Like the opening line, the closing is very important because it leaves the final impression. For that reason, I always ask my students to focus on making the ending more creative and vivid in their later revisions.

BUT please don’t stress about this in the first draft - that should be for relaxed free writing. The refining will come in the final revision process. Remember this mantra if you get stuck: Write Now. Revise Later. Here are some tricks to get to a deeper conclusion than you currently have. And it goes without saying: please don’t start this paragraph with “In conclusion,” which is the cliched kiss of death.

1) Go back to your opening anecdote
If you used the creative writing technique of an opening anecdote, one fun way to close your essay can be returning to that same story in your concluding paragraph. For example, if your opening narrative was about the first economics class you took and how it was love at first equation, you can try describing the thrill of the class in the same creative ways that you did the opening. Try writing vivid examples and really get us to feel like we are in your place. What was it like on the first day of class? What did it feel like doing your homework? Interacting with other Econ students? Was it like an aha moment where you finally felt something click, like this is what I was meant to do? Try revisiting that opening anecdote with a new perspective at the end.

2) Describe your future
Another approach to the closing line could be to show us your future vision for yourself. If you wrote about your passion for astrophysics, outline your dream career at the end. Or if you are writing about your passion for economics, picture yourself pursuing Econ at college - what do you see? Paint that visual for us so that we see what you see, hear what you hear, feel what you feel almost as though we’re in your head. Show us your future there - where will you intern, work after graduation, etc? If this is the supplemental “why this college” essay, maybe this is the opportunity to discuss what your ideal college looks like and what your objectives of applying to this school are.

3) Dig deeper in your self-reflection
For my students who are stuck, I always recommend journaling with pen and paper when you are relaxed to develop some deeper insights. This is my all-time cure for cliches. If you wrote about your immigrant heritage, can you journal a little bit more on what the American Dream means to you? Or if you wrote about an earlier incident in your life, what have you learned since then? Looking back, do you have any advice for your younger self? How has this story changed your life?