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Adventures of a PhD candidate

Reflections on the thesis journey

How I plan in my PhD/Organise my desk

In this post I thought I would share how I plan my days/weeks in my PhD. This process evolved over time for me, and is the culmination of workshops/googling/other blogs.

Gantt chart

Personally, I actually hate Gantt charts! Yes, I do think they are good for long term planning. Yet, a lot of people have them and don’t actually do anything with them! Usually every candidate tends to have a gantt chart, but doesn’t actually use it to make smaller, achievable chunks. So I use mine to plan my weeks.

Long term weekly planning

I use the ‘focus’ to determine my weekly tasks.

Weekly Planning

Every Friday afternoon I have time allocated to plan my week and to clean my desk. On this Friday afternoon I plan the next week. I usually put in my commitments first (I use outlook to track meetings and appointments), schedule time for reading and then look at my focus for the week and add tasks to achieve that. Here is what it looks like (note: all names are pseudonyms) :

So my weekly planning is also daily planning, as I have allocated segments for each day. I have a set lunch break, and try to follow the 15 minute breaks in the middle segments. I’ve found that a large part of having success with this method is being strict with yourself. You have allocated these times for you to work, so work! Don’t pick up your phone unless it is in your allocated break. The same goes for Youtube, Twitter, Facebook etc. I  treat my PhD like a full time job  so I try to only work 8am-5pm, Monday-Friday. This doesn’t always happen, but I have found that it has given me less stress, and I value my time at my desk more. If you don’t set yourself hours it is easy to be unproductive as you can see the whole morning, day, then night stretch before you. If you know you only have until 5pm, you want to use all your time as productively as you can!

You also need to know what works for you, and when. For example, don’t schedule reading time in the morning if you know you hate reading in the morning! Try and be realistic about the tasks you can achieve, so you are setting yourself realistic goals. I have also found I am much better now at assessing how long a task will take, as I have practise at scheduling my time.

For those interested as to why I have ‘code article’ on my planning, this is because I  use Nvivo for my literature review . Unfortunately when I had a computer malfunction, I lost some of my Nvivo file, so when I say ‘code article’ it really just means quickly grab the key quotes and fix them up in my Nvivo file.

Random things that pop up

One thing I found when I first started my PhD was that I had an ever growing to do list, and I had many suggestions from my supervisors of who to read, things to search for etc. I found the easiest solution for this was a visual to do list. I use post-it notes (cheap ones do not work – they fall off the wall) and have three columns, ‘to do’ ‘in progress’ and ‘done’.

Sorry for the dreadful picture – my iPhone was trying to be arty by ‘focusing’ on one side and blurring the other. This list is different to my ‘monthly’ planning list. It is usually things that aren’t urgent, but I want to be able to remember for the future. I only have 1-3 items in the ‘in progress’ section at a time. This allows me to truly focus on the task at hand.

My desk as a whole

This is my desk overall. As you can see it isn’t super tidy, but I do like to keep some sort of order to it. To the right, I have my Gantt chart and my weekly tasks on the divider between my desk and the person next to me. The trays are for my printed articles, spare paper for notes, my de-identified transcripts, and papers that need to be filed on Friday. On the left, I have all of my printed articles sorted by subject. I keep most of my stationery in the drawers.

Below the magazine holders, I have folders. These are mainly filled with readings for courses I have taught and notes from workshops I have attended.

My calendar

I use my electronic calendar in Outlook as a way of managing my meetings and appointments. I do not schedule my tasks in the electronic calendar. It is only a tool to manage appointments/meetings. I have found this to be the most effective method for me, as I always generally have my phone with me. Paper planners (for me), always get left behind and I have a dreadful memory, so need something that I can quickly refer to.

Electronic organisation

People often ask me how I organise my files. For me this is simple.

• I have a folder for each potential chapter in my thesis, and organise drafts in here by date. Within each folder is a folder for feedback from my supervisors. Every time I open a document to write/edit, I ‘save as’ with a new date, to help track versions and eliminate any problems with file corruption (as I can always open the last saved file if a file corrupts)
• I have a folder for meeting notes. You should be planning your meeting with your supervisors, and I usually print an agenda prior to the meeting. I keep these here.
• I have a folder for ‘planning’. This includes my Gantt chart and my weekly lists.
• My PDFs are all organised in Nvivo, and I have a copy in Endnote. I simply save PDFs to my downloads – I do not need to organise them in another way on my computer.
• All my files are saved to my OneDrive. Except my Nvivo and Endnote files. The Nvivo file is constantly editing as you work in it, and cloud storage doesn’t like this. I save a back up to my cloud storage every time I close Nvivo. Endnote files will corrupt if they are saved on cloud/or USB storage. I use the ‘endnote’ online service to backup my Endnote.
• My notes and annotated bibliography are all in Scrivener ( see this post:  The way I take notes for my PhD) .

For more tips, check out this tweet:

Going to be organising a workshop for PhD students about organisation skills/tricks/tips and goal setting. I know @raulpacheco has fantastic stuff. Does anyone have any tips/ organisational tools I can share beyond my own tips and things I do? #phd #phdchat — Dr Kate Smithers (@thekatsmithers) May 2, 2019

I hope this has helped you in some way! What are your tools for planning/organising?

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5 thoughts on “ how i plan in my phd/organise my desk ”.

Thank you very much for sharing your organising strategies. Your electronic organising I found particularly useful.

I’m glad it could be of use to you 🙂 I share what I have learnt in the hopes it will help somebody!

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12 Expert Tips for Organizing Your PhD Research work

Revolutionize Your Research Workflow with These Expert Organization Tips

Table of contents

1. set clear goals, 2. develop a research plan, 3. create a schedule, 4. use a project management tool, 5. prioritize your tasks, 6. break down large tasks into smaller ones, 7. manage your time effectively, 8. stay organized, 9. communicate with your supervisor, 10. seek support, 11. stay motivated, 12. take breaks, 50 tips to oranize phd research work.

The journey of pursuing a PhD can be an exciting and rewarding experience, but it can also be overwhelming at times. One of the keys to completing the PhD degree successfully is being organized and managing your time effectively.

Organizing PhD work can be a challenging task, but with proper plan and execution, one can effectively manage their time and progress. In this article, iLovePhD presented twelve practical tips and strategies to help you stay organized and productive during your PhD journey.

Whether you’re just starting or in the middle of your PhD journey, these tips will help you stay on track and make the most out of your time as a research scholar.

Tips to Revolutionize Your PhD Research Workflow

The first step in organizing your PhD work is to set clear goals for yourself. Define the objectives of your research. Develop a clear and realistic plan for your PhD work, including milestones and deadlines for each task.

Once you have set your goals, develop a research plan that outlines the steps you need to take to achieve them. Your research plan should include the research questions you want to answer, the methods you will use to collect data, and the analysis techniques you will use to draw conclusions.

Create a schedule that outlines the tasks you need to complete each week and the deadlines for completing them. Make sure you allocate enough time for each task and don’t forget to include time for reviewing and revising your work.

Consider using a project management tool like Trello, Asana, or Notion to help you organize your tasks, set deadlines, and to help you to stay on track.

Prioritize your work based on the importance and urgency of each task. This will help you to focus on the most critical work first.

Also Read: Suffering PhD Scholars in Academia

Divide large tasks into smaller, more manageable tasks. This will help you to work more efficiently and achieve progress more quickly.

Manage your time effectively by allocating specific time slots for each task. Avoid multitasking, which can reduce your productivity and increase your stress levels.

Keep your work organized by using folders, files, and notes. This will help you to easily find and access your work and prevent you from losing important documents. Use tools like Zotero or Mendeley to manage your references.

Regular communication with your supervisor is crucial for staying on track with your PhD work. Schedule regular meetings with your supervisor to discuss your progress, get feedback, and ask for help if needed.

Seek support from your peers, and other professionals when necessary. This can help you to overcome challenges and move forward in your research

Stay motivated by setting realistic goals for yourself and celebrating your achievements.

Taking regular breaks is important to avoid burnout and stay focused. Make sure to schedule time for self-care. Engage in activities that you enjoy to maintain your mental health and well-being.

Organizing your PhD work is essential to ensure that you can work efficiently and effectively toward your research goals. It is an ongoing process, and you may need to adjust your plan as you go along.

• Develop a system for managing your data.
• Use a literature review matrix to stay organized.
• Prioritize self-care to avoid burnout.
• Use a task management tool to stay on top of deadlines.
• Keep a research journal to track progress and ideas.
• Stay organized by using folders and labels.
• Create a clear and concise research plan.
• Break larger tasks into smaller, manageable ones.
• Use a citation management tool to keep track of sources.
• Take breaks to avoid fatigue and maintain focus.
• Back up your data regularly.
• Use templates for reports and presentations to save time.
• Stay on top of emails and communication.
• Use an agenda or planner to schedule meetings and deadlines.
• Collaborate with others to share ideas and resources.
• Use software tools to help automate repetitive tasks.
• Take advantage of library resources and research guides.
• Use charts and graphs to visualize data.
• Use cloud-based storage to access your work from anywhere.
• Stay organized by color-coding notes and files.
• Use checklists to ensure you complete all necessary tasks.
• Make time for exercise and other forms of self-care.
• Keep track of important dates and events.
• Break down complex information into easy-to-understand summaries.
• Use mind-mapping software to brainstorm ideas.
• Take notes during meetings and discussions.
• Create a filing system for physical documents.
• Use an annotation tool to mark up documents.
• Set aside designated time for writing.
• Prioritize your most important tasks first.
• Use keywords to organize your literature reviews.
• Stay focused by eliminating distractions.
• Use a backup system to protect your work.
• Use templates to maintain consistent formatting.
• Utilize peer feedback to improve your work.
• Stay up-to-date on research trends and developments.
• Use time blocking to schedule your day.
• Maintain a consistent schedule to establish a routine.
• Use a timer to help with time management.
• Stay organized by using bookmarks and tags.
• Make use of keyboard shortcuts to save time.
• Take breaks to stretch and move your body.
• Stay hydrated and well-rested for optimal productivity.
• Use online forums to connect with other researchers.
• Take care of your mental health to stay focused and motivated.
• Keep your workspace clean and clutter-free.
• Use a dictation tool to speed up your writing.
• Create a backup plan in case of unexpected issues.
• Use technology to stay organized on the go.
• Celebrate your progress and accomplishments along the way!

By implementing the tips discussed in this article, you can establish a structured approach to your work that will help you stay focused and motivated. Be flexible and keep working towards your goals, and you will be on your way to completing your PhD successfully.

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• research organization
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Experiences of a London PhD student and beyond

PhD FAQs – A Complete Beginner’s Guide to Doctoral Study

Tempted to do a PhD but have lots of questions? Hopefully this collection of popular PhD FAQs will help you to tick a few off the list!

Note – If you’re already sure that you want to do a PhD, and are looking for guidance on the applications process, check out my post on How to apply for a PhD which includes advice from successful PhD applicants. My post-PhD reflections on the things I regretted from my own PhD may be useful for you too, you can find that post here .

Let’s start with the absolute basics of PhDs!

What does PhD stand for?

PhD stands for Doctor of Philosophy. Doctor of Philosophy ? No matter which subject area your PhD is in you’ll become a Doctor of Philosophy because philosophy derives from Greek to mean “Love of wisdom” which make a bit more sense.

What is a PhD?

A PhD is a type of research degree classified as a doctorate. You get a PhD by doing original research into a topic, typically for at least three years.

There are loads of other types of doctorate and a PhD is simply the most common. EngD is another which is relatively common for industry-funded engineering students here in the UK.

PhD & DPhil what’s the difference?

There is no real difference between a PhD and DPhil, they’re both Doctor of Philosophy qualifications. A small number of historic institutions in the UK such as Oxford and York offer DPhils but the degree itself is equivalent.

How common are PhDs amongst the population?

Approximately 1% of the working population (25-64 years old) have a PhD. This varies a lot by country:

Can you call yourself Doctor with a PhD?

Yes you can. Though to avoid confusion with medical doctors, rarely will PhD-holders use the “Dr” title outside of their workplace.

Sometimes PhD-holders will add the abbreviation PhD after their name if they want to make it clear they are a non-medical doctor, for example “Jeff Clark PhD”.

What have I done about my title since getting my PhD? Nothing so far!

Why do a PhD?

Unlike a lot of other degrees, most PhD students get paid to study . Read more in the finances section below.

There are lots of potential reasons to want to do a PhD. The PhD students from our monthly PhD Profiles series said the following:

Sara found research the most enjoyable part of her undergraduate degree and a PhD was a way to carry on with research.

Ornob wants to pursue a career in evolutionary biology so began with a PhD in the field.

Vivienne has aspirations to be a professor so a PhD is a job requirement to progress in academia.

Jeff (me!) had an interest in the field and enjoyed research. I wrote a whole post with a deep dive on why I decided to do a PhD here .

Floor had enjoyed research during her Masters and didn’t think that she wanted a career in industry, so decided to do a PhD.

It’s important to mention that you don’t need to have a desire to stay in academia to do a PhD. In fact, even if you do want to go into academia afterwards, it’s probably good to know early on just how competitive it can be. Many people sadly cannot make a career out of academia long term.

Enjoy the subject matter and want to spend a few years researching it? That is reason enough to do a PhD. I’ve also now written a whole post about the benefits of having a PhD .

Applying for a PhD

Do you need a masters degree to do a phd.

No you don’t necessarily need a Masters degree to do a PhD as long as you can demonstrate you’d be suitable for a PhD without it.

For a more in-depth answer see the separate post here :

Can You Get a PhD Without a Master’s?

If you don’t have a Masters, I’d recommend checking out Centres for Doctoral Training (CDTs) which offer combined Masters + PhD courses. We have discussed CDTs with a graduate in Floor’s post here .

What grades do you need to do a PhD?

Entry requirements for PhDs can vary. In regards to the UK system usually you’d generally be expected to have at least a 2:1 from your undergraduate degree, plus some research experience.

My experience : I (narrowly) got first class honours in my undergrad (MEng) which certainly does help. But if you can demonstrate aptitude in research you usually don’t need a 1:1. It would be expected for you to have done well in any research projects. If you can get your name on a publication then even better!

The easiest way to find out what is expected is to check the PhD advert for entry requirements. For details on applying for a PhD, including how to find PhD adverts, check out my guide here :

How to apply for a PhD

I work in industry, can I come back and do a PhD?

Absolutely! I worked for almost four years between finishing my first degree and starting my PhD.

A PhD is more similar to a job than any other point in your education, so if you’ve spent time in a structured role it can provide you with a good work ethic. If your time in industry adds relevant skills and experience to your application, even better!

I’ve met loads of people older than me who are pursuing PhDs. If it’s your dream, it’s never too late to start a PhD!

What is the social life of a PhD student like?

Let me get this out the way first: PhD students should be able to have a life outside of the lab! If a PhD student has no time away from research I would personally suggest that they were doing things wrong.

Even if you really enjoy your project, it is good for your mental health to have a social life!

No matter the size of your research group there are often departmental and university-wide events. Plus, besides everyone you may meet through your research and department, PhD students can still join societies and sports clubs through the students’ union. I spent one of my birthdays during my PhD on the beach in Morocco with the surf club, don’t let being a PhD student put your off getting involved!

Check out the full post I’ve written: Do PhD Students Have a Social Life? Sharing My Experiences Making Friends and Avoiding PhD Loneliness

If you do go on to do a PhD, make sure to make the most of all the opportunities ! Your time as a PhD student is fantastic for personal growth.

How much holiday do PhD students get?

Sadly unlike undergraduates, PhD students don’t follow fixed semesters. This means no more three month long summer holiday, sorry!

However most departments recommend PhD students take 7-8 weeks of holiday a year , which is more than practically any job outside of academia.

I kept track of all the time off I took during my PhD and you can find the details here , including a month by month breakdown:

Do PhD Students Get Holidays? Sharing How Much Annual Leave I Take

Getting a PhD

How much work is a phd.

For a month I tracked how many hours I was working and what I was working on, so you can see a breakdown of my calendar here . I found I was working for roughly 40 hours a week. Now that I’ve recently finished my PhD, I’d say that that amount of hours was pretty representative of the whole PhD.

How Much Work is a PhD?

I do of course know some people who worked much longer hours, but most PhD students were on a similar schedule to me. Working roughly 9-5 on weekdays. Treat it like a job and you’ll be fine. PhD students don’t need to be slaving away long hours.

I managed to be strict with my time, largely avoiding work late nights or going in at the weekends. One of the main perks of doing a PhD is that you have autonomy and can be flexible with when you work. As long as you get the work done, any reasonable supervisor won’t mind when you’re there.

Yes I’ve heard stories of PhD students having to clock in and out with an expectation that they spend a certain number of hours in the office. I personally think this is stupid and doesn’t build trust. Try to speak to current PhD students from the group when choosing a supervisor .

How is a PhD assessed?

What you submit at the end of your research varies between universities and countries. Sometimes it’s a thesis and other times it can be a bunch of published papers. In all situations you give some kind of presentation and answer questions about your work.

In the UK you usually submit a thesis in preparation for a viva voce . The viva is an oral exam where you discuss your research with several academics and at least one will be an expert in your field. My viva wasn’t as scary as I thought it might be, but nonetheless it was five hours ( FIVE HOURS! ) long. At the end of your viva you’ll get told the outcome of your PhD with any changes to be made to your thesis.

There is often no requirement , to publish your work in journals during a PhD in the UK but it does help.

In other countries you may have to publish a certain number to pass your PhD and effectively these can be submitted instead of the thesis. This approach makes much more sense to me.

How long does it take to get a PhD?

In the UK, typically between three and four years to complete your research and submit the thesis. It can then take a few months for the exam (viva voce) to take place and then for any corrections to the thesis to be made.

Nosey about my PhD? For me personally, I started the PhD on 1st October 2016, submitted my thesis on 17th February 2020, had the viva on 25th March, submitted my minor corrections on 30th March and had the email to say it was officiated on 1st April 2020. Yep, April Fool’s Day…

When you realise your degree certificate will forever say your PhD was awarded on April Fools Day! #academiclife @imperialcollege pic.twitter.com/hKsGFyuc0x — Jeff Clark (@savvy_scientist) April 14, 2020

We cover all the stages of a PhD here, including putting the length of a PhD in the perspective of a whole career:

How Long Does It Take To Get A PhD?

Are PhDs really difficult?

No, well not how you might think.

You don’t need to be a genius, but you do have to be smart with how you work. Here I go into how a PhD is pretty different to all the prior years spent in education:

How Hard is a PhD?

Check out my new post covering academic challenges and failures relating to my own PhD: Overcoming Academic Challenges and Failure During a PhD

Money-Related Questions

How much does a phd cost.

If you have funding, which is explained below, all your fees are paid for by the funding source. If you are looking to self-fund, then you’ll have to pay bench-fees/tuition fees, which are usually approximately £4,000 a year for home students in the UK.

Fees vary massively depending on both the country the PhD work takes place in and where you’re from. For example, I believe Australian universities charge around $100,000 in fees to overseas PhD students. Of course ideally you have funding which covers both this and pays a stipend!

Do PhD students pay taxes?

In the UK, PhD students do not pay income tax, national insurance, council tax and student loan repayments. This means that if you can secure funding, even though you may earn less than friends in typical jobs, you get to keep all your earnings!

Do PhD students get paid?

Most PhDs, at least in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) get a stipend: basically a tax-free salary.

How much do PhD students get paid?

At the time of writing, most PhD students in the UK get around £16,000 a year . Doesn’t sound like a lot, but:

• As mentioned above, you don’t pay income tax, national insurance, council tax or make any student loan repayments. My most popular post is this one , comparing the income of PhD students vs grad jobs and the difference really isn’t that big. Plus it’s only for 3 to 3.5 years!
• You’re getting paid to learn science, working on something you’re really interested in. It’s amazing.
• You have a lot more freedom than practically any “proper job”.
• You’re getting paid, to be a student…

PhD Salary UK: How Much Do PhD Students Get Paid?

In summary, PhD stipends are really not that different to grad starting salaries. Please don’t be put off from a PhD simply because for a few years you might be earning a bit less than if you were working in another job.

Depending on what you want to do with your career, having a CV may lead to higher salaries. What is 3 years of lower wages out of a 40+ year career? The answer: nothing!

Where do I find PhD funding?

Getting funding will likely be the biggest hurdle for you to secure a PhD. I have a post here detailing the different types of funding and how you can find a project with funding attached.

How to Find PhD Funding in the UK

Can you self-fund a PhD?

Yes you can self-fund a PhD, and some students are in a position to do so. Just be careful that you account for university fees and not just your living costs.

Are you allowed to have another job at the same time?

Most universities encourage you to get involved with work within your department as a graduate teaching assistant (GTA). Some countries even insist that you work a certain number of hours as part of a contract for your monthly stipend.

Working as a GTA you might be invigilating exams, helping in tutorials, marking coursework etc and at Imperial you usually earn around £15-£26 an hour.

If you’re looking to work a full time job in tandem with your PhD (and doing the PhD full time), it is best checking your university’s policy. Some may have regulations against you working over a certain number of hours which could impede you from concentrating on the PhD.

There are extra ways to make money on the side which I address here :

How to Earn Money Online for Students

Can you get a mortgage as a PhD student?

Since I did my PhD in London I didn’t even consider buying somewhere during my PhD. I’m not interested in being tied into a massive mortgage for 25 years to buy a shoebox!

If I’d accepted my PhD offer for a CDT at Leeds I certainly would have tried to buy somewhere with my partner. I found this page useful when doing research. Buying a property with a partner who has a normal job would definitely make the mortgage application a whole lot more successful.

Will a PhD help your career?

This depends on what you want to do with your career. Some example scenarios:

• Staying in academia – a PhD is usually required
• Certain technical jobs in industry – a PhD may be required or a big bonus
• Non-technical jobs – a bonus

I do not imagine any scenarios where having a PhD is worse than not having one. It is true though that for certain careers there may be other things you could do which would be a better use of your time, for example gaining more direct work experience.

If you want to do a PhD that shouldn’t stop you though, and considering the length of your career taking a few years out for a PhD is inconsequential.

Whichever career path you fancy taking, if you are at all interested in doing a PhD I think you should at least apply.

PhDs in London

Can someone afford to live in london as a phd student.

Yes! I lived in London for my PhD and actually was able to save money every single month while taking many holidays and not living in a tent.

I have a few posts sharing my experiences living in London which you may find useful:

For a month last year I tracked all my expenses to get an idea of my costs living in London as a student, you can find it here .

Sharing my monthly living expenses as a student in London: September 2019

Related to reducing costs, I learned to cycle in London and loved it. It saved me about £100 a month too!

Learning to cycle in London: my first 1000 miles

On top of that, for the whole of 2019 (third year PhD) I tracked my money, and the report is here :

My personal finances report for 2019

Where is good to live in London?

I’ve lived in three different houses during my PhD in London and have a pretty good idea now of good places to live in London. You can read this whole post talking about living in London as a student and the associated costs including a breakdown of rent :

London student accommodation: Breaking down the cost of living in London for students

Bonus: Read the journeys of PhD students

Before I started my PhD I had a ton of questions and nobody who I could ask about their experience. The reality is that many of these PhD FAQs have a variety of answers as everyone’s PhD story is different. Therefore if you’d like to hear first hand from people who are going through the journey check out my series of PhD profiles , with a new profile every month. You can also discover some of their top tips for applying!

If you’d like personalised help with your PhD application I am now starting to offer a small number of one-to-one sessions. Please contact me to find out more or click here to book a call.

Is there anything else you’d like to know to help with a potential PhD application? Let me know and I’ll write about it! You can subscribe to stay up to date here:

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Related Posts

PhD Salary UK: How Much Do PhD Students Get Paid Compared to Graduates?

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The Benefits of Having a PhD

7th September 2022 30th January 2024

My top PhD regrets: 10 lessons learned by a PhD grad

21st April 2022 25th September 2023

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Full Tutorial: How To Use Mendeley Including The Web Importer & Mendeley Cite

By: Derek Jansen | Reviewer: Dr Eunice Rautenbach | January 2018 (Updated September 2023)

If you’re fumbling about trying to manage citations and references by hand (or using Microsoft Word’s terrible reference manager), please stop now. Here, we’ll show you how to use Mendeley Reference Manager to save a huge amount of time on referencing, while also ensuring it’s 100% correctly formatted , every time. 

What We’ll Cover

• What (exactly) is Mendeley Reference Manager?
• Registering and downloading Mendeley
• The Mendeley Library interface
• How to add resources to your Mendeley Library
• How to manage resources in Mendeley
• How to use Mendeley within Microsoft Word
• Ask your questions …

What (exactly) is Mendeley?

Let’s start by quickly addressing two important starting questions – namely, “ What is Mendeley? ” and “ Why should you even use it? ”.

Simply put, Mendeley is a fantastic free tool that makes the task of referencing a lot easier – and infinitely more accurate. Essentially, you load up the reference information into Mendeley just once, and then Mendeley makes sure that all of your in-text citations, as well as your reference list are perfectly formatted according to your university’s required referencing system – for example, APA, Harvard, etc.

In a nutshell, Mendeley takes care of the tiresome and error-prone task of managing and formatting citations and references , saving you loads of time and ensuring that it’s all done with 100% accuracy – which is near impossible if you try to do it manually. If you’re undertaking any sort of academic writing, you need to get comfy with Mendeley , pronto! This is especially true if you’re writing a longer-format piece such as a dissertation or thesis .

Downloading & Registering Mendeley

The first thing you’ll need to do is register a Mendeley account . This is free and takes just a minute to complete. You can register by visiting the Mendeley site here .

The next thing you’ll need to do is add the Mendeley Web Importer to your browser (for example, Chrome or Firefox). The web importer is a browser plugin that allows you to quickly add web-based resources to your Mendeley library. I’ll show you how to use this a little later in the video, but for now, you just need to add the web importer to your browser – you can access that here .

Last but certainly not least, you’ll need to get the Mendeley Cite plugin . This plugin is what connects Mendeley (or more specifically, all the reference data you’ll have in your Mendeley Library) with Microsoft Word , which you’ll use to write up your work. Again, this is a free plugin and you can access it here .

At this point, you might be thinking “Well, what about the desktop app?”. If you’d like to use the desktop application to manage your Mendeley library, you’re most welcome to, but we’ve found the web version to be just as good. The web version also ensures that all of your reference data are always perfectly synchronised on the cloud, so there’s no risk of synchronisation issues. All that said, there’s no problem if you want to use the desktop version – everything we cover here will still be relevant 🙂

The Mendeley Interface

Now that we have all the puzzle pieces in place, let’s look at the main interface, so that you can understand what each section does and how to get the most out of Mendeley.

The “home base” of Mendeley is what’s called the “ Library ”. You can access that here , or just click the “Library” button in the top right corner of the main Mendeley site. The Library area is where you will manage all of the reference data. On the left-hand side, you’ll see a selection of options. The first section is essentially a set of filters, providing different ways in which you can sift through your reference data. Most commonly, you’ll use the “ All references ” option, but you can also view recently added references, favourites and so on.

The next section is the collections section. Collections are essentially folders in which you can place related papers in whichever organisation system you like. For example, if your study involves analysing four key variables, you might have a collection for each variable. Or if you’re looking at an issue through different disciplinary lenses, you might have a collection for each lens. 

Continuing down, the final section is the groups section. Groups allow you to share references and collaborate with up to 25 people . This is useful, for example, if you’re working on a group research project and want to share reference info between group members.

 Moving to the top of the page, you’ll see a button labelled Notebook . The notebook is a space where you can jot down any general notes you want to make. These notes are called “Pages” in Mendeley, and it’s important to note that they’re not directly linked to any specific reference . Therefore, this is a useful place to add general thoughts that you can revisit later. If you do want to make notes that are specific to a resource , you can do that using a feature called “ annotations ”, which we’ll look at in the next section.

How To Add References To Mendeley

The first thing you’ll need to do is to add your actual reference data to Mendeley. This is the least exciting part for most students, but the good news is that Mendeley offers quite a few options in this regard.

Option 1: Adding reference data manually

Manually adding reference data is Mendeley is the slowest and most time-intensive route, but it’s useful to discuss it first so that you can see exactly what information Mendeley captures .

To add a resource manually, click the “Add new” button, followed by “Add entry manually”. As you can see, Mendeley then allows you to manually enter all the key information such as the author, date, title and so on. One thing to notice is that depending on the type of resource , the available fields within Mendeley will change . For example, if you select “Television broadcast”, the fields will be different from that of a journal article or a patent.

A useful thing to note here is that you can fast-track this process by using an “ identifier ”. For example, you can search for a DOI or Pubmed ID and it will auto-populate the info.

Option 2: Upload a PDF

The second way to add reference data to Mendeley is to upload the PDF article . Naturally, this is only useful if you have a PDF copy of the resource, and if it is a journal article. For the most part, when you upload a journal article PDF, Mendeley will be able to auto-populate the fields , which will save you the time and effort of filling it in yourself (although it’s always a good idea to double-check this automated data).

The main benefit of using this method is that it means Mendeley will include a copy of the PDF within the Mendeley interface , which makes it easy for you to access the article whenever needed. This approach will also allow you to make highlighted annotations and notes within the article itself. Of course, I’ll show you how to do this in the next section.

Option 3: Use the Mendeley Web Importer

The next way to add reference info to Mendeley is to use the Web Importer, which is the browser plugin we installed earlier. To use the Web Importer, simply visit the URL for any given resource (e.g., a news article, or a journal article within an academic database) and then click the Mendeley icon up in the top right . From there, you can easily add the resource to your library, or you can put it into a specific collection or group.

When using the Mendeley Web importer, it’s always a good idea to double-check the imported info, as this isn’t always perfect. You can do so by clicking the little pencil icon in the importer window, or by editing the information in the library at a later stage. This is particularly important when you’re using the web importer to add general webpages (i.e., non-academic resources), as there will often be some missing information that needs to be included.

Option 4: Use Mendeley’s search engine

The final option is to use Mendeley’s own search engine . Mendeley Search is similar to Google Scholar in terms of functionality, meaning that you can simply enter the name of the journal article that you want to add and then add it to your library with one click.

You can also use Mendeley Search to find relevant journal articles by entering a keyword . This is particularly useful for finding resources as Mendeley Search often allows you to get access to the full article in PDF format, which is great.

Last but not least, it’s worth noting that if you are currently using  different reference management software and want to move over to Mendeley, that’s completely doable. Just click the “Add new” button, followed by “Import Library”. Mendeley allows you to import Bibtex, Endnote and RIS files, which you should be able to extract from most mainstream reference management packages.

How Manage Your Mendeley Library

Now that we’ve added our reference info to Mendeley, let’s talk about how you can manage your library effectively. Mendeley offers a few different options to help you organise and manage all of your resources.

Mendeley Favourites

You can mark any resource as a favourite by clicking the little star next to the author’s name. By doing this, you’ll be able to shortlist your favourites by selecting the “Favorites” option on the left menu. This functionality is pretty basic, but it can be useful if you want to quickly access a small group of key articles .

Mendeley Tags

The next option, which is a little more sophisticated, is tags . Essentially, you can create as many different tags as you like and then mark up any given resource with the relevant tag (or multiple tags). Once you’ve tagged your resources, you can use the “Filter” option in the top right corner to quickly view all the articles using the respective tag. 

Mendeley Collections

Another bit of functionality to be aware of is collections . As we mentioned earlier, collections are much like folders, which means that you can use collections to group resources into certain themes , methodologies, variables, and so on.

To create a collection, just click the “New Collection” section and enter a name, and then you can just drag and drop the relevant resources into the collection. It’s worth pointing out that all of your resources will always be visible in the “All References” section, so don’t worry about not being able to remember which collection you dropped a resource into.

Mendeley Groups

Mendeley’s Groups functionality allows you to share reference information with your colleagues , which can be super useful for collaborative projects.

To make use of this, start by selecting “New Group”. From there, click the three-dot menu and select “Manage group” to add members to the group. To add references to the group, return to the “All references” section and drag and drop the relevant references into the group. Again, don’t worry about this action moving your references out of your library – any reference that you share with a group will still be accessible in your library .

Notes & Annotations

Last but not least, let’s look at the notebook function. The Mendeley’s Notebook area is a flexible space, where you can make general notes that are not specific to any given resource .

To create a note (or what Mendeleys refers to as a “page”), click the Notebook button, followed by “New Page”. Once you’ve created a note, it will “live” in your Mendeley library, but you can also export your notes as RTF files , which are text files that you can open using any Word processor. This is useful if you want to print your notes at some point or store them somewhere else.

Within the notes section, you’ll also notice an option called “ Annotations ”, which allows you to make notes about specific resources . This can be very useful for jotting down insights or key takeaways for each resource . To use annotations, just select the resource you want to make an annotation for, then click the “annotations” tab and enter your notes.

How To Use Mendeley In Word

Now that we’ve looked at how to add and manage your reference data within Mendeley, it’s time to get to the most important part – using Mendeley within your actual Word document. In this tutorial, I’m using Microsoft’s online version of Word, but the layout and process will be much the same if you’re using the desktop version.

The first thing you’ll need to do is open the Mendeley Cite plugin within Word. You can find that over in the references tab (or sometimes the “add-ins” tab). Once you’ve done that, you’ll see that you have a mini-version of your Mendeley library within Word on the right-side bar.

Next, you’ll need to set the citation style for your document , for example, APA , MLA , etc. To do this, just click on the “Citation settings” tab, and then hit “Change citation style”. You can then select whichever style your university requires. If you don’t see the required style in this list, you can search for more styles by clicking the button titled “Search for another style” down at the bottom.

Once that’s all set, you can return to the “References” section within the Mendeley tab (i.e., the default section) and get to work adding citations to your document.

To add an in-text citation, simply place your cursor where you want the citation added , and then select the relevant resource by ticking it, after which you can hit the “Insert” button. If you want to add multiple references to a citation, simply tick the relevant resources and off you go.

To create a reference list (or what Mendeley refers to as a bibliography), all you need to do is head over to the section of your document where you want to place the list and then click the three-dot menu in the Mendeley plugin, followed by “ Insert bibliography ”. Mendeley then does all the hard work for you.

As you can see, Mendeley generates a complete reference list , based on the resources you’ve cited in your document. This list is perfectly formatted according to the style you specified earlier, which saves you a huge amount of time . As long as you’ve captured the reference information correctly when you added the resource to Mendeley, you can rest assured that this reference list is 100% accurate.

The only thing you may still need to do is set the line spacing , based on your university or department’s requirements. To do this, highlight your entire reference list and select the line spacing icon in Word’s formatting menu.

Have A Question?

In this tutorial, we’ve covered the core functionality you need to know about to get the most out of Mendeley. If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment.

Please keep in mind that while we try to help as much as we can, we cannot provide technical support for Mendeley. If something isn’t working the way it should be, please contact Mendeley support here.

Psst… there’s more (for free)

This post is part of our dissertation mini-course, which covers everything you need to get started with your dissertation, thesis or research project. 

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19 Comments

I am impressed with Mendeley’s offering.

Awesome! Thank you! Definitely won’t be manually entering each reference anymore for my MSc thesis!

Pleasure, Gitte!

I want to download literature review Excel

Thank very much Derek . You have greatly helped me. God bless you indeed. Thanks

You’re welcome 🙂

All thanks and appreciation to you

Thank you so much for all this invaluable GradCoach info, all the articles are on point it will make our live much easier.

Thank you Derek. Information you shared was helpful.

Great explanation – thank you! Is it possible to change the referencing style at the end of write-up? If so, how does one do this. Thanks again

RE: your video: Good short & to the point. I’ve ADHD & get bored within litterally seconds if the person presenting hasn’t got on with the point. This is key to ADHD people so will recommend you to others.

RE: my question: Does Medeley allow you split the reference docs into sections for the different areas of research I’m doing eg fungi, soil, bacteria, viruses etc?

Thanks in advance

Thank you! Helped with my bachelor

Hello, could you please tell me how to generate the code for “&” in the field “Citation”. For example: the code in the field “citation” is “CITATION Haw15 \l 1029 ” for “(Hawkins, a další, 2015)”. I need the citation in the form “Hawkins & Byrne 2015”

Thanks Derek for all the coaching. It’s a huge help for the literature review I’m doing. Tried to follow the steps from your video but the literature search function is not showing on my mendeley desktop. Did I miss a step in downloading it? I was able to download the reference manager and it was fine but I am a bit stuck with the mendeley desktop? Is there a separate video that shows the steps how to download the mendeley desktop?

I followed your video, however, what version of Mendeley has a Literature search, I cant find it in the Mendeley I installed.

Good day Derek. I’m a PhD student and have just listened to your videos, which are awesome! Thank you so much. I am also a Mendeley fan. However, I find it limiting in some aspects. Do you have any knowledge about how to use Mendeley with cloud storage and also using a cloud-based “Watch folder”? Thank you in advance.

I just want to say thanks so much. I had this software recommended to me from Uni and once I had downloaded it all I didn’t understand how it worked. After your video I now totally get it and this is going to make life so much easier. So thanks again.

how to put website citation and reference

How I should recover the icons missed from the taskbar, it’s already installed. now Mendeley is not visible

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Informatics Help Desk

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What: Obtaining accurate error bars on a model's predictive performance is necessary to establishing a model's performance. We'll introduce a technique for establishing and assessing the quality of a model's error bars to more confidently make new predictions.

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Speaker: Dr. Benjamin Afflerbach

What: An introduction to common steps in a research workflow to start with a new dataset and end up with a trained and assessed machine learning model. We'll introduce ideas for data cleaning, featurization, a common first model to try (random forests), model assessment, optimization, and making predictions. The activity will use scikit-learn as the primary ML software package, and is entirely cloud based so you do not need to do any prep to install anything before or during the activity. If you'd like to preview the content or work through independently you can find the resource hosted on Nanohub at the link below.

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When: Nov. 30th at 9:30 am central time. The planned introductory presentation will take ~15 minutes.

Help Desk Volunteers

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Ben is a postdoc in the Computational Materials Science group at UW-Madison. His work includes using machine learning models to predict materials properties and he helps manage the undergraduate research group the Informatics Skunkworks

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Simon is an engineer at Penn State University. He assists researchers across disciplines in leveraging  deep learning and gaussian processes.

Logan Ward , Phd

Logan Ward is a staff scientist at Argonne National Laboratory's Data Science and Learning Division. Logan has a decade of experience in implementing materials informatics methods including both classic and deep-learning techniques. He is also an active developer on many open-source Python libraries for data management and scientific computing.

This resource  supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. (2017072) and Grant No. (2020243). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. 

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