does an essay have to have a conclusion

In a short paper—even a research paper—you don’t need to provide an exhaustive summary as part of your conclusion. But you do need to make some kind of transition between your final body paragraph and your concluding paragraph. This may come in the form of a few sentences of summary. Or it may come in the form of a sentence that brings your readers back to your thesis or main idea and reminds your readers where you began and how far you have traveled.

So, for example, in a paper about the relationship between ADHD and rejection sensitivity, Vanessa Roser begins by introducing readers to the fact that researchers have studied the relationship between the two conditions and then provides her explanation of that relationship. Here’s her thesis: “While socialization may indeed be an important factor in RS, I argue that individuals with ADHD may also possess a neurological predisposition to RS that is exacerbated by the differing executive and emotional regulation characteristic of ADHD.”

In her final paragraph, Roser reminds us of where she started by echoing her thesis: “This literature demonstrates that, as with many other conditions, ADHD and RS share a delicately intertwined pattern of neurological similarities that is rooted in the innate biology of an individual’s mind, a connection that cannot be explained in full by the behavioral mediation hypothesis.”  

Highlight the “so what”  

At the beginning of your paper, you explain to your readers what’s at stake—why they should care about the argument you’re making. In your conclusion, you can bring readers back to those stakes by reminding them why your argument is important in the first place. You can also draft a few sentences that put those stakes into a new or broader context.

In the conclusion to her paper about ADHD and RS, Roser echoes the stakes she established in her introduction—that research into connections between ADHD and RS has led to contradictory results, raising questions about the “behavioral mediation hypothesis.”

She writes, “as with many other conditions, ADHD and RS share a delicately intertwined pattern of neurological similarities that is rooted in the innate biology of an individual’s mind, a connection that cannot be explained in full by the behavioral mediation hypothesis.”  

Leave your readers with the “now what”  

After the “what” and the “so what,” you should leave your reader with some final thoughts. If you have written a strong introduction, your readers will know why you have been arguing what you have been arguing—and why they should care. And if you’ve made a good case for your thesis, then your readers should be in a position to see things in a new way, understand new questions, or be ready for something that they weren’t ready for before they read your paper.

In her conclusion, Roser offers two “now what” statements. First, she explains that it is important to recognize that the flawed behavioral mediation hypothesis “seems to place a degree of fault on the individual. It implies that individuals with ADHD must have elicited such frequent or intense rejection by virtue of their inadequate social skills, erasing the possibility that they may simply possess a natural sensitivity to emotion.” She then highlights the broader implications for treatment of people with ADHD, noting that recognizing the actual connection between rejection sensitivity and ADHD “has profound implications for understanding how individuals with ADHD might best be treated in educational settings, by counselors, family, peers, or even society as a whole.”

To find your own “now what” for your essay’s conclusion, try asking yourself these questions:

• What can my readers now understand, see in a new light, or grapple with that they would not have understood in the same way before reading my paper? Are we a step closer to understanding a larger phenomenon or to understanding why what was at stake is so important?  
• What questions can I now raise that would not have made sense at the beginning of my paper? Questions for further research? Other ways that this topic could be approached?  
• Are there other applications for my research? Could my questions be asked about different data in a different context? Could I use my methods to answer a different question?  
• What action should be taken in light of this argument? What action do I predict will be taken or could lead to a solution?  
• What larger context might my argument be a part of?  

What to avoid in your conclusion  

• a complete restatement of all that you have said in your paper.  
• a substantial counterargument that you do not have space to refute; you should introduce counterarguments before your conclusion.  
• an apology for what you have not said. If you need to explain the scope of your paper, you should do this sooner—but don’t apologize for what you have not discussed in your paper.  
• fake transitions like “in conclusion” that are followed by sentences that aren’t actually conclusions. (“In conclusion, I have now demonstrated that my thesis is correct.”)
• picture_as_pdf Conclusions

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How to Conclude an Essay (with Examples)

Last Updated: July 22, 2024 Fact Checked

Writing a Strong Conclusion

What to avoid, brainstorming tricks.

This article was co-authored by Jake Adams and by wikiHow staff writer, Aly Rusciano . Jake Adams is an academic tutor and the owner of Simplifi EDU, a Santa Monica, California based online tutoring business offering learning resources and online tutors for academic subjects K-College, SAT & ACT prep, and college admissions applications. With over 14 years of professional tutoring experience, Jake is dedicated to providing his clients the very best online tutoring experience and access to a network of excellent undergraduate and graduate-level tutors from top colleges all over the nation. Jake holds a BS in International Business and Marketing from Pepperdine University. There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 3,232,709 times.

So, you’ve written an outstanding essay and couldn’t be more proud. But now you have to write the final paragraph. The conclusion simply summarizes what you’ve already written, right? Well, not exactly. Your essay’s conclusion should be a bit more finessed than that. Luckily, you’ve come to the perfect place to learn how to write a conclusion. We’ve put together this guide to fill you in on everything you should and shouldn’t do when ending an essay. Follow our advice, and you’ll have a stellar conclusion worthy of an A+ in no time.

Tips for Ending an Essay

• Rephrase your thesis to include in your final paragraph to bring the essay full circle.
• End your essay with a call to action, warning, or image to make your argument meaningful.
• Keep your conclusion concise and to the point, so you don’t lose a reader’s attention.
• Do your best to avoid adding new information to your conclusion and only emphasize points you’ve already made in your essay.

• “All in all”
• “Ultimately”
• “Furthermore”
• “As a consequence”
• “As a result”

• Make sure to write your main points in a new and unique way to avoid repetition.

• Let’s say this is your original thesis statement: “Allowing students to visit the library during lunch improves campus life and supports academic achievement.”
• Restating your thesis for your conclusion could look like this: “Evidence shows students who have access to their school’s library during lunch check out more books and are more likely to complete their homework.”
• The restated thesis has the same sentiment as the original while also summarizing other points of the essay.

• “When you use plastic water bottles, you pollute the ocean. Switch to using a glass or metal water bottle instead. The planet and sea turtles will thank you.”
• “The average person spends roughly 7 hours on their phone a day, so there’s no wonder cybersickness is plaguing all generations.”
• “Imagine walking on the beach, except the soft sand is made up of cigarette butts. They burn your feet but keep washing in with the tide. If we don’t clean up the ocean, this will be our reality.”
• “ Lost is not only a show that changed the course of television, but it’s also a reflection of humanity as a whole.”
• “If action isn’t taken to end climate change today, the global temperature will dangerously rise from 4.5 to 8 °F (−15.3 to −13.3 °C) by 2100.”

• Focus on your essay's most prevalent or important parts. What key points do you want readers to take away or remember about your essay?

• For instance, instead of writing, “That’s why I think that Abraham Lincoln was the best American President,” write, “That’s why Abraham Lincoln was the best American President.”
• There’s no room for ifs, ands, or buts—your opinion matters and doesn’t need to be apologized for!

• For instance, words like “firstly,” “secondly,” and “thirdly” may be great transition statements for body paragraphs but are unnecessary in a conclusion.

• For instance, say you began your essay with the idea that humanity’s small sense of sense stems from space’s vast size. Try returning to this idea in the conclusion by emphasizing that as human knowledge grows, space becomes smaller.

• For example, you could extend an essay on the television show Orange is the New Black by bringing up the culture of imprisonment in America.

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• Always review your essay after writing it for proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation, and don’t be afraid to revise. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0

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• ↑ https://www.uts.edu.au/current-students/support/helps/self-help-resources/grammar/transition-signals
• ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/general_writing/common_writing_assignments/argument_papers/conclusions.html
• ↑ http://writing2.richmond.edu/writing/wweb/conclude.html
• ↑ https://writingcenter.fas.harvard.edu/pages/ending-essay-conclusions
• ↑ https://www.pittsfordschools.org/site/handlers/filedownload.ashx?moduleinstanceid=542&dataid=4677&FileName=conclusions1.pdf
• ↑ https://www.cuyamaca.edu/student-support/tutoring-center/files/student-resources/how-to-write-a-good-conclusion.pdf
• ↑ https://library.sacredheart.edu/c.php?g=29803&p=185935

About This Article

To end an essay, start your conclusion with a phrase that makes it clear your essay is coming to a close, like "In summary," or "All things considered." Then, use a few sentences to briefly summarize the main points of your essay by rephrasing the topic sentences of your body paragraphs. Finally, end your conclusion with a call to action that encourages your readers to do something or learn more about your topic. In general, try to keep your conclusion between 5 and 7 sentences long. For more tips from our English co-author, like how to avoid common pitfalls when writing an essay conclusion, scroll down! Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Conclusions

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Conclusions wrap up what you have been discussing in your paper. After moving from general to specific information in the introduction and body paragraphs, your conclusion should begin pulling back into more general information that restates the main points of your argument. Conclusions may also call for action or overview future possible research. The following outline may help you conclude your paper:

In a general way,

• Restate your topic and why it is important,
• Restate your thesis/claim,
• Address opposing viewpoints and explain why readers should align with your position,
• Call for action or overview future research possibilities.

Remember that once you accomplish these tasks, unless otherwise directed by your instructor, you are finished. Done. Complete. Don't try to bring in new points or end with a whiz bang(!) conclusion or try to solve world hunger in the final sentence of your conclusion. Simplicity is best for a clear, convincing message.

The preacher's maxim is one of the most effective formulas to follow for argument papers:

Tell what you're going to tell them (introduction).

Tell them (body).

Tell them what you told them (conclusion).

Writing Center

Strategic enrollment management and student success, conclusions and why they matter, a guide to what they are, how they work, and how to master them, conclusions vs. introductions.

Similarly to introductions, conclusions exist to guide readers. While introductions guide readers into essays, conclusions guide readers out. These functions are equally important in the structure of an essay. A conclusion is a paragraph (or set of paragraphs) that comes at the very end of an essay and it must restate the thesis (say what the essay has argued) and summarize the argument.

Think about a conclusion from the reader's point of view as the end of a conversation

Hey!   Don't hang up on me!

Sometimes it's hard to know what to say in a conclusion. after all, you've just written the essay, what else can possibly be left to say? A lot of writers feel this way. However, an essay without a conclusion is similar to hanging up the phone the instant after you've told your friend a great story - your friend is going to think about how rude you were rather than about your story. In a phone conversation, you've got to wrap things up and say goodbye, this is also true for an essay. Make sure to provide your reader with a summary.

• A summary:   Since good stories are complex and can't be learned by heart the first time, give your reader a device to help remember and master your story (your argument).
• A sense of relevance:   Help the reader understand the point of your story by explaining the relevance of it.

How conclusions work

What does it really mean to say that a conclusion resembles the end of a phone conversation?

• All things come to an end.   Of course, you can't keep talking on the phone forever; both you and your friend expect an end to your conversation. At the same time, a conversation is something produced by two people, meaning that its end must be agreed upon, and if you hang up without warning, then you've seized all control, which isn't friendly. Even though the conclusion of an essay may be just a repetition of ideas found elsewhere, a reader needs to be able to see that things are winding down.
• An end means a last look.   If you sound polite and cheerful in saying goodbye, your friend will be much more likely to recall the story you've told and to look forward to hearing from you in the future. Because the conclusion to an essay is a reader's last impression of a writer's work, the writer must maintain excellence up to the last sentence, not dash something off quickly or run out of steam.
• A last look is a kind of legacy.   While you probably wouldn't tell your friend a pointless story, or one with no relation to any shared experience, making the relevance clear helps your friend know how to think about your story. Similarly, an essay that leaves a reader with something to think about is an essay that is more likely to be judged favorably and even reread. Connecting the writing to the reader is central to succeeding in communicating the importance of your story.

Acing the conclusion

The strategies below can help you write a conclusion that leaves your reader satisfied and feeling like they've gotten closure on your ideas.

Remind and encapsulate

Remember that even though you are already familiar with your essay, your reader is not. Having a reader who wants to reread your work is great, but your reader shouldn't have to reread. Giving your reader a summary is similar to taking a snapshot of your whole essay. Looking at that snapshot reminds your reader of the main points that have come before. A snapshot is a lot easier to carry around than a thousand little details.

Acknowledge loose ends

Since issues are complex and often do not have a single, neat resolution, the topic of your essay doesn't need to either. What possible resolutions do you see for the issue you have presented? Is there even a resolution? In either case, say what you see. Don't present answers if you haven't found any. Just be honest.

Make connections

Show your reader the point of reading your essay. What did you learn from writing your essay? How might reading your essay be helpful to your reader? What does your essay contribute?

Don't get carried away

You don't have to revolutionize the world or say the absolute final world on an age-old debate. In fact, a grandiose conclusion may seem out of proportion in anything as short as an essay. Communicating an idea is enough.

Now let's apply these ideas to an example conclusion

The trend towards "good taste" in mass-market products draws into question the idea of good taste altogether   (Thesis) . Many things symbolizing high class living are in danger of losing their status simply because they can now be purchased at any Home Depot or Ikea;   (Summary 1: the first main point)   however, critics call décor and furniture exports such as Pier 1 Imports and Pottery Barn "cheap" not for offering sophisticated designs at bargain prices, but for offering them to all, even to mail-order costumers   (Summary 2: the second main point) . Worst of all, Martha Stewart is said to have reduced good taste to merely another brand name by creating a line of home wares for the suburban superstore K-Mart   (Summary 3: the third main point) . The implication is that a fine object loses its fineness as it gains wider appreciation, that beauty and elegance are qualities conferred by the elite and that an object's glow vanishes once too many have touched it, In other words, the wealthy and influential are not content with wealth and influence, but must have a world all to themselves; when others enter this world, they come to destroy   (Relevance 1: a synthesis of the main points that reveals their significance in a wider context) . Martha Stewart would have to disagree. Sconce lights might look out of place on a cattle ranch, but their popularity does not equate them with the neon signs that one sees in the windows of bars - quality is quality. If replacing the average household's melamine plates with porcelain makes some people insecure, then so be it   (Relevance 2: a stance that applies to readers) .

How to Write a Conclusion Paragraph for an Essay

• An effective conclusion paragraph is vital to writing a successful college essay.
• A strong conclusion restates the thesis, offers new insight, and forms a personal connection.
• Be sure the conclusion doesn’t introduce new arguments or analyze points you didn’t discuss.

The first steps for writing any college essay are coming up with a strong thesis statement and composing a rough introduction . Once you’ve done that, you can collect information that supports your thesis, outline your essay’s main points, and start writing your body paragraphs . Before you can submit the essay, though, you’ll also need to write a compelling conclusion paragraph.

Conclusions aren’t especially difficult to write and can even be fun, but you still need to put in effort to make them work. Ultimately, a strong conclusion is just as important as an effective introduction for a successful paper.

Here, we explain the purpose of a conclusion and how to write a conclusion paragraph using a simple three-step process.

The Purpose of a Conclusion Paragraph

A conclusion paragraph does :

A conclusion paragraph does not :

How to Write a Conclusion in 3 Easy Steps

Step 1: restate your thesis claim and evidence.

The conclusion’s primary role is to convince the reader that your argument is valid. Whereas the introduction paragraph says, “Here’s what I’ll prove and how,” the conclusion paragraph says, “Here’s what I proved and how.” In that sense, these two paragraphs should closely mirror each other, with the conclusion restating the thesis introduced at the beginning of the essay.

In order to restate your thesis effectively, you’ll need to do the following:

Here’s an example of an introduction and a conclusion paragraph, with the conclusion restating the paper’s primary claim and evidence:

Introduction

It is a known fact that archaic civilizations with clearly defined social classes often survived longer than those without. One anomaly is seventh-century Civilization X. Close analysis of the cultural artifacts of the Civilization X region reveals that a social system that operates on exploitation, rather than sharing, will always fail. This lack of inclusion actually leads to a society’s downfall. Excavated military objects, remnants of tapestries and clay pots, and the poetry of the era all demonstrate the clash between exploitation and sharing, with the former leading to loss and the latter leading to success.

In the 600s C.E., Civilization X survived because it believed in inclusion and sharing rather than exploitation. As demonstrated, the civilization was often aware of the choice between sharing with others and taking from them. The cultural artifacts from the era, namely military items, household objects, and verbal art, all indicate that Civilization X believed sharing ensured survival for all, while taking allowed only a few to survive for a shorter time.

Step 2: Provide New and Interesting Insight

In addition to restating the thesis, a conclusion should emphasize the importance of the essay’s argument by building upon it. In other words, you want to push your ideas one step beyond your thesis. One intriguing insight at the end can leave your professor pondering your paper well after they finish reading it — and that’s a good sign you turned in a well-written essay.

Note that the conclusion paragraph must only mention that this new idea exists and deserves some focus in the future; it shouldn’t discuss the idea in detail or try to propose a new argument.

The new insight you raise in your conclusion should ideally come from the research you already conducted. Should a new idea come to you while writing the body paragraphs, go ahead and make a note to remind you to allude to it in your conclusion.

Here are some typical starting points for these new insights:

Step 3: Form a Personal Connection With the Reader

The final step when writing a conclusion paragraph is to include a small detail about yourself. This information will help you build a more intimate bond with your reader and help them remember you better. Think of this step as an opportunity to connect the academic research to your and your reader’s personal lives — to forge a human bond between the lines.

Formal essay-writing typically avoids first- and second-person pronouns such as “I” and “you.” There are, however, two exceptions to this rule, and these are the introduction and conclusion paragraphs.

In the conclusion, you may use first-person pronouns to attempt to establish an emotional connection with the reader.

In the introduction, you may use the words “I” or “me” just once to clarify that the essay’s claim is your own. In the conclusion, you may use first-person pronouns to attempt to establish an emotional connection with the reader, as long as this connection is related in some way to the overarching claim.

Here’s an example of a conclusion paragraph that uses both first- and second-person pronouns to connect the thesis statement (provided above) to the student’s own perspective on stealing:

Civilization X believed that invading Civilization Y would help them survive long, hunger-inducing winters. But all people go through moments when they crave security, especially in times of scarcity. I would certainly never consider taking the belongings of a neighbor, nor, I expect, would you. Yet we must consider the Civilization X artifacts that justify “taking” as signs of more than simple bloodthirst — they are also revelations of the basic human need for security. Perhaps if we had lived during the 600s C.E., you and I would have also taken from others, even while commanding others not to take from us.

Feature Image: Ziga Plahutar / E+ / Getty Images