Hello SDN!!
I am looking for some helpful advice.. I am going to be starting my gen Chem 1 class this fall. I was wondering if ANYONE has some good tips on how to prepare for a class for someone like me who hasn't taken Chem at all.. 1st timer here.. ive been looking for some study guides on the internet to get me familiar.. but it would helpful for someone who has taken the class already and has gotten a feel for it.
This is my own personal strategy that I have used to get a jump start on courses that I was anxious about. It's worked for me, but other people may have a different philosophy. Just my suggestion here, other people might suggest other things.
1. Contact the chemistry department and see if they have a general syllabus for the course (my school did) that will give you an idea of what the content structure will be like regardless of the professor. If they don't you can see if you can get the syllabus from the previous semester. Sometimes the professor will give it to you.
2. Go to coursehero.com and search for the class. See if anyone has uploaded study guides or past assignments for the class. If they have get them and look at what was covered. Also go to ratemyprofessor.com and look at their last two to three semesters of ratings, or the recent trends. If they have consistently gotten less than three stars from their students in the last two years DO NOT TAKE THEIR CLASS. Professors get burnt out sometimes and you just do not need to deal with that issue in a science/pre-req course.
3. Find out from the book store what text book is used for the course and if it's locked in for the semester you're going to take Chem I. Either buy it or check it out from the library if possible. Make sure that it's finalized as the text because I have bought texts ahead of time to skim the material only to find out the first day of class that the professor switched the text last minute. I had to re-sell the book at a loss and buy the correct one and it was a pricey mistake. Skim the material and make some general outlines on key concepts.
4. Go to Khan academy and watch the general chem videos every day and work your way through the topics. There is also a lot of good free content on youtube. Check out this website:
Home (Chemistry LibreTexts) as well. It give a pretty good summary and overview of chemistry topics that I found helpful.
5. Commit the necessary time brushing up (1-2 hours per day every day). You are wasting your time unless you actually follow through ad put the time in.
6. 1-2 weeks before the class actually starts find a decent, affordable private tutor. Craigslist or Wyzant.com is where I have found mine. Meet with them for a review session and spend an hour with them going over the general content. Make sure that you like them and they are worth your money. I personally recommending the free resources on campus (office hours, tutoring lab) as much as possible. I personally have had the experience of working on assignment the day or so before its due and going "F%$CK!!! I totally don't get this!!!" and not having a TA available before the deadline. I'm not super bright so having a tutor that I can call in that situation has been worth the money to me.
