Challenges in Undergraduate Research Proposal Writing: Evidence from a Capstone Course

Abstract

Research proposal writing is a critical academic competency, yet it remains one of the most challenging tasks for undergraduate EFL students. This paper investigates the common challenges encountered by Arab EFL undergraduate students in writing research proposals within a capstone course context at a Gulf university. Drawing on qualitative document analysis of 30 Stage 1 proposals submitted during the second semester of the 2025–2026 academic year in ENGL 450 (Project Writing) at the University of Bahrain, combined with a reflective practitioner approach, the study identifies four recurring challenge categories: (1) topic over-scoping, (2) information literacy deficits, (3) unfocused or multiple research questions, and (4) confusion between research objectives and hypotheses. The findings reveal that students consistently propose studies that exceed the feasible scope of a one-semester undergraduate project, struggle to locate and integrate credible academic sources, formulate research questions that are either too broad or too numerous, and conflate the conceptually distinct functions of research objectives, questions, and hypotheses. These challenges are discussed in relation to existing literature on EFL academic writing, Gulf learner profiles, and undergraduate research supervision. The paper concludes with pedagogical recommendations, including the value of staged proposal submission, topic-scoping workshops, and explicit instruction in research question formulation. The study contributes to a growing body of literature on EFL research writing in the Gulf context.