How NOT to write your dissertation conclusion

You’ve just finished your data analysis chapter and you’re thinking: Finally! My dissertation is almost done. You have certainly come a long way, but before you consider it done there’s one final chapter that often separates the good from the excellent: The conclusion.

And here’s the tough truth. Many students lose marks because they don’t get this chapter right. They spend months on researching the topic, only to receive frustrating feedback like “Objectives are not explicitly revisited in the conclusion” or “There is some discussion, but little discussion against the literature”.

I have finished a video where I walk students through three real examples of underwhelming conclusions. By seeing exactly where students fell short, you’ll understand how to avoid the same mistakes and how to transform your own conclusion.  Here's a brief summary of each example.

Why objectives matter in your conclusion

Think back to your introduction, where you asked your research questions and set your objectives. The conclusion is where you answer them. It’s astonishing how many students forget this simple but vital purpose. In the first weak example the student gave background information, described their methodology, and even highlighted key motivations from the data. But they never clearly revisited their objectives.

Revisiting objectives isn’t enough

The second example did a little better. This student revisited each objective one by one, which gave the conclusion much stronger flow and coherence. But here’s the catch: the focus was still on what was done to answer the objectives, not on what was found. This lack of analytical depth meant that, even though the structure was better, the conclusion fell short of demonstrating critical insight.

A better attempt, but still with shortcomings

The third example is stronger since objectives were revisited, findings were summarised, and there was some recognition of complexity in the data. A step in the right direction. But even here, the interpretation was thin. Findings were described rather than discussed, references were missing, and there was no overarching reflection tying the research together. Without synthesis and clear contribution to theory, the conclusion stopped short of distinction level.

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I have also added an example that nailed the conclusion to the Virtual Tutor resource. In this example, the student did everything right: she directly engaged with each objective clearly summarised their findings, and critically compared those results against the literature. This allowed her to identify surprising insights and demonstrate conceptual closure. She also avoided overgeneralisation by recognising where findings applied universally and where they were context-dependent. This level of interpretation and reflection moved the conclusion from a simple recap into a critical piece of work which highlighted the contribution of their study. With only minor tweaks, this dissertation was eventually published in a top academic journal.

Many students struggle to tie everything together in the conclusion, but the good news is that it can be fixed. I offer 1-2-1 support, where we work directly on your project to ensure your conclusion (as well as any other part) meets the standard it deserves. Get in touch if you need focused help.