proposal essay layout

Jun 21, 2023

Proposal Essay Examples: Convincing Ideas for Your Research Paper or Essay

Dive into the power of persuasive writing through captivating proposal essay examples. Explore ideas that inspire, enrich your work, and unlock impactful proposal crafting. Prepare to elevate your writing and leave a lasting impression!

Writing a compelling proposal essay often presents a challenge for many students. A large proportion can't distinguish a research paper proposal from a proposal essay, and even more find difficulty in creating persuasive ideas for their essays. If this situation resonates with you, rest assured you're not alone.

In this extensive guide, we aim to simplify the process of writing a proposal essay. We provide a host of resources such as examples of proposal essays, a carefully constructed outline template, and proven writing techniques. Our guide, honed through years of experience in academic writing, is specifically designed to help you achieve high grades in your proposal essay assignment.

Embark on this journey with us to uncover the nuances of crafting an excellent proposal essay. Armed with the correct resources and guidance, you will transition from uncertainty to confidence, ready to produce an impressive proposal essay. Let's start delving into the craft of writing an engaging proposal essay.

What is a Proposal Essay?

An essay proposal is a document that outlines the content and purpose of your proposed essay. Whereas a thesis conveys the central concept of your study, an essay proposal summarizes the intent and substance of a specific essay.

A proposal essay also serves as a detailed plan of action addressing a particular problem. The writer identifies a problem, suggests a solution, and provides evidence to persuade the reader to agree with the proposed solution or idea. In essence, your role as a writer is to convince the reader that your concept is exceptional and that they should support its execution.

These essays function as a strategic tool, enabling you to sell an idea, belief, or yourself in a manner that not only piques the reader's interest but also convinces them of your capability to bring the proposed plan to fruition. Although proposal essays are frequently associated with business and economics disciplines, they extend beyond these fields.

Proposal essays fundamentally promote critical thinking and problem-solving skills among students. They allow you to venture beyond the structured academic syllabus and engage with real-world issues that require innovative solutions. Writing a proposal essay, therefore, is an opportunity to demonstrate your analytical acumen and your capacity to think creatively.

How to Write a Proposal Essay

Writing a compelling proposal essay requires careful planning, thorough research, and meticulous execution. Here are the steps to ensure your proposal essay stands out:

1. Understand Your Audience: Begin by identifying your target audience. Who are they, and what is their role in the context of your proposal? What are their needs, concerns, or interests? Understanding your audience's perspectives helps in tailoring your message, increasing the chances of your proposal being accepted.

2. Research Thoroughly: Deep and broad research is crucial. Even if you're well-versed with the topic, there is always more to learn. Look at what experts in the field have said and how your proposal aligns or diverges from their views. This research will not only fortify your arguments but also make your essay more credible and authoritative.

3. Create a Detailed Plan: Once you've completed your research, start to structure your essay. Begin with an introduction where you present the problem or issue. Then, propose your solution in the body paragraphs, where each paragraph should focus on a single point or argument, supported by evidence. Finally, wrap up your proposal in the conclusion by summarizing your key points and reinforcing the significance of your solution.

4. Write Your First Draft: Start writing your essay based on the plan you have created. Be clear and concise, avoid jargon, and make sure your arguments are logically constructed and easy to follow.

5. Revise and Edit: After completing your first draft, it's important to revisit it with a critical eye. Look for areas where your argument can be strengthened, check for coherence and flow, correct grammatical errors, and ensure your language is clear and precise. It may be helpful to have others review your work for a fresh perspective.

6. Proofread: Once you're satisfied with the content of your essay, proofread it one final time to catch any minor mistakes or inconsistencies. Remember, a polished essay demonstrates your diligence and commitment to quality.

By following these steps, you can create a persuasive, well-structured proposal essay that effectively communicates your idea and its value.

Structure of a Proposal Essay

Writing a proposal essay requires a specific structure that enables you to present your idea clearly and persuasively. Here's an overview of the necessary elements:

1. Introduction: Your introduction sets the stage for your proposal. It should include a captivating hook that draws readers in, and a clear thesis statement that summarizes your proposal. For Example: A feasible approach to decreasing the alarming mortality rate among young mothers is by equipping parents with necessary skills to support their teenage daughters who become pregnant.

2. Problem Statement: After the introduction, delve deeper into the problem your proposal aims to solve. Describe its nature, roots, and implications. Clarify why it's critical to address this problem, how it affects your readers, and what benefits solving it would bring.

3. Proposal Statement: In this section, elucidate your proposal in detail. Describe the solution you've come up with, highlighting both its benefits and potential drawbacks. Ensure you present your idea as the optimal solution to the problem at hand.

4. Implementation Plan: Next, explain how you plan to execute your proposal. This should be a clear and comprehensive guide demonstrating the practicability of your solution. Identify potential obstacles that might arise during implementation and include steps to overcome them. Discuss why your approach is unique and why previous attempts to solve the problem have failed.

5. Expected Outcome: Here, discuss the positive results you expect from the implementation of your proposal. Provide a clear, concise picture of the improvements and advantages your solution will bring. 6. Evaluation: In this section, provide an estimate of the resources, including time, money, and expertise, necessary to implement your proposal. Discuss its feasibility within the current situation and address possible objections or criticisms from those who might disagree with your proposal.

7. Timeline and Required Resources: Clearly specify the resources required to implement your proposal, such as manpower, funds, and equipment. Include a timeline if possible, giving a chronological order of the steps to be taken.

8. Conclusion: Summarize the key points of your essay and reaffirm the significance of your proposal. This is your final opportunity to convince your readers, so end with a powerful call to action.

Avoid introducing new ideas in the conclusion, as it can confuse readers and may unnecessarily elongate your essay. Stick to wrapping up what you've already presented and reemphasizing its importance.

Proposal Essay Examples 

In the following section, we present a collection of Proposal Essay Examples. These essays serve as excellent references for those looking to understand the structure and content of a compelling proposal.

 Each one addresses a unique and important topic, provides an insightful problem statement, proposes thoughtful solutions, and concludes by summarizing the main points. These examples illustrate the effective strategies used in proposal writing to engage readers and convincingly present an argument. 

Let's delve into these intriguing examples to inspire and enhance your proposal writing skills.

1. Reducing Plastic Waste: A Proposal for Action

Introduction:

With the escalating global environmental crisis, the specter of plastic waste looms large. Forecasts from the United Nations indicate that, failing to reduce plastic waste, we'll have more plastic than fish in the oceans by 2050. This proposal aims to present tangible solutions to this predicament.

Problem Statement:

The unchecked production and disposal of plastic products significantly contribute to plastic waste, endangering the environment and marine life. Given the lifespan of plastic waste—lasting centuries—it's crucial to devise an effective solution to curb plastic production.

Suggested measures to combat plastic waste include:

Government-imposed ban on single-use plastic items, such as straws, cups, and cutlery.

Government incentives encouraging the use of reusable products.

Awareness campaigns conducted by the government and NGOs about the environmental impact of plastic waste.

Investments in improved waste management systems for the proper handling of plastic waste.

Conclusion:

Reducing plastic waste is an urgent priority. By implementing the proposed measures, we can alleviate the issue, protect our environment and marine life, and build a more sustainable future.

2. Dangers of Texting While Driving

Despite countless warnings and campaigns, texting while driving remains a widespread, dangerous habit. This essay investigates the perils of this behavior and proposes measures to mitigate it.

Texting while driving constitutes a severe distraction, often leading to road accidents. Studies even rank it as more dangerous than drunk driving, as it considerably delays a driver's reaction time.

To address this peril, the following steps are suggested:

Launching educational programs and campaigns to inform drivers about the risks of texting while driving.

Implementing stricter penalties for drivers caught in the act.

Promoting technologies that restrict texting while driving.

Texting while driving is a lethal habit that warrants immediate attention. By raising awareness, enforcing stricter rules, and employing technology, we can significantly cut down road accidents due to distracted driving.

3. The Causes of Homelessness

Homelessness, affecting millions worldwide, is a complex and pressing social issue. This essay explores the causes behind homelessness and suggests viable solutions.

Causes of Homelessness:

Poverty, mental illness, addiction, and family breakdowns constitute the four primary triggers of homelessness.

To alleviate homelessness, the following steps are suggested:

Stimulate the supply of affordable housing by offering financial incentives to developers and reducing zoning restrictions.

Facilitate access to mental health services, addiction treatment, and support services for individuals and families experiencing homelessness.

Alleviate poverty by raising the minimum wage, providing job training, and enhancing access to education and healthcare.

Addressing homelessness calls for a comprehensive and coordinated effort. By implementing the proposed measures, we can significantly reduce homelessness, emphasizing our collective responsibility to extend support to those grappling with this issue.

Final Words

In conclusion, crafting a persuasive proposal essay involves thoughtful planning, in-depth research, and adept writing techniques. With Jenni.ai's cutting-edge AI tools at your disposal, this process becomes simpler, enabling you to create standout proposal essays. Take this opportunity to enhance your writing skills and leave an enduring impression on your audience. Experience the transformative capabilities of Jenni.ai today!

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Ultimate guide to writing a proposal essay, carla johnson.

• June 14, 2023
• Essay Topics and Ideas , How to Guides

If you’re a student, it’s likely that you’ve been asked to write a proposal essay at some point. A proposal essay is an academic piece of writing that tries to persuade the reader to do something or take a certain point of view. In this article, we’ll show you the best way to write a proposal essay that gets accepted.

What You'll Learn

What is a proposal essay?

A proposal essay is a type of academic writing in which the writer suggests an idea or solution to a problem and then backs up that suggestion with evidence. The proposal can take many different shapes, but it usually involves pointing out a problem or issue , suggesting a solution or course of action, and giving evidence to back up that solution or action.

Why are proposal essays important?

Proposal essays are important because they give students a chance to look into tough problems and come up with solutions that could change the world. By writing a proposal essay, students learn how to find and analyze information, think critically , and explain their ideas clearly. These skills are useful not only in school, but also in a lot of professional settings.

Thesis statement

In this article , we’ll provide you with a step-by-step guide to writing a proposal essay that will help you win over your audience and get your proposal accepted. We’ll cover everything from choosing a topic to formatting your essay , so you can be sure that you’re presenting your ideas in the most persuasive and effective way possible.

Choosing a Topic

Before you can start writing your proposal essay, you need to choose a topic. There are several factors to consider when choosing a topic, including your personal interests, the scope of the project, and the needs of your audience. Here are some tips to help you choose a great proposal essay topic:

Factors to Consider When Choosing a Topic

1. Your Interests: Choose a topic that you are passionate about or interested in. This will make the research and writing process more enjoyable and engaging.

2. Relevance: Choose a topic that is relevant to your audience or community. This will make your proposal more compelling and increase the likelihood of it being accepted.

3. Feasibility: Choose a topic that is feasible within the scope of your project . Make sure you have access to the resources and information needed to effectively research and support your proposal.

Brainstorming Techniques

Once you have considered these factors, it’s time to start brainstorming potential topics. Here are some techniques to help you generate ideas:

1. Mind Mapping: Create a visual map of your ideas, starting with a central topic and branching out into related subtopics.

2. Freewriting: Set a timer for 10-15 minutes and write down everything that comes to mind about a particular topic. Don’t worry about grammar or structure – just let your ideas flow.

3. Listing: Make a list of potential topics and then narrow it down based on the factors mentioned above.

Examples of Proposal Essay Topics

Here are some examples of proposal essay topics to help inspire your brainstorming:

1. Should college athletes be paid?

2. How can we reduce plastic waste in our community?

3. Should schools require students to wear uniforms?

4. How can we improve mental health resources for college students?

5. Should the minimum wage be increased?

6. How can we reduce the gender pay gap ?

7. Should the government provide free healthcare to all citizens?

8. How can we reduce the carbon footprint of our city?

9. Should there be stricter gun control laws?

10. How can we improve public transportation in our city?

Researching Your Topic

Once you have chosen a topic for your proposal essay, it’s time to conduct thorough research . This will involve gathering information from a variety of sources, evaluating their credibility, and organizing your findings in a way that supports your proposal.

Conducting Thorough Research

The first step in researching your topic is to identify credible sources of information. These may include academic journals, books, government reports, and reputable news sources. Use a variety of sources to ensure that you are getting a balanced and well-rounded perspective on your topic.

Evaluating Sources

Not all sources are created equal, so it’s important to evaluate each source for its credibility and relevance to your topic. Consider the following factors when evaluating sources:

1. Authorship: Who wrote the source, and what are their credentials?

2. Currency: How recent isthe information in the source? Is it still relevant?

3. Accuracy: Is the information in the source accurate and supported by evidence?

4. Bias: Does the source have a particular bias or agenda that may affect its credibility?

Taking Notes and Organizing Information

As you conduct your research, it’s important to take detailed notes and organize your information in a way that supports your proposal essay. Some effective note-taking strategies include:

1. Summarizing: Write a brief summary of key points and information from each source.

2. Quoting: Use direct quotes from sources to support your argument.

3. Paraphrasing: Restate information from sources in your own words, making sure to cite the source.

Once you have taken notes, organize them into an outline or mind map to help you structure your essay and ensure that your proposal is well-supported by evidence.

By following these steps, you can ensure that your proposal essay is well-researched, well-supported, and persuasive. In the next section, we’ll discuss how to effectively outline and structure your essay for maximum impact.

Outlining Your Proposal

Once you’ve chosen a topic and conducted thorough research , it’s time to create an outline for your proposal essay. An outline will help you organize your thoughts and ensure that your proposal is well-structured and easy to follow. Here are some tips for creating an effective proposal essay outline:

Creating a Proposal Essay Outline

1. Introduction: Begin with an attention-grabbing introduction that provides context for your proposal and sets the stage for your argument.

2. Background Information: Provide background information on your topic, including any relevant statistics, research, or historical context.

3. Problem Statement: Clearly state the problem or issue that your proposal addresses.

4. Proposed Solution: Present your proposed solution or course of action, providing evidence to support its effectiveness.

5. Implementation: Discuss how your proposed solution would be implemented and what steps would need to be taken to make it a reality.

6. Conclusion: Summarize your proposal and reiterate its importance, urging your audience to take action.

Tips for Effective Outlining

– Use bullet points or numbered lists to clearly organize your ideas.

– Make sure each section of your outline relates back to your thesis statement .

– Keep your outline concise and to the point.

Example Proposal Essay Outline

Here is an example proposal essay outline for a topic on reducing plastic waste in a community:

I. Introduction

– Attention-grabbing opening sentence

– Background information on plastic waste

– Thesis statement

II. Problem Statement

-Description of the problem of plastic waste in the community

– Statistics on the amount of plastic waste generated in the community

– Impact of plastic waste on the environment and health

III. Proposed Solution

– Proposal to ban single-use plastics in the community

– Alternatives to single-use plastics

– Benefits of reducing plastic waste

IV. Implementation

– Steps to implement the proposed ban on single-use plastics

– Timeline for implementation

– Strategies for community education and outreach

V. Conclusion

– Recap of the problem and proposed solution

– Call to action for community members to support the ban on single-use plastics

V. Writing Your Proposal

Now that you have a solid outline for your proposal essay, it’s time to begin writing. Here are some tips for crafting a strong proposal essay:

Crafting a Strong Introduction

Your introduction should grab the reader’s attention and provide context for your proposal. Here are some tips for crafting a strong introduction:

– Start with a hook, such as a surprising statistic, quote, or anecdote.

– Provide background information on your topic to help the reader understand the context of your proposal.

– Clearly state the problem or issue that your proposal addresses.

Writing the Body of Your Proposal

The body of your proposal essay should provide evidence to support your proposed solution. Here are some tips for writing the body of your proposal:

– Use research and statistics to support your proposal.

– Provide examples and case studies to illustrate the effectiveness of your proposed solution.

– Address Potential counterarguments and provide rebuttals to strengthen your argument.

Tips for Persuasive Writing

To make your proposal essay as persuasive as possible, here are some tips to keep in mind:

– Use strong, clear language that conveys your confidence in your proposal.

– Make sure your argument is logical and well-supported by evidence .

– Use emotional appeals sparingly and only when appropriate.

– Use transitional phrases to connect your ideas and ensure a smooth flow of information.

Avoiding Common Mistakes

Here are some common mistakes to avoid when writing your proposal essay:

– Failing to clearly state the problem or issue you are addressing.

– Presenting a solution that is not feasible or practical .

– Failing to address potential counterarguments or objections to your proposal.

– Overusing emotional appeals or providing insufficient evidence to support your argument.

By following these tips and avoiding common mistakes, you can craft a persuasive and effective proposal essay that will convince your audience to take action.

Refining Your Proposal

Once you’ve written a draft of your proposal essay, it’s important to refine it through careful editing and revision. Here are some tips to help you refine your proposal essay:

Editing and Revising Your Proposal

– Review your essay for grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors.

– Make sure your writing is clear, concise, and easy to understand.

– Check that your proposal is well-supported by evidence and that your arguments are logical.

– Look for areas where you can improve the flow and organization of your essay .

Peer Review and Feedback

It’s also a good idea to get feedback from others to help you refine your proposal essay. Here are some tips for getting feedback:

– Ask a peer or mentor to review your essay and provide feedback on areas that need improvement.

– Consider joining a writing group or seeking feedback from an online community.

– Take the feedback you receive seriously and use it to improve your essay .

Finalizing Your Proposal

Once you’ve made revisions based on feedback and edited your essay for clarity and accuracy, it’s time to finalize your proposal. Here are some final steps to take:

– Review your essay one last time to ensure it is error-free and well-organized.

– Make sure your essay is formatted correctly, with appropriate headings, margins, and font size.

– Create a bibliography or works cited page to provide proper credit to your sources.

Proposal Essay Examples

To help you understand what makes a successful proposal essay,here are some examples of effective proposal essays:

1. “Implementing a School-Wide Recycling Program” – This proposal essay outlines a plan to implement a recycling program in a high school. It provides a clear problem statement, proposed solution, and implementation plan , as well as statistics and research to support the proposal. The essay also addresses potential objections and provides rebuttals.

2. “Increasing Access to Healthy Food in Low-Income Communities” – This proposal essay proposes a solution to the problem of food insecurity in low-income communities. It provides a clear problem statement, proposed solution, and implementation plan, as well as research to support the proposal. The essay also addresses potential objections and provides rebuttals.

3. “Reducing Gun Violence in the United States” – This proposal essay proposes a solution to the problem of gun violence in the United States. It provides a clear problem statement, proposed solution, and implementation plan, as well as statistics and research to support the proposal. The essay also addresses potential objections and provides rebuttals.

Analysis of What Makes These Proposals Effective

These proposal essays are effective because they:

– Clearly state the problem or issue they are addressing.

– Provide a well-supported proposal or solution.

– Address potential objections and provide rebuttals.

– Use research and statistics to support their proposals.

– Provide a clear implementation plan.

– Use clear and persuasive language.

By analyzing successful proposal essays, you can gain insight into what makes a proposal effective and use thoseinsights to improve your own proposal essay. Remember to carefully research your topic , create a clear and well-supported proposal, and address potential objections to make your proposal as persuasive as possible. With these tips and examples in mind, you’ll be well on your way to writing a winning proposal essay.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. what are the elements of a proposal essay.

A proposal essay typically includes an introduction, background information, a problem statement, a proposed solution, an implementation plan, and a conclusion. It should also be well-supported by evidence and address potential objections.

2. How do I choose a topic for a proposal essay?

When choosing a topic for a proposal essay, consider your personal interests, the relevance of the topic to your audience or community, and the feasibility of the proposal within the scope of your project.

3. What is a proposal essay structure?

A proposal essay typically follows a structure that includes an introduction, background information, a problem statement, a proposed solution, an implementation plan, and a conclusion. Each section should be well-supported by evidence.

Writing a winning proposal essay requires careful research, persuasive writing, and effective organization. By choosing a relevant and feasible topic, conducting thorough research, creating a well-supported proposal, and refining your essay through editing and revision, you can create a persuasive and effective proposal essay that inspires action.

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How to Write a Proposal Essay/Argument

It is common for students to be assigned to a proposal essay assignment. Although many can write it based on the essay prompt, 4 out of 10 students find it hard to complete a proposal argument essay. Out of the ten requests we receive requiring our experts to help write proposal essays, four students appear to be confused between a proposal essay and a research proposal.

Not anymore because in this article, our senior research proposal writers put together their wits and insights to help you understand how to write a high-quality and effective proposal essay. We also provide a succinct sample and outline to help you do so quickly. This is a cheat sheet to scoring the best grades because we have tips and tricks that will make you ace your proposal essay.

What is a proposal essay?

As the name suggests, a proposal essay or paper is a type of academic paper that proposes an idea by providing evidence intended to convince the reader why an idea is good or bad.

It is sometimes referred to as a proposal argument essay, written if there is a problem to fix or a change to be made.

For instance, instead of just arguing that cigarette smoking affects health, it would be prudent to make a good argument on why there is a need to reduce the number of teenagers who are becoming cigarette addicts.

Even though proposals are written in business, economics, and management fields, they are also written by students, scientists, and other professional domains.

A proposal essay:

• Convinces the reader to adopt a given or proposes idea/change
• Shows the mastery of the concepts in a given field
• It makes a case for the implementation of an idea or change process
• Confirms the feasibility, practicality, and applicability of a program, idea, or change

Things to do/know before beginning

The pre-writing stage is the most critical part as it defines how smooth the entire writing process would be. Before typing or penning down the first sentence or even sitting down to write your proposal, there are certain mandatory rituals that you need to observe.

Primarily referred to as the proposal essay planning stage, here are the five steps to take:

1. Profile your target audience

A proposal essay or proposal argument aims to convince your audience that an idea is feasible, relevant, and practical. It might also persuade the readers that an idea is not worth pursuing.

As such, you need to have a deep understanding of your target audience. Are they business people or academics? What is their level of knowledge of the issue? What do you want to inform them about and why? Will they buy your suggestion? What is the best approach?

Understanding and profiling your audience helps you set the scope and tone of the proposal essay. For instance, when writing for the management and business people, proposing an idea with financial benefits could win their trust and time. On the other hand, when writing for healthcare workers, presenting strategies to improve patient quality, healthcare workers� wellbeing, and access to care could be relevant.

When you understand the people, who will read your proposal, you can quickly structure it better to draw their attention right from the start.

You need to consider what you need the audience to understand from your proposal. As well, you have to provide them with some facts that will help in decision-making. It also helps to choose a preferred style that will impress the readers.

It is about knowing what you are writing for to make them acknowledge the gist of the proposal. In the academic contexts, the audience is a professor, teaching assistant, associate professor, or instructor/lecturer. In this case, stick to the proposal essay prompt.

2. Define your research problem

With the audience in mind, you need to show that you understand the problem. One way of doing so is to highlight or state your situation so that your audience know the idea in the proposal.

This stage helps you win the trust of the readers. It also enables you to create an impression that you are knowledgeable about the issues at hand. Support your arguments with facts, references, and credible views to establish your identity/ethos.

Where necessary, ensure that you clarify and offer enough proof. Make sure to state the problem and why you feel it needs to be solved. It is the same aspect that appears in the introduction of a problem-solution essay .

When writing your problem statement section, ask yourself:

• What is the main issue? Use statistics, facts, and examples
• Who is affected by the issue? Who are the stakeholders?
• What has been done before?
• Why are previous/conventional solutions not working?
• Why will your innovative idea/solution works?
• How urgent is the problem or solution required?
• What are other researchers saying about the problem?

In sum, you need to prove that you have thoroughly researched and assessed the issue. Your problem statement must display your knowledge about the topic.

3. Research and gather sources

After outlining the problem, you now need to research how to solve it. Use secondary and primary sources to support your claims/proposal. As you persuade your readers, ensure that you report on what has worked and what has failed.

As you do so, ensure that your proposed solution is well-backed with evidence from credible and relevant scholarly literature.

As a rule of thumb, stick to research articles written five years ago unless otherwise instructed by the professor/instructor to use older sources.

4. Write your proposal outline

With the problem statement and the sources backing your proposal in place, it is now time to explain your answer.

You now have the problem, and you should strive to solve it. Before writing the proposal essay outline , ensure that you have read the request for proposal (RFP) prompt or template.

An outline helps you structure your proposal, find means of convincing difficult readers and coherently lay the sections. It also helps brainstorm excellent ideas and approaches then organizing them into a comprehensive and structured proposal format. We will present a sample outline later in this article.

5. Proceed to write the essay

After having the skeleton of your proposal, it is now time to write your first draft by filling in the various parts. Once you are done, revise the draft as much as possible or enlist for proofreading and editing before turning in the final draft.

Sections of a Proposal Essay/Argument

We have summarized the main parts of a proposal essay in this section. Note that the sections might differ depending on the preferred elements by your university or college. In this regard, some parts might be added or omitted. When writing, you can alter the body of your proposal to meet your needs.

1. Title Page

This is for you if you are wondering how to title your proposal essay. Like the dissertation, theses, or research papers, the proposal essay has a title page that includes:

• The title of your proposal essay, e.g., Rethinking Recycling: Why Reusing Needs to Be User Friendly.
• Your full official names
• The name of your professor/instructor/lecturer
• Name of your school and department

Depending on your college or university, or department, the title page could differ. There are also institutions with pre-written/designed title pages sent alongside the instructions. The bottom line is that you need to read the assignment prompt or the RFP file carefully.

2. Introduction

Your introduction is the entry point to your essay. Like any other essay introduction , the proposal essay introduction gives a brief background of the proposal. It introduces the subject to your audience (s).

As it is the most crucial section, it needs to be well written. You can begin it using a hook, mostly facts, statistics, or statements. It should also have a topic sentence that introduces the readers to a topic. Ensure that it has a relevant topic that entices the audience on why they should care about the particular topic.

The introduction then has a thesis statement that contains the proposal you are making for solving a problem. In a proposal essay, the thesis should clearly state the proposition . An example of a good thesis statement when writing a proposal essay on teenage pregnancy could sound like:

Although teenage pregnancy is considered a taboo topic, educating parents on how to take care of the teenage girls with pregnancy could reduce the high mortality rate of teen mothers.

If you were to write a proposal essay on childhood obesity, a good thesis statement could read:

Childhood obesity is a menace affecting society, creating public health pressure and needs to be solved through proper school-based health promotion activities that involve the parents.

Another example of a good thesis statement for a proposal essay on depression is:

Depression has claimed the lives of many people and needs to be addressed through multi-professional collaboration among teachers, healthcare workers, media core, governments, and employers.

Again, your thesis statement should highlight the problem and the solutions that you are proposing. It narrows down to knowing your audience so that your introduction emphasizes the benefits of the proposal to this specific audience.

4. Problem statement

Even though you have already stated the problem in your introduction paragraph, you need to expound on the problem. Explain why there is a need to solve the issue. Here, your aim is to invite the readers to understand the core of your proposal. State the aims of your proposal and declare the importance of the topic in this section.

The section helps you to assert the issue. The section defines and expounds on the specific issue, the sources, and the consequences.

You also need to highlight why the issue needs to be solved and how solving it impacts the reader. Instead of using moral principles or universal pleas to feelings, think of what is important to your reader.

5. Proposal/Statement of purpose

After broadly defining your problem in the first paragraph of the body of your proposal essay, you now need to state the purpose of the essay. The section is exclusively meant to discuss the proposal that you are making.

Take your time to explore the advantages and disadvantages of your proposed solutions, change, or ideas. It can be a few sentences long if it is a shorter proposal or a few paragraphs if it is a long proposal.

6. Action Plan

After highlighting the proposed solutions, changes, or ideas, it is now time to write the plan of action. Here your focus is on the implementation of the ideas or solutions.

You need to show the audience that the solutions or changes are practical, feasible, relevant, and desirable.

When writing this section, you need to convince the readers that your proposal is a good idea over other available option. Furthermore, you must provide a detailed explanation about the implementation of the solutions or changes. Ensure that you anticipate the potential barriers or challenges during the implementation phase because every proposal must highlight the challenges and how to overcome them.

As you do so, also look at the viability, relevance, practicality, and desirability of your proposal. Will it work? What has prevented past solutions from working? What is different about your proposal?

7. Desired Outcomes

As the name suggests, this is the section of the essay that you anticipate the outcomes of your proposal. It is your chance to make everything you have been writing about clear.

8. Evaluation

When writing the evaluation phase, you need to consider the cost and resource implications of your proposed idea or change. Is the idea feasible compared to what is there currently? As well, you need to include the contrary opinions of the dissenting voices over the proposed solutions. Assure the audience that despite the challenges, the proposed solution will work.

9. Resources Required and timeline

Explain the resources such as skills, finances, time, and equipment that are required to implement your change, solutions, or ideas.

10. Conclusion

Your conclusion needs to emphasize your proposal and leave your audience with a call to action. State your proposal, call to action, and why the audience must consider your suggestions.

Never include new information in your conclusion, as that would extend the word count as you try to expound on the new topic and further confuse your already settled/convinced audience.

11. Works cited/references/bibliography

Any academic paper, white paper, or professional paper must have citations. We use citations to avoid plagiarism by mentioning those we read their work while writing our own. Depending on your chosen format: APA, MLA, Harvard, or Chicago format, the title can be references, bibliography, or works cited. Works cited is exclusively for MLA, while references can be used for both APA and Harvard. In Chicago format, you will title the consulted resources as Bibliography. In Harvard format, you can use either references or a reference list. Remember, a bibliography includes all the relevant sources you read, even those not cited in the paper.

Sample Proposal Essay Paper (in image format)

Below is a proposal argumentative essay on climate change, focusing on recycling courtesy of Excelsior Online Writing Lab .

Note that the sections are not titled. However, the paragraphs have been organized around our suggested parts.

Proposal Essay Structure: Video

Here is a video that explains the structure of a proposal argument

Final Words

Now that you�ve learnt how to write a proposal essay, you can conquer this type of assignment without a doubt. However, if you are stuck, you can hire an essay writer to write one for you.

Related Reading: Good persuasive speech topics.

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Now that you have read this visit our blog for more college essay ideas . Be kind to share with friends as well.

Here are some commonly asked questions about the process of writing a quality proposal essay or proposal argument. You can send your questions, and we will answer them to enlighten our readers.

What is the format for a proposal essay?

Here are the main parts of a proposal essay:

• Introduction ( hook , background, thesis statement (proposal))
• Problem statement
• Statement of purpose/proposal declaration
• Plan of action
• Resources require
• References/works cited

What makes a good proposal essay?

A good proposal essay proposes an idea and offers evidence or arguments to convince the readers about the goodness or badness of the idea. A good one:

• Has all claims well-supported
• It is organized into paragraphs
• It does not have filler words
• Uses relevant and recent credible/scholarly sources
• Cites all the sources, especially quotes, to avoid plagiarism
• Uses formal language to present ideas
• Has well-balanced, coherent, clear, explained, and concise paragraphs
• Every paragraph stick to an idea
• Has a thesis statement that stands out
• Begins with a good hook

How do you write a proposal essay?

Here are the steps that are taken to write one:

• Read the proposal prompt
• Select a good topic or area that interests you
• Research on the issue you want to solve
• Write an outline for your proposal
• Write the first draft of your proposal
• Polish, edit, and re-read your proposal
• Submit the proposal essay through Canvas, Turnitin, SafeAssign, DropBox, or any platform as suggested by the instructor
• Enjoy your grades

Is the proposal essay similar to the research proposal paper?

No. while a proposal essay leaves the audience with a call to action, a research proposal paper highlights the strategies and steps a researcher will take to conduct research, just like a thesis and dissertation proposal. A proposal essay tackles an issue by suggesting change, ideas, or solutions based on the available information from scholarly literature.

It ends with the audience making the decision. On the other hand, a research proposal ends with the researcher conducting a study followed by writing a final research paper, term paper, dissertation, or thesis that details recommendations, suggestions, and conclusions.

What are the topics for proposal essays?

Suppose you need a good proposal essay topic; you need to think of areas such as healthcare, homelessness, world hunger, poverty, abortion, climate change, vaping, human and organ trafficking, and mental health.

You can also brainstorm topics relating to gun violence, gun control, election fraud, drink driving, teenage pregnancy, police brutality, pollution, COVID-19, cyberbullying, and cigarette smoking. The bottom line is to choose an exciting topic with credible scholarly articles and details.

Does a proposal essay need an annotated bibliography?

Unless otherwise stated on your essay prompt, including the reference as per the sample above is enough.

Does a proposal essay require research questions?

No, unlike the research proposal, a proposal argument or proposal essay does not require research questions since no research is being conducted. The purpose of such essays is to propose a solution, more like the problem solution essay.

Gradecrest is a professional writing service that provides original model papers. We offer personalized services along with research materials for assistance purposes only. All the materials from our website should be used with proper references. See our Terms of Use Page for proper details.

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How To Write An Essay Proposal: Helpful Guideline For Students

Many students want to learn how to write an essay proposal when joining college. Most learners can read and write a five-paragraph essay when completing secondary education. However, very few students have experience with writing an essay proposal. A proposal is a typical assignment; students can write it based on an essay prompt. This article explains what an essay proposal is and how to write it.

Table of Contents

What is a proposal essay.

• What Is The Goal Of An Essay Proposal?

Why You Might Need An Essay Proposal

How to write a proposal for an essay, essay proposal example, how to start a proposal essay, how to write proposal: a step-by-step guide, essay proposal format.

• Tips And Hints On How To Write A Proposal Essay

An essay proposal is a paper that describes or proposes an idea or thesis that you intend to write. It outlines the main points you will discuss in the body of the paper while providing supporting evidence for the proposed argument.

A thesis represents the research and its main idea. However, a proposal essay encapsulates the content and purpose of the paper. It aims to convince the educational committee that the topic and approach are sound, hoping to get you the approval to proceed to the actual research.

Some call it a proposal argument that presents a problem that needs fixing or a necessary change. While people mostly write proposals in economics, management, and businesses, scientists, students, and other professionals write them.

What Is The Goal Of An Essay Proposal?

An essay proposal aims to persuade the reader that your topic is worth investigating. It should include a brief overview of the main points you will discuss in the body of the paper and provide supporting evidence for the proposed argument. Here’s what an effective essay proposal does:

• It suggests a change or idea.
• It convinces your readers to adopt a change or view.
• It shows your mastery of a concept in your field
• It presents a case for a change process or idea’s implementation
• It confirms the practicality, applicability, and feasibility of an idea, a program, or a change

Learning how to write essay proposal requires understanding its points. Essentially, this paper should represent a well-explained problem or issue. It proposes a way to solve it and a discussion explaining why your solution is the best.

You need an essay proposal if your teacher or professor assigns you a research paper. This paper outlines the scope and purpose of your project. And this is helpful because it ensures that the involved parties agree about the project and its content. It states to the stakeholder or decision-maker that you understand your project and its scope.

Learning to write a proposal is essential if you want to score a higher grade for a school or college course you’re taking. Also, this skill is vital if you want to write proposals to get business or project funding. Once you acquire this skill, you can write persuasively on a specific topic without struggling to start.

You do most of the work in the pre-writing stages when writing a proposal essay. Here’s what you should do before starting.

Know your readers: This essay aims to convince the audience that you have a worth-pursuing idea. Therefore, know who will read the proposal before you write it. Are you writing for a business person, government officials, or academics? If your readers are business people, justify the proposal by highlighting its potential financial benefits. If it’s for government officials, emphasize the proposal’s popularity. Research: You will have a higher chance of persuading others of the proposal if you have secondary sources supporting your claim. Therefore, talk to experts or read their research before writing your proposal. Pre-write: Take your time to brainstorm ideas before writing the essay. Also, think about ways to organize the views once you have them. Revise: Have a colleague or peer read the paper and provide feedback. After that, incorporate the feedback into your second draft.

Perhaps, you can also read a good essay proposal sample to understand what the readers expect you to include in your paper.

Here’s a good essay proposal example to take a peak at to shape and inspire your ideas, before we get into the details:

Christianity has not often seen eye to eye with women’s issues, particularly reproductive rights. For many years, Christianity in several forms has suggested that abortion is immoral, considering it to be the termination or murder of an unborn child (Stensvold, 2015). Whilst this terminology is helpful for creating an atmosphere of tension between women seeking abortion and their religious views, it needs to be critically examined for the way that it influences women who are practicing Christians and their attitudes towards their own body. The topic of abortion is also important because it has been traditionally seen as immoral, but more and more women (including practicing Christians) are choosing to undergo the procedure. It needs to be reevaluated in terms of modern society and understood for its significance in Christianity. Historically, the Catholic Church has been one of the biggest influencers on abortion (Stensvold, 2015). Despite this, Pope Francis has suggested that priests have the authority to absolve the sin of abortion and that it may not necessarily be one of the biggest issues facing the church (Dias, 2015). The Catholic Church is a big player in the general Christian world, and it is important to critically analyse the effects that it has on other churches. The purpose of this research will be to examine the rules and regulations of a variety of different forms of Christianity and their views on abortion with reference to the Catholic Church as a baseline. Methodology The theoretical perspective of structural functionalism will be used as a basis for conducting a thorough literature review on the topic. By analyzing several different sources which explore different Churches and their views on abortion, structural functionalism will help to place the Catholic Church and others in the context of a changing society. As the structure, norms and morality of the outside world changes, so too do the attitudes of religious believers. The literature review will focus on changing attitudes and beliefs surrounding abortion and so-called reproductive rights to analyse them in context of the Church to understand how both society, and the Catholic Church, influence Christian believers of other Churches. The analysis will include the major denominations in the United Kingdom: Anglican, Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist, Pentecostal, Orthodox, and Presbyterian, as well as brief discussions of non-Trinitarian denominations the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Quakers. Significance This work is important for several reasons. It will highlight the influence of the Catholic Church on other areas of Christianity, which is important as Catholicism remains the largest denomination. It will also help to highlight the effects of non-religious society on the views of various churches towards sin and absolution, which is important in a rapidly paced, globalized world. It will also help to highlight some of the key differences between denominations of Christianity in the United Kingdom. These three elements will come together to give a full picture on the controversial topic of abortion and the reasoning that many Christians give for its morality or immorality. Understanding this will help guide the ministerial profession into giving good, moral guidance to followers within the Church and to highlight some of the issues that will likely arise in practice.

Besides indicating your action plan, the proposal should have a theoretical positioning and a relationship to past work in your field. The readers will be more likely to approve your ideas or suggestions if your essay proposal is concise, clear, and engaging.

In most fields, a captivating and persuasive proposal is essential for success. Several proposal types include thesis proposals, book proposals, and science proposals. However, they have similar basic guidelines. Here’s how you can start your proposal.

• Topic rationale: Demonstrate why the topic is essential in your discipline. Also, include the objective limitations without promising something you can’t deliver.
• Review past works: Review published works that relate to your topic. Also, explain how your essay builds on the previous studies while exploring new territory.
• Outline your methodology or approach: Compose an essay proposal outline with the necessary resources, costs, and time for the work.

Different disciplines have varying standards for essay proposals. However, most essay proposals emphasize a specific focus of the study question. Also, they include headings, lists, and visuals, that make reading and cross-referencing easy. Additionally, use a concrete and precise style showing the feasibility of your idea.

Once you have the basic guidelines for writing your essay proposal, the next step is learning the steps to follow when doing it. A good format will help the academic committee comprehend your application’s seriousness or intent. The school, class, or institution you’re submitting the proposal to will determine your proposal’s format. Here’s a general step-by-step guide for writing a proposal.

Introduction: Start by introducing the issue you want to address to the committee. Present a firm introduction to enrapture the readers from the beginning. Background: The background should provide details of the issue while setting the stage, highlighting past studies on the topic or subject. Address stark facts to show the reason to address the problem immediately. Ideally, start the background with facts instead of your opinion. Significance: Explain what makes your study significant. Provide evidence from reports, studies, and other literature supporting your argument and showing the need to investigate your chosen topic for a proposal essay. Research hypotheses or questions: This section should explain your study goals. The hypotheses or questions should guide your analysis. Emphasize the need to solve the problem and how it affects your readers if this doesn’t happen immediately. Use credible facts and sources to support your hypotheses. Study design: Explain how you plan to conduct your study. Also, address the methodology to use in addressing the issue. In this section, show the readers how you will address the problem, why you choose to do it in a specific way, and the possible outcome. Conclusion: The conclusion should summarize the information you’ve provided in the other sections. Also, explain how the study will address the focus problem. You can conclude the proposal with one or two paragraphs describing how the study will address the issue. Essentially, the conclusion should morrow the introduction while wrapping up the overall message. This section should also address the consequences of the failure to undertake your proposal. Also, leave readers with something to think about and thank them for their consideration. Bibliography: This section is optional and lists the literature you read supporting your proposal’s content. Continue with the text if you don’t want to add a bibliography.

If some content doesn’t fit in your proposal, add an appendix. However, your proposal shouldn’t be too long because it can scare off some readers. Therefore, make it concise and clear by proofreading and editing. Also, ask somebody to proofread and critique your work to ensure an engaging and attractive presentation. Seeking help can also make your proposal more organized and helpful.

A basic format or outline will help you organize your proposal. College professors and teachers have expectations. Therefore, check your educator’s or supervisor’s requirements before writing your proposal. Here’s the basic format for an essay proposal.

• Introduction: The introduction summarizes the main points while establishing your paper’s purpose. For instance, when proposing a new approach to a topic, the opening can start with a brief description and then present an argument telling the audience why your method is the best.
• Body: The body of a proposal should present an argument supporting the main idea. Include evidence backing up the claim to compose a well-supported essay. And this evidence can be quotes, statistics, or real-life examples. Include sufficient evidence to support the argument.
• Conclusion: The conclusion should summarize the argument you presented in the essay. Also, motivate the readers to take action based on your discussion. Most importantly, remind the readers why your topic is essential and its possible impact.

Ensure that each section comes out clearly in your paper. Also, ensure that your ideas flow logically from the introduction to the conclusion.

Tips And Hints On How To Write A Proposal Essay

Your proposal should be eye-catching and captivating. Here are tips to help improve your paper. They should be a great essay homework help and assistance to you!

• Please do your research: Before beginning to write your proposal essay, it is essential to do your research. And this will help you better understand the topic at hand and will allow you to formulate a more well-rounded argument. It is also essential to be familiar with the opposing side of the debate, as this will enable you to anticipate counterarguments and refute them accordingly.
• Keep it concise: When writing a proposal essay, it is vital to keep the paper brief and to the point. The goal is not to provide a complete overview of the topic but to present a clear and concise argument for the proposed solution. Be sure to edit the paper carefully before submitting it, as a well-written and well-argued proposal is more likely to be successful than a poorly written one.
• Make a clear argument: It’s essential to ensure that your view is clear and easy to follow. Remember that the goal is to persuade the reader of the viability of your proposed solution, so be sure to present your argument logically and straightforwardly.
• Write convincingly: Present evidence and facts to make your solution more convincing and efficient than what exists. Apart from making your plan awesome, ensure that readers see you as the person that can do it efficiently.
• Explain the plan: Your proposal should have a step-by-step plan with details to make the process easy to understand.
• Show your anticipation: Present an implementation plan, showing the complete process and how it will solve the problem.
• Present your desired results: Ensure that readers see and understand your desired results. Focus on defining everything in your proposal.
• Necessary resources: Explain what you need to complete the project. And this can include tangible resources, like computers, money, and paper. Also, you require intangible resources like time to complete the project.
• Preparation mode: Ensure that your readers see that you know what you plan to do. Looking more prepared will improve the approval chances for your proposal.

In addition to these tips, edit your proposal essay carefully before submitting it. Ensure it’s free of grammatical, spelling, and punctuation errors. Additionally, read a sample to know what to include in your proposal.

Get Homework Help Today!

Do you need help writing a custom proposal? If so, we can help you if you contact us saying, “Please write my essay proposal.” We have knowledgeable and trustworthy writers with a proven track record of helping any student that needs help with research, writing, editing, or wishes to buy homework online.

Whether in college, university, or high school, we can help you write a winning proposal. We will deliver an excellent piece regardless of your proposal’s structure, subject, or level. We offer secure and helpful online services that cater to the needs of learners at various academic levels and disciplines. Our services are perfect for any learner that wants to present a perfect and successful proposal. Contact us to get the correct proposal that will help you excel academically.

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• Writing Guides

How To Write A Proposal Essay In 2023?

Also Read: Best Cheap Essay Writing Service , Cheap Essays Online , Online Essay Service

Table of Contents

How To Write A Proposal Essay (Writing Guide)

• How to start a proposal essay
• How to write body for a proposal essay
• How to conclude a proposal essay
• Outline example

Briefly, a proposal essay is an essay which puts forward an original idea, and then defends it through the use of well-backed up research and personal opinion combined to try and persuade whoever is reading it of the advantages\disadvantages of the idea.

Proposals are mainly found in three fields: education (it is a good way to teach and learn critical thinking), business (as a way of showing why particular moves would be a bad idea, or a good one, respectively), and economics, for much the same reason. This of course does not mean that they are limited to these areas – proposal essay writing is something which can be useful for many fields.

How to Start a Proposal Essay

Much of the work which goes into a good proposal essay is done ahead of time; as the following paragraphs will show, being able to persuade others of your point of view is as much to do with the quality of the research being done, and the ways in which you pitch your argument as it does with the writing style.  Writing is (it should go without saying) important, but it can only do so much.

Knowing the audience for your work is incredibly important – the audience will determine the overall tone of the paper, as well as possibly influence the types of sources which can and should be used to back up the arguments made in the paper itself. For example, if the paper is aimed at business people, then arguments should revolve around the financial benefits or drawbacks of the situation being proposed. Alternatively, academics should be tackled by using strictly academic sources and previous academic theories , whether to agree with them or disagree.

Don’t skip over the research. This is the most important part of the process, even more so than having polished writing; less than stellar writing and good research will stand up to scrutiny far more easily than perfect writing and a lack of research will. Good research also makes it more likely that the essay will fulfill its purpose in persuading other people to the point of view it discusses.

Before writing the essay, start by creating a list of your ideas, and forming them into an outline . This outline does not need to be fixed, but it will you to organize your thoughts and the essay so that they both flow coherently in the writing.

An introduction in an essay is how you introduce the topic to whoever is reading. Not only is it the place to lay out the arguments which you will be relying on throughout the essay, but also gives space for any necessary history or important people to be mentioned and discussed before the actual essay begins. The introduction is possibly one of the most important parts of the essay, as it sets up what is to come, and begins the work of persuading people of a particular point of view by convincing them to read on. Outside of an educational setting, proposal essays are generally only written as a means of solving a problem or showing one potential way to solve a problem. Therefore, they highlight the problem which they are attempting to solve within the introduction itself, so as to ensure that the audience understands.

Related: Why Order Essay Writing Service

How to Write the Main Part of a Proposal Essay

An outline will be featured at the end of this article, which will show the relevant parts of a proposal essay – note that depending on the context, some parts may need to be taken out or rearranged to better suit what it is trying to convey.

The Proposal

The proposal should act as a statement of purpose, something which explains the purpose behind writing the essay.  It can be anything from a few lines long to an entire paragraph – it depends on the length of the essay itself – but it should contain the problem\opinion\topic which is under discussion, and an explanation of why it is worth debating.

Body Paragraph One – First Argument

This is the paragraph where you lay out your first argument for or against the proposal. Make sure that the writing is good, clear, and doesn’t go off into unnecessary tangents. Similarly, make sure that everything is referenced properly, and prepare to back up every argument (including any follow-up arguments) with well-checked facts.

Body Paragraph Two – Second Argument

This should be the same as above, except with an entirely new argument.

Body Paragraph Three – Third (Opposing) Argument

Again, this should be the same as above, although many people use it as a means of expressing an opposing opinion to the one they hold. It is entirely up to the writer as to how to use this paragraph, though it should be noted that devoting time to debunking the more common arguments or opposing opinions in the essay will tell the audience that the research into the problem has been thorough and well-done.

How to Conclude a Proposal Essay

The conclusion should not be a simple re-statement of the introduction, with all of the relevant history and essay points, but it should contain some elements of it all. You should include just enough to serve as a reminder of why the proposal was deemed appropriate in the first place, without any in-depth knowledge of the introduction. The main arguments being made in your proposal should also be reiterated. Once this is done, there are two ways in which a proposal essay can be ended, and it depends on what type of proposal essay was being written. If the proposal essay was written in an educational setting, then the conclusion should wrap up all the research done and deliver the final conclusion, along with any last pieces of information which might be appropriate at this stage. The other kind of proposal essay, the one did in a professional setting, should have several more strands to it.

For people who are giving a professional proposal essay : state the goal of the proposal, just to ensure that everybody who reads the essay knows what it is handling, and then focus on why the proposal will work, with reference to any previous moves in this direction, or any potential assets to the proposal which would particularly suit your audience.

Outline Example

• It should be banned because it goes against the family-friendly nature of the paper
• It should be banned because it is overall degrading, and outdated
• It should not be banned because the women gave their consent to be photographed that way.
• Proposal – page three is something that should be banned because it is an outdated feature of the newspaper which blatantly goes against the nature of the paper as stated by its publishers. It has no place in a society that claims to view men and women as equal.
• Body paragraph one – the Sun claims that it is family-friendly, so what message is the topless woman sending to the family, and specifically, to children? It teaches boys that women should be related to sex objects, it teaches girls that they should be okay with being related to a sex object.
• Body paragraph two – women are supposed to be seen as equals in our society, but there are no corresponding naked men features, so the topless women become one more part of our ‘sex-sells’ culture. This is degrading to women who want to be more than that.
• Body paragraph three – the women in question are presumably over the age of consent and therefore chose to be photographed like this. Is it not degrading to take their choice away from them?
• Reiterate the proposal
• Go over the main arguments
• Come to an overall conclusion.

414 Proposal Essay Topics for Projects, Research, & Proposal Arguments

Writing a proposal essay is an essential skill for students navigating academia and beyond. Whether you are advocating for change, proposing a solution to a problem, or presenting a new idea, your writing should be clear, convincing, and creative.

In this article, our expert team has listed proposal essay topics for school and college students. As a bonus, you will find an effective writing guide and a practical example of a proposal essay.

🔤 What Is a Proposal Essay?

• ⭐ Best Topics in 2024
• 💡 Easy Topics & Prompts

📝 Proposal Argument Topics

• 📊 Project Proposal Ideas
• 🔎 Research Proposal Topics
• 😄 Funny Topics

🧩 Proposal Essay Structure

• ✍️ Writing Guide
• 📃 Proposal Essay Example

🔗 References

A proposal essay is an academic paper in which you propose something and justify your recommendation. Its goal is to convince the recipients to support your proposal and grant your request. Depending on what you are suggesting, there are three main types of proposal essays: proposal argument, research proposal, and topic proposal.

What Is a Proposal Argument Essay?

A proposal argument is an argumentative essay that offers a solution to a problem. It is often addressed to a particular company, non-profit organization, or government agency. It aims to persuade an organization to do something differently or perform a specific task. A proposal argument first describes a problem, then proposes a feasible solution to it, and explains why this particular solution is worth implementing.

What Is a Research Proposal Essay?

A research proposal essay is an academic paper that proposes a study and describes what, why, and how the author plans to investigate. This document should enable the audience to understand the quality and significance of the research and the author’s competence to perform it.

A research proposal usually includes a purpose statement , background and significance of the research topic, and methodology. It is also helpful to describe potential problems the researcher may encounter and how they will be solved.

What Is a Topic Proposal?

A topic proposal essay is a paper that suggests a topic for a major course assignment, such as a term paper. It usually presents your main argument or research question , explains why it is worth exploring, and outlines how you plan to support it. Also, it identifies a few scholarly sources to be used in the future paper.

⭐ 12 Best Proposal Essay Topics in 2024

• The methods of reducing childhood obesity.
• Do awareness campaigns increase funding for cancer research?
• Why should schools add sex education to their curricula?
• The role of government in protecting local businesses.
• How to prevent cybercrime.
• The impact of rap music on teenagers.
• Do high cigarette prices reduce smoking rates?
• The efficiency of using AI technology in education.
• Why should the use of steroids be banned?
• The use of art therapy in combating anxiety.
• How can we combat the global warming?
• The issue of bullying in high school.

💡 Easy Proposal Writing Topics & Prompts

Coming up with a good idea for your proposal essay can be challenging. Therefore, we’ve prepared writing prompts about common problems with possible solutions.

Proposal Essay on Texting and Driving

You can write a proposal suggesting a solution to the problem of driving while using a phone. First, describe the detrimental consequences of such behavior, proving that it’s worth paying attention to.

Then, focus on one solution that you consider to be the best. Check out some possible options:

• Formation of a driver safety culture.
• Implementation of a driver coaching program.
• Use of real-time technology.
• Execution of severe punishment.

Homelessness Proposal Essay

Highlight the issue of homelessness by indicating the root causes of this problem and its social and economic consequences. Then, provide your perspective on how to address it.

Here are some possible solutions to homelessness:

• Rapid rehousing .
• Permanent supportive or shared housing.
• New career opportunities.
• Volunteer initiatives.

Mental Health Proposal Essay

You can focus on the problem of the mental health crisis, manifesting in increasing rates of suicides and overdoses. Explore the causes and consequences of this issue and choose a solution to advocate for.

Consider the following solutions:

• Investments in mental health apps .
• Universal mental health screenings.
• Raising people’s awareness of the problem.
• Expanding access to psychological help.

Study Abroad Proposal Essay

You can focus on one of the issues that students face while studying abroad, such as language barriers, cultural differences, social isolation, financial difficulties, etc. Then, describe a solution to your selected problem.

Here are some possible solutions to international students’ issues:

• Encouraging access to college resources.
• The use of host families.
• Establishing safe spaces on campuses .
• Offering financial support and scholarships.
• Conducting campus-wide cultural sensitivity training.

Abortion Proposal Essay

Your proposal can focus on the problem of supporting and expanding abortion rights. Explain how restricted abortion rights harm women, children, the healthcare system, and the economy. Then, explain how policymakers can address this issue.

Check out some solutions listed below:

• Public and private insurance coverage of abortion.
• Sex education for students.
• Legal protections for abortion.
• Prohibition of violence against abortion providers .

The proposal argument analyzes the problem and offers practical steps for its solution. Below, you’ll find interesting topics for your proposal argument!

Proposal Argument Essay Topics with Solutions

• The use of replanting in combating climate change .
• ABZ Cleaning Services marketing plan proposal .
• Negotiation to stop military conflicts in the world.
• Water disinfection and its efficiency in solving water pollution issues.
• A business proposal for Kohl’s: improving product delivery .
• Universal basic income to combat poverty .
• The use of free education centers in improving people’s knowledge.
• Luckin Coffee business problems-solutions proposal .
• Ensuring refugees’ access to the labor market to protect their rights.
• Decriminalization of homosexuality to protect LGBTQ+ rights .
• Nestlé Inc.’s total quality challenge and solution .
• The use of media in raising awareness of gender inequality .
• Ensuring basic healthcare to protect children’s rights.
• Food prices increase: causes and solutions .
• The use of renewable energy to stop global temperatures rising .
• Well-thought-out strategic plan to combat self-doubt in business.
• Operations management: problem and solution .
• Education about consumer responsibility to stop overconsumption.
• The efficiency of book exchange for the promotion of reading .
• Human resource management: problems and solutions .
• Reduced cost of education to combat education inequality .
• Electronic voting systems to increase citizen participation.
• Truancy: causes, effects, and possible solutions .
• AI technology and its application to help people with disabilities.
• The effectiveness of wetland restoration in combating sanitation insecurity.
• American educational system’s drawbacks and solutions .
• Surveys of employee satisfaction to manage workflow.
• The efficiency of the Arms Trade Treaty in decreasing weapons accessibility.
• Sexual assault problem and solution .
• Improved nutrition and sustainable agriculture to combat health inequality .

Practical Proposal Argument Ideas

• Building buyer personas to find new customers.
• Employee absenteeism and business proposal to address it .
• Companies should make a shorter workweek to reduce unemployment .
• Vertical farming technologies for improved land usage.
• Proposal of employee training in Coca-Cola Company .
• Plasma reactors as a way to create oxygen on Mars.
• Community-based initiatives to encourage social interaction.
• Organizational change proposal for healthcare institutions .
• Entrepreneurship promotion to solve the wealth inequality issue .
• Prioritizing border security to ensure national safety.
• Public health legislation funding proposal .
• Donating to charities to address third-world poverty.
• Nutrition education to reduce obesity rates.
• Business communication: proposal for receiving investment .
• Implementation of Instagram restrictions to protect the self-esteem of teenagers .
• The use of ADAS technologies to reduce the frequency of car accidents.
• Vending machine “Great Coffee”: business proposal .
• Employers should provide flexible hours to help workers with anxiety.
• Expanding the range of services offered by postal providers to save postal service .
• Wok to Walk: marketing plan proposal .
• Work-life balance practices to prevent burnout at work.
• Schools should implement year-round classes to improve student performance.
• Cartier marketing analysis and strategy proposal for the post-pandemic era .
• Application of sunscreen to reduce the risks of skin cancer .
• Installation of sports facilities to encourage the population’s physical activity .
• Leverage buyout proposal for CSL Limited .
• Education about consumer responsibility to solve gun control issues.
• Development of water resource management systems to avoid water scarcity .
• Business ethics: business proposal for CEO .
• The government should launch mHealth apps to make healthcare accessible.

📊 Project Proposal Ideas for College Students

Looking for a project proposal topic to write about? Below, you’ll find the best ideas for your paper!

Project Proposal Title Ideas in Health

• The ban on tobacco to prevent illness and premature death.
• Pressure ulcers: research proposal .
• Recovery groups and their role in stopping substance abuse .
• The efficiency of sex education in solving HIV/AIDS issues.
• Community teaching work plan proposal: tuberculosis in Miami .
• Accessible treatment centers to help people struggling with suicidal behavior .
• Pediatric dentist training to create a positive experience for children.
• Hospital-acquired pressure ulcers treatment proposal .
• Water and sanitation projects to reduce water-borne disease rates.
• The efficiency of regular balance training in preventing injuries.
• Interdisciplinary plan proposal of a local hospital: objective and team organization .
• Free screening for the early identification of breast cancer .
• Workplace wellness initiatives to protect employee mental health .
• Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting: research proposal .
• The use of online apps to improve patient-doctor communication .
• Geriatric care innovations to meet the health demands of the elderly.
• Hypertension prevention plan proposal .
• Machine learning and AI technology in the personalization of healthcare.
• The effectiveness of parental courses to prevent children obesity .
• Patient safety policy proposal .
• Yoga promotion programs to improve mental health.
• E-health platforms for remote monitoring of chronic conditions .
• Capstone project change proposal: new staffing policy .
• Women’s medical literature and its role in preventing maternal deaths.
• Accessible mental health services to decrease depression rates.
• Dementia: health promotion proposal .
• The use of a healthy diet in preventing cancers and diabetes.
• Vaccine access in poor countries to promote immunization .
• A bed alarm budget proposal for healthcare .
• Educational programs for parents to promote oral health at home .

Project Proposal Topics for Business

• The use of verification links to stop online scamming.
• Ocean Beauty Center: business proposal .
• Customer experience technology to deliver positive customer experience .
• Research into competitors to create a better brand presence.
• Service marketing plan proposal .
• The use of Amazon and eBay to pitch and brand your product.
• Instant online help tools to prevent shopping cart abandonment.
• Notes Restore: business plan proposal .
• The efficiency of valuable content in maintaining customer loyalty .
• Unique products to thrive in a competitive market.
• Avlon: market research proposal .
• The use of plain English in preventing product returns and refunds.
• Increasing sales by offering a product at a reduced price.
• Business proposal: a fitness center in Australia .
• Employment of cybersecurity services to protect a corporate website from viruses.
• The use of a recruitment agency to find qualified IT personnel.
• Leisure facility in Sherbury: business proposal .
• Regular developer training to save business during a crisis.
• Optimization of website speed through efficient coding.
• Talent management plan proposal .
• The use of the latest updates to solve unreliable internet connectivity issues.
• Mobile-friendly apps to improve customer support .
• Southwest Airlines human resource recruitment plan proposal .
• Authentic customer reviews to solve customer trust issues.
• The use of multi-factor authentication to maintain payment security.
• Emotional intelligence training proposal .
• Chatbots and their role in solving poor customer support issues.
• Workplace diversity and inclusion for fast business development.
• Utah Symphony and Utah Opera: merger proposal .
• The efficiency of social media influencers in business promotion.

Project Proposal Ideas for STEM Students

• Floating gardens and rafts to grow food during a flood.
• The use of innovative city technologies for solving a city’s design needs.
• Navigating the engineering talent crisis .
• Accessible infrastructure to improve the lives of people with disabilities.
• Chemical dispersants to clean up an oil spill .
• New technologies in retail supply chains .
• The use of heat-absorbing materials to construct solar ovens.
• AI healthcare diagnostics to provide patients with accurate results.
• Uber case study: online technology development .
• The use of monitoring systems to protect endangered species.
• Making technologies more inclusive to help people with autism .
• How can technology be used in healthcare ?
• Aerospace engineering strategies to ensure safe flights.
• Eco-friendly packaging to stop plastic pollution.
• How new heart-scanning technology could save your life .
• Building earthquake-resistant structures to ensure urban safety.
• The use of biodegradable plastics to reduce environmental impact.
• Use of mathematics in a vocational context .
• Building seawalls to protect beach erosion.
• Solar farms for the production of renewable energy.
• Computerized sewerage system in Bedford Town .
• Creating artificial organs to save patients waiting for transplantation .
• Increasing microbial diversity to create a healthy and balanced soil ecosystem.
• Computerized accounting in an enterprise resource planning system .
• Early warning systems to save vulnerable areas from flood.
• The use of vitamin C bath to stop apple oxidization.
• Effective supply chain practices for computer and phone repair shop .
• Integration of damping systems to build earthquake-resistant structures.
• AI technology to design resistant bridges in urban areas.

Project Proposal Topics for Students in Education

• Funding for low-income schools to solve the problem of education access.
• Digital citizenship education proposal in Saudi Arabia .
• Inclusive teaching as a solution to inequalities in education.
• Students’ portfolios as a better alternative to standardized testing .
• Standardized testing: research proposal .
• Incentives for teachers to provide highly professional classes.
• Increasing federal school funding to improve education in low-income areas.
• York College OneCard proposal .
• A peer tutoring program to improve students’ performance.
• Parent-teacher conferences to address a lack of parental involvement .
• Proposal for the New National Constitution of Libya .
• Mentorship programs to cope with ineffective teaching methods.
• Anti-bullying policies to maintain a more positive school climate.
• Proposal to reduce college textbook cost .
• Video chats to address a lack of face-to-face communication in online courses .
• Study skills workshops to cope with students’ poor study habits.
• Virtual simulation curriculum technology proposal .
• Flexible learning environments to help students with anxiety disorder.
• The use of a rewards system to increase school attendance .
• How semester exams affect students’ emotional stability: article proposal .
• Monitoring cameras to ensure school safety and security.
• Anti-cheating measures to solve the issue of academic dishonesty .
• Analysis of student equity plan proposal .
• Additional facilities to accommodate the growing number of students.
• Global education partnerships to make higher education more accessible.
• Education issues: group proposal .
• Innovative classrooms to develop the creativity of students with disabilities.
• Introducing a financial literacy class to improve students’ money management skills.
• Proposal for the creation of K2 and K3-5 reading interventions .
• Launching a community service learning program to promote social responsibility .

Project Proposal Ideas for Students about Environment

• Buying e-books to protect the environment.
• The issue of environmental pollution by Polipaks Group .
• Extensive afforestation campaign to solve the deforestation problem.
• Low consumption levels to avoid adverse ecological consequences.
• Solar energy as an alternative energy source .
• Fines and punishment to reduce illegal dumping.
• Reusing things to stop climate change.
• Business model of renewable energy .
• Reducing single-use plastics on campus.
• Collecting sunlight for energy to stop natural resource depletion.
• Sustainable gas production in the UAE .
• Tree planting programs to protect the environment.
• Eco-friendly transportation methods to reduce carbon emissions.
• Sustainable practices in the Coca-Cola Company .
• Sustainable fashion and its role in reducing clothes consumption.
• High taxes for activities that harm our planet to support eco-friendly behavior.
• Carbon tax in the Australian industries .
• Limiting time on the road to reduce vehicle emissions.
• Supporting green businesses to encourage eco-friendly initiatives.
• Optimizing food production to improve quality, reduce cost, and prevent waste .
• Clean-up programs to remove litter and pollutants from public spaces.
• Green roof technologies to mitigate the urban heat island effect.
• Business plan: New Age Recyclers .
• A carbon offset project to engage businesses in environment protection.
• Education courses for people of any age to reduce their ecological footprint.
• Recycling batteries: market analysis for a new product .
• Replantation of native trees and plants to stop environmental degradation.
• Investing in solar panels to solve the energy consumption problem.
• Stanford University’s Habitat Conservation Plan .
• Choosing recyclables to decrease waste production.

🔎 Research Proposal Essay Topics

If you’re looking for research proposal essay topics, check out the list below! We’ve collected ideas for a proposal in computer science, agriculture, history, and more.

• Career counseling to support high school students.
• Project proposal for counseling centers .
• The effectiveness of advertisement in increasing brand awareness .
• The reliability of criminological analysis in identifying the offender’s personality.
• Research proposal on Ipad from Apple Inc .
• Remote workplaces to save the small business during pandemics.
• New therapeutic approaches to neurodevelopmental disorders .
• Research proposal: stress in the UK (England) .
• The effects of socioeconomic status on access to quality education.
• The effectiveness of regular self-analysis in overcoming the psychological trauma of rape.
• Mitigation of supply chain risk in disasters: research proposal .
• Race to the Top program to improve students’ outcomes.
• Effective business communication practices contributing to business growth.
• A research proposal on banks and customer satisfaction .
• Psychological tricks of media to exploit impulsive buying.
• The advantages of using antipsychotics for preventing delirium .
• Congestive heart failure: research proposal .
• Therapies for school students to stop substance abuse.
• Controlling school attendance to improve children’s social skills.
• Research proposal: background of the problem of handoff communication in nursing .
• The impact of urbanization on biodiversity preservation.
• Trade globalization to create more job opportunities around the world.
• Research proposal: Chlamydia Trachomatis .
• Increase the age of smoking to 25 to reduce lung cancer rates .
• Potential effects of stricter laws on corruption and transparency.
• Primary prevention of HIV & AIDS: community teaching work plan proposal .
• The effectiveness of smart home systems in reducing energy consumption.
• Testing AI technologies to improve children’s diagnostics and treatment.
• High-performance work system proposal for workers .
• Including mental health topics in the school curriculum to protect students’ mental health.
• Paid vacations to support nurses’ emotional health.
• Non-profit National Kidney Foundation’s strategy proposal .
• Meditation to treat mental disorders nonchemically during pregnancy.
• Workplace diversity and its role in increasing business productivity .
• Business proposal report for a child day care .
• Face-to-face games to promote healthy child development .
• Investigating the relationship between sleep patterns and mental health in youth.

Proposal Essay Ideas in Computer Science

• New AI approaches to decrease the energy consumption of 5G networks.
• Informatics solution proposal: general solution – EHR .
• Ways to ensure data privacy in machine learning models.
• Exploring new applications of quantum computing.
• DesignIT Company: network consultation proposal .
• AI in art: exploring the boundaries between art and technology.
• Cognitive radio networks for improving future wireless systems.
• Informatics solution proposal for a supply issue .
• Quantum computing to advance medical predictive systems.
• Using NLP for code generation to increase software development productivity.
• Techfite firm’s emerging technology proposal .
• Developing methods to make AI algorithms more transparent to users.
• Investigating novel biometric authentication methods.
• ElekTron Company’s network design proposal .
• Methods to detect and mitigate biases in AI systems.
• Usability in computer interface to ensure effective human-computer interactions.
• Advanced education in computational science .
• 3D object modeling to improve the architecture of large cities.
• The use of one programming language to cut the costs of programming training.
• Computer technologies to be installed at TVU Hotel .
• Constant feedback to minimize algorithmic bias in AI technologies.
• The use of computers to sequence human genes.
• Data science in the energy management field .
• Using machine learning for optimizing traffic flow in a smart city.
• AI-based approaches to the early detection and mitigation of cyber threats.
• The development of an information system to support inventory management .
• The use of AI in automatic data analysis.
• Web-based monitoring to improve healthcare services.
• Scrum methodology to develop Agile software.

Interesting Proposal Essay Topics for Agriculture

• The use of social media to improve agricultural marketing.
• How China’s agricultural reform contributed to its success on economic growth .
• Organic farming to minimize pollution from agriculture.
• Farmer organizations to implement effective agricultural transformation procedures.
• Financial profile of Oman Agriculture Development Company SAOG .
• Increased availability of fertile land to prevent the agricultural land shortage.
• Modern farming technology to solve the issue of inadequate drainage.
• Obstacles and barriers of AIS in agriculture companies .
• The use of antibiotics alternatives in animal agriculture for public health.
• E-commerce platforms to promote farming on social media.
• Al Ain Poultry Farm: management strategy and policy .
• The incorporation of ecological practices into agricultural systems to protect the planet.
• Maintaining ground cover to restore soil health and biodiversity.
• Case study of Holly Farm: problems and solutions .
• Farmers’ collaborations to maintain knowledge and resource sharing.
• New technologies for storage of agricultural products.
• Competitive advantage in farming, car, and restaurant industries .
• Organic materials to recycle nutrients within the agricultural ecosystem.
• Alternative farming methods to provide efficient resource use.
• Political argument on farm subsidies .
• Anti-discrimination policies to expand the rights of women in the agricultural sector.
• Online podcasts to build trustful relationships between farmers and consumers.
• Quillstine Farm’s start-up business plan .
• Conserving genetic variety in crops and livestock for future resilience.
• Increasing investment to address a lack of modern farming equipment.
• Business plan: integrated farming .
• Favoring crop rotation over monoculture farming to save natural habitats.
• Waste management to cut down on agriculture’s environmental footprint.
• State farm: addressing problematic intersections .
• The use of mulch and cover crops to protect soil from wind and water erosion.

Proposal Topics for a History Paper

• World War II lessons to prevent future conflicts.
• The City of Dubai: history, development, and challenges .
• Modern technology to restore the chronology of ancient events.
• The lasting impact of the Silk Road on global trade.
• History of supply chain management .
• The evolution of democracy in Ancient Greece.
• Anti-nationalism programs to prevent an imbalanced view of the past.
• Major historical influences on Karl Marx’s materialist conception of history .
• The impact of colonialism on indigenous cultures.
• The evolution of human rights : from declaration to practice.
• Corporate social responsibility and its historical background .
• The history of urban legends and folklore: transmission and societal impact.
• Environmental change and its impact on historical societies.
• Management and its historical evolution .
• The economic motivations and consequences of colonization.
• The history of entertainment and its social influence.
• Enron Company’s history of rise and fall .
• Disinformation and misinformation campaigns throughout history.
• The evolution of humanitarian aid and international relief efforts.
• Islamic banking: history and economic crises .
• Economic and social impact of pandemics throughout history.
• The evolution of warfare ethics: from ancient codes to modern international law.
• Justice is one of the key themes in human history .
• The history of human-animal relationships and their cultural significance.
• The Marshall Plan for European economic recovery post-WWII.
• History of inclusion in early childhood education .
• The influence of global trade routes on culinary traditions.
• New historical approaches to overcome scientific doubt.
• The history of Saudi Aramco from 1930 to 1940 .
• AI technology to indicate fabricated historical documents.

😄 Funny Topics for Proposal Essays

Are you looking for funny proposal topics? Then, we have something for you! Read on to find some of the most outstanding ideas!

• Mobile apps to prevent people from running into objects while they are texting.
• Mindbody app: proposed business plan .
• Mental exercises to increase student productivity at school.
• Pavlov’s dog experiment to teach pets to use the toilet.
• Financial proposal for ‘SILK’ hair protection gel .
• The use of humor to reduce stress and depression.
• Surviving Monday mornings: a comprehensive guide to coffee consumption.
• Goals and features of a proposed school library .
• Online monitoring to stop students’ procrastination.
• Mini lie detector to get away with telling a white lie.
• Business proposal for the Al-Yamamah College and JavaNet .
• New device to ensure your shampoo and conditioner are at the same rate.
• Plants and their role in reviving the space where you are working.
• Marketing proposal for Bikemate .
• The art of organization to protect the house from clutter.
• AI kitchen appliances to ensure food safety.
• Business plan for the proposed Chinese medicine clinic in Kuwait .
• Rap music to make home tasks fun and effective.
• Second hand to save budget from unplanned shopping.
• Zetech Organization’s proposed change: strengths and weaknesses .
• Funny mugs to throw a perfect tea party.
• Online books to not die from boredom in the queue.

Proposal Title Ideas about Animals

• The use of langur pee smell to protect New Delhi from monkeys.
• Animal Foodland organization’s marketing plan .
• Conducting a study on dogs’ understanding of human emotional cues.
• Purchasing cruelty-free cosmetics to protect animals from being killed.
• Woolly Mammoth project – mythical animal .
• Animal adoption programs solve the problem of animal homelessness.
• Spaying and neutering to solve the pet overpopulation issue.
• Traveling by train among animals and plants .
• Taking part in Animal Rescue Team training to help animals in crisis.
• Veterinary care standards to improve conditions for animals in captivity.
• Cosmetic and medical animal testing .
• Establishing training programs to provide certificates of pet ownership.
• Natural habitat rehabilitation to save endangered species.
• Animal-based therapy overview and analysis .
• Creating protected areas to safeguard oceanic biodiversity.
• Responsible tourism to ensure wildlife safety and security.
• Red fluorescent protein transgenic dogs experiment .
• Global cooperation to stop illegal cross-border animal trafficking.
• Education programs to raise awareness of animal conservation.
• Business ethics decision situation in veterinary practice .
• Supporting fur-free fashion to protect wildlife.
• Encouraging TV talk shows to discuss animal issues.
• China Southern Airlines and monkey transportation .

Proposal Paper Ideas about Sports

• Developing a community-based sports initiative for physical fitness and health.
• How does social media influence sports brands marketing ?
• Education on sports ethics to create an inclusive environment in a team.
• Anti-doping programs to reduce the cases of steroid use.
• Sports marketing affected by the internet of things .
• Financial rehabilitation services to help athletes with injuries.
• Creating fitness programs for children to promote a culture of health.
• Leadership in the sports club group .
• Equal pay for female athletes in professional sports to stop discrimination.
• Increasing access to sporting opportunities for people with disabilities.
• Preparing to be an effective follower in sports .
• Detailed protocols to prevent and manage dangerous situations in sports.
• Equipment-sharing programs to make sports activities more affordable.
• Kids and sports: lack of professional sports guides .
• Physical education programs in the schools to promote healthy lifestyles.
• Recovery strategies to prevent burnout and overtraining of athletes.
• Balancing college sports and academic mission .
• Supportive team program to assist athletes in coping with eating disorders .
• Monitoring systems to ensure safe and sustainable workloads.
• Advertising campaign for online sports nutrition store .
• Sports psychologists and their role in helping athletes with mental toughness.
• Sponsorship programs to reduce individual financial pressure in the sports industry.

Creating a well-developed structure is vital for any writing assignment. That’s why we’ve prepared a detailed template with the elements of a good proposal.

✍️ How to Make a Proposal Essay

Whether you are writing a proposal argument or a research proposal, the writing steps will be the same. Below are the steps you should take to complete this assignment.

1. Choose Your Topic

Choosing a good topic is vital in writing a proposal essay. Select the subject you are interested in. This way, you’ll be more willing to invest your time and efforts into this project. In addition, ensure that your topic is narrow, specific, and significant. If your topic is too broad, reading background information can help you limit its scope.

2. Research

Find trustworthy sources with the information you can use to support your proposal. It will help you write the background section and highlight the importance of the problem. In addition, reliable sources will help you provide evidence justifying your chosen solution to the problem.

Developing a detailed outline helps ensure that your paper is logical and cohesive. The outline will let you see how you will link all of the facts to support the thesis statement. Also, it can save you time by identifying any gaps and weaknesses in your argument before you start writing your paper.

4. Draft Your Proposal Essay

When drafting your proposal, remember that it is a type of persuasive writing. It should present a project and encourage the reader to go along with a plan of action outlined in the paper. So, ensure your proposal is convincing, logical, and credible and considers the audience, purpose, and tone.

Start your essay by presenting the purpose and essence of your project. The main body of your proposal essay should contain background information on the problem and persuasive reasons to support your proposal. Finally, the conclusion should underline the significance of the issue and call the audience to action.

5. Revise and Edit

Carefully revise and edit your draft. Consider whether the problem is described concisely, the solution is complete, and your evidence is used appropriately. Also, read your work to find any grammar or spelling mistakes. If you still have doubts about your paper, you can ask your professor or classmate to read it and give their feedback.

📃 Sample of a Proposal Essay

To help you understand how a proposal essay is structured, we’ve prepared a topic proposal example. Check it out!

Equipping Schools with Recycling Bins for Environmental Preservation

The purpose of this proposal is to implement a school-wide recycling program by strategically placing recycling bins across the campus. This initiative will promote zero waste culture, ensure the school’s sustainability, and contribute to environmental preservation.

The school is a perfect place to develop environmental awareness because it has the opportunity to build students’ knowledge and skills necessary to address environmental issues. One way to do so is to teach students to avoid improper waste disposal through recycling.

The proposal involves procuring and placing recycling bins across the school, including classrooms, common areas, and outdoor spaces. In addition, educational campaigns will be held to raise awareness among students, staff, and parents about the significance of waste segregation and recycling. Regular monitoring and evaluation will ensure the program’s effectiveness.

Several problems may arise while implementing this project, including resistance to change and logistical concerns about bin placement. Some may also object to the proposal due to the costs associated with it. However, the resistance to change can be mitigated by educational campaigns. The bin placement problem can be solved by involving staff and students in determining the optimal locations for recycling bins. Finally, financial constraints can be addressed by seeking partnerships with local businesses and community organizations.

Equipping the school with recycling bins is a step toward a sustainable future. By reducing waste and promoting sustainable practices, our school can lead by example and inspire positive changes within the community. This initiative gives a chance to raise environmentally conscious students and contribute to a healthier planet. Let us embrace this program to foster a sustainable school environment.

❓ Proposal Topics FAQ

How to write a proposal for an essay topic.

• Choose a topic.
• Identify your thesis or research question.
• Look for sources that you can use to support your thesis/research question.
• Create a detailed outline.
• Write the first draft.
• Edit the finished paper to fix grammar or spelling mistakes and ensure coherence.

How to write a proposal essay introduction?

Start with an attention-grabbing hook to pique your audience’s curiosity. Then, summarize the details of the problem and outline the purpose of your proposed project. Finally, add a strong thesis statement, summarizing your suggested solution and giving a preview of your supporting arguments.

How to write a proposal argument essay?

• Summarize the details of the problem and present the thesis.
• Give a detailed history of the problem.
• Present your proposal in detail.
• Examine the contrasting viewpoints.
• Sum up the main points of your essay.

What to write a proposal essay on?

Since you advocate for a change or a solution to a problem in your proposal essay, you should choose a topic you care about. You can write a proposal essay on virtually everything, from presenting a solution to climate change to implementing a community-based reading program or raising awareness about the importance of gut microbiota.

• Topic Proposals | University of Hawaii
• Selecting a Research Topic: Overview | MIT Libraries
• Proposals | University of Mary Washington
• Research Proposals | University of New Hampshire
• 10 Major Social Problems That Could Be Fixed with Innovative Solutions | Listverse
• How to Write a Topic Proposal | LUC Writing Center
• The Art of Proposal Writing: Proposal as Genre | Graduate College at Illinois
• Outline for Research Project Proposal | Portland State University
• Tips for Successful Proposal Writing | University of California, Davis
• How to Write a Good Postgraduate Research Proposal | The University of Edinburgh
• Proposal Argument Topic Ideas | Classroom
• What Is a Proposal Argument Essay? | Classroom
• Proposal Argument Essay | Madigan Library at Penn College
• Practical Proposal Essay Topics for Students | YourDictionary
• How to Write a Proposal Essay/Paper | Owlcation
• Guidelines for Proposal and Essay | York University
• The Academic Proposal | University of Toronto
• Writing Process: Creating a Proposal | Openstax
• How to Write a Research Proposal | University of Sheffield
• How To Write a Project Proposal (With Tips and Example) | Indeed

How to Write an Animal Testing Essay: Tips for Argumentative & Persuasive Papers

Descriptive essay topics: examples, outline, & more.

Winning Proposal Layout and Design Tips (With Examples from Real Proposify Customers)

You’ve got a business you believe in, offer an excellent service at a competitive price, and have solid leads coming through the door —but you’re still losing too many deals to the competition. Why? Great proposal design is an often overlooked, yet super-powerful, tool that can make your proposals (and your company) stand out and win more business.

19 min. read

In the long, often arduous, process of crafting a proposal, design is frequently relegated to the lowest priority. It’s understandable; as a business owner, or the person in charge of getting proposals out the door, your chief concern is with the content, rather than the proposal layout.

A concise cover letter, content that will sweep your sales lead off their feet, competitive pricing options, and, hopefully, a captivating case study or two that show off your expertise with real-world examples. That’s the stuff that sells your business, so why does it matter if the proposal is pretty looking or not? You’re trying to close this deal, not win a beauty pageant, right?

Poorly designed proposals can be confusing, hard to read, cumbersome, and fail to effectively communicate with your client. Your proposal design has to be functional as well as beautiful, or else all that good stuff you’ve put into your proposal can go to waste. And that’s a cryin’ shame.

I just said that Jerry, stop trying to steal my thunder.

Laying out a proposal is not just about how it looks (although it’s certainly a factor); it’s how the information in your proposal is communicated . If your proposal looks unfocused, you look unfocused.

If the proposal doesn’t clearly show your deliverables or process, your potential client will take one look and hit the road. Taking the time to focus on your proposal format (and getting a sober, second set of eyes to look it over) can ensure your offer stands out in an overfull inbox.

The layout, typography, images, and aesthetic of your proposal design all work together to give the reader a sense of who you are, what you can do for them, and why they should hire you.

Bad proposal design can make your clients feel underwhelmed by what they see, or worse, overwhelmed and confused by a messy layout. If your competition is delivering sharp-looking and well-designed proposals, your chances of closing the deal are going to take a significant hit right out of the gate.

Good proposal design makes you stand out from your competition and communicates your company’s services and differentiation efficiently and clearly. People remember things that stand out from their peers more when they’re distinct , and a rocking proposal design is a surefire way to put you top of mind.

Creating well-designed proposals is an investment, but it’s one many companies may not have experience in. So where do you begin?

Saving you time and energy creating proposals is near and dear to our hearts (it’s why we created Proposify !), so my design colleague Lindsey Ward and I prepared some tips and resources you can use to help kick-start your proposal design revolution.

And, as a bonus, we reached out to some of our Proposify customers to see if they would share their best proposal design examples. We picked our five faves to give you an idea of just how powerful good proposal design can be.

Quick! Grab this game-changing guide for your sales team (before your competitors do…)

Download The Closer’s Guide to Winning Proposals for free and gain the edge.

Powerful proposal design elements

We won’t go too deep into the principles of design in this article (here’s a handy cheat sheet if you’re curious though). Instead, we’ll focus on some practical takeaways you can use right away to improve your proposal design and wow clients.

Follow your brand guidelines

Keep in mind that your brand is more than just your logo . Your brand is your identity as a company and your promise of quality to your clients represented through factors like graphics, imagery, and tone of voice.

If you’re a design or marketing agency, you probably have brand guidelines established already. But for other businesses, creating brand guidelines might not be something you have or have considered investing in. MailChimp has a simple example of their brand guidelines, as well as an idea of how their brand is used.

Without getting too far into the weeds on how to build a successful brand, consistency is key. Your colours, imagery, typefaces, and tone of voice should reflect who you are, and how you want to be perceived by your target audience.

Your brand is more than your logo, but the logo is still the flagship of your fleet, so it’s gotta look good. Make sure you have large, high-resolution .png files of your logo and/or wordmark that work on white, dark, and coloured backgrounds, so they aren’t blurry.

Again, if you have an in-house design team you’ll have this already, but if you outsourced to an agency or a freelancer and are missing anything, contact them to get what you need.

A good logo makes a good first impression, so it should appear on the cover of your proposal, and, in most cases, be a repeating element on your other pages without taking over.

If you have an established brand, you probably have a colour palette already. Those are your colours, so use ‘em! Adding colour to your proposal text headings, page numbers, and any repeated elements is a quick, simple way to establish a consistent feeling of your brand throughout your proposal. We’ll look at some examples later in this post.

If you’re looking for a new colour palette or you don’t already have one, there are lots of free resources online to help you out, and our favourite here at Proposify is Coolors . With Coolors you can quickly generate a random colour palette, customize everything, and save and export your palette in a bunch of formats.

Or, if you’re really strapped for time, you can pick from the thousands of palettes other people have created. Don’t be afraid to be bold and creative with your colours –  just make sure that everything remains legible.

How can you not love this thing?

Photography and Graphics

There’s no golden rule that your proposal must use photos; if you’re sending something like a contract or a quick revision to a long-standing client, you can get away with just copy. But by and large, proposals with great images that reinforce your brand’s message and show off your work are more impressive and impactful than those without.

Once again the internet comes to the rescue for those of us who lack the time or skill to source great proposal images. There are many free stock image websites featuring photos from professional and amateur photographers alike that give you free reign to download, modify, and use their photos however you need. Our king of the castle, in this case, is Unsplash .

All the photos on Unsplash are curated by their team so you can expect incredible quality, and there are over 300,000 images to choose from. They’re also large and high-resolution so they’ll look sharp wherever they’re used.

The only real drawback with a site like Unsplash is that the types of photos are determined by what photographers upload. If you need beautiful photos of nature , hands holding things , or well dressed young people having non-specific types of adventure , you’re in luck. However, depending on your business, you might not be able to find the specific image you need on a free site like this.

Traditional stock image sites like iStock and Shutterstock might be a better option in that case. Their photos cost money, but good quality photography that you can reuse in multiple proposals is worth it.

And there’s no need to stop at photos; graphics are another great way to add some extra flavour to your design. Free Design Resources and GraphicBurger are two great sites where you can nab free icon packages. The best part? You only need to gather them once for your design toolkit.

So, whether you use a free image site or a traditional stock site, taking a couple of hours out of your day to gather a small collection of great photos for your brand is an investment that will pay off in the future.

We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention that great copy lends itself to great proposal design. If you have someone on staff with a silver tongue, use those talents. If you don’t have someone who can write compelling, clear, and persuasive proposal content, consider outsourcing to a freelance copywriter.

Again, it’s a valuable investment to develop copy you can use over and over again. Is your brand quirky? Cool and edgy? Professional and direct? Whatever it is, find your tone of voice and stick to it.

Sometimes we spend so much time concentrating on the words in our proposal, it’s easy to overlook the typeface they come delivered in. Once again, if you have brand guidelines or a designer working with you, the question of which typeface to use should already be answered.

Google Fonts is a great resource for completely free fonts (currently 846 families) that are web and print friendly. You can sort the fonts by font category (serif, sans-serif, etc.), width, and thickness, then simply scan for the fonts, and download them. (Did we mention Proposify has access to the entire library of Google Fonts?)

Find one or two fonts that are easy to read and work with your brand. Keep your headings bold, and make sure you have a comfortable line-height (which is the space between your lines of text), so your body text is highly readable. The easier it is for your clients to read your proposal content, the easier it will be to convince them that your company is the best choice.

With your brand guidelines solidified, some amazing photos added, and copy that will knock the socks off your client, how should you actually lay out your proposal?

Here are a couple of quick and handy proposal layout rules:

• Reading long paragraphs of text is taxing on the eyes, so keep your line length (the width of your paragraphs) to somewhere in the 50-75 characters per line range
• Break up long passages of text with images to give your client a little break from reading.
• Keep everything aligned in a way that doesn’t confuse the reader’s eye. Typically, left aligning text is your best bet . This practice creates a consistent line for the reader's eye to travel down, making it easy to consume a large amount of text in one go. The more evenly things line up, the easier it is for the eye to move around the page.
• Use white space. Give the elements on your page room to breathe, and they’ll have much more impact.

Seeing is believing, so let's look at some real proposal layout examples from our amazing Proposify customers!

Meet your proposal design all-stars

These companies were gracious enough to let us show off their rocking proposal designs to the world, and they were all created using Proposify. Let’s see what makes them so good!

Note: These proposal designs aren’t ranked or in any particular order. If we had to pick a favourite, we’d pick all of them! Who cares if that’s cheating.

Chillisauce

Who they are: Chillisauce is an event agency that creates tailored events for stag parties, corporate outings, and adventure-filled weekends.

Their Proposal Design:

Why it works: You know that feeling when a coworker or friend shows up with a great haircut or spiffy new clothes, and you just can’t help but compliment them on it? Well, that’s the way you want your clients to react to your cover page. A good cover page immediately makes your sales lead engaged and interested to dive into your business proposal.

Right off the bat, we see that that Chillisauce’s branding is featured creatively, working their logo into a descriptive graphic that highlights the Big Brother theme. This is a great example of taking that extra bit of time to really drive home your product. The cover is simple, informative, and impactful.

Leading with a page detailing your understanding of your client’s needs is a great way to begin your proposal. This section reinforces that Chillisauce has done their due diligence while at the same time welcomes the client into the experience of the event by referencing their needs and providing a sample of the forthcoming fun with clever photography.

The proposal sections are separated by simple cover pages. This is a great way to organize your content and break up the flow for a better reading experience. They used simple but effective graphics which are on brand in both style and colour.

Chillisauce makes great use of graphics and photos that keep their copy concise and focused. This proposal is easy to read, thanks to a clean layout (an image covering a third of the space, followed by text), large headings, colourful subheadings, and organized body copy.

Their pricing table is super clean and readable, and they close their proposal with a perfectly placed pun and a simple contact page. Overall, their proposal is to the point, colourful, and you get a sense of who they are as a company. Well done, lads! (That’s how people talk in the UK, right?)

• Typefaces used: Montserrat, Open Sans
• Effective graphics
• Section cover pages
• Well designed send off which clearly displays their contact information.

Who they are: Vendic is a full-service Magento partner in the field of web hosting, support and marketing.

Their Proposal:

Why it works: A minimal cover like Vendic uses in their proposal design can be risky, but if you follow it up as they do with a page containing all the vital introductory information of the proposal, you can get away with it.

Their second page lists the person delivering the proposal and the recipient, the title of the project, and a quick cover letter/message detailing the project. Our Dutch is a little rusty (Oh, we’re like about 0% fluent) but we can tell what’s on the page.

Social media button links at the bottom of this page is a nifty idea as well. This saves time explaining that you’re active socially while giving your client the option to knock on your door through other avenues.

A simple watermark repeating element that sits behind the text is a great way to add a little texture to your page. The well shot, embedded video efficiently communicates what your company’s about without a lot of descriptive text. Even if your video production skills aren’t quite Spielberg-esque, shooting a quick one-minute, targeted video speaking directly to your client and including it in your proposal can effectively communicate your message.

• Typefaces used: Droid Sans, Montserrat
• Soft, on-brand watermark repeating element adds texture to the page
• Clean and simple layout with great use of their brand colour
• Inclusion of well shot and descriptive video

ThreeSixtyEight

Who they are: Threesixtyeight is a company of designers and communicators whose specialities include marketing, website and web design, branding and brand strategy.

Their proposal:

Why it works: ThreeSixtyEight has created a seamlessly on-brand proposal template that references their product in both design and text. From beginning to end, the target audience is addressed and the company's mission clear.

“We are still learning and improving, but our overall philosophy is that simplicity is key. Proposals that are heavy-handed are less likely to close because in trying to say everything, the proposal says nothing.” Jeremy Beyt, Chief Strategy Officer

The minimalist cover is really striking, it’s sort of reminiscent of a book on Swiss Design . You would expect a web design agency to have a well-designed proposal so ThreeSixtyEight’s clean layout, demonstrated by consistent text alignment, and in this case, minimal photography is a great sign right away.

“Much like the work we produce, we’ve chosen to adopt a visual, simplistic style that is human-friendly. Ultimately, the person on the other end is busy and doesn’t have time to read three paragraphs about our design philosophy. I think one of the best things we’ve done is adopt an executive summary page as part of the proposal. If we do include detailed content, it always follows an executive summary page, which condenses the proposal into a one-page summary with critical information like price and timeline.” Jeremy Beyt, Chief Strategy Officer

Notice that they’ve used their square logo element in multiple places, from the Project Summary section to the creative way they’ve framed their team members. This is another proposal that uses simple internal cover pages for each section of the project summary successfully, so you know exactly where you are in the flow of the document.

This proposal design is a good example of one that doesn’t necessarily need a lot of images because the content is spaced out well and given room to breathe. ThreeSixtyEight’s proposal design might not look the flashiest, but the elegant and professional design makes it stands out.

• Typefaces used: Montserrat, Open Sans and Lusitana
• Design follows the identity and branding of ThreeSixtyEight well and is highly consistent
• Good typeface hierarchy – the headings, subheadings, body copy, and quotes are all distinct from each other
• Pull quotes that reiterate the success of the project. All done in a format that can be repeated throughout proposals.

Apples & Arrows

Who they are: Apples & Arrows is a branding agency who help their clients discover and celebrate who they are and what makes them remarkable.

Why it works: Apples & Arrows makes it clear that they are taking their client on a journey. This is demonstrated through beautiful photography, clearly displaying adventure. At the same time, concise headings help the client follow that journey, with no fear of getting lost in text or misadventure.

Their header images help the proposal stand out in this way, like a beautiful, bold trail of breadcrumbs. Apples & Arrows noted that they feel this is a simple design element, but by using the reversed text on the bright backgrounds, it makes the headings look quite distinct when compared to their previous, mostly generic design.

Almost opposite from ThreeSixtyEight, Apples and Arrows’ proposal design is a great example of using images to describe their purpose. Discovery, adventure, and a new beginning are all communicated through their imagery.

“We’re in a creative industry, so we need to maximize every opportunity we have to communicate our thinking, processes, and abilities. For some of our leads, the proposal is one of the first points of contact they may have with us, so having a non-standard, visually interesting proposal is a critical component of our new business efforts.” Todd Ramsey, Founder & Chief Strategist

The cover letter describes their company and abilities, and the imagery remains clear and on-message.

Apples & Arrows’ proposal has a simple layout, and because they have a good catalogue of high-resolution images, their design can remain in whole the same, without looking dull or long.

• Typography: Raleway
• Engaging and varied photos
• Consistency in typography, headings, page numbers

Who they are: Ice Nine Studios is a Squarespace Authorized Trainer that designs websites and inbound marketing systems for businesses.

Why it works: Ice Nine’s proposal is in sync with the web development market, and highly focused on messaging. The professionally-created graphics demonstrate the quality of work in store for Ice Nine’s clients.

This proposal is quite different from most we’ve seen in that you really get the sense that each page has a clear, targeted objective or message. Ice Nine has clearly put a lot of thought into their understanding their target audience and how to communicate with them. This is shown in their strong use of graphics. They elevate the proposal to take on a web page feel rather than a document.

They’ve done a good job keeping the page limit down, something that can be challenging when you have a lot of information to get across but don’t want to overwhelm your client. While sometimes this means that the pages can verge on being cluttered, Ice Nine’s good use of icons and graphics help segment the information to make it easier to read.

This proposal is a great example of carefully-crafted copy. Throughout the proposal, Ice Nine references how they can help their client. Not by just saying so, but by demonstrating why in their design and text.

“The page that talks about Squarespace with the white iPhone — one of our top challenges when courting a website client is that they often have a firm opinion that a good website is one that is custom coded or running Wordpress. This page serves the purpose of establishing the reliability of using Squarespace by providing examples from Tony Hawk, Lyft, and Pixar, and the imagery of a full inbox communicates that having a Squarespace website will lead to more website leads.” Collin Belt, Founder

This is reinforced by the headings, where the text is presented as concise and clear. The client can understand each stage of the web design process and that leaves them feeling confident that they are taken care of.

Another solid tip is to re-use any graphics you might already be using on your website or other marketing materials. You don’t necessarily need to recreate everything for your proposal from scratch.

Finally, a great idea from Ice Nine is that they don’t put their terms of service into their proposal, but instead have them on their website. This significantly shortens the length of the proposal and reinforces their brand’s impression on their clients by having them visit the site.

“Something more specific to Proposify is giving people the option of making choices using checkboxes. By making a part of the proposal interactive, it really gets clients thinking through the care package that’s the best fit for them. One of the best decisions I’ve ever made was offloading the terms of service to our website. It gives us massive flexibility to always keep it up to date, and it means that our proposals are about 14 pages shorter — reducing the friction between reading the proposal and signing it.” Collin Belt, Founder

• Typefaces used: Lato, Montserrat
• Copy and messaging that understands the target audience
• Use of graphics provides a lot of energy

Design is communication

Way back in design school, the message that we received over and over from instructors was that design is communication. Your goal with design is to transmit a message to the person viewing the end product, whatever that message may be. The choices you make in your determine how effectively your message is received. And having no design? That’s a choice too –one you don’t want to make.

Well-designed proposals that effectively, clearly, and engagingly communicate their content immediately have a competitive edge. Putting in a few extra hours of time and or hiring some outside help to improve the design of your proposals will pay dividends for you in the future.

The tips in this article are meant to help you design better business proposals, but there’s nothing wrong with outsourcing to a talented freelancer if you’re strapped for time or lack the skills. Whatever your route, we hope this helps to transform your proposals into beautifully designed gems that give your clients no choice but to sign on the dotted line.

Thanks to everyone who submitted their proposal designs to us. We had an overwhelming amount of responses and can safely say that it was hard to only choose five.

Do you have any design tips that give your proposals an advantage? Think we overlooked something? We’d love to hear from you so give us a shout in the comments!

To all the Proposifiers out there: If you think your proposal design takes the cake, let us know. If we get a big enough response, we might do another installation of this with more smart, deal-closing designs!

Design resources featured in this article

Principles of Design

MailChimp Brand Assets

Shutterstock

Google Fonts

Free Design Resources

GraphicBurger

Agency Website Do’s and Don’ts: Are You Making These Design Mistakes?

February 28, 2017

Our Rebranding Process Revealed: How We Positioned Proposify for Success

December 09, 2016

Wanna take the guesswork out of closing deals in 2021?

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Home » How To Write A Research Proposal – Step-by-Step [Template]

How To Write A Research Proposal – Step-by-Step [Template]

Table of Contents

How To Write a Research Proposal

Writing a Research proposal involves several steps to ensure a well-structured and comprehensive document. Here is an explanation of each step:

1. Title and Abstract

• Choose a concise and descriptive title that reflects the essence of your research.
• Write an abstract summarizing your research question, objectives, methodology, and expected outcomes. It should provide a brief overview of your proposal.

2. Introduction:

• Provide an introduction to your research topic, highlighting its significance and relevance.
• Clearly state the research problem or question you aim to address.
• Discuss the background and context of the study, including previous research in the field.

3. Research Objectives

• Outline the specific objectives or aims of your research. These objectives should be clear, achievable, and aligned with the research problem.

4. Literature Review:

• Conduct a comprehensive review of relevant literature and studies related to your research topic.
• Summarize key findings, identify gaps, and highlight how your research will contribute to the existing knowledge.

5. Methodology:

• Describe the research design and methodology you plan to employ to address your research objectives.
• Explain the data collection methods, instruments, and analysis techniques you will use.
• Justify why the chosen methods are appropriate and suitable for your research.

6. Timeline:

• Create a timeline or schedule that outlines the major milestones and activities of your research project.
• Break down the research process into smaller tasks and estimate the time required for each task.

7. Resources:

• Identify the resources needed for your research, such as access to specific databases, equipment, or funding.
• Explain how you will acquire or utilize these resources to carry out your research effectively.

8. Ethical Considerations:

• Discuss any ethical issues that may arise during your research and explain how you plan to address them.
• If your research involves human subjects, explain how you will ensure their informed consent and privacy.

9. Expected Outcomes and Significance:

• Clearly state the expected outcomes or results of your research.
• Highlight the potential impact and significance of your research in advancing knowledge or addressing practical issues.

10. References:

• Provide a list of all the references cited in your proposal, following a consistent citation style (e.g., APA, MLA).

11. Appendices:

• Include any additional supporting materials, such as survey questionnaires, interview guides, or data analysis plans.

Research Proposal Format

The format of a research proposal may vary depending on the specific requirements of the institution or funding agency. However, the following is a commonly used format for a research proposal:

1. Title Page:

• Include the title of your research proposal, your name, your affiliation or institution, and the date.

2. Abstract:

• Provide a brief summary of your research proposal, highlighting the research problem, objectives, methodology, and expected outcomes.

3. Introduction:

• Introduce the research topic and provide background information.
• State the research problem or question you aim to address.
• Explain the significance and relevance of the research.
• Review relevant literature and studies related to your research topic.
• Summarize key findings and identify gaps in the existing knowledge.
• Explain how your research will contribute to filling those gaps.

5. Research Objectives:

• Clearly state the specific objectives or aims of your research.
• Ensure that the objectives are clear, focused, and aligned with the research problem.

6. Methodology:

• Describe the research design and methodology you plan to use.
• Explain the data collection methods, instruments, and analysis techniques.
• Justify why the chosen methods are appropriate for your research.

7. Timeline:

8. Resources:

• Explain how you will acquire or utilize these resources effectively.

9. Ethical Considerations:

• If applicable, explain how you will ensure informed consent and protect the privacy of research participants.

10. Expected Outcomes and Significance:

11. References:

12. Appendices:

Research Proposal Template

Here’s a template for a research proposal:

1. Introduction:

2. Literature Review:

3. Research Objectives:

4. Methodology:

5. Timeline:

6. Resources:

7. Ethical Considerations:

8. Expected Outcomes and Significance:

9. References:

10. Appendices:

Research Proposal Sample

Title: The Impact of Online Education on Student Learning Outcomes: A Comparative Study

1. Introduction

Online education has gained significant prominence in recent years, especially due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This research proposal aims to investigate the impact of online education on student learning outcomes by comparing them with traditional face-to-face instruction. The study will explore various aspects of online education, such as instructional methods, student engagement, and academic performance, to provide insights into the effectiveness of online learning.

2. Objectives

The main objectives of this research are as follows:

• To compare student learning outcomes between online and traditional face-to-face education.
• To examine the factors influencing student engagement in online learning environments.
• To assess the effectiveness of different instructional methods employed in online education.
• To identify challenges and opportunities associated with online education and suggest recommendations for improvement.

3. Methodology

3.1 Study Design

This research will utilize a mixed-methods approach to gather both quantitative and qualitative data. The study will include the following components:

3.2 Participants

The research will involve undergraduate students from two universities, one offering online education and the other providing face-to-face instruction. A total of 500 students (250 from each university) will be selected randomly to participate in the study.

3.3 Data Collection

The research will employ the following data collection methods:

• Quantitative: Pre- and post-assessments will be conducted to measure students’ learning outcomes. Data on student demographics and academic performance will also be collected from university records.
• Qualitative: Focus group discussions and individual interviews will be conducted with students to gather their perceptions and experiences regarding online education.

3.4 Data Analysis

Quantitative data will be analyzed using statistical software, employing descriptive statistics, t-tests, and regression analysis. Qualitative data will be transcribed, coded, and analyzed thematically to identify recurring patterns and themes.

4. Ethical Considerations

The study will adhere to ethical guidelines, ensuring the privacy and confidentiality of participants. Informed consent will be obtained, and participants will have the right to withdraw from the study at any time.

5. Significance and Expected Outcomes

This research will contribute to the existing literature by providing empirical evidence on the impact of online education on student learning outcomes. The findings will help educational institutions and policymakers make informed decisions about incorporating online learning methods and improving the quality of online education. Moreover, the study will identify potential challenges and opportunities related to online education and offer recommendations for enhancing student engagement and overall learning outcomes.

6. Timeline

The proposed research will be conducted over a period of 12 months, including data collection, analysis, and report writing.

The estimated budget for this research includes expenses related to data collection, software licenses, participant compensation, and research assistance. A detailed budget breakdown will be provided in the final research plan.

8. Conclusion

This research proposal aims to investigate the impact of online education on student learning outcomes through a comparative study with traditional face-to-face instruction. By exploring various dimensions of online education, this research will provide valuable insights into the effectiveness and challenges associated with online learning. The findings will contribute to the ongoing discourse on educational practices and help shape future strategies for maximizing student learning outcomes in online education settings.

About the author

Muhammad Hassan

Researcher, Academic Writer, Web developer

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7.6.1: Annotated Sample Proposal Argument

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Listen to an audio version of this page (12 min, 39 sec):

Format note: This version is accessible to screen reader users.  Refer to these  tips for reading our annotated sample arguments with a screen reader . For a more traditional visual format, see  the PDF version of "Why We Should Open Our Borders."

Laurent Wenjun Jiang 

Prof. Natalie Peterkin 

July 25, 2020

Why We Should Open Our Borders

Refugees, inequalities, economic instabilities...the fact that we are bombarded by news on those topics every day is proof that we live in a world with lots of problems, and many of us suffer as a consequence. Nations have tried a variety of solutions, but the reality has not improved. Yet there exists a single easy measure that could solve almost all of the problems mentioned above: an open-border policy. The current border and immigration practices, including border controls and detention centers, are unjustified and counterproductive. (Note: The first body paragraph gives background on the problem, opportunity, or situation.) This paper discusses the refugee problem, the history of open-border policy, the refutations for the current border policies on philosophical and moral grounds, and the arguments why this open-border policy will work economically.

Refugees are a problem of worldwide concern. Recently the biggest wave of refugees came from Syria, which witnessed an eight-year-long civil war. In an interview, a Syrian refugee expresses deep sorrows regarding the loss of her home: “My brothers, sisters, uncles, neighbors, streets, the bread ovens, schools, children going to schools ...we miss all of that, everything in Syria is precious to us” she says, with tears hovering in her eyes (Firpo). She also exposes the terrible living conditions there: “[W]e didn’t run away, Syria has become uninhabitable. Not even animals could live there. No power, no running water, no safety, and no security. You don’t know who to fight...even when you lock yourself away, you’re not safe...I was most scared of seeing my children die right in front of me” (Firpo). (Note: Moving refugee testimonies serve as evidence supporting the claim that their situation is one of great urgency.) As heart-breaking as it sounds, we should also know that this is only the tip of the iceberg: Gerhard Hoffstaedter, an anthropologist at the University of Queensland, states that there are around 70 million displaced people in developing countries, which is the highest recorded number since the 1950s, causing the United Nations to call this world issue “a crisis.” The leading nations in the world do not offer enough support to displaced people living in abject conditions. Refugees at the U.S.-Mexico border and in Southeast Asia and Australia are constantly kept in detention centers. Many nations do not comply with the provisions signed in the 1951 Refugee Convention and the succeeding 1967 Protocol; they treat the refugees only as those in passive need of simply humanitarian aids (Hoffstaedter). In this crisis, it is our common responsibility as members of an international community to help those who are in need.

Historically, the large-scale control of the mobility of people is a relatively new phenomenon worldwide. (Note: This body paragraph starts with a definition argument to show that the current trend is new. This argument later becomes support for the idea that open borders are possible.) In the modern era, border signifies “ever more restrictive immigration policies” at the same time grants “greater freedom of mobility to capital and commodities”, as defined in the editorial “Why No Borders.” This creates a contradictory ideology that could cause potential harm to those who need to migrate (Anderson, et al.). John Maynard Keynes dates the beginning of this process only back to World War I in the early 20th century. However, this trend did not become widespread until after World War II. According to a historical outline created by Christof Van Mol and Helga de Valk, due to the booming in the industrial production in northwestern Europe in the 1950s, the local workers were increasingly educated and gradually became whitecollar employers, leaving vacancies in blue-collar occupations (Mol and Valk).

Thus, those countries started recruiting immigrants from other parts of Europe and even North Africa: for example, Germany and France started seasonal working programs to attract immigrants (Mol and Valk). Because of the lack of job opportunities in the other parts of Europe and North Africa and the need for workers in the industrializing countries in Northern and Western Europe, “international migration was generally viewed positively because of its economic benefits, from the perspective of both the sending and the receiving countries'' (Mol and Valk). This early migration pattern within Europe provides the basic model for the European Union that builds on the fundamental ideology of the free movements of goods and human resources. In recent days, the European Union has become one of the biggest multinational organizations, which can also serve as a successful example of this open-border ideology, at least on a regional scale.

Borders do not satisfy the needs of contemporary societies. From both philosophical and moral perspectives, restrictive border policies are not justified. First of all, borders divide and subjugate people. The editorial “Why No Borders” describes the border as being“thoroughly ideological” (Anderson, et al.). The authors argue that because border policies try to categorize people into “desirable and non-desirable” according to their skills, race, or social status, etc., they thus create an interplay between “subjects and subjectivities,” placing people into “new types of power relationship” (Anderson, et al.). This is what is identified as the ultimate cause of the divisions and inequalities between people.

Some fear that competition from immigrants would cause a reduction in the wages of local workers (Caplan). (Note: In this body paragraph, the author attempts to disprove the counterargument about a downside of open borders for local workers.) This is not an uncalled-for worry, but it is also a misunderstanding of the nature of the open-border policy. Nick Srnicek reasons that this kind of competition has already existed under the current trend of globalization, where workers in developed countries are already competing against those in developing countries that have cheaper labor. He argues, “Workers in rich countries are already losing, as companies eliminate good jobs and move their factories and offices elsewhere” (Srnicek). The border serves companies by making workers in the developing world stay where wages are low. Thus, “companies can freely exploit” cheap labor. In this sense, workers on both sides will be better off under an open-border policy (Srnicek). A recent study from the University of Wisconsin-Madison investigating the economic implications of immigration between rich and poor countries concluded that the benefits of an open-border policy far outweigh the cons and that “the real wage effects are small” (Kennan).

Although an open border could lead to minor reductions in the wages of local workers in developed countries, there is a simple solution. Since the labor market follows the economic law of supply, work supply and wages are inversely related, meaning that the lower the supply of labor, the more wages rise. (Note: This paragraph could be seen as a limit and a rebuttal because the open border would need to be combined with changes to labor laws in order to avoid a possible bad effect.) Nick Srnicek proposes, “a shortening of the workweek...would reduce the amount of work supplied, spread the work out more equally among everyone and give more power to workers ... more free time to everyone” (Srnicek). Thus, although the open-border policy is not perfect, its downside is easy to address. (Note: The author does not investigate how much time, money, and will an open border policy would need; the argument remains mostly theoretical because it doesn’t address feasibility.)

As an expatriate myself, I can truly relate to this type of thinking. Due to a variety of the political, economic, and social limitations that I came across in my home country, I was not able to achieve self-actualization. In pursuit of a better education and a more free living environment, I went abroad and finally arrived in this country a few years ago. It was not until then that I gained a vision of my future. Now I am working in hopes that one day the vision could become reality. Sometimes I cannot help wondering what could happen if I was not so lucky to be where I am today. But at the same time, I am also conscious of the fact that there are also millions of people out there who cannot even conceive of what it is like to actualize their lives. (Note: The conclusion humanizes the possible benefits of the proposed solution.) I am sure that one of the mothers who escaped her war-torn home country with her family has the sole hope to witness her children growing up in a happy and free place, just like any mother in the world. I am sure that there is one little girl whose family fled her country in desperation who once studied so hard in school, dreaming of becoming the greatest scientist in the world. I am also sure that there is a young boy who survived persecutions and wishes to become a politician one day to make the world a better place for the downtrodden. Because of borders, these children can only dream of the things that many of us take for granted every day. We, as human beings, might be losing a great mother, great scientist, great politician, or just a great person who simply wishes for a better world. But everything could be otherwise. Change requires nothing but a minimal effort. With open borders, we can help people achieve their dreams.

Works Cited

Hoffstaedter, Gerhard. “There Are 70 Million Refugees in the World. Here Are 5 Solutions to the Problem.” The Conversation , 24 Mar. 2020, theconversation.com/there-are-70-million-refugees-in-the-world-here-are-5- solutions-to-the-problem-118920.

Anderson, Sharma. “Editorial: Why No Borders?” Refuge , vol. 26, no. 2, 2009, pp.5+. Centre for Refugee Studies, York University. Accessed July 26, 2020.

D, D. “Keynes, J. M., The economic consequences of the peace.” Ekonomisk tidskrift, vol. 22, no. 1, Basil Blackwell Ltd., etc, Jan. 1920, p. 15–. Accessed July 26, 2020.

Srnicek, Nick. “The US$100 Trillion Case for Open Borders.” The Conversation , 18 Feb. 2020, theconversation.com/the-us-100-trillion-case-for-open-borders-72595.

Caplan, Bryan. "Why Should We Restrict Immigration?" Cato Journal , vol. 32, no. 1, 2012, pp. 5-24. ProQuest , https://libris.mtsac.edu/login?url=https://search- proquest-com.libris.mtsac.edu/docview/921128626?accountid=12611.Accessed July 26, 2020.

Kennan, John. “Open Borders in the European Union and Beyond: Migration Flows and Labor Market Implications.” NBER Working Paper Series, 2017,  www.nber.org/papers/w23048.pdf.

Firpo, Matthew K., director. Refuge . 2016. The Refuge Project, www.refugeproject.co/watch.

Van Mol, Cristof, and Helga de Valk. “Migration and Immigrants in Europe: A Historical and Demographic Perspective.” Integration Processes and Policies in Europe , edited by Blanca Garcés-Mascareñas and Rinus Penninx, 2016, IMISCOE Research Series, pp. 33-55.

Attribution

This sample essay was written by Laurent Wenjun Jiang and edited and annotated by Natalie Peterkin. Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0 . 

What is the Ideal Proposal Layout? 6 Proven Tips Backed by Research

Think of your business proposal as your best shot at sealing the deal with a client. It gives you a lot of space to describe your solution, showcase how it can help the client, and further demonstrate your authority with previous work and reviews. 

This is why it’s important to invest in reliable proposal software that will help you quickly create and send your proposals. The only way we can be confident in supporting your proposal process is by constantly learning and analyzing the changes in the market. 

Every year, we analyze the proposals sent through our software and find out the newest tips on how to optimize your sales documents for even better results. In this article, we’ll cover everything from the ideal number of sections to the content and branding. 

The best sections for the ideal proposal layout 

As our proposal report shows, the ideal number of sections is 6. This means that sending a one-page proposal in Word or a PDF document is no longer a viable option. Proposals that fit on a single page confuse your clients and don’t give them enough information about your solution to their problems. 

That is why you need to structure your proposal a bit differently. 

Your 6 proposal sections should be: 

• Introduction or Executive summary
• Your solution and or Time scales
• The guarantee
• Terms and conditions

This structure will make your proposals easy to understand and get through. It will provide your clients with enough information to agree to your proposal, without boring them with insignificant details.

Of course, you can toy around with the different number of sections and a different order. However, this type of proposal layout has proven to be the most useful for the people using Better Proposals to send their business proposals.

Short structure overview

Start by reeling in your clients with a short introduction on how you’re going to use your solution to bring them real benefits. Don’t detail the process just yet - you’ll have time to do that later. 

The importance of the proposal introduction lies in the first impression. You don’t want to waste it by talking about yourself or your company. This is the time to speak directly to your client and utilize their words to show them that you understand their problem and have the perfect solution. 

Notice how we didn’t include an About the team section? That’s because we don’t like to underestimate the clients. They’ve probably researched the person they are going into business with, so skip the overused paragraphs about how you’re an enthusiastic and fun team of professionals who work hard. 

From the introduction, transition into a chapter where you discuss your process. This is the meat of your proposal so make sure to detail what you’ll be working on from week to week. As you’re writing this, think about your language and vocabulary. 

The client won’t have the same level of knowledge as you, which means that you’ll have to write the proposal in a way that is easy to understand for people with various backgrounds. 

How to structure your price?

Once you’ve detailed your solution and the entire process, the time has come to state your price. If you've conducted a successful discovery meeting , you already know your client’s budget and expectations. 

Even if this is the case, the way you present your price still matters. 

Our advice is to present a single offer, don’t try to upsell your clients. Think of it as a doctor giving out medicine. They are the authority on the topic and know what will make you feel better. You’re the doctor prescribing medicine and you know best what your clients need.

If you give your clients a choice between multiple packages, they’ll be confused and won’t know which one to pick. You are the person that should tell them which features and benefits they need. 

Furthermore, the way you name this section plays a huge role in the agreement process. As our report shows, naming it Investment or ROI works better than names like Cost. You don’t want to cheapen your proposal by making it look like a regular invoice. 

Your guarantee is an important part of the proposal because it gives the clients security in case something goes wrong. Usually, the guarantee is something along the lines of a money-back guarantee should things go south. 

Think about what would make the client feel secure while still keeping you on track to deliver the finished product without any repercussions. 

If you’re using Better Proposals, the next steps should include explaining our digital signature and payment option to your client. Once they agree to your terms, they can easily sign the proposal by typing in their name and paying the first fee using a PayPal, Stripe, or GoCardless integration. 

The terms and conditions should lay out the legalities of the contract and state who is responsible for which parts of the process and what happens in case any of the parties fail to deliver on their promises. 

Using all of our tips will help you craft a great proposal layout.

The proposal layout needs to be mobile-friendly 

All of our proposals are web-based, meaning they will be sent out to your clients as web pages rather than documents in an email attachment. 

This is done because: 

• They look more professional
• It helps you stand out
• It speeds up the agreement and payment process
• This way we can include a digital singing option and payment gateway
• It gives us proposal analytics

When you send out one of our proposals, it doesn't incentivize the client to print it out, which is purposely done so. Printing out a proposal decreases your chances of conversion by 88%.  

With that huge of a difference, you can see why creating an optimized web-based proposal is so important. 

Research shows that 52.2% of all website traffic is generated from mobile phones. This means that it’s crucial for your proposal to be structured in a way that makes it easy to navigate on multiple devices. 

Give your proposal a fighting chance by making sure the layout is not just desktop friendly but also optimized for mobile. Seeing how 46% of our proposals are opened on smartphones, it’s important that they look amazing on them. 

Make sure your proposal is on-brand 

Don’t miss out on the chance to make your proposal completely customized. With Better Proposals, this is easily done through the profile settings. 

Click on My account and in Branding, you’ll see a lot of options for customization. 

You can change the:

• Name of your company or brand
• The language of your proposal
• The brand colours
• The currency
• The domain name

Once you change any of the listed things, they will automatically be changed for any proposals you send out in the future. This means that you won’t have to manually write out the name of your company, or insert the colour code every time you want to send a new proposal. 

Branding is important because it sets you apart and shows the client how serious you are about your approach. Once you set up your domain , all the proposals you send out will be 100% in line with your branding. 

Our additional tip is to customize the emails in which you’ll send the link to your proposal. 

Make sure to personalize your emails every time you send a different proposal. As you can see in the picture above, you can customize the subject line, the body of the email, and the CTA button. 

Furthermore, you can also personalize the email that your clients will receive once they sign the proposal. Think of it as a thank you card - keep it short and sweet. 

Add a variety of images and videos

Don’t drown your clients in huge chunks of text. Anything that can be shown through visualization or broken down in a short video should be shown in that way. An ideal proposal layout doesn't include large pieces of text.

Once you start working on your template, you’ll see how easy it is to add or delete blocks. All you have to do is click on the little plus button and you’ll get to choose the type of content you would like to add. 

Whether it’s text, a picture, a video, or something from your content library, you can quickly add it in a few clicks. 

We have integrations with Unsplash and Pexels, meaning you can search for a photo and insert it without leaving your template. 

Videos can be especially impactful if you're using them to share social proof. By that, we mean a testimonial from one of your previous clients who was facing the same problem as your current one. 

It will give your clients more confidence in their choice if they see how someone experienced benefits and ROI with your help. Although every client has a unique situation, showing your previous successes will help you secure new deals. 

Keep the copy short and engaging 

Your business proposals need to include all the previously mentioned parts, while also being short and easy to understand. Don’t worry, you don’t have to be an expert copywriter in order to create an engaging proposal. 

All you have to do is follow these simple steps: 

• Start by creating an outline that includes all the necessary information
• Write your proposal and include different types of media
• Go through your proposal again and read it with this in mind - does every paragraph bring new and valuable information?
• Delete anything that would be considered fluff. If the sentence can be written without a certain word - just delete it
• Ask your team members to review your proposal before you send it out
• Make any additional changes if needed

Although your business proposals serve multiple purposes, one of them being building a relationship with the client, you don’t have to include every possible piece of information in the proposal. 

Put yourself in your client's shoes. What would they like to know about your process and the value they’ll receive from your solution. Don’t talk about your goals and dreams, save that for a face-to-face meeting. 

Our tip is to integrate a live chat option that will allow your clients to leave comments as they read the proposal. This is a quick and easy way to receive feedback. Remember, you change the proposal according to your client’s needs up until they sign it. 

Once the proposal is signed, it becomes a legally binding document that can not be changed anymore. 

Firstly, while writing the proposal layout think about the words you’re using. The more action words you use, the more confidence your proposal will exude. If you use a lot of phrases like “we think” and “we hope”, it will come across as unprofessional. 

Secondly, perfect the timing of your proposal. You should send out your proposal as fast as possible. After all, you should strike while the iron is hot. However, if you can, avoid sending it on Fridays because that will slow down the agreement process. 

Thirdly, streamline the process by integrating your favourite sales tools with Better Proposals. It will help you better manage your sales process and give you a clear overview of your proposal pipeline. 

We offer a lot of native integrations and for anything that isn’t on the list, you can use Zapier of API. 

Lastly, make the most out of proposal analytics. They help you understand whether your proposals were opened or forwarded and how much time did your clients spend on each of the sections. This will inform your follow-up process and help you better understand how to approach the clients who haven’t signed the proposal. 

Creating a business proposal doesn't need to be a long and tiresome process. With Better Proposals, you can choose a prewritten template and easily customize it to your needs. This means you will no longer have to create your documents from scratch. 

All templates come with a structure, a field for a digital signature, terms and conditions and more. It will ensure that you don’t forget any of the important steps you need to take before you send out a finished proposal. 

We will empower you every step of the way with helpful articles, proposal university and reports that will give you insight into how to create a high-converting proposal your clients will want to sign straight away. 

Like what you see? Sign up for a free trial and unlock all the benefits of Better Proposals that can help you transform your business. 

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Opinion How to fix college finances? Eliminate faculty, then students.

Gary Smith is the Fletcher Jones professor of economics at Pomona College. His most recent book, written with Margaret Smith, is “ The Power of Modern Value Investing — Beyond Indexing, Algos, and Alpha .”

Two imminent threats to higher education are bloated bureaucracies and clever chatbots. Herewith, I humbly propose a straightforward way to solve both problems.

I will use Pomona College, where I have taught for decades, as a specific example of how easily my proposal might be implemented. In 1990 , Pomona had 1,487 students, 180 tenured and tenure-track professors, and 56 administrators — deans, associate deans, assistant deans and the like, not counting clerical staff, cleaners and so on. As of 2022, the most recent year for which I have data, the number of students had increased 17 percent, to 1,740, while the number of professors had fallen to 175. The number of administrators had increased to 310, an average of 7.93 new administrators per year. Even for a college as rich as Pomona, this insatiable demand for administrators will eventually cause a budget squeeze. Happily, there is a simple solution.

Pomona’s professor-administrator ratio has plummeted from 3.21 to 0.56. A linear extrapolation of this trend gives a professor-administrator ratio of zero within this decade. This trend can be accelerated by not replacing retiring or departing professors and by offering generous incentives for voluntary departures. To maintain its current 9.94 student-faculty ratio, the college need only admit fewer students each year as the size of its faculty withers away. A notable side effect would be a boost in Pomona’s U.S. News & World Report rankings as its admissions rate approaches zero.

And just like that, the college would be rid of two nuisances at once. Administrators could do what administrators do — hold meetings, codify rules, debate policy, give and attend workshops, and organize social events — without having to deal with whiny students and grumpy professors.

The college could continue to be called a college, since the Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines “college” as “an institution offering instruction usually in a professional, vocational, or technical field.” There would just be a shift in focus from young students looking to delay entering the job market to administrators looking to build their résumés as they move up the administrator ladder.

Colleges do not need traditional students or professors. In fact, these are generally a drain on resources in that student revenue does not cover faculty salaries. The elimination of professors and students would greatly improve most colleges’ financial position.

In general, administrators are paid for by a college or university’s endowment. As of December, Pomona’s endowment was $2.8 billion . The annual payout from its endowment is set at between 4.5 and 5.5 percent of the average value of the endowment over the preceding five years. A 5 percent payout would provide each of 310 administrators an annual allotment of $450,000, which would easily provide generous compensation, a wide variety of benefits, and frequent travel to conferences and workshops worldwide.

There would continue to be some expenses for clerical staff, cleaners and so on, but renting out the now-empty dormitory apartments and selling the now-empty classrooms to private businesses and government agencies would almost certainly not only cover these expenses but also add to the endowment and allow the hiring of additional administrators.

The college might slightly modify its mission statement , which currently begins: “Throughout its history, Pomona College has educated students of exceptional promise.” An updated mission statement might begin: “Pomona College is dedicated to sustaining and advancing the careers of administrators of exceptional promise.”

Obviously, each institution of higher learning would use its own endowment, properties and other assets to determine the equilibrium number of administrators that could be supported.

If all colleges and universities follow my suggestion, there will be a small problem in that college students will no longer have colleges to go to. This is easily resolved by tapping the second existential threat to higher education — ChatGPT and other chatbots. All higher-education courses could be done online via bots with no need for expensive classrooms, dorm rooms and other physical facilities.

Instead of paying college costs currently approaching $100,000 a year , students could earn their degrees conveniently and inexpensively from the comfort of their own homes. Moreover, they would be given access to bots that they can use to take tests and write any essays required by the instructor bots. The students’ test answers would no doubt be perfect, and their essays would be persuasive and error-free, which would allow all students to be given A grades without having to disrupt their lives by attending classes, listening to lectures or reading. Win-win.

College and universities would be places for administrators to advance their careers. Education would be student bots interacting with instructor bots.

Everything will be for the best in this best of all possible worlds.

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• Opinion | How to fix college finances? Eliminate faculty, then students. April 23, 2024 Opinion | How to fix college finances? Eliminate faculty, then students. April 23, 2024