CONCEPT PAPERS

Michael U. Henson
24 July 2017
 What Concept Papers Are
• Summaries of projects or issues that reflect
the interests, experience and expertise of the
writer or organization.
• Generally serve the purpose of providing in-
depth discussion of a topic that the writer has
a strong position on, usually with the intent of
obtaining funding for that project from
donors.
• The terms "concept paper" and "proposal" are
often used interchangeably as they can be
used for the same function.
• May also be used as an instructional tool that
may have developed as a result of extensive
research, committee input and/or as a result
of the outcome of a current project.
• In addition to providing guidance for
implementation of a program, a concept
paper could also discuss best practices,
philosophies and other related issues that the
writer believes action should be taken on in
the near future.
• A concept paper is putting your idea onto
paper. It includes what the question is, what is
already known about that question, and why
the question is worth expending energy on in
the first place.
 What is a concept paper?
• All research projects need a concept paper: a
short summary that tells the reader what the
project is, why it is important, and how it will
be carried out.
 Typically, a concept paper contains
these elements:
• 1. A title in the form of a question. This may
be the last part of the concept paper that you
write, but it should appear at the heading of
the paper.
• 2. A clear description of the research topic,
including a summary of what is already known
about that topic.
• 3. A one-sentence statement of the research
question that the project will seek to answer.
(This is almost always something that is not
known.) The concept paper should elaborate
on how this question can be answered --
something that almost always takes more than
one sentence to accomplish.
• 4. A demonstration of why it is important to
answer this research question. What good
comes of this answer? Why is this project
worth writing?
• 5. A description of how the researcher plans
to answer the research question. This
includes:
– a. a description of the data or evidence that the
researcher plans to gather or use;
– b. a description of how the researcher will analyze
these data; and
– c. a demonstration of how these data and this
analytic method will answer the research
question.
 Parts of a Concept Paper
• Title Page/Cover Page
• Introduction
• Rationale
• Project Description
• Project Needs
• Academic Research/Statistics
 Title Page/Cover Page
• Name of the School
• School Address
• School Logo
• Title: A CONCEPT PAPER ON SOAP-MAKING
• Proponents’ Names
• Year and Section
• THE FORMAT WILL BE PROVIDED!
 Introduction
• Introduction about what is CBI
• Introduction about ACSCi’s CBI

• Format will be provided!

 Rationale
• Description of the Problem to be solved
• Significance of the Project
 Project Description
• Methodology
• Timeline
• Benefits
 Project Needs
• Outline of the main budget
• Justify how the budget will be used
• List of equipments needed for the project
 Academic Research/Statistics
• List of Researches that support your Concept
Paper
• List of Official Statistics that support your
study
 References
• In APA 6th edition format
 Evaluation for EAPP
• Content: 30%
• Format: 20%
• Concept: 30%
• Mechanics: 20%
 Specifications
• Short Bond Paper
• Times New Roman, size 12
• 1 inch on all sides for margin
• Left Align not Justified
• Double Spaced
• Do not use personal pronouns, contractions,
abbreviations, conversational, slang, and
colloquial language
 Source:
• CustomPapers.com. (2017). Concept papers: What they
are and how to write them? Link:
https://custompapers.com/essays-articles/concept-
papers/.
• Enotes.com. (2017). What is the difference between a
concept paper, a research proposal, and a research
report? Link: https://www.enotes.com/homework-
help/what-difference-between-concept-paper-
research-326377.
• http://sociology.morrisville.edu/perpetual/Writing/Wh
at_Is_A_Concept_Paper.htm