I need to vent

[Ashley1989]

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Ok guys so don't make fun of me but I'm a couple of weeks from finishing my OChem sequence and I still don't "get" mechanisms, reactions etc etc. I had an exam today and to prepare for the test I made flash cards and did hundreds and hundreds of practice problems. I actually was feeling like I was starting to get it and then I went into the exam today. Suddenly there were reagents and combinations that I have NEVER SEEN BEFORE doing things that I have NEVER SEEN BEFORE. It's not my professors fault at all, he's doing a great job teaching, but I can't help feeling like I am missing the huge blinking Las Vegas sign of information that is ultimately screwing me over every test. Where are these obscure things coming from? Why am i always missing it? Everyone else seems to somewhat get it, I think I get it and then see stuff I didn't even know existed. I feel so lame right now, it's been a whole year and I'm still having problems.

Ash

 

[notbobtrustme]

Follow the electrons. That's 90% of mechanisms right there.

Reagents are tougher but they follow similar principles as mechanisms. The only real exceptions are those exotic reagents like LDA and those just need to be memorized.

 

[TechToDoc]

Follow the electrons. That's 90% of mechanisms right there.

Agreed. I focused on trying to understand why things reacted how they did so I could guess how a new compound would react rather than memorizing things. Some memorization is unavoidable, but conceptualization is the most important.

 

[Mr Avante]

Try to understand what is happening.

 

[SunsFun]

Chad's review.

 

[Doctor Strange]

It's all about dem electrons.

 

[ChemEngMD]

I don't know if I ever understood orgo...but I got through the classes, labs, and MCAT with good old fashion fakin' it.

 

[cerno]

I recommend Organic Chemistry as a 2nd Language to supplement classes.

 

[487806]

Ok guys so don't make fun of me but I'm a couple of weeks from finishing my OChem sequence and I still don't "get" mechanisms, reactions etc etc. I had an exam today and to prepare for the test I made flash cards and did hundreds and hundreds of practice problems. I actually was feeling like I was starting to get it and then I went into the exam today. Suddenly there were reagents and combinations that I have NEVER SEEN BEFORE doing things that I have NEVER SEEN BEFORE. It's not my professors fault at all, he's doing a great job teaching, but I can't help feeling like I am missing the huge blinking Las Vegas sign of information that is ultimately screwing me over every test. Where are these obscure things coming from? Why am i always missing it? Everyone else seems to somewhat get it, I think I get it and then see stuff I didn't even know existed. I feel so lame right now, it's been a whole year and I'm still having problems.

Ash

What is your assigned textbook?

 

[Deadlifts]

For the first halogenation, hydrohalogenation, sn1, sn2, etc. the note card strategy worked for me.

After a few chapters I just had to, like others have said, learn to follow the electrons. Being able to look at molecules and identify the nucleophile/electrophile quickly is really important. You end up having to memorize a lot less and just practice the flow of reactions. A classroom full of smart kids simply memorizing reaction arrows in Orgo II led to the biggest curve on a final I've ever seen. You'll wake up in cold sweats screaming about carbocations and how you just need another electron to feel complete...

 

[Ismet]

I had that problem too. I got an A+ in regular orgo 1, so my professor recommended me for honors orgo 2. Big mistake. My orgo 1 professor was new and didn't really understand what the honors course entailed, and I was naive enough to just go with it. The first exam was brutal because it was what you described - I had studied, but the whole exam seemed like brand new stuff. And I felt even more stupid because the rest of the class seemed to get it. The problem is that you have to fundamentally understand what is going on, really understand the mechanisms and what is happening on an atomic level, so that when you are presented with a problem with reagents you are not familiar with, you can apply your knowledge of how the mechanisms work. Orgo 1 for me was straight memorization, and that's how it was tested. Flashcards helped for that. Memorize and regurgitate. Your teacher seems to be like my orgo 2 prof in that he wants to make sure that you understand and you're not just memorizing patterns and reactions. Is there a TA you can talk to? Or is the professor available? Talking to my prof after the first exam really helped and I was able to pull up my performance.

Good luck!

 

[sdresident]

I recommend Organic Chemistry as a 2nd Language to supplement classes.

+1. Both semester books helped me tremendously.

 

[selmaaxku]

but conceptualization is the most important

 

[qavaler]

Ochem as a second language is great!

But if you want more detailed info, the same author has a "bigger gun":
Organic Chemistry, Klein

This book \and O-chem as a 2nd lagnuage is truley a gift from God.

 

[yehhhboiii]

I finished organic chem and I still don't get it
one time i came across some old homework and it was all gibberish
i only knew i wrote it because i recognized my handwriting

just gotta learn that arrow pushing and reaction conditions. put your starting compound in some solvent and whatever you need for a reaction. maybe add heat and a catalyst to make it go faster

 

[deleted303591]

I have never took orgo but...

Memorizing helps but working problems will get you a lot further.

Form a study group and do problems together.

ETA: Do you have any old tests?

 

[physguy]

This may go against the general consensus, but its my n=1. Stop trying to learn/understand organic. I did this for a long time and finally realized that its just a roundabout way of memorizing. Every "rule" has tons of caveats, and the rule only makes sense because that's what your book/professor says happens in that scenario; often there are dozens of other outcomes just as logical. I tried this for organic 1 and struggled. Here was my strategy for oganic 2 which got me an A with much less work.

1. Buy a gigantic stack of colored index cards
2. Write every reaction that could plausibly be on the test in this format
reactants -> ? on one side and ? -> products on the other
3. Go through cards and try to memorize
4. repeat

You'll also probably have to go through mechanisms a few times, but they're fairly simple and logical.

 

[whatever5]

Don't stress out about organic chemistry. I never understood a single thing the entire year, somehow pulled B+s in the series, and still pulled a 10 in BS on the MCAT by knowing bio like the back of my hand and guessing completely on all the orgo. It's pretty pointless knowledge for pre-meds, if you ask me.

 

[Ellie Arroway]

Are you just rote memorizing reactions? Like "x + y reagents go in, z comes out"? Because it's important to understand why things work conceptually. Then you can take those concepts and apply them to novel situations and have a good idea of what would happen. If you're really at the end of the year without having conceptual basics down, I'm not really sure how to turn that around though.

Are you trying to work all the way through practice problems without looking at the answer? If you can't get through one, what is your next step?

 

[NontradCA]

dat electron

 

[Govols13]

I 2nd Chad's videos. Didn't use them while taking the courses (made an A/B+), but I used him for my MCAT review. I made a lot more sense when he explained it.


God, I wish I knew about his videos back when I was taking my pre-reqs.

 

[circulus vitios]

I finished organic chem and I still don't get it
one time i came across some old homework and it was all gibberish
i only knew i wrote it because i recognized my handwriting

Same here. **** that class, both semesters of it.

 

[midnight0il]

I'm tutoring some students in MCAT Orgo right now and basically have to go through and relearn the material since it's been a few months since I took the exam. The common theme that I've found for reactions, which I assume is what you're having trouble with, is to identify the nucleophile and the electrophile. Once you've figured that part out, the battle is already half won. The other half is straight up rote memorization of reagents and what they do, which is unavoidable. Make some flashcards, memorize for the exam, and then forget them forever when you're done with the class and/or the MCAT.

 

[anitayxec]

The only real exceptions are those exotic reagents like LDA and those just need to be memorized.

 

[quebaldy]

It's all about dem electrons.

Yup.

Lots of people are recommending flash cards and rote studying here... I'm sure this works for many people and it may get you through the class with B's or even B+'s but honestly I think this is terrible advice. A conceptual understanding will get you much farther and without nearly as much pain. Take notes, read your textbook and most importantly stop and think about what you're learning you and why those molecules behave that way. Memorization is a must in orgo, but memorization is much easier when you have a strong conceptual foundation to build on. As far as reagents you have never seen... draw it out if you can; think about what it would/could/should do in that reaction scenario.

Buck up and good luck!

 

[volcomx]

Just memorizing the reactions will guarantee a mediocre grade. My orgo class was much like yours - the questions on the exams had little resemblance to the homework and small group problems. You need to understand the reactions at the fundamental level.

If you understand orgo at a fundamental level, when the test throws a reagent or reaction at you that you've never seen before, you need to realize that you have all the tools necessary to do the problem. The professor will never give you something unsolvable (if he is, how are some students getting As?). Realize that the reaction is probably similar to what something you have seen before. Think back to similar molecules and reactions, and use that to guide your answers. You can never be 100% sure what you're doing is correct, but that's all you've got to work with.

In medicine, each patient will be different. There is no A+B=C. You use the fundamentals, namely past experience and textbook knowledge, to guide your diagnosis in each unique case.