ACS Orgo Final...what are my chances?

[Puchinita5]

Hi everyone.

So I found out I need to get a 56% on the ACS final to keep my A in the class.
(not 56th percentile, i just need to 56% of the questions correct).

I have heard from some people it is extremely hard and some people that it is extremely easy.

I got an A in organic 1. I currently have a low A in organic 2. I should be able to AT LEAST get a 56% right???? i mean, its not soooo hard that I could possibly do worse than that?

I'm a bit paranoid. I'm sort of famous for ruining grades at the last minute.
LOL

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[Danlee07]

You're definitely straight for O Chem... at least maybe it was because my teacher actually finished all the material we needed to know in a timely manner and I studied it

When I had it for Gen Chem, that was horrible. We rushed 5 chapters in 2 lectures just for the ACS and yeah, I think everyone failed miserably.

 

[BJJ]

I'm not sure about organic, but for gen chem the average is usually around a 50 for the ACS. I studied pretty hard and somehow managed an 81, so I think as long as you know BASIC/GENERAL concepts you should be ok. The ACS stresses that you should know the basics as opposed to the tough problems. Good Luck!

 

[87DO15]

When I took it, there was a review book available specifically for the ACS (AOCS?) organic exam, which was all you really needed to know. Get through the book in a couple of weeks, and you'll be fine. I believe the ACS sells (or used to sell) old exams for practice, which serve as good practice questions.

http://www.examsinstitute.com/Organic-Chemistry-Study-Guide_p_9.html

That's what the book looks like, but if your school is using the ACS exam, I'd imagine they probably sell them at the bookstore or something. I remember I needed somewhere in the low 60s to keep an A, and I managed to pull it off...as the other guy said, know the basics, and I think you'll be fine.

 

[HakunaMatata22]

Hi everyone.

So I found out I need to get a 56% on the ACS final to keep my A in the class.
(not 56th percentile, i just need to 56% of the questions correct).

I have heard from some people it is extremely hard and some people that it is extremely easy.

I got an A in organic 1. I currently have a low A in organic 2. I should be able to AT LEAST get a 56% right???? i mean, its not soooo hard that I could possibly do worse than that?

I'm a bit paranoid. I'm sort of famous for ruining grades at the last minute.
LOL

It's going to depend on the rigor and content of your organic chemistry class. You're completely right when you say there are a range of feelings towards it. Personally, I found it much MUCH easier than my normal exams. All in all, put in the time studying, know your stuff, and you'll be fine. Your As speak for themselves in showing that you have a grasp on the material. Do what you've been doing all along and I'm sure you'll be fine!

 

[Reticent]

I can't speak for your O-chem class of course, but for me the ACS exam was SO much easier than the other exams that people actually left the exam hall giddy and laughing. Several classmates scored perfects on it.

 

[avion321]

Compared to my orgo class, I though the ACS was easy. After going through it once, I still had over half my time left. I made myself go through it a second time because I thought I had rushed to much (I did not).
My school also sold the review books, and that was a great study tool, since the format of the test was very different than my normal tests.

 

[waterpolo480586]

I took the ACS test as part of my final for O-chem 2 and got a 95% on the test. I found the test much easier than any of the exams that I had taken during the rest of the year. I believe our class average on the ACS was an 84% as compared to a 71% on regular tests our prof gave out. Make sure you know your stereochemistry well because the ACS test that I took emphasized that really heavily.

 

[calvnandhobbs68]

Agree it will totally depend on the rigor of your orgo class. I can tell you that at my school they actually stopped giving the test the year I took orgo because everyone would do so well on it. They would count it towards one of our tests but the discrepancy between the percentage on that test and our tests was so wide that it would mess up the grading. People were really pissed off because that used to be the test that you could actually get a decent grade on...as opposed to the 50-60% that were the average for our tests

 

[Monocles]

I thought the ACS final was brutal for org, but then again I started studying for it two days before I took it. I definitely recommend getting the study guide and doing the practice problems. The format is very similar and covers just about all the materials on the actual test.

 

[apumic]

It's all conceptual. Pretty easy, I'd say, but it really depends on the person. Obviously, it must not be that easy or that hard b/c it's on a bell-curve. A 56% shouldn't be too bad. I believe avg is around a 50%.

 

[patel2]

When I took it, there was a review book available specifically for the ACS (AOCS?) organic exam, which was all you really needed to know. Get through the book in a couple of weeks, and you'll be fine. I believe the ACS sells (or used to sell) old exams for practice, which serve as good practice questions.

http://www.examsinstitute.com/Organic-Chemistry-Study-Guide_p_9.html

That's what the book looks like, but if your school is using the ACS exam, I'd imagine they probably sell them at the bookstore or something. I remember I needed somewhere in the low 60s to keep an A, and I managed to pull it off...as the other guy said, know the basics, and I think you'll be fine.

this. I remember taking it and the test literally repeats questions from the book...the makers really are that lazy. Or they may change an answer choice or two but have the exact same question stem, and the same "trick" answers.

It's an easy test regardless, assuming you had a organic chem class that wasn't unusually easy. Either way, if you don't want to leave anything to chance, just get the book.

 

[TooMuchResearch]

It's going to depend on the rigor and content of your organic chemistry class. You're completely right when you say there are a range of feelings towards it. Personally, I found it much MUCH easier than my normal exams. All in all, put in the time studying, know your stuff, and you'll be fine. Your As speak for themselves in showing that you have a grasp on the material. Do what you've been doing all along and I'm sure you'll be fine!

I don't remember any organic chemistry, but I do remember that the ACS organic final was way easier than every other exam in the class.

As to those saying the average on that exam is around 50%, I believe you mean that that the scaled average is a 50% (i.e. the middle of the curve). The actual median exam score could be a 92% or a 7%, and the scaled average would still be 50%.

 

[tabascosauce]

op: good luck on the final. do good. so pay attention ok plz? k?

 

[Shakespeare37]

ACS designs the ACS tests so the national average is a 50%. If you have an A (even a low A) going into the final, you should be fine. It also depends on your school.... this is SDN and the HARDCORE students post here.... I'm not surprised at the number of students on this thread that crushed it. That said, crazy sh** can happen: A kid passed out during my O-Chem II ACS and I (being one of the few in the room with actual medical experience) took care of him until paramedics showed up and took him off my hands. I got no extra time and had to finish. I did fine (80th percentile I think), but study anyway, with the review book. Life will throw serious curveballs at you.

 

[Beta Cell]

Yeah, it's not too bad at all. 56% is easy with some work. If you have to take the ACS DUCK, it's a joke. I don't remember the percentiles for the orgo exam, but a 53/60 on the DUCK is the "100th percentile" (still don't exactly know how 53-60 mean you are the best). That exam covers all of undergrad chemistry and I got a 58/60. You should be fine. ACS exams aren't hard.

 

[raltima07]

ACS designs the ACS tests so the national average is a 50%. If you have an A (even a low A) going into the final, you should be fine. It also depends on your school.... this is SDN and the HARDCORE students post here.... I'm not surprised at the number of students on this thread that crushed it. That said, crazy sh** can happen: A kid passed out during my O-Chem II ACS and I (being one of the few in the room with actual medical experience) took care of him until paramedics showed up and took him off my hands. I got no extra time and had to finish. I did fine (80th percentile I think), but study anyway, with the review book. Life will throw serious curveballs at you.

Your a beast