are Chem I & II difficult?

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dianer

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Do I need a lot of time with these 2 chem classes? I will also take english and speech this summer. Being a mother of a baby of 19 months old, I hope I can handle both baby and classes:laugh:

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Chem 1 was easy. Chem 2, imo was difficult. The content wasn't that bad, but I did have a bit of trouble with acid-base reactions and solubilities. I had to study a lot, just working and re-working as many questions as possible. It was very time consuming.
 
I agree Chem II was more difficult, but that could all depend on what you like and the prof you get. The amount of time you need is going to depend on you a lot, and again the prof. Hard to predict that. I honestly didn't spend too much time on either semester, but the profs I had were some of the easier ones at my university. I would say that if you are taking all four classes this summer, that's probably going to be a tough load especially if you are taking labs and not to mention the baby.
 
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4 summer classes and a baby?
If I were you I would drop one or two classes because summer school is more intense. Not to say it can't be done. I admire you for being brave. But I don't even have kids and I wouldn't take on that kind of load myself in the summer. Just me.
 
I did not think either one was extremely difficult. I though chem I was easy, and didn't require a lot of time outside of class. I did not think chem II was hard, but it did require a lot time outside of class practicing problems. There is a lot of math in chem II. The concepts are not difficult, but you can get bogged down with the calculations if you do not practice, practice, practice.
 
I second the idea that it wasn't all that hard, but then again, I'm a chem major. Organic, on the other hand, is another beast to contend with.
 
Chem I is mostly a do-you-understand-the-concepts of chemistry.

Chem II is a lot more math, therefore takes quite a bit more studying in my opinion.

Sciences classes usually take more study time than your speech and English courses so I would drop one or two for the summer.
 
if you compare to organic chemistry then its a piece of cake...lol
 
if you compare to organic chemistry then its a piece of cake...lol

Not really

I got an A in Ochem 1, but B and B+ in Gen Chem

I freaking hated gen chem but yes Gen Chem II is a bit more harder but its mostly math problems and once you get the basic way of how to manipulate variables i think you're set and oh yeh understanding acid,base,and buffers and if you're taking PCAT make sure to go over nuclear concept of chemistry because my class never got to that yet its on the PCAT
 
I had a really hard Chem II class, I would say it was harder than either of my Organic classes. (I took Chem II in the summer also).
 
It all really depends on if you're a math/science person. If you aren't, then the more advanced course will probably be a bit more of a struggle for you, especially with so much else going on. It's all about discipline. :)
 
They weren't too awful as semester courses, though they did require a LOT of work at my university (I went to Purdue, and the class was taken by engineering and pharm majors so it was a weed-out for two difficult majors). As with anything, it really depends on the instructor, and on you. We had a chem office full of grad students to help us, and I utilized these tutors pretty much every week, which helped a lot.

I would not recommend taking it as a summer course with anything else. I wouldn't take any science class with any other class in the summer - it's just too intense and you won't be able to retain the material. I might not even take it as a summer course at all - you might be able to get an A, but it will be harder to really learn the information and retain it for the PCAT. Stick to easy stuff like communications classes in the summer, if you can.
 
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Chem 1 entails alot of conversions and the use of simple formulas and some basic reaction knowledge. Chem 2 requires alot more critical thought, and requires alot of the same methods used in Chem 1 conversions but there are alot of different concepts and mathemetical formulas. The material keeps on building up so don't get too far behind (or at all).
 
Thanks for everyone's opinion. I decided take only Chem1&2 this summer. 2 As (I hope) is better than 4 Cs. On the other hand, baby is more important than anything else. I should spend more time with him.
 
I am glad you posted this because I'm taking Gen Chem 1 in the fall and was wondering about how it might be. I also have kids, one is 3 and the other is 18 months old. So I can fully relate to wondering how hard things will be with kids on top of everything else! Hope it goes well for you!
 
I'm taking chem 1 this semester too, returning student after 7yrs, cant wait
 
I just finished General Chemistry I w/Lab and it was okay. The only tricky thing to learn was the enthalpy (sp?) That's going to require alot of practice, but other than that it was okay. I'm also taking General Chemistry II w/ Lab this summer, so pray for me! :eek:
 
chem 1 is definitely wayyyyy easy. chem 2 is also not that bad.

i think if youre not that familiar with chemistry, both chem 1 and 2 are going to be a little difficult and probably time consuming.
For chem1, youre going to need to really understand concepts...depending on what kind of a person you are, this'll be either a breeze or difficult. I personally thought it was a little confusing. i had a really bad textbook that didnt explain as thoroughly as i would have liked.
For chem2, youre gonna need to spend the time to do practice problems, as this course is a lot more math based. If you're confident in your math abilities and understand the concepts well, this class shouldnt be too demanding.
 
It depends......
Some people really get chemistry. It's like math, it just makes sense to them. I wasn't one of those people. Gen Chem II is the devil. Not only was it difficult, it was BORING (i found it uninteresting). I felt I and II were so different!
 
It depends......
Some people really get chemistry. It's like math, it just makes sense to them. I wasn't one of those people. Gen Chem II is the devil. Not only was it difficult, it was BORING (i found it uninteresting). I felt I and II were so different!

i somewhat agree. i was never the best chem student. the last time i took chem before gen chem 1 and 2 was as a sophomore in HS, and even then, i did badly.

However, i was able to get A's in both gen chem 1 and 2, even though it was indeed, very boring, very tedious, and sometimes, very confusing.

i think one of the main determining factors of success in any class is how much dedication and motivation you have. I was absolutely scared out of my mind about chemistry when i entered college, so i really worked my butt off from the get go.

also, i dont think they were that different, really. i think chem 1 just teaches you the basic concepts you'll need to know in chem 2
 
also its really going to depend on what kind of professor you get. Chem I was pretty easy overall but Chem II was definitely more difficult. In Chem II, there were a bazillion equations to memorize and we didn't get an equation sheet.
 
also its really going to depend on what kind of professor you get. Chem I was pretty easy overall but Chem II was definitely more difficult. In Chem II, there were a bazillion equations to memorize and we didn't get an equation sheet.

I agree. I think in chem, more than any other pre-req subject, really depends on the professor. Of course, you have to be somewhat smart, but how well the professor can teach and relate to students really makes a different. It seems, at least in my experience, that chem professors usually have the worst teaching ability and cannot relate to students or explain things to them in a way that students can understand.
 
It depends......
Some people really get chemistry. It's like math, it just makes sense to them. I wasn't one of those people. Gen Chem II is the devil. Not only was it difficult, it was BORING (i found it uninteresting). I felt I and II were so different!


haha... thanks for clarifying "boring" for us - had to tease you about that one.:D
 
I'd say you'll be okay in chem 1 if you have taken an AP chem course in high school or something. Chem 2 will need alot of time, you can do it but you won't have a fun summer or a job.
 
Chem I was fine

Chem II was quite a challenge. Hundreds of problems...literally. I never worked so hard for a B.
 
EW I agree about Chem I enthalpy...BLAH!! I studied like 35 hrs for that exam!!

And I did find Chem II interesting...but it was also the devil. I thought it was my teacher that was the devil...maybe its the subject.
 
dont be scared. as long as you do a lot of practice problems, you will be fine. you'll naturally memorize the equations and constants as you do them, so dont worry about anything about having to memorize a lot because it's really not that bad, especially compared to the other classes youre gonna have to take heh.
i guess the two people above me are correct, having the right teacher will make the class alot easier on you. definitely go to ratemyprofessors.com and take advantage of the resource :thumbup:
 
I didn't find chem 1 or chem 2 very difficult as long as you grasped the material and did the homework problems. Chemistry requires you to "look at the big picture" and alot of the theories are related, and makes conceptual sense in the long run. I know alot of people try and memorize homework problems, but I tell them they should try to grasp the concepts (especially, electronegativity, molecular models, cations/anions, etc) at least the stuff that will carry on to Ochem.

Someone mentioned "enthalpy" and "entropy" problems, those will carry on through organic chem (certain extent), biochem (early on), and to a small extent in physiology. People should try to grasp them in Gchem, so they don't struggle with those terms later.
 
dont be scared. as long as you do a lot of practice problems, you will be fine. you'll naturally memorize the equations and constants as you do them, so dont worry about anything about having to memorize a lot because it's really not that bad, especially compared to the other classes youre gonna have to take heh.
i guess the two people above me are correct, having the right teacher will make the class alot easier on you. definitely go to ratemyprofessors.com and take advantage of the resource :thumbup:

I wish I had known about ratemyprofrossors.com before I signed up for my Fall freshman year. I took Chem I then, but I had a bad professor and a horrible experience. I'm transferring to a new college this summer, but my new chem teacher doesn't have a rating on that site, so I'm hoping he/she will be better than my last one.
 
dont be scared. as long as you do a lot of practice problems, you will be fine. you'll naturally memorize the equations and constants as you do them, so dont worry about anything about having to memorize a lot because it's really not that bad, especially compared to the other classes youre gonna have to take heh.
i guess the two people above me are correct, having the right teacher will make the class alot easier on you. definitely go to ratemyprofessors.com and take advantage of the resource :thumbup:
just went to ratemyprofessors.com . LoL, I love that:laugh::love:
 
I didn't find chem 1 or chem 2 very difficult as long as you grasped the material and did the homework problems. Chemistry requires you to "look at the big picture" and alot of the theories are related, and makes conceptual sense in the long run. I know alot of people try and memorize homework problems, but I tell them they should try to grasp the concepts (especially, electronegativity, molecular models, cations/anions, etc) at least the stuff that will carry on to Ochem.

Someone mentioned "enthalpy" and "entropy" problems, those will carry on through organic chem (certain extent), biochem (early on), and to a small extent in physiology. People should try to grasp them in Gchem, so they don't struggle with those terms later.
thanks for letting me konw the importance of the concepts.:)
 
Do I need a lot of time with these 2 chem classes? I will also take english and speech this summer. Being a mother of a baby of 19 months old, I hope I can handle both baby and classes:laugh:

Chem I was alright, though some concepts I thought were difficult to grasp, for e.g. kinetics, molecular geometry memorization.

Chem II was more difficult though.

I love Organic Chem lol, was not too hard for me
 
The relative difficulty between general chemistry and organic chemistry is different for each school and each person. The best advice I can offer is to go to class and more importantly to read through the book to make sure you understand the concepts.

I really can't stress enough for people to read their books more often. They were written by extremely knowledgable people, that sat down, and took the time to clearly explain, and most importantly ORGANIZE the information. Professors tend to just try to cram as much as they can into one lecture to get the desired amount of material covered in lecture. Not all of them spoon-feed you the material, and some leave out details assuming you were already familiar with them.

You definitely have a challenge there trying to pursue higher education while having (a) kid(s). So give yourself as much time as possible to do your course work, otherwise your money might we wasted by trying to rush courses too soon earning you a low, hard-to-get-accepted, GPA.

Best of Luck to you!
 
My chem1 teacher gave us powerpoints online a few days before lecture and then during class ran thru so much info there was NO WAY you could take notes by hand [& everyone says my notes are the bomb...]

We ended up learning 2 more chapters than USF and UCF, and they are supposed to be tougher. Anyway, that class put me ahead of most of my classmates in chem2, org1/2 and physics1/2.

If you get an "easy" chem 1 teacher it can almost sink your chances for pharmacy or med school. Seen that more than once. You should go on ratemyprofessors.com and pick one that teaches a lot but shows you how to earn an A. Get an easy teacher for Org2 and Physics and take them dead last.

my $.02
 
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