Research Proposal
The research proposal distils your research training to date and is at the core of your own plans. Basically it sets out the problem you intend to investigate and how you propose to go about it. Your description of the research problem should include a discussion of relevant literature in the field, and explain why your own research will be a contribution to the discipline. You should then explain why it makes sense to address your research questions through fieldwork in the specific place(s) in which you plan to work.
The research proposal forms part of the research proposal portfolio. After you have submitted this portfolio, you will attend a fieldwork clearance interview with the PhD Committee.
For all first year PhD students, the proposal should be a single continuous and complete prose document of up to 7,000 words. Do not attach separate documents or disks. It should be bound or stapled and should contain the following components:
a. A review of the literature, both theoretical and ethnographic, with discussion of selected themes/ issues in the ethnography, and of relevant aspects of the history, economy, and languages of the region/ field where the study will be conducted
b. An outline of the questions to be addressed and the expected contribution of the study to anthropological understanding
c. A methodological discussion, in which theoretical questions and general issues are translated into researchable empirical questions and the methods to be employed are justified and described
d. A discussion of the practical, political, and ethical issues affecting conduct of the research
e. A presentation of the schedule for the research, and its estimated budget
Research Proposal Portfolio
The research proposal enables the Division to assess your progress in the acquisition of generic research skills, and to satisfy itself that you are adequately prepared for the research you plan to undertake.
For those on the Pre-Fieldwork Course, your proposal should address, briefly or in detail as appropriate, all six topics specified for the research training papers (RTPs). But the proposal should not contain substantial ‘recycled’ portions of your RTPs. Copies of your three, already examined, RTPs will be supplied directly to the Committee. For those doing the MRes, it is assumed that extended attention will be paid to issues germane to your proposal (in the thesis), and that topics similar to those specified for the RTPs will have been considered.
The portfolio should be made up of the following items in triplicate:
• The research proposal (including ethical considerations)
• References and bibliography
• Budget
• Timetable
• Evidence of any local permissions/ visas required for fieldwork
• Completed Research Fieldwork: Risk Assessment Form (PDF)
• Contact address/ telephone/ email
o for the period before you leave; and/or
o in the field, as known
Notes
Bibliography
Your research proposal must include references giving details of all works referred to. It is also good practice to include a working bibliography covering all the important published work in your field, with notes on content, interest and importance. Your supplementary annotated bibliography should distinguish between works you have/ have not yet read and should indicate briefly the ways in which the works listed relate to your research.
Budget
Your budget, as complete and detailed as possible, should be in clear tabular form. You will need a budget to apply for funding and the Division can only support applications that are accompanied by a credible budget. The Division also needs to be kept informed of the sources of fieldwork funding you obtain.
Expenses
Circumstances (and exchange rates) change and some expenses are unpredictable. The more detailed and accurate your budget, the easier it will be to make a specific case for additional funds if you find you incur unexpected expenses in the field.
Ideally, your budget should include both a detailed classified list of anticipated expenditure and a month-by-month time-chart showing what you expect to spend when. For some items, you will have a fairly accurate idea of what the cost will be. Others will necessarily be estimates. Indicate clearly which is which and, where appropriate, what the information about costing is based on. If you can, it is a good idea to list items in the first instance in the currency in which you expect the money to be spent, and then to convert these figures to pounds sterling at the current exchange rate. This may be difficult but it lends credibility to your figures and helps strengthen your case if exchange rates move against you.
Budget checklist
Note: not all funding bodies will support all kinds of expenses. If you apply for funds for any purpose that is explicitly excluded by the funding body this may prejudice your chances of obtaining any funding at all.
• Travel
o International flight
o Travel to/ from airport
o Internal travel (plane, train, bus, car etc) – itemise/ justify in relation to time schedule
o Local transport (specify as appropriate per diem cost/ monthly rental/ cost of purchase/ resale)
o Insurance
o Visas
o Luggage costs
• Medical
o Supplies
o Vaccinations
o Insurance
• Living costs
o Accommodation in major centres
o Accommodation in fieldwork site(s) (per calendar month)
o Subsistence (per diem)
o Consider also ‘start-up costs’, the cost of setting up a household, for each major field location (lodging for the first few days, agent’s fees, non-refundable deposits, extra supplies, etc)
• Research costs
o Research assistance (justify)
o Language tuition in field
o Communications (post, email access, etc – justify)
o Books, maps, etc (justify)
o Photocopying (justify)
• Equipment
o Stationery
o Audio-visual equipment (itemise and justify)
o Other research equipment (itemise and justify)
o Consumables (film and processing, tape, batteries etc (itemise and justify)
o Specialist clothing (itemise and justify)
• Other costs
o Itemise and justify
Income (funding)
Set against expenses, you should give details of projected income: grants obtained and grants applied for to show how you propose to fund the fieldwork. See Funding Fieldwork section of Fieldwork.
Ethical scrutiny
Most projects carried out by members of the Division of Social Anthropology will probably not require any special ethical consideration beyond observance of the Association of Social Anthropologists’ (ASA) Ethical Guidelines. However, you should discuss possible ethical implications with your supervisor (who may consult the Head of Division). For any research with medical subjects (such as hospital patients) you should consult the University’s Guidelines on Good Research Practice. You should also consult the ESRC’s Research Ethics Framework.
Timetable
Indicate, month by month, when you anticipate undertaking the main tasks described in your proposal. The timetable may be subject to revision, of course, during fieldwork, as agreed with your supervisor, but this is a first step to imagining the concrete situation.
Risk assessment
Spell out all anticipated risks to health and safety. Specify what steps have been agreed between you and your supervisor for minimising risk and dealing with contingencies. Seek advice, where appropriate, from bodies such as the Occupational Health Service and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.