Proposal Assignment
Proposal Assignment
During your career, you are likely to write many proposals to convince others how to address specific issues. The writing goal of a proposal is (1) to study the issue, (2) to analyze the need or problem, and (3) to lay out a convincing plan that meets the need or solves the problem. When you achieve this goal, your proposal is a force for positive change.
Proposal Guidelines:
Your proposal must have a specific, identifiable, and namable audience who can (at least in theory) act on your ideas. You will need to consider what your audience already knows, what they need to know, what information you should give them (and why). Keep tying the proposal back to the audience: what’s in it for them to read this? What should they do after they’ve read it? There should be evidence of research from at least one source to prove credibility, but it need not be a scholarly source.
Your proposal should be at least 2000 words (or approximately 6-8 pages) long in memo format, and should use the major sections listed below:
Begin your proposal with the following introductory section:
State your subject in a few concise sentences indicating exactly what your report will cover and the angle that you are taking. This section does not need a heading. Decide first whether you are proposing a need to be met or a problem to be solved, then write a paragraph or so in which you:
Give the background context of the proposal
State the specific need or specific problem
State what you are proposing
State the benefits of adopting the proposal
Then include the following sections, which should also include descriptive subheadings that are tailored to your particular audience and topic:
Section with heading labeled Problem Statement or Needs Analysis
A problem statement or needs analysis tells:
What the problem is / What is needed
When and where the problem takes place / When and where it is needed
Why the problem happens / Why it is needed
Who is affected by the problem / Who needs it
Why the problem is significant—for example, the short-term and long-term costs or ramifications of not solving it or the benefits of pursuing a solution.
Section with heading labeled Solution or Recommendation
Discuss criteria for a solution. Include what it should accomplish.
Compare and contrast alternative solutions (if appropriate).
Promote the best solution—your essential proposal—by stressing how it best meets the needs or solves the problem. Refer to the solution criteria and explicit benefits.
Prove the solution’s practical workability by highlighting the following:
Outcomes of the solution, plan, or project
Requirements (what is needed to implement your proposal)
Schedules (if applicable)
Budget or cost breakdowns (if applicable)
Methods of monitoring costs and quality (if applicable).
Section with heading labeled Conclusion
Summarize the problem or need.
Provide conclusion about the best solutions—results and benefits.
Review recommendations (briefly!) for implementing the solution.
Request approval, solicit feedback, give contact information, and anticipate a response.
Some tips to keep in mind as you draft:
Keep your introduction brief. Generalize about the problem/need and the solutions. Clearly state the benefits of adopting the proposal. If you find that you repeat yourself in the Problems section, you have most likely been too detailed in your introduction.
Do not put recommendations or solutions in your Needs Analysis/Problem Statement section. Keep the problems separate from the recommendations.
If you identified several problems, address your recommendations in the same order as you addressed your problems
Use the Conclusion section to stress benefits.
Review your draft to ensure that it is consistently reader-oriented. If you find numerous uses of the pronoun “I”, you need to revise.
Soroka 2014 English 3304
