Phrases for academic style presentations

Here are some useful phrases. This is not a definitive list and you could do some research
yourself and pick up more. Just be careful as some websites will give you business style
phrases that can be a little informal. If you are not sure check with your tutor.
1. The opening
Good morning, afternoon. My name is…and………
(You can say -Let me introduce my group members..and then give their names or they can
do this when they start their section)
This is our group presentation on ……..
Our group (I am going to) will/is going to present the topic of………..
The purpose of our (my) presentation is to…………….
The focus of this presentation is…….
2. Providing a map

• In my (our) presentation I’ll (we’ll) focus on three major issues.

• This presentation is structured as follows....

Sequencing phrases (Can be used as part of the map and or as part of a section of a group
presentation)

3. My first point concerns...

4. First of all, I’d like to give you an overview of....
5. Next, I’ll focus on.....and then we’ll consider....
6. Then I’ll go on to highlight what I see as the main points of....
7. Finally, I’d like to address the problem of.....
8. Finally, I’d like to raise briefly the issue of...

Starting a section

So, let me start* by explaining/introducing/giving some background information on……

Lets start/ let me begin by/ first of all…….

In this section I am going to…

I would like to give you a brief overview of……….

Moving to a new point

Secondly……..Then/next

A further point is that………..

You can use any conjunctions that are appropriate, just as in a written text, as long as they
are used strategically. Always think about their purpose.

However, furthermore, moreover…….

Giving examples

Why not use -for example, for instance

But you can also say things like:

An example of this is…

You will see on the slide an example of…

Make sure that you do refer to what you have put on the slides

Summarising a section

So, to summarise this section…….

To conclude (this section)…………..

Passing on to the next speaker in your group

(Name of next speaker) will now/is going to talk about…………

Picking up where someone else has left off

Thank you…(name of last speaker). I am now going to talk about………