How to Take and Print PowerPoint Notes on the iPad

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Learn how to take and print PowerPoint notes on the iPad using the Notability app! The blog post explains how to import the notes to Notability and how to use the Apple pencil to draw in the presentation. 

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

To take college notes on my iPad, I use the Notability app, the iPad Pro, and the apple pencil. You can follow the same steps using the app GoodNotes, ZoomNotes, and Metamoji. Android and Windows users try the app Xodo, Metamoji, and EzPDF.

Use the table of content below to jump to a specific part in the tutorial:

Note-Taking Tutorials:

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How to Export the PowerPoint Notes to the iPad

  1. On your computer, open the PowerPoint file

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

2. If your teacher’s power point has a colorful background, like the one on the image below, I recommend change the background to a white color. To do this click on the design tab > select the office theme.

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

Now your whole powerpoint presentation is in a black and white format.

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

3. Scroll thru the powerpoint slides to make sure all the text is clear. If you find some words with a yellow color, change the color to red or black.

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

4. You can also increase the font of the text. Sometimes when you transfer it to the iPad or if you print the handout, some of the words are small.

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

5. We are going to convert the power point into an outline. In the toolbar, select “File” > print or (command + print).

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

6. Click on “layout” > handouts (3 slides per page).

Note: It is up to you if you want to keep the black frames around the text. I personally prefer to remove them, as not having them makes note-taking easier on the iPad. For this tutorial, I’m going to leave the frames around the text.

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

7. Once you have selected the 3 slides per page, at the bottom of the window select PDF > Open PDF in preview.

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

8. This is how your PDF will look like when you transfer it to the iPad app:How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

If you like the way the PDF looks that’s awesome, but I like to take advantage of the whole page. I’m going to increase the scale of the PDF file.

Click file > print > scale to 115 or 120 >

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

select PDF at the bottom of the window > Open PDF in a preview window.

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

Now you can see the text bigger and you won’t waste space.

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

9. Save the file in your favorite cloud folder: In the toolbar, click on “File” > export.

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes

How to PowerPoint Notes iPad, PowerPoint College Notes, PowerPoint School Notes


How to Take PowerPoint Notes on the iPad

Open your saved PDF outline in your favorite note-taking app.

how to use notability, iPad note taking, school college note taking iPad, college school notes

If you teacher posts his video lecture and transcript of the lecture online, put them both on one screen. While you are listening to the lecture you can read the transcript and take notes at the same time.

how to use notability, iPad note taking, school college note taking iPad, college school notes


  1. If some of the pictures in the outline are too small to see or to write on here is a quick trick:

how to use notability, iPad note taking, school college note taking iPad, college school notes

Go to your powerpoint file in your storage cloud (I personally prefer DropBox). Find the slide of the image you need.

how to use notability, iPad note taking, school college note taking iPad, college school notes

Select the image and save it to camera roll or take a screen shot of the image that you need.

how to use notability, iPad note taking, school college note taking iPad, college school notes

Insert the saved image into your outline

how to use notability, iPad note taking, school college note taking iPad, college school notes

Depending on the app you use, you can crop and edit the image before inserting it in the document.

how to use notability, iPad note taking, PowerPoint Notes, school college note taking iPad, college school notes

Click here is you want to learn how to efficiently type and draw school notes on the iPad.


  1. Here is a preview of how my notes look like on the iPad:

how to use notability, iPad note taking, PowerPoint Notes, school college note taking iPad, college school notes

how to use notability, iPad note taking, PowerPoint Notes, school college note taking iPad, college school notes

how to use notability, iPad note taking, PowerPoint Notes, school college note taking iPad, college school notes

If you want to learn about digital planners and bullet journaling join my Facebook group! Readers from all over the world share their bullet journal layouts and digital layouts. It’s amazing to see and learn from other people that share a common interest.

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3 Comments

  1. Wow! I never knew that you could do any of this…but I’ve already been more of a paper note-taker. Thanks for the ideas!

  2. OMG, thanks you so much for this trick, I needed it! By the way, what is the note-taking app you’re using?