OChem, Biochem, and PChem

[GizmoDVM]

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So I'm new here, and I'm pretty sure some of you could help me out with this question that I'm having.

I have the choice of taking physical chemistry (for my major) either this spring or next fall. The problem is I have to take ochem I this spring and biochem I next fall. I don't know which would be better to take it with.

To give you a better idea the classes I'm definitely taking this spring are:
Organic I
Quantitative Analysis (Chem Lab)(2 lec, 4 lab hrs)
Genetics
Genetics Lab (3 lab hrs)

Next Fall:
Biochem I
Organic Chem Lab (not usually taken with orgo here for some reason, "synthesis lab" is usually taken with orgo II, which is how I'm taking it over the summer)(1 lec, 4 lab hrs)
Microbiology
Microbiology Lab (3 lab hrs)

So all I have to choose is which semester to take English and which semester to take PChem. Any advice is greatly appreciated. Also, last year I did better in the Spring semester (4.0 compared to 3.75) so maybe I do better in spring? Its hard to tell with only one year of college done...

 

[mrtran562]

To give you a better idea the classes I'm definitely taking this spring are:
Organic I
Quantitative Analysis (Chem Lab)(2 lec, 4 lab hrs)
Genetics
Genetics Lab (3 lab hrs)

Next Fall:
Biochem I
Organic Chem Lab (not usually taken with orgo here for some reason, "synthesis lab" is usually taken with orgo II, which is how I'm taking it over the summer)(1 lec, 4 lab hrs)
Microbiology
Microbiology Lab (3 lab hrs)

generally, my school adviser told me that anything above three science classes per semester is already a heavy workload. you mentioned that you already have one year under your belt, so are you a freshman? if so, take some classes that may balance your schedule out so you'll have plenty of time each semester to focus on each of those classes. i say if you have to do PChem to meet your graduation requirements, wait till you finish those 2 semesters you already have planned out.
if you can take a heavy science load, by all means dont let me talk you out of it. im currently taking biochem I, genetics + lab, and ecology and am somewhat having a difficult time. my biochem teacher is a nazi -_-. i dont know if this helped at all, but if you are only going on your second year, you'll have a lot of time to spread those classes out to ensure good results.
with all that said, good luck!

 

[BlacKAT33]

yea i agree, can you specify your year? If you are only a soph i would say dont do more than 3 sci courses per semester

Its hard to pick between the semesters, it realy depends on the person. I was great at ochem so i would take another sci with ochem. and i was bad in bchm so i wouldnt add more sci onto that. but its totally a personal decision. AND its not like i knew ahead of time what i would be good/bad at. So im not even sure you could make this decision knowing it would be right until after you've taken the subjects. Plus, the prof makes a HUGE diff and its hard to predict if your prof will be good.

guess you have to delay it to jr yr (if ur young)... or take a chance and pick randomly

 

[HopefulAg]

I'd do it for Biochem instead of Ochem. Ochem has a lab, Biochem generally doesn't. My Ochem lab was a huge time sink of at least 6 hours a week and I know Pchem is also a big time sink as well (probably has a lab too?). But if possible, I wouldn't couple it with anything. Heard Pchem is a bitch.

Although it looks like your Spring semester is easier overall than your fall.

 

[GizmoDVM]

I'm currently a sophomore, and I'm trying to see if I can work out having physical chemistry moved to even next spring, which is the latest I can take it due to prereq issues. I'm a biochem major, so its a prereq for a couple of courses senior year. The only problem is that next spring is biochem II, which has a 6 hour lab. I could potentially work it out so that those are the only science courses I was taking that semester. Its so confusing working around all the biology classes I need that are only offered in the fall OR the spring, and not both (microbio, animal phys, immunology (not a prereq, but cool!)).

I agree that tackling four sciences would be very difficult, but if it turns out to be inevitable, which would you have chosen?

 

[mrtran562]

if it is inevitable, i would recommend you take pchem in the fall even though it seems you may have a heavier load that semester. micro is very doable and just pray for a good biochem instructor. you wanna get a feel for how a heavy load of science classes will be. i understand that pchem may be a prereq for other classes, but it may be best if you take it with a lighter load, even if it means spending an extra semester in school. i just hear bad things about that class, but that's from my poor chemistry department haha. best of luck to you.

 

[PrimalMU]

Whatever you do, I'd suggest taking O-chem before biochem. I found O-chem very useful in my biochem class.

 

[Minnerbelle]

Whatever you do, I'd suggest taking O-chem before biochem. I found O-chem very useful in my biochem class.

And several vet schools require that your biochem class require O-chem as a prerequisite (wow, that was a lot of "requires" in one sentence)