Proposal writing

Proposal writing You have A scientific problem (  a problem which requires a scientific approach towards a solution) A theory or / and a methodology Required means A resonable time budget The expectation of a solution which is not predefined

THIS PRESENTATION IS FOCUSSED ON PROPOSALS BY ONE SINGLE RESEARCHER

A scientific problem

5 Economic growth and abundance of natural resources Proposal writing Sachs J. and A. Warner, “The curse of natural resources.”, European Economic Review esource Curse: An overview

Proposal writing

Hurricane „Niklas“ April 2015

Fench drinking water industry: change of negotiated water prices in contracts signed between 1998 and 2006 – comparison with water prices in preceding contracts

Musical phrases and patterns in the opening chorus of BWV 4

Nanotechnology for (sunlight) insulation of glass

Teodorico Pedrini

Recycling TV cathode rays into flooring tiles

Performance of „sustainable“ assets versus the overall stock market

14 Contents of a proposal Description of the problem Review of the literature Theoretical background Methodological approach Research outline Time-line Expected outcomes Required budget Proposal writing

CONTENTS OF A PROPOSAL

16 Contents of a proposal Description of the problem: What is the problem? How can it be understood? Why is the lack of knowledge relevant? How would or will a solution look like? Proposal writing

17 Contents of a proposal Review of the literature In which body of literature can the problem be located? How well is this problem described and known? Which approaches have been taken towards solution, if any? How can you show that the problem is not (adequately) dealt with in the literature? Proposal writing

18 Contents of a proposal Theoretical background: a theoretical model in which the problem will be placed for further research, analysis and study Methodological approach: a combination of scientific methods (logical analysis, sampling and data collection and analysis, experiments, surveying, other empirical investigations and verifications, computational tasks … ) derived from the theoretical model and adapted to the problem Proposal writing

Example 1: Pathways of wastewater from health care (750 l / bed / day)

Example 2: Resource Curse Framework

Example 3: Capital Asset Pricing Model: alpha and beta

22 Contents of a proposal Research outline: a step—by—step list of the intended research activities and the in-between achievements (milestones) Either as a separate item or integrated in the time-line Proposal writing

23 Contents of a proposal Required budget: A necessary requirement — even if the researcher feels not competent to deliver Quite often: follow the guidelines of the sponsoring organization Check which activities are sponsored and which activities are not sponsored (e.g. lab equipment, software, conference trips and open-access fees) All relevant items to be included Realistic budgets (!) – but asking for „too little“ is unwise Proposal writing

Time-line 24 Literature reviewDevelopment of mathematical model Design of methodology for data collection Testing the survey or experiment Data collection Analysis of data Summer September Starting in December End of January February and March March - Fall 1.Chapter on literature review 1.Model 2.Research hypothesis 3.Theoretical concept 1.Method- ology 2. Survey or experiment design 1.Validated research instruments 2. First paper Inventory of raw data Scrutin- ized data

Time-line 25 Interpretation of analysed data Application of data (if appropriate) Draft of the final PhD research project report Finalization of report Submissiondefense winter December Starting in December End of March Summer 1.Preliminary concept about the final results 2.PPT presentation 1.Applied outcomes 2.Second paper 1.Method- ology 2. Survey or experiment design 1. Final version 2. PPT presentation

Concluding remarks 1.Write in plain, correct and understandable language 2.Use a terminology for the important items 3.Write for a scientifically oriented audience (e.g. a refereeing professor) who might or might not be familiar with your topic 4.Explain the importance of your topic: Scientifically Academically For yourself 5.Go from the beginning to the end: show to the reader how you intend to do the research from the definition of the problem to the achievement of the solution

Concluding remarks 1.If you write for a grant or scholarhsip of a specific organization, follow the guidelines published by that organization 2.In this context: do not submit to an organization which is not focussed on the topic of your research 3.Respect formats, templates and deadlines 4.If given the opportunity of a contact before submission, make use of that opportunity 5.Take care of all documents and attachments which are required for proper submission and avoid to submit an incomplete package