How to actually study for Orgo (via DAT Destroyer)

[hellobruin]

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Hey guys,

I'm on my first round of the orgo section for DAT Destroyer right now, and it is slaughtering me without any mercy. I feel like I'm basically learning from the solutions.

What I want to ask is, how do you actually study for the orgo section? I've watched Chad's videos, which has given me some exposure, but there's a difference between watching a lecture versus using that knowledge to answer difficult questions.

And I know SDN keeps emphasizing that I should UNDERSTAND the mechanisms, but some of them are legitimately crazyy and part of me just wants to memorize the road maps. Like for example, if I'm trying to learn the aldol condensation, should I basically realize that it's composed of an enolate reacting with a carbonyl? Or should I really understand every step of the mechanism?

Basically, how much in depth should I learn orgo? How much of it is memorization vs. understanding?

Thank you SO SO much guys. I love this SDN community (even if y'all freak me out with your high test scores).

 

[kc12]

I think to study OC of the Destroyer, you should go over the Destroyer roadmaps first (in the OC solutions around #172 I believe?). The roadmaps help to show you what reactions might do if you see a given reagent, or vise versa.

Also, it's definitely not bad to learn from the solutions. For me, I also learned a lot from the solutions (getting about 1 out of every 4 wrong), but I made sure that I took notes on all the ones that I wasn't too familiar with.

Lastly, roadmaps don't show mechanisms, but I think for the DAT, in terms of "mechanisms," you should definitely know which reactions go through carbocations or radicals, Sn1/Sn2/E1/E2, rearrangement, which reactions are Markovnikov and anti-Mark, electron withdrawing/donating groups etc. You should definitely also know priority of naming, relative reactivities, ranking least to most stable molecules, and relative boiling point/melting point. I'm just listing ones I can remember off the top of my head to give you some ideas, but there is probably more things. A good way that I learned these was skimming through my undergrad orgo textbook or just googling the reactions.

 

[GENUPE7]

I feel the same way you do. I also watched Chad's videos 1X so far and I started the first round of DAT Destroyer but I'm finding that like kc12 said learning which reactions go through Carbocations or radicals, Sn1/Sn2/E1/E2... is more helpful. Don't get me wrong I'm also trying to learn from the solutions as well. But it just seems to be more effective if I understand what reaction is occuring first or what reagent is present before i jump in and try to answer questions when i dont recognize the reaction. Chad's Outline of ORGO is really helping. I am making note cards of the reagents and reactions.

 

[Dgeorg6]

I watched chads videos and took notes, then made notecards from my notes for facts that I didnt pretty much just know already. I then kept trying to go through Destroyer OC but it pissed me off cause I got everything wrong so I just stopped for a few days. I then restarted Destroyer OC and after every question I answered If i got it right and understood why I moved on, if not I made notes from the solution and did this for all of the 259 questions or however many it was. After that I made more notecards from all of those ones I got wrong then went through OC again. Didnt even grade myself on the 2nd time through. All those notecards I made I would study every morning. I got a 25 on OC so it worked for me, but do what you feel comfortable with.

 

[Swifty181]

I'd say, watch all of chad's videos, do the quizzes and understand the material. Don't worry at first destroyer does just that, destroys our confidence the first time around but you learn from the solutions. Go over destroyer or other materials and a few days before the exam try to master the roadmaps. Trying to do them right away would just be a waste of time without the understanding first. Mechanisms are important, so try to understand them but often you can narrow it down to one or two choices by just knowing what a reagent does.

 

[ChickasawPup]

I found the destroyer to be moderately helpful. What I used to prepare for the organic part was this book. Haven't seen it mentioned here before.

 

[bprior]

Memorize the roadmaps. I went through the first time and one question at a time if I had any idea how to do it I would try it and check but I didn't know most of them so I just worked all the solutions in a notebook. The second time through I did 50 questions then checked my answers. Any ones I got wrong I looked at the solutions in my notebook.

 

[hasanein4u]

CHAD + DESTROYER = SOLID ORGANIC KNOWLEDGE

you won't feel it until you do the Destroyer for the second time! finish the destroyer
go over your chad notes and do chad quizzes then attack the destroyer again you will see a huge difference