Organic Section

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FreeTibet

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what do you guys think is the best way to study for organic. I did study from the kaplanbook and Barron but I been getting some messed up scores on the practice exam from Acethedat... any tips ???
thanks
 
FreeTibet said:
what do you guys think is the best way to study for organic. I did study from the kaplanbook and Barron but I been getting some messed up scores on the practice exam from Acethedat... any tips ???
thanks


Make a huge chart of every reaction type, with mechanism, from kaplan's blue book and learn all reactivity principals. This works very well but is very time consuming.
 
FreeTibet said:
what do you guys think is the best way to study for organic. I did study from the kaplanbook and Barron but I been getting some messed up scores on the practice exam from Acethedat... any tips ???
thanks

I never used acethedat but I have seen it discussed here. Supposedly it is not good for the science sections due to a large amount of errors.

As for how to do well in the orgo section...

I only used the kaplan book and topscore cd. On the DAT, the focus seemed to be more on SN and E type reactions than anything else. Not to say that this is all the exam covered but if you know that stuff really really well, you should do okay.


Don't be discouraged with your scores in Orgo on the Kaplan and Topescore (if you use that) exams. When I was practicing, I was scoring like 19-21 in orgo for every practice exam I took... On the real thing...27. So don't fear this section, I thought it was the easiest of all the ones on the DAT.
 
orgo is the easiest section on the DAT. all you have to do is know the basic reactions. but know them well, back and forth, front and back, and you'll be good to go.
 
I have always felt strongest while taking the Organic but every test I have taken it has been my lowest score. Gen chem I have always felt I was doing the worst on but it has always been my highest as far as my scores go. But yes, know all of your reactions. I found that flash cards worked well.
 
I also recommend mastering those kaplan O chem flashcards. They helped me out a lot. Also if youve gone through a number of peactice tests already and understand all of the questions you shouldnt have a problem getting at least a 20
 
I think there's only a handful of stuff that you need to know for the organic chem section. I would memorize what the reagents do. For example know what NBS (for allylic bromination), Gilman, Grignard, Mercury Reagents do *in general*. Know if rxns are syn or anti additions. But nothing hardcore, like intermediate steps for each rxn. I got a 29 for ochem and studied it the least out of the 3 science subjects. Good luck!
 
I liked the topscore pro cd and kaplan. the topscore pro seemed much like the real exam, kaplan seemed a little easier. I did not like the ace-the-dat at all, it was full of errors and seemed written by some students!!! come on..

I used the formula's and rxns in the back of my orgo book. They were great because they were the standard sn1, sn2 etc. substitution reactions and I specifically remember that helping me out. Knowing what type of product expected was also helpful. I could eliminate a couple choices just knowing it was an ether or alcohol, etc. that was the product. This helped a lot.

good luck!
 
I took kaplan and although the course did help, two books that I bought, AP cliff notes o chem I and II, were a little more effective. I was scoring 17's on my kaplan diag's and after I started studying with those books, I got a 20 on the O chem portion on that Kaplan DAT final diagnostic (I was damn proud of that). Strange thing occurred on the actual DAT though. Most people reported an increase in score from the practice, supplementary tests to the actual exam. Not me. My score dropped and I actually got a 17...f'n DAT. Hopefully, that doesn't happen to you! Good luck brotha!
 
I took kaplan, topscore, barron, acethedat.
still my organic score was 18..boo why can't it go above 20s...
 
organic section

i was doing the best at the begining of studying. but the more i studied the worest i did until the real thing when i got at 25.

the best thing to study for it is to look at the notes carefully
and borrow the exam krackers ochem book

those two books did wonders on me
 
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