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Cited by 16Doctoral Education Challenges and SolutionsEducational Research and MethodsAcademic Writing and Publishing

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 43 of the 45 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

How to Write An Effective Research Proposal For Higher Degree Research in Higher Education: Lessons From Practice

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Kivunja, Charles·2016·International Journal of Higher Education
DOI 10.5430/ijhe.v5n2p163
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Abstract

Admission into a higher degree research program or confirmation of candidature into such a program of most universities often requires the applicant to submit a research proposal. This is a very important document which not only articulates the research topic and research question, but also explains the research design which outlines how the proposed research will be carried out. The significance of the research proposal is highlighted by the fact that failure to write a good research proposal may mean failure to be admitted into a higher degree research program, or failure to be confirmed as a continuing doctoral candidate. In spite of such significance, however, my experience when supervising many higher degree research students is that many of them struggle to write a good research proposal. One of the contributing factors to this is the apparent void that exists in research methods textbooks on exactly what a research proposal is and how it should be written. This paper aims to help fill that void by articulating a detailed structure of a research proposal that could be used as part of the application to gain admission into a higher degree research program of any good university or for confirmation of candidature in such a research study program. The paper draws on the expertise accumulated on this topic as a result of many decades of writing research proposals for higher degree research projects, conducting many higher degree research studies successfully in several universities in Australia and other countries, teaching research methods to higher degree research students and supervising many successful masters and doctoral theses. The paper concludes, that while there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ research proposal, a careful design of a higher degree research proposal along the structure discussed in this paper should improve one’s chances of success greatly.

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Research works printed but not linked: 6

  1. APA. (2012). Publications manual of the American Psychological Association. 6 th edition. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
  2. Guba, E.G. & Lincoln. Y.S. (1989). What is this constructivist paradigm anyway? In Fourth Generation Evaluation. London: Sage Publications, pp. 79-90.
  3. Kivunja, C. D. (1984). The economics of the development of small farms in Africa, M. Agric. Econ. Thesis. Sydney: University of Sydney. (xvii, 268pp).
  4. Kivunja, C. (2001). The establishment, leadership and improvement of educational organizations. Unpublished Master of Education Dissertation. Faculty of Education. UWS, Penrith Campus.
  5. Kivunja, C. (2015a). Innovative Methodologies for 21 st Century Learning, Teaching and Assessment: A Convenience www.sciedupress.com/ijhe International Journal of Higher Education Vol. 5, No. 2; 2016 Published by Sciedu Press 172 ISSN 1927-6044
  6. Kivunja, C. (2015d). Teaching, learning and assessment: Steps towards creative practice. Melbourne, Vic: Oxford University Press.

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Metadata

Authors
Kivunja, C.
Affiliations
University of New England (AU)
Corresponding author
Kivunja, Charles
ORCID
Kivunja, Charles
Venue
International Journal of Higher Education
Publisher
Sciedu Press
Published
2016-03-22
Volume
5
Issue
2
ISSN
  • 1927-6044 (ISSN-L)
  • 1927-6052
DOI
10.5430/ijhe.v5n2p163
OpenAlex
W2314668342
Cited by
14
References
45
Citations by year
2025: 1 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 2 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 3 · 2017: 2
FWCI
3.10
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • International Journal of Higher Education (publishedVersion)
  • EPubDev Repository (submittedVersion)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • RUNE (Research UNE) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Education › Doctoral Education Challenges and Solutions
  • Social Sciences › Education › Educational Research and Methods
  • Social Sciences › Library and Information Sciences › Academic Writing and Publishing
Keywords
research proposal writing, higher degree research, doctoral candidature, research design, research supervision, proposal structure

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