The purpose of this study was to explore the note-taking preferences of students enrolled in an undergraduate general chemistry course. Note-taking is known to have positive effects on learning, and the age of technology presents new avenues by which students may choose to take notes. In addition, chemistry is a domain that uses a variety of symbols and non-verbal representations, which may make note-taking a challenge for students. This was a three-phase study, where focus groups, individual interviews, and a survey were used to understand how students take notes, decide what information to record, use instructional supports during note-taking, and incorporate representations into their notes. The results indicate that students make purposeful decisions about their note-taking that they believe will help them reach their goal(s) of learning the material and/or passing the course. The results are framed in a self-regulatory framework through which note-taking preferences can be further explored.