Organic Chemistry...Have you taken it...I am an average student who is extremely scared of this class!!?

Question

I am a sophomore in college with an unknown major....I have been leaning towards Biology, Zoology or Conservation. I am an average student so I want to pick the one which will suit me best. I am most scared of Organic Chemistry 1 & 2 and the labs. These classes are required for all of the majors I listed. I am a committed student, but how well do you think an average student could do in these classes? Thank you

Answer 1

For starters, don't be scared. Many students have taken and passed Organic Chemistry classes.

If you're a committed student - as you say you are - you should have no problems passing Organic Chemistry and doing "average" in them.

I'm a Ph.D. Organic Chemist and when I was in graduate school, I had to teach undergraduate Organic Chemistry students (both lab and lecture). The one thing that differentiated those who did well vs. those who did not do well was their ability to STAY ON TOP of the material...those who let their notes slide and didn't keep up got buried. Those who kept up with their notes on a daily basis and never fell behind did well. That's my advice.

Answer 2

Organic Chemistry is a BEAR of a class. I was a Biology major as an undergrad and let's just say I took it more than once. I was also an average to above average student (3.3 GPA). The second time around though I made sure I was taking easier classes the same semester and I did my my research on which professor to take.

Make sure you have plenty of time to dedicate to the class and aren't side tracked with other tough classes that take valuable study time away. If you can do well in Organic 1 the second follow up class should be easier. Good luck and don't decide your major just on what classes are easier. Also, last time I checked Bio, Zoo, or Conservation majors don't make much or climb the work ladder well unless they go unto graduate school, like I did.

Answer 3

I'll tell you one thing for sure, any human being can get at least a B if not an A in organic chemistry. The difference is how easy it is. Some people will sit in class (or skip class and read the book), get it the first time through, and breeze through the class. Other people have to go to class, read the book, go to office hours, work through extra problems, etc. Whatever you have to do to get the grade, just do it.

Graduate programs, medical schools, etc. love looking at people's organic chemistry grades for the exact reason I stated above. Unlike some very abstract fields, e.g. quantum mechanics, organic chemistry is pretty practical, and so most people can get it. In life, it doesn't matter whether you have to work a little or a lot to get something done, as long as you get it done. In medical school, for example, you have to memorize a ton of information. If you read the book once and that's all you need, great. If you need to read the book five times, then read it five times, because the only thing that matters in the end is that you've memorized the book.

In almost every college and university they have a lot of resources, and especially for classes like organic chemistry. In addition to the professor's and the TA's office hours, you can often go to other TA's office hours (maybe they're clearer in their explanation), often there are free tutoring places on campus, in the dorms, many undergraduate organizations and fraternities/sororities keep files of old tests (you don't need to be in one, just have one friend who is). There are a lot of resources out there.

So what organic chemistry will do is test your commitment. I will tell you this: don't fall behind. Playing catch up is hard. In terms of basic concepts that will help you, thinking of things as acids/bases, electrophiles/nucleophiles will help you a lot. Good luck.

Answer 4

I didn't like either of these classes very much. That being said, organic I is not that bad. It's hard at first to get used to the nomenclature, but then you learn some reaction steps to make syntheses and that can be kind of cool. Organic II follows up on that, learning more reactions, but you also do spectroscopy which I really liked. As for the labs, it depends on what's expected of you there. In my case it was pretty straightforward, but I've definitely heard otherwise. Don't count yourself out just yet. Believe me, you will have much harder things to do later down the line, this coming from a bio major. Good luck!

Answer 5

The first thing is to know about your instructor. You can go to www.ratemyprofessor.com to see if any of the OChem teachers are listed at your specific school.

Don't try to take the easy teacher because they can't teach. Having a good teacher is the basic foundation of passing your class.

Once you find a good teacher based on what other student have said, you need to go to class everyday. Missing a day or two will put you behind.

Always do your homework. When a teacher assigns homework, that's usually the type of questions on the exams.

Form a study group within your class. Teaching others and learning from other will give you a better grade.

I can't stress how important it is to do your homework.

This is fun but challenging class. Good luck.

Answer 6

I've always thought of organic as a "feminine" science. The naming of the compounds is like a language. In fact, it's a few languages. Imagine going to India and having to get a rough knowledge of Hindi, Tamil, Gujarati to get around. Just remember that a Hindi speaker might be uncomfortable if you throw in some Tamil words. Part of it is systematic: root words, prefixes, suffixes. Part of it is arbitrary: It's called that because it's called that, so deal with it. As in any language, don't get behind.

The reactions can be part of a chess or other board game. You learn the moves, then you solve puzzles like the chess columns in newspapers. Beginning here, how would you get to there?

The labs are like a kitchen. I know the head of a company Columbia Organics, which makes organic chemicals to sell to research labs. He says he asks job applicants, mostly men, "Do you like to cook?" If they do, they'll probably have a knack for organic lab. There's a certain satisfaction in making something pure and handing it in. Also, you see that some of those reactions your learn in lecture really work.

You'll come out of it with an understanding of the chemistry of life, plastics, rubber, textiles, drugs, dyes, the chemicals that make the headlines,.

Answer 7

No need to worry. Yes they are tough classes, but if you are willing to study daily and not miss class, you will do fine. One suggestion is create or join a good study group. I'm sure you will have meet several of the students in your organic class in other classes that you have had. Read the textbook before class and study your notes after class. Work the problems in each chapter.

Answer 8

Organic chemistry is COOL.

Read a bit about Carbon and how its 4 valence electrons make it suitable for being the basis of all organic life and it will whet your appetite for the classes.

You should be fine.

Answer 9

i took this subject this course it is not bad but some things require alot of memorising i recommend u read the biochemistry book for Timerlake it is extremely beneficial and GOOD LUCK dont worry its easy coz i am also an average student

Answer 10

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