The focus of this article is on the written feedback that supervisors say they often give their second language (L2) doctoral students. Little is known about the focus of this feedback and about what supervisors consider as priorities in the early draft writing of dissertation chapters. Given the potentially different priorities and foci of supervisors in different disciplines and different contexts (Bitchener, Basturkmen, & East, 2010), this article reports the findings of an investigation into the content focus of the written feedback that 30 Applied Linguistics supervisors in New Zealand and Australian universities said they provide on early drafts of dissertation chapters. All supervisors completed a questionnaire and 26 were interviewed. Two broad areas of concern are identified: subject knowledge, coverage and argument; and aspects of the writing that need to be edited in some way. The article closes with recommendations for further research and suggestions for pedagogical application.