English 302

Write a three-to-four page Proposal Argument in which you try to persuade the appropriate audience to accept your solution to a real-life problem.

This problem could be connected to where you work or connected to any organization for which you work either for pay, as a volunteer, or as a member (present or recent past). This could include clubs, fraternities, sororities, or sports teams to which you belong. Remember, your audience must be the decision maker or decision makers who have the power to enact your proposed solution.

Carefully follow the plan below, as adapted from your text: Start your proposal by following the Memo Format and Headings as shown on pages 330-335 of your text.

Then use the following four headings for each section of your proposal: Proposal, Problem, Solution, Conclusion.

PROPOSAL: (on page one, two spaces beneath the memo format, look at pages 330-335 of our text if needed)

Tell your audience specifically what you propose they should do in one or two sentences only. This means clearly summing up your solution in just one to two sentences. The solution is the proposal. Get to the point. Be specific. You'll write the details in the Solution Section below, but here make it short.

PROBLEM:  Start on first page, two spaces below the Proposal Section, one-to-two pages long)

1. Explain and Describe the precise nature of the problem in specific detail as needed for your particular audience.

2. Persuade your audience that the problem is real and has consequences for them, not just you.

3. Provide reasoning why your audience should be concerned about this problem. 

Solution: (start on the second or third page depending on the overall length of your document, two spaces below the Problem Section, one-to-two pages)

1. Describe your solution in a convincing, clear, and detailed way.

2. Persuade your audience that your solution is feasible and will solve the major parts of the problem as you presented it above.

3. Persuade your audience that your solution is better than the possible alternative solutions.

4. Present all the likely costs to your proposal in a convincing manner.

5. Persuade your audience that the overall benefits of your solution will outweigh the costs.

Conclusion: (two spaces below the Solution Section, short paragraph of 3-5 sentences)

1. Leave your readers with a sense of real confidence and optimism about the future if your proposal is accepted.

Research: Where it makes sense in your argument, you must also use and cite at least two sources to help your argument. Put your in-text citation of a source in a signal phrase or phrase of attribution like the following: According to the Journal of Safety Training, "thousands of employees a year miss work due to work-place accidents." Or, for another pattern: "Good training is essential to the success of any organization," according to the Journal of Business Management.

Add a short "Works Cited" page at the end of your proposal. Follow the simple MLA formant (click on the "MLA OWL link" if you need help)

Format and organize your proposal argument by starting with the memo format followed by the four major headings above for each section: Proposal, Problem, Solution, Conclusion.

Write your proposal using standard one-inch margins, twelve-point- type, New Times Roman or Calibri typeface, single spaced, and with all lines flush left.