Preparation of Research Proposal in Social Sciences

By Dr. Prateek Chaurasia | Banaras Hindu University

Learners enrolled: 101

ABOUT THE COURSE:

This course will provide students with the necessary skills and knowledge to develop strong and impactful research proposals in the field of social sciences. Students will understand the basic concepts of the research proposal, conducting literature reviews, formulating the title, developing the rationale of the study, objective, research questions, developing hypotheses designing research methodologies and writing the references. The course will emphasize the systematic writing and articulation of the research idea/s into logically and technically organized as well as sound research proposals.

INTENDED AUDIENCE: Postgraduates and doctoral students from Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities Disciplines.

PREREQUISITES: Graduation

INDUSTRY SUPPORT: Industry working in the field of research in social sciences and Humanities.

Summary

Course Status :	Upcoming
Course Type :	Core
Language for course content :	English
Duration :	8 weeks
Category :	Teacher Education
Credit Points :	2
Level :	Postgraduate
Start Date :	18 Aug 2025
End Date :	10 Oct 2025
Enrollment Ends :	18 Aug 2025
Exam Registration Ends :	29 Aug 2025
Exam Date :	25 Oct 2025 IST
NCrF Level	6.5 — 8.0

Note: This exam date is subject to change based on seat availability. You can check final exam date on your hall ticket.

Page Visits

Course layout

Week 1:

Why to make a Research Proposal?
Idea and principles of Research Proposal.
Fundamentals of Research Proposal
Basics of research language.

Week 2:

Entities of Effective Research Proposal
Components of research proposal.
Scientific design of research proposal.
Identification and Formulation of the research problem.

Week 3:

Writing of Introduction for research proposal.
How to conduct a Review of related literature,
Identifying the emerging trends from the review and identification of the research gap in the study.
Developing a strong rationale & conceptual framework for the Study.

Week 4:

How to write and articulate the research questions of the study?
Stating the problem of the study (with clarity and preciseness).
Understanding operational Definition/s of Key Terms.
Relationship between research questions and objectives.

Week 5:

Stating the objectives of the study (with intent and brevity).
Concept of concomitant objectives.
Understanding the hypotheses of the Study, types of hypotheses.
Formulation of hypotheses of the Study

Week 6:

Understanding the defining variables of the study.
Choosing the appropriate design and affirming the procedure.
Understanding the population.
Identification and selection of the sample.

Week 7:

Various strategies for sampling.
Understanding the Instruments/Tools used in the study.
Data Collection and various components.
How to handle Data analysis (quantitative, qualitative & mixed)

Week 8:

Understanding and writing the Delimitation of the study.
Referencing and its various types.
Budgeting (detail and short).
Do and don’ts for making a research proposal.

Books and references

1. Mouley, George J.: The Science of Educational Research.

2. Kerlinger, Fred N. : Foundations of Behavioural Research.New Delhi: Surjeet Publications.

3. Keeves, John P. (Ed.) : Educational Research, Methodology and Measurement : An International Handbook.

4. Best, John W. : Research in Education

5. Good, C.V. : Introduction to Research.

6. Dalen, Deobold B. Van : An Introduction to Educational Research.

7. Garrett, H.E. : Statistics in Education and Psychology.

8. Guilford, J.P. : Fundamental Statistics in Psychology and Education.

9. Verma, M. : An Introduction to Educational and Psychological Research.

10. Myros J.K. : Fundamentals of Experimental designs.

11. Fisher, R. : Designs of Experiments.

12. Johnson, B. & Christensen, L. Educational Research: Quantitaive, Qualitative and Mixed Approaches.New Delhi: Sage Publication.

13. Mc Burney,D.H & White ,T.L(2007). Research Methods,7th Ed. Delhi: Akash Publication.

14. Ary,Donald,Jacobs,L.C., Sorenson ,Chris(2010). Introduction to Research in Education.Canada: Cengage Learning.

15. Bailey,C.A.(2007). A Guide to Qualitative Field Research. California: Pinus Forge Press.

16. Kothari,C.R.(). Research methodology

17. Cohen,Louis & Manion,Lawrence(1994). Research Methods in Education (4th ed). London: Routledge Falmer.

18. Van Dalen,D.B. & Meyer,W.J..(1962). Understanding Educational Research – An Introduction.New York: McGraw Hills Books Publication.

19. Koul, Lokesh (1997). Methodology of Educational Research. (3rd revised edn). New Delhi: Vikas Publishing House.

20. Travers, Robert M.W. (1958). An Introduction to Educational Research. New York: Macmillan.

21. Denzin, Norman K. and Lincoln, Y.S.(eds). Handbook of Qualitative Research.New Delhi: Sage Publications.

22. Patton, Michael Quinn (1982). Qualitative Evaluation Methods.London: Sage Publication.

Instructor bio

Dr. Prateek Chaurasia

Banaras Hindu University

Dr. Prateek Chaurasia is working as an assistant professor, in the Faculty of Education, Banaras Hindu University. He has also served at the Mizoram University and Regional Institute of Education, NCERT, Bhopal, M. P. as an assistant professor. Dr. Chaurasia has completed his Master in Education (M.Ed.) from the Regional Institute of Education, NCERT, Ajmer, Rajasthan and is a recipient of a Gold medal in M.Ed. He has obtained his Ph.D. from Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. He is a recipient of prestigious fellowships like the UGC junior research fellowship & NCERT Doctoral Fellowship. He is working in the field of mathematics education, educational technology and assessment in education. He has published many research articles in national and international journals of repute. He is leading the major and minor research projects funded by premium institutions like ICSSR, Mizoram University and the Regional Institute of Education. He has also contributed to various government projects in the capacity of resource person.

Course certificate

The course is free to enroll and learn from. But if you want a certificate, you have to register and write the proctored exam conducted by us in person at any of the designated exam centres.

The exam is optional for a fee of Rs 1000/- (Rupees one thousand only).

Date and Time of Exams: 25 October 2025 Morning session 9am to 12 noon; Afternoon Session 2pm to 5pm.

Registration url: Announcements will be made when the registration form is open for registrations.

The online registration form has to be filled and the certification exam fee needs to be paid. More details will be made available when the exam registration form is published. If there are any changes, it will be mentioned then.

Please check the form for more details on the cities where the exams will be held, the conditions you agree to when you fill the form etc.

CRITERIA TO GET A CERTIFICATE

Average assignment score = 25% of average of best 6 assignments out of the total 8 assignments given in the course.
Exam score = 75% of the proctored certification exam score out of 100

Final score = Average assignment score + Exam score

Please note that assignments encompass all types (including quizzes, programming tasks, and essay submissions) available in the specific week.

YOU WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR A CERTIFICATE ONLY IF AVERAGE ASSIGNMENT SCORE >=10/25 AND EXAM SCORE >= 30/75. If one of the 2 criteria is not met, you will not get the certificate even if the Final score >= 40/100.

Certificate will have your name, photograph and the score in the final exam with the breakup. It will have the logos of INI and BHU.

Only the e-certificate will be made available. Hard copies will not be dispatched.

Once again, thanks for your interest in our online courses and certification. Happy learning.

- INI Team