Research Proposal Checklist
Four copyable checklists, in the order to run them: the guidelines, the argument, the consistency between sections, then the language. Plus the questions to ask a colleague.
A proposal is short enough to reread and long enough that you stop seeing it. Run it in passes, each looking for one kind of problem, from the one that can end the review to the one that only costs goodwill. Paste the lists into your notes and tick each item. For how to write the proposal in the first place, see how to write a research proposal.
Pass 1: the guidelines
Open the current call, its annexes, or your department's guidelines, and check against them item by item. A proposal over the limit or missing a required section may not be read at all.
GUIDELINES [ ] I am working from the current version of the call or guidelines. [ ] Every required section is present, under the expected heading. [ ] Each section is within its word or page limit. [ ] Font, margins and file format follow the rules. [ ] I meet the eligibility conditions, or my research office has confirmed it. [ ] I know the internal deadline, not only the funder's or the department's. [ ] Required attachments (CV, letters, budget forms) are ready.
- Current version
- calls and guidelines are amended. Check the date on the document you are working from.
- Internal deadline
- universities often need the proposal days or weeks before the external deadline for sign-off.
Pass 2: the argument
Read only the title, the summary, the aims and the first sentence of each section. If these do not tell one story, fix that first.
ARGUMENT [ ] I can state the question and why it matters in two sentences. [ ] The question or aims appear on the first page. [ ] The background leads to the gap, and the gap leads to the question. [ ] Each aim says what will be found out or produced. [ ] Each aim has methods that can answer it. [ ] The proposal says what happens if a key step fails. [ ] The expected outcomes answer the aims, not a different question.
- Two sentences
- if you need a paragraph, the proposal likely asks more than one question.
- First page
- many readers decide in the summary. The question should not wait for page two.
Pass 3: consistency between sections
Sections written at different times drift apart. Search the document for each aim, number and date rather than rereading it.
CONSISTENCY [ ] Aims are worded and numbered the same way everywhere. [ ] Every aim appears in the methods and in the timeline. [ ] Every work package or task serves at least one aim. [ ] Dates and milestones agree between the text and the timeline. [ ] Sample sizes and other numbers match wherever they appear. [ ] Budget lines match the people, equipment and travel in the methods. [ ] Every acronym is defined at first use and written one way. [ ] Every in-text citation is in the reference list, and the reverse.
- Search each aim's number
- it should appear in the methods, the timeline and, in a grant, the budget justification.
- Numbers twice
- a figure that appears in two sections is the first place to look for a contradiction.
Pass 4: language
Last, when the content is stable. Read slowly, or aloud, or have the text read to you.
LANGUAGE [ ] No sentence needs to be read twice. [ ] Claims are specific: no "novel", "important" or "significant" without the reason. [ ] Terms are explained for a reviewer outside my subfield. [ ] One spelling convention (British or American) throughout. [ ] No typos, doubled words or missing words. [ ] Headings match what the section contains.
- Specific claims
- "novel" says nothing a reviewer can check. Say what is new.
Questions to ask a colleague
A checklist finds problems in the text. A reader in your field judges what it cannot. Send the draft with specific questions:
1. After the first page, what do you think I am proposing to do? 2. Is the question worth answering? Who would disagree, and why? 3. Can the methods answer the aims with the time and resources I ask for? 4. What is the biggest risk, and does the proposal deal with it? 5. Where did you get lost or have to reread? 6. What would you cut?
- Before or after
- send the draft once it has passed the checklist, so the reader's time goes to the questions only they can answer. The Grant Proposal Review ($50, paid once) covers passes 2 to 4 in one report: language, structure, typos and inconsistencies. It does not cover pass 1 or the questions above.
Frequently asked questions
Yes. Skip the items that do not apply: a thesis proposal rarely has a budget or work packages. The guidelines pass matters for both.