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- How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates
How to Write a Research Proposal | Examples & Templates
Published on October 12, 2022 by Shona McCombes and Tegan George. Revised on January 3, 2023.
A research proposal describes what you will investigate, why it’s important, and how you will conduct your research.
The format of a research proposal varies between fields, but most proposals will contain at least these elements:
Introduction
Literature review.
- Research design
Reference list
While the sections may vary, the overall objective is always the same. A research proposal serves as a blueprint and guide for your research plan, helping you get organized and feel confident in the path forward you choose to take.
Table of contents
Research proposal purpose, research proposal examples, research design and methods, contribution to knowledge, research schedule, frequently asked questions about research proposals.
Academics often have to write research proposals to get funding for their projects. As a student, you might have to write a research proposal as part of a grad school application , or prior to starting your thesis or dissertation .
In addition to helping you figure out what your research can look like, a proposal can also serve to demonstrate why your project is worth pursuing to a funder, educational institution, or supervisor.
Research proposal length
The length of a research proposal can vary quite a bit. A bachelor’s or master’s thesis proposal can be just a few pages, while proposals for PhD dissertations or research funding are usually much longer and more detailed. Your supervisor can help you determine the best length for your work.
One trick to get started is to think of your proposal’s structure as a shorter version of your thesis or dissertation , only without the results , conclusion and discussion sections.
Download our research proposal template
Writing a research proposal can be quite challenging, but a good starting point could be to look at some examples. We’ve included a few for you below.
- Example research proposal #1: “A Conceptual Framework for Scheduling Constraint Management”
- Example research proposal #2: “Making Healthy Connections: Mentoring, Monitoring and Measurement”
- Example research proposal #3: “Medical Students as Mediators of Change in Tobacco Use”
What can proofreading do for your paper?
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Like your dissertation or thesis, the proposal will usually have a title page that includes:
- The proposed title of your project
- Your supervisor’s name
- Your institution and department
The first part of your proposal is the initial pitch for your project. Make sure it succinctly explains what you want to do and why.
Your introduction should:
- Introduce your topic
- Give necessary background and context
- Outline your problem statement and research questions
To guide your introduction , include information about:
- Who could have an interest in the topic (e.g., scientists, policymakers)
- How much is already known about the topic
- What is missing from this current knowledge
- What new insights your research will contribute
- Why you believe this research is worth doing
As you get started, it’s important to demonstrate that you’re familiar with the most important research on your topic. A strong literature review shows your reader that your project has a solid foundation in existing knowledge or theory. It also shows that you’re not simply repeating what other people have already done or said, but rather using existing research as a jumping-off point for your own.
In this section, share exactly how your project will contribute to ongoing conversations in the field by:
- Comparing and contrasting the main theories, methods, and debates
- Examining the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches
- Explaining how will you build on, challenge, or synthesize prior scholarship
Following the literature review, restate your main objectives . This brings the focus back to your own project. Next, your research design or methodology section will describe your overall approach, and the practical steps you will take to answer your research questions.
To finish your proposal on a strong note, explore the potential implications of your research for your field. Emphasize again what you aim to contribute and why it matters.
For example, your results might have implications for:
- Improving best practices
- Informing policymaking decisions
- Strengthening a theory or model
- Challenging popular or scientific beliefs
- Creating a basis for future research
Last but not least, your research proposal must include correct citations for every source you have used, compiled in a reference list . To create citations quickly and easily, you can use our free APA citation generator .
Some institutions or funders require a detailed timeline of the project, asking you to forecast what you will do at each stage and how long it may take. While not always required, be sure to check the requirements of your project.
Here’s an example schedule to help you get started. You can also download a template at the button below.
Download our research schedule template
If you are applying for research funding, chances are you will have to include a detailed budget. This shows your estimates of how much each part of your project will cost.
Make sure to check what type of costs the funding body will agree to cover. For each item, include:
- Cost : exactly how much money do you need?
- Justification : why is this cost necessary to complete the research?
- Source : how did you calculate the amount?
To determine your budget, think about:
- Travel costs : do you need to go somewhere to collect your data? How will you get there, and how much time will you need? What will you do there (e.g., interviews, archival research)?
- Materials : do you need access to any tools or technologies?
- Help : do you need to hire any research assistants for the project? What will they do, and how much will you pay them?
Once you’ve decided on your research objectives , you need to explain them in your paper, at the end of your problem statement .
Keep your research objectives clear and concise, and use appropriate verbs to accurately convey the work that you will carry out for each one.
I will compare …
A research aim is a broad statement indicating the general purpose of your research project. It should appear in your introduction at the end of your problem statement , before your research objectives.
Research objectives are more specific than your research aim. They indicate the specific ways you’ll address the overarching aim.
A PhD, which is short for philosophiae doctor (doctor of philosophy in Latin), is the highest university degree that can be obtained. In a PhD, students spend 3–5 years writing a dissertation , which aims to make a significant, original contribution to current knowledge.
A PhD is intended to prepare students for a career as a researcher, whether that be in academia, the public sector, or the private sector.
A master’s is a 1- or 2-year graduate degree that can prepare you for a variety of careers.
All master’s involve graduate-level coursework. Some are research-intensive and intend to prepare students for further study in a PhD; these usually require their students to write a master’s thesis . Others focus on professional training for a specific career.
Critical thinking refers to the ability to evaluate information and to be aware of biases or assumptions, including your own.
Like information literacy , it involves evaluating arguments, identifying and solving problems in an objective and systematic way, and clearly communicating your ideas.
The best way to remember the difference between a research plan and a research proposal is that they have fundamentally different audiences. A research plan helps you, the researcher, organize your thoughts. On the other hand, a dissertation proposal or research proposal aims to convince others (e.g., a supervisor, a funding body, or a dissertation committee) that your research topic is relevant and worthy of being conducted.
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How to Write a Research Proposal
Once you’re in college and really getting into academic writing , you may not recognize all the kinds of assignments you’re asked to complete. You know what an essay is, and you know how to respond to readings—but when you hear your professor mention a research proposal or a literature review, your mind might do a double take.
Don’t worry; we’ve got you. Boiled down to its core, a research proposal is simply a short piece of writing that details exactly what you’ll be covering in a larger research project. You’ll likely be required to write one for your thesis , and if you choose to continue in academia after earning your bachelor’s degree, you’ll be writing research proposals for your master’s thesis, your dissertation, and all other research you conduct. By then, you’ll be a research proposal pro. But for now, we’ll answer all your questions and help you confidently write your first one.
Here’s a tip: Want to make sure your writing shines? Grammarly can check your spelling and save you from grammar and punctuation mistakes. It even proofreads your text, so your work is extra polished wherever you write.
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What is the goal of a research proposal?
In a research proposal, the goal is to present the author’s plan for the research they intend to conduct. In some cases, part of this goal is to secure funding for said research. In others, it’s to have the research approved by the author’s supervisor or department so they can move forward with it. In some cases, a research proposal is a required part of a graduate school application. In every one of these circumstances, research proposals follow the same structure.
In a research proposal, the author demonstrates how and why their research is relevant to their field. They demonstrate that the work is necessary to the following:
- Filling a gap in the existing body of research on their subject
- Underscoring existing research on their subject, and/or
- Adding new, original knowledge to the academic community’s existing understanding of their subject
A research proposal also demonstrates that the author is capable of conducting this research and contributing to the current state of their field in a meaningful way. To do this, your research proposal needs to discuss your academic background and credentials as well as demonstrate that your proposed ideas have academic merit.
But demonstrating your research’s validity and your personal capability to carry it out isn’t enough to get your research proposal approved. Your research proposal also has to cover these things:
- The research methodology you plan to use
- The tools and procedures you will use to collect, analyze, and interpret the data you collect
- An explanation of how your research fits the budget and other constraints that come with conducting it through your institution, department, or academic program
If you’ve already read our post on literature reviews , you may be thinking that a research proposal sounds pretty similar. They’re more than just similar, though—a literature review is part of a research proposal. It’s the section that covers which sources you’re using, how you’re using them, and why they’re relevant. Think of a literature review as a mini-research proposal that fits into your larger, main proposal.
How long should a research proposal be?
Generally, research proposals for bachelor’s and master’s theses are a few pages long. Research proposals for meatier projects, like Ph.D. dissertations and funding requests, are often longer and far more detailed. A research proposal’s goal is to clearly outline exactly what your research will entail and accomplish, so including the proposal’s word count or page count isn’t nearly as important as it is to ensure that all the necessary elements and content are present.
Research proposal structure
A research proposal follows a fairly straightforward structure. In order to achieve the goals described in the previous section, nearly all research proposals include the following sections:
Introduction
Your introduction achieves a few goals:
- Introduces your topic
- States your problem statement and the questions your research aims to answer
- Provides context for your research
In a research proposal, an introduction can be a few paragraphs long. It should be concise, but don’t feel like you need to cram all of your information into one paragraph.
In some cases, you need to include an abstract and/or a table of contents in your research proposal. These are included just before the introduction.
Background significance
This is where you explain why your research is necessary and how it relates to established research in your field. Your work might complement existing research, strengthen it, or even challenge it—no matter how your work will “play with” other researchers’ work, you need to express it in detail in your research proposal.
This is also the section where you clearly define the existing problems your research will address. By doing this, you’re explaining why your work is necessary—in other words, this is where you answer the reader’s “so what?”
In your background significance section, you’ll also outline how you’ll conduct your research. If necessary, note which related questions and issues you won’t be covering in your research.
Literature review
In your literature review , you introduce all the sources you plan to use in your research. This includes landmark studies and their data, books, and scholarly articles. A literature review isn’t merely a list of sources (that’s what your bibliography is for); a literature review delves into the collection of sources you chose and explains how you’re using them in your research.
Research design, methods, and schedule
Following your research review, you’ll discuss your research plans. In this section, make sure you cover these aspects:
- The type of research you will do. Are you conducting qualitative or quantitative research? Are you collecting original data or working with data collected by other researchers?
- Whether you’re doing experimental, correlational, or descriptive research
- The data you’re working with. For example, if you’re conducting research in the social sciences, you’ll need to describe the population you’re studying. You’ll also need to cover how you’ll select your subjects and how you’ll collect data from them.
- The tools you’ll use to collect data. Will you be running experiments? Conducting surveys? Observing phenomena? Note all data collection methods here along with why they’re effective methods for your specific research.
Beyond a comprehensive look at your research itself, you’ll also need to include:
- Your research timeline
- Your research budget
- Any potential obstacles you foresee and your plan for handling them
Suppositions and implications
Although you can’t know your research’s results until you’ve actually done the work, you should be going into the project with a clear idea of how your work will contribute to your field. This section is perhaps the most critical to your research proposal’s argument because it expresses exactly why your research is necessary.
In this section, make sure you cover the following:
- Any ways your work can challenge existing theories and assumptions in your field
- How your work will create the foundation for future research
- The practical value your findings will provide to practitioners, educators, and other academics in your field
- The problems your work can potentially help to fix
- Policies that could be impacted by your findings
- How your findings can be implemented in academia or other settings and how this will improve or otherwise transform these settings
In other words, this section isn’t about stating the specific results you expect. Rather, it’s where you state how your findings will be valuable.
This is where you wrap it all up. Your conclusion section, just like your conclusion paragraph for an essay , briefly summarizes your research proposal and reinforces your research’s stated purpose.
Bibliography
Yes, you need to write a bibliography in addition to your literature review. Unlike your literature review, where you explained the relevance of the sources you chose and in some cases, challenged them, your bibliography simply lists your sources and their authors.
The way you write a citation depends on the style guide you’re using. The three most common style guides for academics are MLA , APA , and Chicago , and each has its own particular rules and requirements. Keep in mind that each formatting style has specific guidelines for citing just about any kind of source, including photos , websites , speeches , and YouTube videos .
Sometimes, a full bibliography is not needed. When this is the case, you can include a references list, which is simply a scaled-down list of all the sources you cited in your work. If you’re not sure which to write, ask your supervisor.
Here’s a tip: Grammarly’s Citation Generator ensures your essays have flawless citations and no plagiarism. Try it for citing journal articles in MLA , APA , and Chicago styles.
How to write a research proposal
Research proposals, like all other kinds of academic writing, are written in a formal, objective tone. Keep in mind that being concise is a key component of academic writing; formal does not mean flowery.
Adhere to the structure outlined above. Your reader knows how a research proposal is supposed to read and expects it to fit this template. It’s crucial that you present your research proposal in a clear, logical way. Every question the reader has while reading your proposal should be answered by the final section.
Editing and proofreading a research proposal
When you’re writing a research proposal, follow the same six-step writing process you follow with every other kind of writing you do.
After you’ve got a first draft written, take some time to let it “cool off” before you start proofreading . By doing this, you’re making it easier for yourself to catch mistakes and gaps in your writing.
Common mistakes to avoid when writing a research proposal
When you’re writing a research proposal, avoid these common pitfalls:
Being too wordy
As we said earlier, formal does not mean flowery. In fact, you should aim to keep your writing as brief and to-the-point as possible. The more economically you can express your purpose and goal, the better.
Failing to cite relevant sources
When you’re conducting research, you’re adding to the existing body of knowledge on the subject you’re covering. Your research proposal should reference one or more of the landmark research pieces in your field and connect your work to these works in some way. This doesn’t just communicate your work’s relevance—it also demonstrates your familiarity with the field.
Focusing too much on minor issues
There are probably a lot of great reasons why your research is necessary. These reasons don’t all need to be in your research proposal. In fact, including too many questions and issues in your research proposal can detract from your central purpose, weakening the proposal. Save the minor issues for your research paper itself and cover only the major, key issues you aim to tackle in your proposal.
Failing to make a strong argument for your research
This is perhaps the easiest way to undermine your proposal because it’s far more subjective than the others. A research proposal is, in essence, a piece of persuasive writing . That means that although you’re presenting your proposal in an objective, academic way, the goal is to get the reader to say “yes” to your work.
This is true in every case, whether your reader is your supervisor, your department head, a graduate school admissions board, a private or government-backed funding provider, or the editor at a journal in which you’d like to publish your work.
Polish your writing into a stellar proposal
When you’re asking for approval to conduct research—especially when there’s funding involved—you need to be nothing less than 100 percent confident in your proposal. If your research proposal has spelling or grammatical mistakes, an inconsistent or inappropriate tone, or even just awkward phrasing, those will undermine your credibility.
Make sure your research proposal shines by using Grammarly to catch all of those issues. Even if you think you caught all of them while you were editing, it’s critical to double-check your work. Your research deserves the best proposal possible, and Grammarly can help you make that happen.
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Examples of research proposals
How to write your research proposal, with examples of good proposals.
Research proposals
Your research proposal is a key part of your application. It tells us about the question you want to answer through your research. It is a chance for you to show your knowledge of the subject area and tell us about the methods you want to use.
We use your research proposal to match you with a supervisor or team of supervisors.
In your proposal, please tell us if you have an interest in the work of a specific academic at York St John. You can get in touch with this academic to discuss your proposal. You can also speak to one of our Research Leads. There is a list of our Research Leads on the Apply page.
When you write your proposal you need to:
- Highlight how it is original or significant
- Explain how it will develop or challenge current knowledge of your subject
- Identify the importance of your research
- Show why you are the right person to do this research
- Research Proposal Example 1 (DOC, 49kB)
- Research Proposal Example 2 (DOC, 0.9MB)
- Research Proposal Example 3 (DOC, 55.5kB)
- Research Proposal Example 4 (DOC, 49.5kB)
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100 Best Media Topics For Research Writing
We know you need the best media topics for your next papers. Otherwise, why would you be reading this blog post? The good news is that you have picked the best place to look for topics. Our experienced writers have put together a list of the best media topics for high school and college students. Furthermore, we work hard to keep the list fresh. This means that these ideas will be most likely original. They will work great in 2022 because the list of media essay topics is updated periodically.
The Importance of Great Media Topics
You are probably wondering why we are putting so much emphasis on getting you the best media topics to write about. There are several reasons for it, but we will only tell you about 3 of them:
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Mass Media Topics
Mass media is something of great importance in modern times, so why not write your papers on some mass media topics? Here are some great examples:
- The effect of mass media on psychological health
- Mass media and emotional health
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- The First Amendment in mass media
- Promoting sexuality in mass media
Media Research Topics
Did your professor ask of you to write a research paper? No problem, we have some excellent media research topics in our list. Check them out below:
- Discuss children media
- Violence in mass media in the US
- Video games in the media
- Controversial topics in the media in Europe
- Discuss post-truth in the media
- Media regulations in China
Media Analysis Essay Topics for Presentation
Would you like to write a media analysis paper for a presentation? It’s not difficult to do, if you pick the right media analysis essay topics for presentation. Here are some excellent ideas:
- Is the media creating events or reacting to them?
- Media and public relations links
- Discuss 3 major types of media
- The use of media in education (one of the most interesting mass media research paper topics)
- Influence of virtual reality on the media (one of the best media analysis essay topics)
- Discuss journalism ethics
Media Research Paper Topics for High School
Are you a high school student looking for some awesome topic for his next research paper on media? Here are some excellent examples of media research paper topics for high school:
- Major innovations in 21st century media
- Compare mainstream media in India and China
- What makes an outlet a reliable source?
- Advertisements in media
- Benefits of mass media for society
- Compare traditional media with mass media
Mass Media Research Topics
If you need to write a research paper and want to talk about something in mass media, we have some very nice ideas right here. Check out our mass media research topics:
- The right of expression in mass media
- Journalism in mass media
- Compare TV, film and radio
- Mass media in democracy
- The war against terror in mass media
- Discuss the rise of mobile media
Media Research Topics for College Students
College students who are looking to research topics about media should choose something that can bring them a top grade. Here are our best media research topics for college students:
- Influences of technology on media
- Latest innovations in media
- Discuss media censorship in China (a recommended media related topic)
- What is media propaganda?
- Mass media and its preemptive effects
Complex Media Related Research Topics
Do you want to try your hand at some difficult topics? If you want to impress your professor, we advise you to select one of these complex media related research topics:
- Mass media violating civil rights
- Does media benefit the economy of the US?
- Define media addition and discuss its effects
- Perform a qualitative analysis of 3 media outlets
- Media’s scare strategies: a case study
- Media influencing a rise in violence in the UK
Controversial Media Topics
Why should you be frightened by controversial topics? You are free to write about them, of course. Here are our best and most controversial media topics:
- Exercising the First Amendment in media in the US
- Promoting gun violence in mass media
- Mass media effects on terrorism
- Digital media is destroying traditional media
- Artificial intelligence in mass media
- Media effects on the death penalty in China
Digital Media Topics
Discussing digital media is a very good way to impress your professor. Let’s face it; the digital realm is extremely popular these days. Here are some brand new digital media topics:
- Define and discuss digital media
- Climate change in digital media
- What is mobile media?
- The fate of journalism in the 21st century (one of the best digital media research topics)
- Effects of digital media on politics
Media Analysis Topics
Writing a media analysis essay can be a very difficult task, especially if you don’t have much academic writing experience. Here are some media analysis topics that should make things easier:
- How Trump lost the media war
- Biden’s coverage in mass media in the United States
- Advertising revenue in media outlets
- Analyze screen time
- What are deepfakes and how to spot one?
- The crisis of journalism in the 21st century
Easy Media Related Topics
The perfect choice for times when you simply cannot afford to spend too much time writing your essay, our list easy media related topics is right here:
- Define mass media in the United Kingdom
- Should children watch the news?
- Promoting violence in mass media
- Spreading awareness via media
- Are newspapers still relevant today?
- The very first occurrence of mass media
Research Topics in Media and Communication
Would you like to talk about media and communication? It is not an easy subject to write about, but we can make things easier. Here are the easiest research topics in media and communication:
- Discuss body image in media
- Analyze children’s advertising tactics
- Freedom of speech in the media
- Copyright law in the media
- Define symmetrical dialogue in the media
Media Debate Topics
Are you interested in a media debate? Getting the best topics for 2022 should be your primary concern in this case. We have some very interesting media debate topics right here:
- The impact of public relations on communities
- Location-based advertising in modern media
- Analyze the concept of yellow journalism
- Good news vs bad news in the media
- Discuss the concept of proportionality in media
Brand New Media Topics
Just like you, our writers are interested in writing about the latest topics. Why don’t you pick one of our brand new media topics?
- Is radio still an important part of media?
- Newspapers going bankrupt in 2022
- Sexual content on TV shows
- Politicians’ love for the media
- Is the backing of the media important for a president?
Media Ethics Topics
Discussing ethics in relation to media is a very interesting choice. It can also get you an A+ on your next paper. Here are some exceptional media ethics topics:
- Including graphic images in media
- Depicting terrorism on TV
- Regulating newspapers in Europe
- Celebrity gossip in the media
- The influence of large media corporations
Media Law Topics
Yes, there is such a thing as media law. Would you like to write an essay about it? Here are some great ideas for media law topics:
- Discuss the First Amendment and media
- The responsibilities of journalists
- Journalists in war zones
- Fake news in the media
- Showing unsuitable content to children
Research Topics in Communication and Media Studies
Writing about communication and media studies has the potential to help you get a top grade. Here are our best research topics in communication and media studies:
- Analyze media bias in the United States
- Is digital media addictive?
- Influence of media on religion
Interesting Media Topics
We know, you want the most interesting media topics to write about. Pick one of these and write a paper that will impress your professor:
- State-controlled media in China
- Effects of media coverage on criminal trials
- The power of mass media in 2022
Trending Media Topics
You may not know which topics are trending when it comes to media, but our writers do. Here are the latest trending media topics:
- The war in Afghanistan
- Joe Biden’s rise to power
- The fall of Donald Trump
- Climate change problems
- Global warming in the media
But what if you need more topics or professional help with thesis ? What if you didn’t find the media research topic you were looking for in the list above? While this is highly unlikely, we are prepared to help you. Would you like to talk about media literacy? In case you do, our ENL writers can create a list of the most interesting (and new) media literacy topics you can find. For anything you need, just get in touch with us.
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Home / Special Initiatives / Media & Mental Health Initiative / Social Media and Youth Research Project with Hopelab
Social Media and Youth
Findings and Recommendations from an Investigation into Teen Experiences
The Stanford Center for Youth Mental Health and Wellbeing collaborated with their colleagues at Hopelab to pursue an exploratory qualitative research project to understand how experiences with social media interactions and content both positively and negatively impact the routine mental health and wellbeing of teens.
By better understanding typical teen experiences online, this project aimed to elevate what teens see as supportive in their online interactions and what they wish would change. The findings also raised many new questions and opportunities for further research.
"I have heavily curated my experience to see only the content I want to see. I feel powerless, a lack of control when it comes to targeted ads."
We set out to ask these questions:.
- What are situations that are positive on social media? What are the situations that are negative on social media?
- How would young people reimagine social media? What advice would they give to someone else?
- How do teens use or curate social media to manage their moods?
- When and how do teens take a break from social media?
- How in control do teens feel about what they see?
- Where do teens get information about how to use social media?
Hopelab researchers engaged youth on two online platforms: Dscout and Facebook, to capture “in-context” and focus group data. The findings revealed some important considerations and disturbing online realities that parents, platforms and providers ought to be aware of, explore further and act upon.
"I saw an actual murder. It was terrifying, I reported and tried to forget what it looked like… Yeah, the police got involved the day after. Instagram took a while to remove it, which is the worst part…"
Key findings:.
- Youth encounter ubiquitous graphic content (murders, shootings, sex, violence toward people and animals) but see no clear avenue on how to manage its impacts. And youth do not report connecting with support systems after seeing graphic content.
- Youth engage in explicit strategies for managing negative experiences on social media (i.e. taking breaks, curating what/who they follow).
- Young people are intentionally and unintentionally using social media to make them “feel good”.
- Young people want positivity and want to contribute to something cool – social media is an accessible outlet for creativity.
- Ads generate a feeling of lack of control for teens.
- Some degree of parent/family involvement with social media is common.
"If I am upset over something, and I see a funny post it will make me laugh and probably make me feel a little better. I like to use social media as a distraction when I’m upset."
Recommendations for future research and action:.
- Identify opportunities for families to engage with teens around social media – as a means of connection and to offer guidance in handling difficult interactions and content.
- Identify strategies to limit and manage exposure to graphic content.
- Explore the impact of frequent, ubiquitous exposure to graphic content on children and teens.
- Identify strategies to control, limit and manage teens’ exposure to ads.
- Develop strategies for best-case bystander behavior for when someone is being mistreated on social media . Young people are motivated to stand up, but unclear on what is actually effective.
- Support children and teens to develop social media literacy – for example: to set and stick to goals for social media use (i.e. content creation, connection with peers), to curate content and control settings and to be aware of scams, predators, and time-drains.
- Explore how pre-existing emotional states inform content interpretation and experiences online; and empower young people with effective mood management strategies.
- Explore further strategies to help teens leverage using social media to create positive content and make social media a creative outlet.
Interested in collaborating on any of these recommendations or learning about the future direction of this work?
Contact the Program Director: Vicki Harrison [email protected]
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- A Research Guide
- Research Paper Topics
40 Interesting Media and Communications Research Paper Topics
Media is sometimes called the other branch of power that has the equal possibility to influence the events in the world. Studying media can be really interesting and fascinating, though the science of media changes every time when the new media source is introduced. Newspapers turned to radio, then to TV, TV to Internet blogs that soon, in their turn, surrendered to Facebook. Media is the ocean that is never calm and the skill to surf this ocean is the essential skill for every media worker.
To make really great research papers you should stick to the ethic of media worker too. At first you should not relate to one source only. Media is the area when you should double- and triple-check any facts you get, because the sources that present this fact may distort them to benefit themselves. Use legitimate sources, they can be the other scientific researches or independent analytic companies. Do not believe what media tell about themselves.
Another thing to take into consideration is time when the information was released. In the sphere of media everything gets outdated really fast. So, if you need the latest data, make sure that no one refreshed it from the time the material you look at was published. Of course it doesn’t matter if you write about the history of media, but to understand the modern state of it, use the latest information you can get.
The last tip is to always study the opposite point of view. You may not agree with it, but still getting the full picture is the great way to see the drawbacks of your subject and maybe come with the way to get rid of them. The opponents just want to discredit you sometimes, but often they have a point, at least in some aspects.
Check out the sample topics we wrote for you, maybe, they will give you some ideas about yours?
NOTE: By clicking on the topics below you have an opportunity to get a custom written paper. This service is provided by our writing partner GradesFixer.
- What is communication? The birth of the media as we know it
- Media, Censorship and Propaganda
- The freedom of speech and its impact on the media
- The main aspects of communication
- The triggering topics. What do you need to start an instant “holywar” in media?
- The phenomenon of hype and its usage of the media
- Single bloggers versus media companies
- Communication and media psychology
- The history of advertising and its important in the modern business
- The popular culture in the media
- Video games. Can they be considered a media now?
- Violence and controversial topics. Shall the media censor it out?
- The peculiarities of children media
- Are the videoblogs the new diaries?
- Mainstream media versus arthouse
- What is the age of post-truth in the media?
- Social networks as the main way of communication in the modern world
- Why exclusive material is so important in the media?
- Fandom and fanfiction in the media
- Mass Communication Laws in different countries
- Media and disasters: enhancing panic or preventing it?
- Terrorism in the media
- Changes in the media during the wartime
- Journalism ethics: what is it?
- International journalism
- Journalists on the battlefield
- Media policy and regulation in different countries
- How did the Internet influence media development?
- Media: reacting to the events or creating them?
- Virtual reality: may it be the future of the media?
- Media downshifting: why do people revert to newspapers again?
- Social media marketing campaigns
- Media, politics and public relations
- The styles and types of media. How they differ depending on the audience they are aiming for?
- The phenomenon of Disney. Media or the new mythology?
- Scientific journalism: shall science be popular?
- Media for educational purpose
- Radio media: why radio is still popular?
- Hidden messages in the media made for entertainment
- Media images of the representatives of different countries
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A research proposal describes what you will investigate, why it’s important, and how you will conduct your research. The format of a research proposal varies between fields, but most proposals will contain at least these elements: Title page; Introduction; Literature review; Research design; Reference list
The Media Projects program supports the development, production, and distribution of radio programs, podcasts, documentary films, and documentary film series that engage general audiences with humanities ideas in creative and appealing ways. Projects must be grounded in humanities scholarship and demonstrate an approach that is thoughtful ...
Research proposals for meatier projects, like Ph.D. dissertations and funding requests, are often longer and far more detailed. A research proposal’s goal is to clearly outline exactly what your research will entail and accomplish, so including the proposal’s word count or page count isn’t nearly as important as it is to ensure that all ...
Your research proposal is a key part of your application. It tells us about the question you want to answer through your research. It is a chance for you to show your knowledge of the subject area and tell us about the methods you want to use. We use your research proposal to match you with a supervisor or team of supervisors.
Here are our best media research topics for college students: Influences of technology on media; Latest innovations in media; Discuss media censorship in China (a recommended media related topic) What is media propaganda? Mass media and its preemptive effects; Complex Media Related Research Topics. Do you want to try your hand at some difficult ...
Support children and teens to develop social media literacy – for example: to set and stick to goals for social media use (i.e. content creation, connection with peers), to curate content and control settings and to be aware of scams, predators, and time-drains.
To make really great research papers you should stick to the ethic of media worker too. At first you should not relate to one source only. Media is the area when you should double- and triple-check any facts you get, because the sources that present this fact may distort them to benefit themselves.