Structure of a Thesis Proposal

3. Introduction. The third page begins your proposal proper with a brief one-page introduction. It again has a full title at the top, but usually omits your name and affiliation. On this page, which introduces the big idea behind the proposed study, there are usually three paragraphs: a. Para #1: Opening interest grabber that uses some interesting factoid – anecdote, statistic, personal experience, etc – to introduce the broad topic. b. Para #2: Clearly states the broad research theme that drives your work, establishes its educational, practical and/or scholarly significance. c. Para #3: Provides “stage directions” for the proposal itself, to preorganize the reader to comprehend the coming organization of the proposal itself.