Office of Academic Enrichment Undergraduate Research & Creative Inquiry

Writing and Presenting Research

Writing a Research Proposal

A research proposal is a formal, detailed description of the research you intend to conduct. Although standards for a research proposal vary across disciplines, all research proposals include certain basic information:

  • Title
  • Introduction
  • Background
  • Preliminary Studies
  • Research Methodology
  • Significance of the Proposed Project

For more information on research proposals and their components, UR&CI suggests exploring the WebGURU website. 

For additional support on Ohio State's campus, UR&CI suggests reaching out to the Center for the Study and Teaching of Writing.

Writing a Research Abstracts

While writing a research abstract, it is helpful to refer to the hourglass structure, meaning the abstract is quite general at the beginning, becoming more specific in the middle, and then becoming more general again at the end.

An abstract typically includes the following topics:

  • General background information
  • Facts about the topic
  • Statement of the problem
  • Statement of purpose
  • Methods/process
  • Results or anticipated results
  • Discussion
  • Conclusion/importance

Creating a Research Poster

Below are research poster templates that students have used in the past and can be modified by all students:

Printing a Research Poster

Uniprint offers a self-service 36 x 48 poster printing at Thompson Library on the first floor for $14.00. Please visit their Poster Printing Instructions webpage for additional steps.

Poster Printing Instructions (Print from PowerPoint Desktop App) - ​​​

1. Log into a library desktop computer (do not use a personal computer).

2. Open the file you would like print - I personally suggest saving the PowerPoint to a PDF and saving the PDF to the desktop on the PC. Then proceed using the PDF File from the desktop.

3. Open the “change the printer” dropdown menu, click “see more” and choose Thompson 160 Plotter.

4. Click the printer properties link just below the printer dropdown menu.

5. Use the dropdown menu to choose the size of your poster, by clicking the “see more” option. a. Arch B – 12 x 18 - $3.80 b. Arch C – 18 x 24 - $5.00 c. Arch D – 24 x 36 - $8.00 d. Arch E – 36 x 48 - $14.00 DO NOT SELECT OVERSIZE ARCH and ensure option says “Arch _” not just B, C, D, or E.

6. Click the layout/output tab and have settings at “landscape” and “rotation: 90 degrees.” Please note that your poster will be cut off if you skip this step.

7. Click okay, then click print. Type your last name.#.

8. Posters can be printed at the Plotter printers in Thompson 160 and Thompson 122. Swipe your BuckID or type in your last name.# to release the poster.

For questions, please contact us at UniServiceCenter@osu.edu.