This Proposal is not only the culmination of the work in this course, it is also the official proposal that will be used to shape the required research in the 6 unit Research Project for most degree programs (or the equivalent for students in other disciplines).

(as above) In order to pass this course, students must achieve at least 50% overall, and achieve a passing mark of at least 50% for their final research proposal.

This document will be assessed on:

1. Short restatement and justification of the research problem
2. Relevance of objectives to the stated problem
3. Adequate assessment of the relevant secondary data
4. Justification of the research design and proposed methodology, including data collection and sampling methods. Questions to be answered include:
   1. can it be done this way?
   2. is it an appropriate design – is there a precedent for this design/approach?
   3. will it provide the right kind of data and enough of it?
   4. will analysis of the data provide the insights required?
   5. are projected costs defendable?
5. Proposed analytical methods
6. Research budget and timelines for completion of the project
7. Quality of written presentation (referencing, grammar, punctuation and clarity).

For the purposes of this course, this document is expected to be no more than 15 pages (not including references and appendices), and follow the “Document Guidelines”.