can you do well in organic 2 with a weak background in 1?

[dex351]

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I took Organic Chemistry and really struggled and made a C. My school allows me to retake a class and I am planning on retaking that one. I have a time conflict with Organic Chem 1 this semester so I think I will take Organic Chemistry 2 and later retake Organic 1. But my question is, do you really need a strong background in Organic 1 to do well in 2? Or are the topics pretty different?

 

[justAstudent]

Usually what you learn in organic 2 builds upon what you learned in organic 1. It'll be tough, but certainly not impossible.

 

[deleted508066]

I agree with the above comment. Also a C is still passing. In fact, a C in organic chemistry is probably only bad to SDN standards. Organic is difficult in general, but you already know the basics from 1. Just apply yourself more, use different study habits, etc. I'm sure you can do it.

 

[karayaa]

Of course you can. Just make sure you fix whatever went wrong with ochem 1

 

[ciestar]

It depends on what you struggled with in the first semester organic chem.
If reactions were your weakness, you're going to have a hard time in ochem 2.

 

[TheWeeIceMan]

It was 2 years between when I took O-chem1 and O-chem2 and I did fine. It can certainly be done, but you'll probably need to work harder than your classmates for the first few weeks to fix what you didn't undertand in O-chem1.

 

[Pattycake25]

I took Organic Chemistry and really struggled and made a C. My school allows me to retake a class and I am planning on retaking that one. I have a time conflict with Organic Chem 1 this semester so I think I will take Organic Chemistry 2 and later retake Organic 1. But my question is, do you really need a strong background in Organic 1 to do well in 2? Or are the topics pretty different?

Is there a very good reason why you can't take Orgo 2 later, after retaking Orgo 1? You are setting yourself up for trouble if you push on with Orgo 2 right now.

Edit: A better answer would be that it is certainly possible to succeed in Orgo 2, but you have a hefty disadvantage, so why not wait until you fix the problem?

 

[Pattycake25]

I agree with the above comment. Also a C is still passing. In fact, a C in organic chemistry is probably only bad to SDN standards. Organic is difficult in general, but you already know the basics from 1. Just apply yourself more, use different study habits, etc. I'm sure you can do it.

TAKING a class with the mentality "A C is still passing" at the outset is a VERY bad idea. That kind of thinking should be, at best, consolation after the fact. It's true that a couple of C's won't seriously damage an application, but orgo is important for the MCAT. It is one of the classes that is worth building a significant portion of your class schedule around, BECAUSE of its difficulty and its importance. If a C seems a likely outcome for you at the beginning, it is best to not take the class until you are more optimistic if at all possible.

 

[ct303]

I did better in O Chem 2 than I did in O Chem 1- granted we were all graded against each other and some of the kids in the class of 300 slowly gave up in the second half, but I also did better on all the tests- I think the poor grade motivated me to work harder so it's possible

 

[ANATOMYgirl22]

For me something "clicked" in orgo 2 and I ended up thinking it was a lot easier. The main thing is that orgo 2 builds on the basics of orgo 1, so you just have to have a solid understanding of those