Proposal Paper Instructions

See also the Proposal Paper Topic Proposal

Choose a LOCAL problem that is important or interesting to you and propose a solution to it. Your proposal should include the following elements:

A claim that 1) proposes a practical solution to address a problem or need and 2) is oriented toward action, directed at the future, and appropriate to the audience you are addressing.
An appropriate explanation of both the problem and the significance of your proposal.
Reasons and evidence that the proposal will effectively address the need or solve the problem, and that it is feasible. This should include an analysis of the cost based on your research, of the availability of materials required, of the time needed for implementation, and of the amount and quality of participation needed by individuals affected by your proposal.
A consideration of alternative proposals and conditions for rebuttal.

Choose an Audience

Unlike previous papers, this essay grants you the freedom and responsibility of picking the best audience for your proposal. This audience might be an individual who has the authority to enact your proposal ( you may need to do some research to determine who this person is). However, you may also conceive of an audience that is indirectly involved with the actual decision making process concerning your proposal. For example, you could write a proposal asking your classmates to attend a particular event or write their own letters suggesting a particular course of action.

Additional Requirements

Your paper should be 5-6 pages long. You should use MLA guidelines for formatting and include a Works Cited page. You must use--at a bare minimum--1 primary research source (interview, survey, observation, &c) and 1 secondary research source (someone else’s writings on your subject)

Format

Your choice of audience thus also dictates the overall visual presentation of your argument. In certain contexts, your proposal would be more effective if it were more visually appealing than the traditional college essay. You might try breaking your argument into sections with clear headings and subheadings. Likewise, you might experiment with using bulleted lists, headings, tables, and charts as appropriate in this paper.

Additionally, you may experiment with writing style––that is, unless your intended audience is an academic one. You need not write in a strictly academic style. Think carefully about the values of your reader(s) and gear your proposal to suit their needs. You should assume, however, that all communities will value clarity and that most will similarly expect standard grammatical conventions.

Some Tips to Help You

Describe in detail what the issue or problem is; you need to convince your audience that the problem exists and that it matters to others (or should).

Be as detailed as possible in your description of how the solution will work: how much money it will cost, who will be responsible for implementing it, how easily it can be implemented, how much time it will take to set it up and make it work, what kinds of materials and labor are needed to make it work, how it addresses the problem, etc. Specific details will differ depending upon your topic; regardless, the ones you omit may be the details that will leave the audience in doubt of your proposal's feasibility.

Syllabus