Is organic chemistry that hard?

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Once you understand some simply patterns, everything makes sense, and you can sort of predict certain reactions. Otherwise, it's just memorization, really.
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Organic chemistry is quite easy and enjoyable if you study.

If you do NOT study, you will find organic chemistry to be THAT hard.
 
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No, its one of the easiest classes you will actually take. And if you study properly you will actually end up enjoying it (personally its my favorite undergrad class).
 
Easy to study for yes. Conceptually, the subject is borderline moderate in regards to difficulty. That's just due to the sheer amount of information in Orgo II.
BTW, if you haven't taken Orgo II yet, It's twice as hard if you don't keep up with the studying.
Make that 5 times as hard if you didn't take up on the basics of Orgo I.
All about the basics.
That's part of what got me an A in orgo I.
I'm doing well in Orgo II as of now just by practicing problems every other day and supplementing with the book.
 
i often hear people recommend a ton of practice problems for orgo I and II... does anyone know of an excellent source of practice problems? I would like to get my hands on as many as possible.
 
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BHaus9 said:
How are you guys all so comfortable answering this question so matter-of-factly?

It seems to me that any course is as easy or difficult as the professor chooses to make it. As with any other discipline, organic has fundamental principles and unresolved quandaries. If your exams ask you merely to count chiral centers or name compounds, then of course you're going to come away thinking organic chemistry is easy-peasy. If, on the other hand, you're given a list of 10 reagents, then asked to delineate the 3 most likely reactions and estimate relative yield of each, the matter becomes a little more complicated. There are general rules of thumb that prove helpful, but there are a plethora of exceptions as well. If you're not tested on these, I think you'll have a false conception of how potentially difficult the material is.

If you couldn't tell,organic chemistry was (for me) far and away the most difficult and time-intensive course I took as an undergraduate :laugh:. I hated it with a passion - the basics laid out in the text book hardly coincided with what we were expected to do on exams, and a 30% could earn you a B. Quantum mechanics, E&M, PChem... I'd do it all over again in a heartbeat to avoid organic.
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This sounds like my Orgo I and II Classes. Excellent professor (took same guy for both) and super tough tests. 60% ended up being an A I think....noy very many made it to the other side (even with a C) and many dropped as the course developed, you would notice more and more empty seats. Liked the class though.
 
I never understood these types of threads. OP, do you realize you're probably asking the most biased group of people ever? You would probably get a much better idea of how hard organic chemistry is if you asked a bunch of Joe Schmos. A majority will say that yes, it really is that hard. Right now you're only getting responses from the minority that won't.

So, trying to be as objective as possible, I would say that it's the most difficult pre-requisite course for medical school. Better yet, I'd say it's the most common course science majors have trouble with. Nobody can really tell you whether or not you'll think it's hard.
 
Godric said:
No, its one of the easiest classes you will actually take. And if you study properly you will actually end up enjoying it (personally its my favorite undergrad class).
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...so what was the hardest class you took?
 
I think has more to do with the fact that it is the first intense course you have to take. It can be a shocker. With that said, most of my upper division courses have been equally or more difficult than orgo. Also, a C is not okay! Many schools require you to explain any grade B- or lower.
 
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Organic chemistry is the most overhyped undergrad course in terms of difficulty, mostly by non-science majors who never actually take the class and just talk about how hard it must be with a fancy name like "organic chemistry". It's not "easy" by any means but I took much harder upper level bio classes. Engineering calculus my freshman year was also a lot tougher IMO.

It's nothing more than memorization of reactions, molecule types and nomenclature. There is very little that forces you to think critically outside of the occasional multi-step synthesis problem, either you know it or you don't. Study and you'll do fine. Some people find that a model kit helps with picturing the 3-D structures.
 
flodhi1 said:
I honestly thought Biochemistry was harder than both Organic Chemistry courses.
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Agreed, biochem requires a much more in-depth knowledge of the material. The reactions and pathways that must be memorized are much more complex than those seen in organic chemistry.

I personally spent twice as much time studying for each biochem exam than I did for ochem.
 
smarts1 said:
It's fine, but proton NMR is DEATH.
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I can't agree with you more. Everything in Organic Chemistry I and II is easy except spectroscopy. I got 90% or better raw score on all my orgo exams so far except for my spectroscopy exam, which I failed..
 
osprey099 said:
I can't agree with you more. Everything in Organic Chemistry I and II is easy except spectroscopy. I got 90% or better raw score on all my orgo exams so far except for my spectroscopy exam, which I failed..
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I know! My professor explains it so well, and then we do the problems he gives us and none of us can do them... I'm so screwed for my exam on this next week...
 
No. This is coming from a person who got 2 A's in orgo and nominated for the Merck Award for outstanding achievement in orgo, so take that with a grain of salt.

Honestly, just study. If you don't get it, get help. Here's a handy website I used: http://pages.towson.edu/jdiscord/ Also, enjoy your agony with other students in a study group and don't think of it as something to be avoided like the plague. Think of it as a puzzle or a different language. Because it is.
 
Do a chemical engineering degree. Then no class will ever seem hard again.
 
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BA11 said:
Organic chemistry is the most overhyped undergrad course in terms of difficulty, mostly by non-science majors who never actually take the class and just talk about how hard it must be with a fancy name like "organic chemistry". It's not "easy" by any means but I took much harder upper level bio classes. Engineering calculus my freshman year was also a lot tougher IMO.

It's nothing more than memorization of reactions, molecule types and nomenclature. There is very little that forces you to think critically outside of the occasional multi-step synthesis problem, either you know it or you don't. Study and you'll do fine. Some people find that a model kit helps with picturing the 3-D structures.
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This is why you aren't going to get a reliable answer to your question. Orgo from one school to another can seem like a completely different class. When I took it, we had to know all the reactions and mechanisms like the back of our hand just to have a shot on the exams. Exams were mostly synthesis and mechanisms none of which we had seen before. There was no regurgitation of material. It was all problem solving which imo is what makes a class difficult.
 
Kimchii said:
Organic is memorization and understanding electron movement. Study it, memorize it and you'll be fine.
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I recommend actually understanding because once you are expected to know ~120 reactions (as in, arbitrary combinations of reactant, reagent, and product) and you have a test question with one molecule and another molecule and they ask you to fill in the 6-8 steps in between (and don't forget stereochemistry!) you will have a very bad feeling in your stomach.

From what I gather in this thread there is orgo for chemical engineers (this is what I had at Georgia Tech; prepare to die) and orgo for everyone else (lalala this is so easy y do people say it's so HARD or m I jst a genius lol?). You need to figure out which one you're in for.

Also, proton NMR is the easiest and most fun part of the class. I would so much rather solve a little logic puzzle (if Alice sees three pairs of people, and Bob sees five groups of three, and Eve sees only one...) than ransack a disorganized mental toolbox for the right reaction sequence.
 
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O-chem is basically logic with chemicals.

Once you understand the rules of the game, it's a breeze.

Memorizing is a brute force way of doing well in o-chem, but this method requires tons of studying and you won't retain the material very well.
 
Not hard...very hyped class. Truth be told most premeds I know love it.
If you can memorize reagents and conditions, and understand that positive attracts negative you'll be fine.

It still takes a lot of work, and sometimes you can get a professor whose expectations are ridiculous. But assuming you put the time in and have a fair professor you should be good to go.
 
I went into ochem scared to death. Then I got a 97 on the first exam and realized it's not that hard.
 
It depends on what school you go to. And yes, I did go there.
 
I think it both depends on the teacher and student. For instance, I found that physics was the toughest class I have had. But, my professor was notorious for being hard. It's all really relative when you get down to it. Just like my ochem 1 teacher, he was pretty picky and admitted that no one really scored above a 90 on his tests. I did well and didn't think it was as hard as physics, but that's because I studied the mechanisms and new them like the back of my hand. However, my classmates did not fair so well...

With that said, just study and make sure you understand how reactions work and you'll be fine. Like many others have said, do not try and memorize all of the different reactions (especially in ochem 2). Understand how a particular reaction works and be able to apply it to practice problems.
 
worst thing you can do is assure yourself it's not going to be hard. it'll make you feel more comfortable slacking. It's not hard until you slack.
 
I always saw orgo as one of those courses that you either get or you don't. Fortunately, I got an A in orgo 1 and will be taking orgo 2 over the summer. I personally liked it more than gen chem, but it really comes down to how you feel once you're exposed to the subject matter. I mean there are some people that you could explain MO Theory or mechanisms to and they'll immediately understand it, and there are also people who can stare at it for hours on end and only leave more confused. At least that was my experience...
 
It really depends also on your professor's teaching philosophy. Some professors only want you to know the concepts, so they don't want you to memorize any of the reagents. On tests, they will end up putting the most crazy thing on the exam and ask you to devise a curved arrow mechanism to get to the product (personally, I think this is much harder, and my friends think that too.)

Other professors want you to memorize every single reagent in the textbook, and will ask you to give the products of the reactions given each reagent or synthesize a particular product given one reactant. This approach is way easier, since all you have to do is to memorize all the reagents. If you can do that, the exams will be a breeze.
 
Also depends on your professor.
You can get one that gives a bunch of extra credit and you'll say that class is easy.
Then you get that one professor who gives a 20 question fill-in mechanism exam, with no extra credit, in which you get two wrong and you are down to 90 already.
 
Dear all,

Do anybody have MCAT Organic Chemistry Review Notes? I am looking for some reading materials for organic chemistry. A mini summary or review will be good to remember the essential points or facts regarding organic chemistry. Hope to hear soon. Thanks a lot

Ashwin
 
This type of question is ******ed because no one has a common reference point. It will be hard for you if your classmates are about your level academically.
 
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The difficulty of ochem is exaggerated by students who don't study. Just study as much as a pre-med should and you'll do well.
 
Hi Witchbreath,

Thanks a lot for the comment. In my opinion, i dont think so my question is ******ed in any manner.

If you really google for MCAT notes thoroughly, you can find many of the kind-hearted souls who are currently pursuing medicine at many prestigious universities across the globe have shared their notes to be utilized by the other MCAT examiness. There is a commonality between the sharing and receiving ends: The REFERENCE POINT is the same during the revision period.

To be frank, i have done enough revisions for all the materials that are being covered for MCAT, except that i have some difficulties with Organic Chemistry.

There are many mini yet effective MCAT notes and review sheets available online but not for many for organic chemistry. Since i am only looking for a reading material that i can glance at times before the actual test or during my revision, i raised the question in this forum.

Anyway, i will look out for the reading materials via other alternatives perhaps.

Ashwin Nair
 
Hi Laufcra,

Thanks a lot for the suggestion. I have studied ochem as much as i can but i have some difficulties to remember them. That's why i looked for an alternative online. It doesnt mean i didnt study the subject at all.

I came across some reading materials for organic chem online but they are quite lengthy and little complex too. Thats why i raised a question here to see if anyone has some reading materials or mini notes that can be shared.

Anyway, have a day ahead.

Ashwin Nair
 
Ashwin Nair said:
Hi Laufcra,

Thanks a lot for the suggestion. I have studied ochem as much as i can but i have some difficulties to remember them. That's why i looked for an alternative online. It doesnt mean i didnt study the subject at all.

I came across some reading materials for organic chem online but they are quite lengthy and little complex too. Thats why i raised a question here to see if anyone has some reading materials or mini notes that can be shared.

Anyway, have a day ahead.

Ashwin Nair
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I think Laufcra and witchbreath were not actually responding to your request for orgo review material, but the original topic of the thread "is organic chemistry that hard". You bumped this thread from 2 years ago, so I think your post got a bit lost since it's not really same topic as the thread.
 
Ochem I/II, Easiest 2 classes I have taken so far in my undergrad career (A+ in both), but let me give some context. I go to a quarter school so that 3rd quarter class that should be covering topics like synthesis doesn't exist for premeds. I covered all of structure (aromaticity, nmr, and other stuff) and many reactions (Sn1,2,E1,2,EAS,radicals,addition,carbonyls). It just comes down to practice. I had an excellent professor who posted the previous 8 administrations of midterms/finals. Doing all of them with perhaps some review from supplementary materials (O chem as a second language for certain sections) allowed me to consistently get an A/A+ on each exam. So idk what people mean when they say ochem is memorization (unless you guys are referring to synthesis or something I haven't covered in much detail), it's more of a process-driven material.
 
gettheleadout said:
O rly?

Your GPA might care, as might adcoms that review your application; LizzyM has stated before that reviewers look particularly to the prereq's and even more specifically organic and physics.
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Agreed.

OP: I would never say that medical schools are "okay" with it. A C will be a negative in the applicant's file, but it can be overcome. That's different than saying that adcoms are nonchalant and don't take a poor organic chemistry grade seriously.
 
knv2u said:
Agreed.

OP: I would never say that medical schools are "okay" with it. A C will be a negative in the applicant's file, but it can be overcome. That's different than saying that adcoms are nonchalant and don't take a poor organic chemistry grade seriously.
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guyyyss. this thread was from 2011, I doubt OP is in ochem anymore. he hasn't even been on SDN since 2012. Ashwin just bumped this thread for some study material.
 
949 said:
Hi everyone, im new to the whole medical system. I have not taken O-chem yet so i was curious on something I recently heard.

I heard that organic chemistry is very difficult. So difficult that if someone got a letter grade of "C", med school would still be ok with it.
If someone got an "A" or "B" grade, that would make them stand out even more. Is this true?
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Myself and about 10 to 12 others got A's in Organic 1 and 2 at my school, so I would assume medical schools will only be impressed by A's. Don't worry, Organic chemistry really was not that difficult and I only studied about 5 hours a week. My trick? I didn't memorize anything. I actually studied the mechanisms rather than just writing reagents and products. Once you know the mechanisms for reactions, organic chemistry become super fun and emmensly raises your problem solving skills that are useful to other science courses. I also read the book, "organic chemistry as a second language" before enrolling in the course and that gave me a huge head start. So don't be worried, the people that say organic chemistry was super hard are the people that went the memorization route and inevitably met their demize. In summery, learn the mechanisms, stay away from memorization and you will earn an A in the class relatively painlessly.
 
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Rhino289 said:
Myself and about 10 to 12 others got A's in Organic 1 and 2 at my school, so I would assume medical schools will only be impressed by A's. Don't worry, Organic chemistry really was not that difficult and I only studied about 5 hours a week. My trick? I didn't memorize anything. I actually studied the mechanisms rather than just writing reagents and products. Once you know the mechanisms for reactions, organic chemistry become super fun and emmensly raises your problem solving skills that are useful to other science courses. I also read the book, "organic chemistry as a second language" before enrolling in the course and that gave me a huge head start. So don't be worried, the people that say organic chemistry was super hard are the people that went the memorization route and inevitably met their demize. In summery, learn the mechanisms, stay away from memorization and you will earn an A in the class relatively painlessly.
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In summery, you oughta werk emmensely hard lest you meet your demize. :)
 
Orgo as a second language made orgo very easy for me. Anyone that tells you orgo is just rote memorization didn't understand what they were supposed to "get out of" orgo.
 
949 said:
Hi everyone, im new to the whole medical system. I have not taken O-chem yet so i was curious on something I recently heard.

I heard that organic chemistry is very difficult. So difficult that if someone got a letter grade of "C", med school would still be ok with it.
If someone got an "A" or "B" grade, that would make them stand out even more. Is this true?
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It honestly depends on the professor. I ma taking orgo II right now and the class is so easy. This is only because I have a good professor. If my Gen Chem professor were to teach orgo.... well lets say that would be a disaster.
 
Rhino289 said:
Myself and about 10 to 12 others got A's in Organic 1 and 2 at my school, so I would assume medical schools will only be impressed by A's. Don't worry, Organic chemistry really was not that difficult and I only studied about 5 hours a week. My trick? I didn't memorize anything. I actually studied the mechanisms rather than just writing reagents and products. Once you know the mechanisms for reactions, organic chemistry become super fun and emmensly raises your problem solving skills that are useful to other science courses. I also read the book, "organic chemistry as a second language" before enrolling in the course and that gave me a huge head start. So don't be worried, the people that say organic chemistry was super hard are the people that went the memorization route and inevitably met their demize. In summery, learn the mechanisms, stay away from memorization and you will earn an A in the class relatively painlessly.
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Organic as a second language was an amazing book and I actually did the exercises in conjunction with the course. Followed the subjects quite well really. I went into Organic expecting it to kick my ass and it to be that terror of a pre med class. But I actually found it so much more enjoyable than inorganic.

Agreed it probably has a lot to do with your professor.
 
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