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Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.zathe process of planning a project and, seen from this point of view, it is not allthat difficult to write a research proposal. For the researcher who has done athorough job of planning his or her research, it may virtually appear as if theproposal flows onto the paper without any undue effort on his or her part. Thatis, however, merely part of the whole issue. Apart from the fact that theresearch proposal is a planning document in which the researcher indicateswhat he or she plans to do, and how he or she plans to set about it, the proposalis also, in the majority of cases, a sales document. The proposal is used as asource of information, and serves as the basis upon which decision makersdecide whether the project ought to be approved or not and, whether the fundsthat have been requested are to be granted. It is, therefore, quite clearly ofconsiderable importance that the proposal should convey a favourableimpression of the project and of the researcher. It is necessary that the decisionmakers gain the impression from the proposal that the researcher is a wiseplanner, and that he or she knows how best to utilize his or her skills, time, andmoney. It is also necessary that they should believe that the researcher plans totackle a project that is really worthwhile. If the decision makers are not expertsin the field in which the project is to be conducted (and this is quite often thecase), the project has to be presented to them in such a manner that they willbelieve that it is a project that simply has to be approved, and that they wouldbe willing to take this step.From the preceding, the reader may have gained the impression that there is aspecific recipe for writing research proposals. Unfortunately, there is nothinglike a prizewinning recipe. There are simply too many kinds of researchproposals to make this a viable proposition. Nonetheless, it is possible to makecertain preparations to ensure that one is, at least, heading about the typicalissues that have to be attended to in a research proposal. One could also refer tothe striking characteristics of some successful proposals, and look at examplesof good and poor proposals. The more practically oriented a reader should bein a position to compile a list of questions while reading this chapter that he orshe would be able to use as a checklist for testing a proposal when in theprocess of finalizing it. In conclusion, one must never forget the complexityassociated with the variety of themes that are to be found in research proposals,requests for research grants and research tenders, if one wishes to avoidrunning the risk of oversimplification in dealing with the matter. By consultingthe references that are listed at the end of this chapter, the reader will be able tofind more detailed information on the topic.In the same manner that it is possible to refer to the art of living, or to the art ofwriting or painting, one may, according to some authors, refer to the art ofgrantsmansbip. Any researcher who wishes to apply him or herself to gainingbursaries or grants, will have to realize that research proposals have to beprepared with a great deal of care. This chapter is intended for the176