the IT guy asking if it would be possible to only do
the computer updates tomorrow.
 A memo to the employees, asking them to attend a company meeting.

Internal Vs. External Proposals

Internal proposals are proposals to people inside the organization, while external
proposals are to people elsewhere.
Examples
1. Internal proposal

 A proposal from the marketing department to the school's headmaster,

asking to host the city's annual fair on the school's premises.

2. External proposal

 A proposal to the city council telling them that the school would love to host
the annual city fair on its premises.

Structure of Proposal Writing:

1. Title page: It contains the title of the proposal, the name of the person or
organization to whom the proposal is being submitted, the name of the proposal
writer and the date.

2. Table of contents: It provides the readers an overall view of the proposal.

3. List of figures: It includes a list of tables, graphs,

Figures, charts used in the proposal.

4. Abstract/Summary: It highlights the major points of the proposal.

5. Methodology : It summarizes the proposed methods of data collection and the

procedure for investigating the problem.
6. Introduction: It gives the background, states the purpose, and discusses the
scope.

7. Statement of problem: It contains an objective description of the problem.

8. Proposed plan and activities

9. Recommendations: It discusses the ways to solve the problem.

Poise

Earl Wilson described poise as “the ability to be ill at ease inconspicuously.” So as

public speakers we will feel nervous and nerves are an important part of public
speaking. So if we can feel uncomfortable while public speaking but look in
control and look confident then we will do a great job. Poise is about keeping calm
and in control while under fire or under pressure. Poise comes from being focused
on the audience and being of service to your audience. If you focus on why you are
there and how you are going to help your audience and focus on the issues that you
will solve for your audience, then they are going to be appreciative and receptive
of your message. All of this can be done confidently and effectively, even with
your nerves, if you can display poise.

Presence

Presence is that air of confidence that you have when you walk into a room and
you walk on stage. It is your smile, your posture, your slow and steady breathing,
your eye contact and your open and congruent nonverbal communication. Amy
Cuddy in her TED talk, explains how we can fake confidence by simply displaying
confident body language. The metaphor I like to use is that of the beautiful and
majestic black swans that glide effortlessly across Lake Monger. Often in groups
of 3 or more and they form that perfect V pattern and a gentle wave emanates from
their wake. Simply it is poetry in motion. But, as we know under the water the legs
are going at 100 miles an hour. This is presence. Standing up, smiling looking
confident even when you may be very nervous. Out presence can be practised, and
it will hide our nerves and make us look confident.

Passion

Passionate speakers look confident and passion helps you to build trust and
connect with your audience. Passion is not just about raising your voice and having
animated gestures. Passion is having that absolute conviction in, and alignment
with your message and your purpose. Passionate people come across as authentic
and genuine and their focus is on helping their audience in one way or another.

The passion will drive your presentation and it will help hold the nerves at bay, or
at least allow you to go about your presentation and public speaking, because you
are passionate about your message. Passionate people place the importance of their
message above their nerves and any fear of public speaking. The passion drives
them.