├── .gitignore ├── researchproposal.pdf ├── LICENSE ├── translatedHeadings.tex ├── bibliography.bib ├── README.md └── researchproposal.tex /.gitignore: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | *.aux 2 | *.bbl 3 | *.bcf 4 | *.blg 5 | *.log 6 | *.xml 7 | *.synctex.gz 8 | .vscode/ 9 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /researchproposal.pdf: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/stefantruehl/research-proposal-template/HEAD/researchproposal.pdf -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /LICENSE: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | MIT License 2 | 3 | Copyright (c) 2018 Stefan T. Ruehl 4 | 5 | Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy 6 | of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal 7 | in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights 8 | to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell 9 | copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is 10 | furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions: 11 | 12 | The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all 13 | copies or substantial portions of the Software. 14 | 15 | THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR 16 | IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, 17 | FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE 18 | AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER 19 | LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, 20 | OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE 21 | SOFTWARE. 22 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /translatedHeadings.tex: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | \newcommand{\paperSubTitle}[1] 2 | { 3 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{Outline and Topic Proposal}{} 4 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{Outline und Themenvorschlag}{} 5 | } 6 | 7 | \newcommand{\sectionQuestions}[1] 8 | { 9 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{\section{Scope of Work - 4 Questions}}{} 10 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{\section{Ziel der Arbeit - 4 Fragen}}{} 11 | } 12 | 13 | \newcommand{\sectionQuestionsDescription}[1] 14 | { 15 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{In this section the essence of the proposed work is described by answering four key questions. }{} 16 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{Im Folgenden wird der Kern der Arbeit beschrieben indem vier Kernfragen beantwortet werden.}{} 17 | } 18 | 19 | \newcommand{\sectionInitialTOC}[1] 20 | { 21 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{\section{Preliminary Table of Contents}}{} 22 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{\section{Vorläufige Gliederung}}{} 23 | } 24 | 25 | \newcommand{\sectionInitialTOCDescription}[1] 26 | { 27 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{In this section the table of contents for the proposed work is described.}{} 28 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{Im Folgenden wird ein Inhaltverzeichnis für die vorgeschlagene Arbeit vorgestellt.}{} 29 | } 30 | 31 | \newcommand{\sectionSource}[1] 32 | { 33 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{\section{Relevant Related Work}}{} 34 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{\section{Relevante verwandte Arbeiten}}{} 35 | } 36 | 37 | 38 | \newcommand{\sectionSourceDescription}[1] 39 | { 40 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{In this section, identified related work is described.}{} 41 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{Diese Section stellt verwandte Arbeiten dar und erklärt kurz deren Bedeutung für die vorgeschlagene Arbeit.}{} 42 | } 43 | 44 | \newcommand{\questionOne}[1] 45 | { 46 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{What is the problem you want to address in your work?}{} 47 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{Was ist das Problem, welches Sie in Ihrer Arbeit bearbeiten wollen?}{} 48 | } 49 | 50 | \newcommand{\questionTwo}[1] 51 | { 52 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{Why is it a problem?}{} 53 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{Warum ist es ein Problem?}{} 54 | } 55 | 56 | \newcommand{\questionThree}[1] 57 | { 58 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{What is the solution you developed in your work?}{} 59 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{Was ist die Lösung die sie entwickelt haben?}{} 60 | } 61 | 62 | \newcommand{\questionFour}[1] 63 | { 64 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{en}}{Why is it a solution?}{} 65 | \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{de}}{Warum ist es eine Lösung?}{} 66 | } 67 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /bibliography.bib: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | @book{gruba_how_2017, 2 | edition = {1st ed. 2017}, 3 | title = {How To Write Your First Thesis}, 4 | isbn = {978-3-319-61853-1}, 5 | abstract = {Many courses and degrees require that students write a short thesis. This book guides students through their first experience of producing a thesis and undertaking original research. Written by experienced researchers and advisors, the book sets out signposts and tasks to help students to understand what is needed to succeed, including scoping a topic, managing references, interpreting data, and successful completion.For students, the task of writing a thesis is a transition from structured coursework to becoming a researcher. The book provides advice on:What to expect from research and how to work with a {supervisorGetting} organized and approaching the work in a productive {wayDeveloping} an overall thesis structure and avoidance of mistakes such as inadvertent {plagiarismProducing} each major component: a strong introduction, background chapters that are situated in the discipline, and an explanation of methods and results that are crucial to successful original {researchHow} to wrap up a complex project with an extended checklist of the many details needed to be checked before a final {submissionProducing} and managing a thesis for the first time can be a daunting task, and this reader-friendly guidebook provides a framework for students to do their best.}, 6 | pagetotal = {112}, 7 | publisher = {Springer}, 8 | author = {Gruba, Paul and Zobel, Justin}, 9 | date = {2017-09-06} 10 | } 11 | 12 | @book{zobel_writing_2015, 13 | location = {London}, 14 | edition = {3}, 15 | title = {Writing for Computer Science}, 16 | isbn = {978-1-4471-6638-2}, 17 | abstract = {All researchers need to write or speak about their work, and to have research  that is worth presenting. Based on the author's decades of experience as a researcher and advisor, this third edition provides detailed guidance on writing and presentations and a comprehensive introduction to research methods, the how-to of being a successful scientist. Topics include:·         Development of ideas into research questions;·         How to find, read, evaluate and referee other research;·         Design and evaluation of experiments and appropriate use of statistics;·         Ethics, the principles of science and examples of science gone wrong.Much of the book is a step-by-step guide to effective communication, with advice on: ·         Writing style and editing;·         Figures, graphs and tables;·         Mathematics and algorithms;·         Literature reviews and referees’ reports;·         Structuring of arguments and results into papers and theses;·         Writing of other professional documents;·         Presentation of talks and posters.Written in an accessible style and including handy checklists and exercises, Writing for Computer Science is not only an introduction to the doing and describing of research, but is a valuable reference for working scientists in the computing and mathematical sciences.}, 18 | pagetotal = {300}, 19 | publisher = {Springer}, 20 | author = {Zobel, Justin}, 21 | date = {2015-02-17} 22 | } 23 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /README.md: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | # Latex Template for Research Proposals 2 | This LaTeX template can be used to draft and outline the topic for a academic paper or thesis in Computer Science (in English and German language). 3 | I have found it particular helpful for topics that are more on the engineering side of CS. 4 | 5 | ## Table of Contents 6 | 1. [Core Ideas and Concept](#Concept) 7 | 2. [How to fill in the Template?!](#FillInTemplate) 8 | 3. [PDF generation Tool Chain](#ToolChain) 9 | 4. [Setup LaTeX Environment from Scratch](#FromScretchSetup) 10 | 5. [Credits](#Credits) 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | ## Core Ideas and Concept 15 | Students at the Computer Science department of [University of Applied Sciences Darmstadt](https://www.fbi.h-da.de/fbi.html "Hochschule Darmstadt, University of Applied Sciences") frequently have to write seminar papers. 16 | In addition, they have craft a comprehensive thesis (Bachelor's Thesis or Master's Thesis, depending on the degree they aim for) at the end of their studies. 17 | During the creation of these papers (or theses), one of the major challenges for many students is to find the topic they are going to write about and shape it the way that it is interesting and of relevance. 18 | 19 | The purpose of this template is to support students in developing and defining the essence of what they want to write their academic papers about. 20 | 21 | As a supervisor I ask my students to fill it the template already at the start of their research projects. 22 | It forces them to write down, rethink, and reshape their research ideas. 23 | Based on this document I will discuss their ideas with them, helping them to shape a good storyline and strategy for their work. 24 | 25 | Usually my students create multiple iterations of this documents as they dive deeper and deeper into their area of research and gain deeper understanding of what they want to accomplish. 26 | 27 | The most important part for the students, is to have them answer the following four questions (within in the template they are described in much further detail as LaTeX comments): 28 | - __What is the problem you want to address in your work?__ 29 | - The objective here is to have students give a very brief and to the point description (1 sentence) of the problem they want to address within their paper. 30 | - __Why is it a problem?__ 31 | - Why is the problem at all relevant? Why should we spend effort into investigating/solving it? 32 | - __What is the solution you developed in your work?__ 33 | - What results have been (or will be) produced? How do these results address the proposed problem? 34 | - __Why is it a solution?__ 35 | - What is the quality of the results? What shortcomings are there? How did the student ensure that the results are genuine? 36 | 37 | Furthermore, I ask them to provide: 38 | - A abstract of their proposed work 39 | - A proposal for a table of contents 40 | - relevant/significant pieces of related work they have already found 41 | 42 | 43 | ## How to fill in the Template?! 44 | The intention of this template was to be as easily usable as possible. 45 | Nevertheless, there are a few things to keep in mind while using it. 46 | The following guide is supposed to assist you in using it as smooth as possible. 47 | 48 | 49 | #### Step 0: Clone, Open, and Generate a PDF 50 | Start by cloning or downloading this repository and opening the _researchproposal.tex_ file in your favorite LaTeX environment. 51 | The template is set up the way that, at this point, you should be able to generate a PDF without any errors or warnings. 52 | This will allow you to double check that your environment is set up the way that you can generate a PDF document from the template. 53 | 54 | In case you have trouble generating the PDF, please take a look to the [PDF generation tool chain](#ToolChain) section. 55 | This may help you getting the PDF generated. 56 | 57 | 58 | #### Step 1: Choose Language 59 | Please acknowledge that the template is bilingual. 60 | It can be used to create a research proposal in English or in German language. 61 | Thus, the first thing you have to do is choosing the language that you want to use. 62 | This is done by opening _researchproposal.tex_ and stating the language in the following comment block. 63 | 64 | % ########################################## 65 | % # Choose the language for the document 66 | % # de = German 67 | % # en = English 68 | \newcommand{\lang}{en} 69 | % ########################################## 70 | 71 | 72 | #### Step 2: Create your Proposal - Fill in your ideas! 73 | Obviously, filling in your content is the most important step. 74 | In order to do that, you will find a lot of comment blocks in the document that assist you. 75 | These blocks will also give you further explanations about what you need to consider and keep in mind. 76 | This is where you need to fill in your content. 77 | 78 | __Important:__ Read and follow the explanations for each comment block! 79 | 80 | The following is an example for these blocks: 81 | 82 | % ########################################## 83 | % # Include the the title of your paper/thesis here. 84 | % ###### 85 | % Coming up with a good title is hard. 86 | % It should: 87 | % 1. capture the contents of the your work 88 | % 2. not be to broad or generic 89 | % 3. use established terms and wordings 90 | % 4. make people curious about your work 91 | % 5. use current buzzwords if possilbe (but do it right) 92 | % 6. not use too many buzzwords :-) 93 | insert title here 94 | % ########################################## 95 | 96 | 97 | ## PDF generation Tool Chain 98 | There is nothing special about the tool chain used to generate the pdf. 99 | It uses: 100 | - pdflatex - to generate a pdf document 101 | - biber - to process the bibliography 102 | 103 | Assuming you are familiar with LaTeX it should easily be set up. 104 | 105 | ## Setup LaTeX Environment from Scratch 106 | Please understand, if you have a running environment that makes sense to you - stick with it! It is by no means necessary to use the one poposed here, if you should be in one of my classes. Further, there are probably better environments out there. 107 | 108 | If you should not have a working environment, a possible environment setup for LaTeX editing is described [here](https://stefantruehl.github.io/2018/04/30/latexEnvSetup.html). 109 | 110 | 111 | 112 | 113 | 114 | ## Credits 115 | The essence and wisdom of the core of this research proposal is NOT my own. 116 | 117 | It is more the collected wisdom from many people that I have met and talked to. 118 | Further, I have encountered this style of presenting academic engineering work as a best practice at many well established conferences. 119 | 120 | To the best of my knowledge I am just the only one to make it available like that. 121 | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- /researchproposal.tex: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1 | \documentclass[ 2 | ngerman,american 3 | ]{scrartcl} 4 | 5 | % ########################################## 6 | % # Choose the language for the document by editing below line 7 | % # de = German 8 | % # en = English 9 | \newcommand{\lang}{en} 10 | % ########################################## 11 | 12 | \usepackage{babel} 13 | \usepackage[utf8]{inputenc} 14 | \usepackage{csquotes} 15 | \usepackage{enumitem} 16 | \usepackage{ifthen} 17 | \usepackage{lipsum} 18 | 19 | \include{translatedHeadings} 20 | 21 | \ifthenelse{\equal{en}{\lang}} 22 | { 23 | \selectlanguage{american} 24 | }{ 25 | \ifthenelse{\equal{de}{\lang}} 26 | { 27 | \selectlanguage{ngerman} 28 | } 29 | {\selectlanguage{american}} 30 | } 31 | 32 | \usepackage[ 33 | bibencoding=utf8, 34 | style=alphabetic 35 | ]{biblatex} 36 | 37 | \bibliography{bibliography} 38 | 39 | 40 | \usepackage{amsmath} 41 | \title{ 42 | % ########################################## 43 | % # Insert the title of your paper/thesis here 44 | % ###### 45 | % Coming up with a good title is hard. 46 | % It should: 47 | % 1. capture the contents of the your work 48 | % 2. not be to broad or generic 49 | % 3. stick to the truth and don't not oversell 50 | % 4. use established terms and wordings 51 | % 5. make people curious about your work 52 | % 6. use current buzzwords if possilbe (but do it right) 53 | % 7. not use too many buzzwords :-) 54 | insert title here 55 | % ########################################## 56 | \\ \Large{\paperSubTitle{\lang}}} % don't touch this line 57 | 58 | \author{ 59 | % ########################################## 60 | % # Your name goes here 61 | % ###### 62 | % wWll, that should be obvious, right? 63 | Firstname Lastname 64 | % ########################################## 65 | } 66 | 67 | \begin{document} 68 | \maketitle 69 | \begin{abstract} 70 | 71 | \ifthenelse{\equal{en}{\lang}}{testen}{} 72 | % ########################################## 73 | % # Include your Abstract here 74 | % ###### 75 | % I would strongly suggest to start working on the abstract only 76 | % after you have answered the 4 questions in Section 1, as this will 77 | % make it much easier for you to come up with an abstract that 78 | % is to the point, short, and still summarizing all the most crucial 79 | % results of your work. 80 | % 81 | % The abstract should include the following points: 82 | % - a short but to the point introduction of the problem area 83 | % - what is the topic/problem, tackled in your work? 84 | % - why is the topic/problem of your work relevant? Why should the 85 | % reader care about it? 86 | % - what are the results/answers of your work? 87 | % - how did you gain your results and what is their quality? 88 | % % 89 | % It should NOT be: 90 | % - too long/verbose 91 | % - too short 92 | \lipsum[1-2] 93 | % ########################################## 94 | 95 | \end{abstract} 96 | 97 | 98 | \sectionQuestions{\lang} 99 | \sectionQuestionsDescription{\lang} 100 | 101 | \begin{description}[style=unboxed] 102 | \item [\questionOne{\lang}] 103 | % ########################################## 104 | % # Question 1: What is the problem you want to address in your work? / 105 | % Was ist das Problem, welches Sie in Ihrer Arbeit bearbeiten wollen? 106 | % ###### 107 | % The goal of this question is to clearly state what your work is about. 108 | % What is the problem it is supposed to solve? 109 | % 110 | % Answering this question is particular important during the early phases 111 | % of your work, in order to gain further insight and understanding about what 112 | % your work is going to cover and address. 113 | % 114 | % Answer this question very briefly by stating the problem or research 115 | % question that you want to address/solve in your work. 116 | % 117 | % Your answer should: 118 | % - only be 1 sentence (2 sentences max) 119 | % - not cover a statement why the topic is relevant 120 | % for the industry (this is address by the next question) 121 | % - properly use common terms and buzzwords of IT today (similar to the 122 | % rules for the abstract) 123 | % 124 | % Please acknowledge: the answer to this question should not cover why the 125 | % problem is important or relevant to anyone (e.g. industry). This will 126 | % be addressed with the next question. 127 | insert answer here 128 | % ########################################## 129 | 130 | \item [\questionTwo{\lang}] 131 | % ########################################## 132 | % # Question 2: Why is it a problem? / Warum ist es ein Problem? 133 | % ###### 134 | % The goal of this question is to describe why your work is relevant. 135 | % Why should the reader care? Why is this the problem (of question 1) 136 | % worth investigating? 137 | % 138 | % Answering this question is particular important during the early phases 139 | % of your work, in order to gain further insight and understanding of the 140 | % problem domain you are addressing. Further, it is a good checkpoint to 141 | % ensure that you are addressing issues that are not just theoretical but 142 | % have real-world applications. 143 | % 144 | % Your answer should: 145 | % - be 3 - 5 sentences 146 | % - give a broader overview of the domain/area where your problem occurs 147 | % -- who has this problem? 148 | % -- what is the impact of it? 149 | % -- which conditions need to be fulfilled for the problem to occur? 150 | % -- etc. 151 | % - describe the benefit of having the problem resolved 152 | insert answer here 153 | % ########################################## 154 | 155 | \item [\questionThree{\lang}] 156 | % ########################################## 157 | % # Question 3: What is the solution you developed in your work? / 158 | % Was ist die Lösung die sie entwickelt haben? 159 | % ###### 160 | % The goal of this question is to describe the results of your work 161 | % ans/or solution to the problem of your work. 162 | % 163 | % It is hard/impossible to answer this question in the early phases of 164 | % your work, as usually you do not have results, yet. However, you can 165 | % already state first ideas that you may have in order to discuss them 166 | % with your supervisor. 167 | % 168 | % Your answer should: 169 | % - clearly state all results of your work, that are relevant to your 170 | % research problem. 171 | % - not oversell your results, stick you what you actually have 172 | % accomplished" 173 | % - give credit where credit is due. If you created your results based 174 | % on the work of others, give them the credit. 175 | % - if none of your ideas did not produce any usable solution, state 176 | % so - these attempts are also results! By documenting them, it may 177 | % prevent others from trying them as well. 178 | insert answer here 179 | % ########################################## 180 | 181 | \item [\questionFour{\lang}] 182 | % ########################################## 183 | % # Question 4: Why is it a solution? / Warum ist es eine Lösung? 184 | % ###### 185 | % The goal of this question is to describe who you developed your results 186 | % and what the quality of them are. 187 | % 188 | % Your answer should: 189 | % - short and to the point 190 | % - clearly state how you developed your results 191 | % -- what is the chain of reasoning that led to your results/solution 192 | % -- what statistics, literature, studies, or other literature did you 193 | % base your assumptions on? 194 | % - clearly state the quality and applicability of your results 195 | % -- reflect your work objectively - there is no perfection in this 196 | % world, so your work is not perfect as well. Be aware of that! 197 | % -- how did you ensure that your results are accurate? did you: 198 | % --- perform experiments? 199 | % --- apply any logical deductions? 200 | % --- mathematical proofs? 201 | % --- implement a "proof of concept" implementation and evaluate? 202 | % --- etc. 203 | % - clearly state the shortcomings of your work 204 | % -- be hones and objective about your own work. 205 | % -- In which cases/scenarios are your results applicable? 206 | include answer here 207 | % ########################################## 208 | \end{description} 209 | 210 | \sectionInitialTOC{\lang} 211 | \sectionInitialTOCDescription{\lang} 212 | 213 | % ########################################## 214 | % # Proposed table of contents 215 | % ###### 216 | % The goal of this section is to propose a table of contents. Please keep in 217 | % mind: a well created table of contents is very powerful in provide a good 218 | % overview of the overall chain of reasoning of your work. This makes it 219 | % extremely valuable. 220 | % 221 | % Please include: 222 | % - names of sections and subsections (please don't go deeper than that unless 223 | % your supervisor asks you for it) 224 | % - a brief description of the proposed content of each section and subsection 225 | % (1-3 sentences) 226 | % 227 | \begin{enumerate} 228 | \item \textbf{Section 1 Name} insert brief description 229 | \begin{enumerate} 230 | \item \textbf{Subsection 1 Name} insert brief description 231 | \item \textbf{Subsection 2 Name} insert brief description 232 | \end{enumerate} 233 | \item \textbf{Section 2 Name} insert brief description 234 | \end{enumerate} 235 | % ########################################## 236 | 237 | 238 | \sectionSource{\lang} 239 | \sectionSourceDescription{\lang} 240 | 241 | % ########################################## 242 | % # Overview of identified relevant work 243 | % ###### 244 | % The goal of this section is to provide an overview of the relevant and significant 245 | % related work identified so far. Make sure that your cited sources are of appropriate 246 | % quality! 247 | % 248 | % Please include: 249 | % - a citation of the source using Latex facilities (incl. a generated list of 250 | % references) 251 | % - a brief descriptions of the source and a statement why this is relevant for 252 | % your work (1-2 sentences) 253 | % 254 | \begin{description} 255 | \item[\cite{gruba_how_2017}] insert brief description 256 | \item[\cite{zobel_writing_2015}] insert brief description 257 | \end{description} 258 | % ########################################## 259 | 260 | 261 | \printbibliography 262 | \end{document} --------------------------------------------------------------------------------