Term Project Proposal

The term project proposal is a crucial step in the development of a high quality research report. Once your proposal is accepted, you can not change your topic without approval and submission of another proposal.

Your proposal should support a project, typically a term paper, of twelve double-spaced pages in length using 12-point font, including works cited, on a topic consistent with the mission and substance of the course. I am flexible and can help translate your ideas and hunches into topics--so let me know what is on your mind.

Proposal defined

A useful term project proposal contains these five essential elements:

1. A title and subtitle which tips off the reader as to your topic and how your approach it.
2. A carefully crafted theme paragraph with a clearly stated and highlighted theme sentence.
3. An outline and/or a strategy for the implementation of the project. (Note that the binder format suggested for the global policy projects suggest an outline of perhaps three or four entries. Do not be too elaborate.)
   • An outline lists the sequence of development beginning with an introduction and ending with a conclusion. It's what's in between that really counts. Use the Table of Contents of the PPW nodes as an example.
   • A strategy clearly and concisely explains how you will approach your paper, providing enough detail so that your professor can feel confident that you can get the job done.
4. An annotated bibliography of at least three sources, with a short explanation of how each reference supports your work.
5. A personal statement which explains to me how you feel about the project and how confident you are that you can carry it out.
6. Optional: Please attach a sample of a term paper that you have written in the past year. Please include any notes you wish to make explaining the context, the course, and how you feel about the paper.

Grading

As displayed in the syllabus, the term project proposal counts three points, but has strategic value beyond that. An outstanding proposal which can fully support a very promising project gets the full three points. An adequate, but still useful proposal gets two points. One point indicates deficiency. Tardy proposals will be docked a half-point for each class late.