An effective conclusion is a thoughtful, meaningful ending to a piece of writing. Merely stating the summary of an academic paper does not make the cut. John, GoAssignmentHelp expert for English Literature, says, “Different fields of study may have specific formats for academic essays or conclusions. Similarly, the conclusion for an essay widely differs from the conclusion of a research report or an experiment. The tips on writing conclusions I am sharing today are most applicable to Humanities-related subjects.”
His tips include:
- Try to refer to the keywords or concepts you used in your introduction in your conclusion too.
- Your conclusion should include a summary of the key points of your paper but it should not stop there. Make it interesting to read by adding:
- Conclude an essay with one or more of the following:
- using a quotation,
- evoking a vivid image,
- asking a provocative or controversial question,
- ending the para with a warning, or
- calling for some sort of action.
- You must compare your paper and ideas to other situations and try to universalize them.
- Mention or suggest the results or consequences of the topic you have discussed.
He also said that while providing assignment help to students in Australia, he makes sure to avoid the most common mistakes they make while writing conclusions. These include:
- Rephrasing the thesis statement to use as a conclusion or concluding with a single statement after writing the final point.
- Introducing a new idea that cannot be elaborated in a short para.
- Using up all the word count in talking about a minor point in an essay.
- Apologizing unnecessarily for stating an opinion, such as ‘I may not be an expert but…’ or ‘According to me…” Such words make you sound under-confident.
- Trying to write about things you have not been able to cover in a paper. The better idea would be to limit your topic to what you can cover.
Venissa, who is a top-rated essay help provider on MyAssignmentAssistance panel, shares, “Introductions and Conclusions are the most difficult sections to write in an essay or a paper but they also make the most memorable impression on your readers. While an introduction transports your readers from the ‘real world’ to your world of analysis, a conclusion serves to transition them back to it. Your conclusion should help them retain the analysis and information your paper provides even after they put it down.”
To impress readers and demonstrate the importance of your ideas, you need to write a conclusion which elaborates on the significance of your findings and how they connect with broader issues. Venissa suggests that a good conclusion is one that can change the perspectives of your readers or feel that whatever you wrote can change their life in some way.
Liora, an English professor as well as a professional editor with MyAssignmentHelp4u, reveals some of the mistakes that render ‘conclusions’ of academic essays or analytical papers ineffective:
- ‘I am Right’ Conclusion: In an analytical paper, you experience a balanced analysis in the conclusion. A short conclusion that tries to push that only your theory is right is not something that professors want to see from a college-level student.
- The ‘Spotlight’ Conclusion: Sometimes, students are tempted to add the dramatic touch to their paper by stating all their points one-by-one throughout the paper and then, presenting the ‘main idea’ in the conclusion. This might be a good approach for writing a mystery story but a very bad idea when you are writing an academic paper. While writing a thesis or an academic essay, you need to state your main idea upfront and elaborate on it in the rest of the paper. So, do not save your ‘wow’ points for the conclusion.
- An Emotional or Sentimental Conclusion: Academic essays read like sophisticated commentaries, not emotional dramas. So, keep the sentimentality out of your conclusion and engage the brain of your readers.
- ‘So here’s the Rest’ Conclusion: When you have researched for hours, you are sorely tempted to clutter your conclusion with all the ‘extra’ information, facts, or pieces of evidence you could not use in your paper. This kind of conclusion can confuse your readers and take their minds away from the finer points of your essay. A good conclusion synthesizes all the points you mention in the paper, mentions how they fit together, and elaborates on how they can make an impact in broader contexts.
Just as ‘Introduction’ is the first impression, ‘Conclusion’ is the last impression you make on your reader. Hence, take time to write both these sections carefully or ask for help from experts to polish them up before you submit your paper.