Organic Chem "pre-reqs"

[actioncat]

Hi everyone,

I couldn't find anything about this in the search option but I was just wondering if anyone who's already taken (and passed) o-chem would recommend taking two full semesters of gen chem before taking it? Or is just one semester sufficient?
My major requires two semesters of gen chem anyway, so I have to take it, but for MCAT purposes I'm trying to make the most efficient set up of my time also in a way that I'm not going to be insanely overloaded.

So far my (kind of tenative) plans are:

(Molecular, cellular, developmental bio major)

Freshman Fall (completed)
Gen bio 1 w/ lab
Public Speaking
Spanish (pre-req for my university)
>13 credits

Freshman Spring
Statistics
Genetics
Gen Chem 1
either psych or another bio lower division elective
>14-17 credits (haven't decided the elective yet)

Freshman Summer
Molecular Cell Bio 1
Cell Bio Lab
O-Chem (Possibly? Or should I wait?)
>6-12 credits

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[HomeSkool]

I screwed around in Gen Chem 1 as a freshman, then took two years off from school, then took OChem 1 and 2 my first two semesters back, and then took Gen Chem 2 some time after that. Gen Chem and OChem are very different, and I didn't find Gen Chem 2 necessary for OChem.

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[SocialJusticeWarrior]

Personally I would wait. I'm not sure how your school works, but at my undergrad the summer courses were accelerated. I think this works well for bio courses and other courses heavy in memorization, but not so much for something like o-chem which requires lots of practice. At least it did for me. Just my opinion though. If anything I would be sure to get a biochem course in before the MCAT.

 

[HomeSkool]

But the idea to take OChem 1 during the summer may actually be a bad one. At my undergrad school, we had semesters in fall and winter, then terms (1/2 of a semester) in spring and summer. If that's also how your school does it, then don't take OChem 1 during the summer. Trust me, you do not want that course compressed into half the time.

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[HomeSkool]

Personally I would wait. I'm not sure how your school works, but at my undergrad the summer courses were accelerated. I think this works well for bio courses and other courses heavy in memorization, but not so much for something like o-chem which requires lots of practice. At least it did for me. Just my opinion though. If anything I would be sure to get a biochem course in before the MCAT.

I didn't find Biochem necessary. All the biochem principles the MCAT tests will be covered in OChem and Bio.

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[chemdoctor]

Hmm. As a Chemistry tutor myself, I see this a lot. People generally use Chemistry as a way to gauge how they will do in Organic Chemistry. They are VERY VERY different. The only thing you would need from Chem going into Orgo, would be formal charge, polarity and resonance etc. There are more things from Chemistry that go into Orgo, like Octet rule and things like that. I can guarantee you that GC II generally WON'T prepare you for Organic Chemistry. Lots of people do well in Gen Chem and fail Orgo and vice versa. They are very DIFFERENT.

Now take it, because you generally will have to for medical school. If you have already taken it, then it is fine. Go over some of the stuff I told you about and watch some videos online and start memorizing some basic rules. You have to take it for your major, for medical school, for the MCAT etc. so go ahead. And at most schools, isn't it a prereq before taking Orgo? So if you are able to supersede the prereq, then by all means go into Orgo!! Maybe look up some flashcards.

You'll be fine. Yes Orgo is difficult but you gotta practice. Good luck!

 

[Blanky]

I didn't find Biochem necessary. All the biochem principles the MCAT tests will be covered in OChem and Bio.

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Did you take the old MCAT? This is terrible advice because the new MCAT is filled with biochem thats certainly not covered in regular bio/chem/orgo.

 

[rg2o3]

I didn't find Biochem necessary. All the biochem principles the MCAT tests will be covered in OChem and Bio.

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My mcat was heavily biochem and I only truly covered in biochem. However, nothing that couldn’t be learned alone.

OP, why are you rushing to take Ochem? You’re only a freshman. Can’t you take Ochem 1 Spring of Sophmore year? When do you plan on taking the MCAT?

However, I didn’t find any gen chem 2 necessary for Ochem. It’s such a completely different course.

 

[HomeSkool]

Did you take the old MCAT? This is terrible advice because the new MCAT is filled with biochem thats certainly not covered in regular bio/chem/orgo.

My mcat was heavily biochem and I only truly covered in biochem. However, nothing that couldn’t be learned alone.

I'm aware of the content of the new MCAT. All (or nearly all) of the biochem content on the new MCAT showed up in the OChem and Bio courses I took prior to the exam. However, that may be untrue for others because of curriculum differences between institutions and majors. And @rg2o3 hit a good point: different individuals may require more or less formal instruction, depending on the subject and their aptitudes. I took the MCAT before I'd taken any physics courses; all the physics I needed for the exam, I learned myself during my test prep. It worked for me, but I certainly don't recommend that others do the same thing.

 

[rg2o3]

I'm aware of the content of the new MCAT. All (or nearly all) of the biochem content on the new MCAT showed up in the OChem and Bio courses I took prior to the exam. However, that may be untrue for others because of curriculum differences between institutions and majors. And @rg2o3 hit a good point: different individuals may require more or less formal instruction, depending on the subject and their aptitudes. I took the MCAT before I'd taken any physics courses; all the physics I needed for the exam, I learned myself during my test prep. It worked for me, but I certainly don't recommend that others do the same thing.

I also took my MCAT before any physics. I scored I. 80th percentile but would have surely done better with the courses taken. I wouldn’t rwccoment it either, but can definitely be done with discipline and a good plan.

Edit: my Chem/physics section was my lowest haha

 

[Blanky]

 

[SocialJusticeWarrior]

Did you take the old MCAT? This is terrible advice because the new MCAT is filled with biochem thats certainly not covered in regular bio/chem/orgo.

Totally agree with this. Detailed content only covered in my biochem courses on the new MCAT. Very different from the old exam, which I also took.

 

[actioncat]

My mcat was heavily biochem and I only truly covered in biochem. However, nothing that couldn’t be learned alone.

OP, why are you rushing to take Ochem? You’re only a freshman. Can’t you take Ochem 1 Spring of Sophmore year? When do you plan on taking the MCAT?

However, I didn’t find any gen chem 2 necessary for Ochem. It’s such a completely different course.

There's no rush I don't think, I guess I would just like to have all my classes I need for the MCAT done at least a semester BEFORE I take the MCAT... which I hope to do during my junior year. My school specifically doesn't offer just a biochem course, but rather a 2 semester sequence so I'm just trying to figure out what everyone else has done for time management I guess? There's no specific pre-med adviser at my school so I'm mostly navigating this whole thing on my own with the help of what I've read online 😱

 

[rg2o3]

There's no rush I don't think, I guess I would just like to have all my classes I need for the MCAT done at least a semester BEFORE I take the MCAT... which I hope to do during my junior year. My school specifically doesn't offer just a biochem course, but rather a 2 semester sequence so I'm just trying to figure out what everyone else has done for time management I guess? There's no specific pre-med adviser at my school so I'm mostly navigating this whole thing on my own with the help of what I've read online 😱

I don't think that it would be an issue taking Ochem prior to Gen Chem 2, as long as your school allows it. I know at my school, they required both gen 1 and 2 prior to taking any ochem. Also, I would be careful and make sure that the summer course is not accelerated as many at my institution were. Ochem one isn't insanely difficult imo but its definitely something most have not witnessed before. It took me an exam to really get into the groove with it and think it would have been tough over the summer, especially while taking other summer classes. You don't want to hurt your GPA by rushing to get these courses done. I can definitely see how you would want it done about a semester prior to your MCAT. I would want the same. However, based on my experience from my MCAT (I know this will vary), there was very little actual Ochem on it. By this I mean DIRECTLY Ochem and not a mix of ochem/biochem. I guess I would just make sure it's not accelerated, and if it is, I would advise against taking those tougher classes over the accelerated summer semester.

 

[actioncat]

I don't think that it would be an issue taking Ochem prior to Gen Chem 2, as long as your school allows it. I know at my school, they required both gen 1 and 2 prior to taking any ochem. Also, I would be careful and make sure that the summer course is not accelerated as many at my institution were. Ochem one isn't insanely difficult imo but its definitely something most have not witnessed before. It took me an exam to really get into the groove with it and think it would have been tough over the summer, especially while taking other summer classes. You don't want to hurt your GPA by rushing to get these courses done. I can definitely see how you would want it done about a semester prior to your MCAT. I would want the same. However, based on my experience from my MCAT (I know this will vary), there was very little actual Ochem on it. By this I mean DIRECTLY Ochem and not a mix of ochem/biochem. I guess I would just make sure it's not accelerated, and if it is, I would advise against taking those tougher classes over the accelerated summer semester.

Thank you 🙂 I believe that it is an accelerated course, so I think I'll push it off to fall/spring of my sophomore year instead.

 

[rg2o3]

Thank you 🙂 I believe that it is an accelerated course, so I think I'll push it off to fall/spring of my sophomore year instead.

Good luck! Work hard and everything will work out.