orrrrrrgo the unconquerable

[wwuviking]

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Alright SDNers...I'm going through Orgo I, very fast paced, test every other week, and half the class has already taken it (curve killers!) I'm still hoping to do decent, but I got a C on the first test. I was just wondering how the SDN population has done in ochem.

 

[mc719]

I think that one of the most important things with organic chemistry is to study more than you think you need to. I remember when I took it I underestimated it at first and did way worse on the first test then I expected to do. Do a lot of the homework problems on a regular bases. For me it was all about recognizing patterns and getting so used to it that I was able to notice a lot of the details. Ochem is very detail oriented.

 

[moler]

Was in your shoes a few summers back. Ochem I and II. C, C+. Was happy with those grades believe it or not. Ochem is no joke in the summer...gl. Unluckily I got a visiting prof. from Cornell who was a great teacher, but gave us crazy a** exams. If I could do it over again, I'd def. have taken both during the semester, as I didn't retain much from those two months of hell. Best of luck, but what's luck got to do with studying ; ) right?

 

[terry gordy]

orgo < gchem < biochem << pchem

 

[moler]

I think that one of the most important things with organic chemistry is to study more than you think you need to. I remember when I took it I underestimated it at first and did way worse on the first test then I expected to do. Do a lot of the homework problems on a regular bases. For me it was all about recognizing patterns and getting so used to it that I was able to notice a lot of the details. Ochem is very detail oriented.

Yep, in addition to more detail, also more conceptual than gen chem as you are probably already aware. Even if you understand most of the concepts right off the bat like I did, you need to actually apply them and practice practice practice... which I didn't do = [

 

[camshaft]

Yeah, orgo over the summer, especially if it's at a difficult school, can be insane. My only advice is to keep doing problems every night.

 

[amalgamgrillz]

Yeahhh..orgo sucks. I'm retaking a upper level organic chemistry this summer, and we have tests every week, full 8 page lab reports everyDAY..basically eat sleep breathe organic, so I feel your pain. I'm killing the course (the second time around, ha)

So if that's any consolation to you --just retake it next year!

 

[Denthope]

Was in your shoes a few summers back. Ochem I and II. C, C+. Was happy with those grades believe it or not. Ochem is no joke in the summer...gl. Unluckily I got a visiting prof. from Cornell who was a great teacher, but gave us crazy a** exams.

That crazy professor from Cornell, was/is my professor at Cornell. A lot of people don't do as well as you did that summer (even in the regular semester).

 

[alh002]

Ochem was far easier for me than general chemistry for some reason. I got all B's in G-chem and straight A's in Ochem. I think what helped me most in Ochem was just understanding electronegativity and the stability before and after the reaction. Understanding dipoles and how the stability alters the site of attack often times gives you the answer to where the nucleophile will be attacking. Of course, how readily it attacks is based on whether or not the atom or molecule can hold that negative charge or excess electrons.

Just take good notes in class and read the textbook while doing problems and you should be alright. Good luck! 👍

 

[Winter Wind]

Ochem was far easier for me than general chemistry for some reason. I got all B's in G-chem and straight A's in Ochem. I think what helped me most in Ochem was just understanding electronegativity and the stability before and after the reaction. Understanding dipoles and how the stability alters the site of attack often times gives you the answer to where the nucleophile will be attacking. Of course, how readily it attacks is based on whether or not the atom or molecule can hold that negative charge or excess electrons.

Just take good notes in class and read the textbook while doing problems and you should be alright. Good luck! 👍

Same here. I didn't like G-chem but loved organic.

 

[321931]

<---C's in Orgo, 22 in Orgo DAT.

Moral of Story? If Orgo isn't your cup of tea, than just survive and ace that Orgo Section of the DAT. It's much much much much much much easier and it will excuse one's bad performance at University Level Orgo.

 

[wwuviking]

thanks for the encouragement...just quit my job and hired a tutor. time to get after it!

 

[FairytaleDMD]

A bunch of students swear by the book 'Organic Chemistry as a Second Language.'

DOING problems is MUCH more effective than just studying the material. Keep pushing the arrows until you understand the mechanism, instead of flat-out memorizing the rxn conditions (the latter will automatically follow the former).

Don't fall behind! If nomenclature is emphasized in your class, make sure you have that down; otherwise the words the prof uses will sound completely foreign to you.

 

[Canard]

I think what helped me most in Ochem was just understanding electronegativity and the stability before and after the reaction. Understanding dipoles and how the stability alters the site of attack often times gives you the answer to where the nucleophile will be attacking. Of course, how readily it attacks is based on whether or not the atom or molecule can hold that negative charge or excess electrons.

Just take good notes in class and read the textbook while doing problems and you should be alright. Good luck! 👍

I agree with that and moral of the story for me was to understand "how it works" rather than "pure memorization". I pretty much read all of the chapter and took notes on my computer for future review (most textbook has useless information for test or DAT so taking notes helped me to take out the vital information from the text book and just review that notes when the test comes around. This way you only review the needed information).

The way I did may be overkill (I felt I over studied for many of the test) but it really really helped me to understand the O-chem and didn't have to review so much for DAT.

 

[UCLAzy]

orgo < gchem < biochem << pchem

i was never good with those little pac-men...

 

[Doc Smile]

I enjoyed orgo the most, pchem the least, analytical chem the leastest, and gen chem, bio chem somewhere in between. I did take Adv Organic and Adv Inorganic Chem my senior year as 'electives' (with the same 4 people in each class...), so maybe my opinion is biased because I was a chem nerd.

 

[SN1]

Alright SDNers...I'm going through Orgo I, very fast paced, test every other week, and half the class has already taken it (curve killers!) I'm still hoping to do decent, but I got a C on the first test. I was just wondering how the SDN population has done in ochem.

I got an A in both orgo I and II at the community college but I took them in a regular semester (15-17 weeks long I believe). I also only worked like 0-10 hrs a week so I had plenty of time to study. No curve in the class at all.

 

[max812]

A bunch of students swear by the book 'Organic Chemistry as a Second Language.'

DOING problems is MUCH more effective than just studying the material. Keep pushing the arrows until you understand the mechanism, instead of flat-out memorizing the rxn conditions (the latter will automatically follow the former).

Don't fall behind! If nomenclature is emphasized in your class, make sure you have that down; otherwise the words the prof uses will sound completely foreign to you.

The "Organic Chemistry as a Second Language" book is really great. I didn't have it when I took the class, but a friend lent it to me while I was studying for the DATs. I basically only used that book, along with Destroyer for practice problems, and I did pretty well. Orgo I and II would have been so much easier if I knew about the book beforehand.

 

[JLum]

I think that one of the most important things with organic chemistry is to study more than you think you need to. I remember when I took it I underestimated it at first and did way worse on the first test then I expected to do. Do a lot of the homework problems on a regular bases. For me it was all about recognizing patterns and getting so used to it that I was able to notice a lot of the details. Ochem is very detail oriented.

^^Exactly this for me too.
I got a 98 in Orgo 1 and a 94 in II from a large university. Learn to recognize patterns and learn the basics, then it all starts falling together. It is not magic, in fact it shares many underlying principles found in Gen Chem.
On a side note, watch chad's videos on a subject if you can't understand it. He presents it well.

 

[JennyM]

orgo < gchem < biochem << pchem

I so agree on the everything else << pchem.
danng it was hard!!!!

 

[dantemac]

I got an A in both ochems and biochem. I heard pchem is hell on earth.

 

[wwuviking]

^^Exactly this for me too.
I got a 98 in Orgo 1 and a 94 in II from a large university. Learn to recognize patterns and learn the basics, then it all starts falling together. It is not magic, in fact it shares many underlying principles found in Gen Chem.
On a side note, watch chad's videos on a subject if you can't understand it. He presents it well.

who is this chad?

Oh and everyone else who is just spouting off how great they are at Ochem...good job. But guess what I can eat 12 cookies in one sitting.

 

[SN1]

How hard is biochemistry really guys? Is it mainly retaining information as opposed to calculation?

 

[Dusk]

How hard is biochemistry really guys? Is it mainly retaining information as opposed to calculation?

Biochem was one of my favorite series I've taken in undergrad... not too hard.
In my school it was rote memorization and connecting pathways together. Which got complicated. Some calculations.
If you memorize everything and understand everything, you're good to go.

 

[SN1]

Biochem was one of my favorite series I've taken in undergrad... not too hard.
In my school it was rote memorization and connecting pathways together. Which got complicated. Some calculations.
If you memorize everything and understand everything, you're good to go.

Thank you sir.

 

[dantemac]

Yeah, biochem was not that bad. It was actually very interesting/relevant!

 

[UltimateHombre]

who is this chad?

Oh and everyone else who is just spouting off how great they are at Ochem...good job. But guess what I can eat 12 cookies in one sitting.

Chad is basically the man. He is actually a tutor here at ASU... he is awesome... get his videos and watch them.

I got A's in OChem, by simply just writing and rewriting mechanisms over and over again. Know every rule and draw it out... repetition is key! Good luck!!

 

[Msmouth]

Chad is basically the man. He is actually a tutor here at ASU... he is awesome... get his videos and watch them.

I got A's in OChem, by simply just writing and rewriting mechanisms over and over again. Know every rule and draw it out... repetition is key! Good luck!!

Does Chad do Gen Chem as well?
I am suffering through Gen Chem 2 this summer and it's pure hell! We had our first exam and I think I got a 75-80. I studied my butt off and was still left cold on a few calculations. I hired a tutor and still hoping for an A.

 

[Impulse155]

Post/pm me if you need help.
B+ in first semester orgo (missed the A- by .3 points)
A- in second semester orgo.
Will be TA'ing first semester orgo in the fall and second semester in the spring.

 

[sacapuntas]

Post/pm me if you need help.
B+ in first semester orgo (missed the A- by .3 points)
A- in second semester orgo.
Will be TA'ing first semester orgo in the fall and second semester in the spring.

At the school I attend you need a 3.5 gpa in the subject matter to TA/Tutor for it...which I guess is a good thing.

 

[Impulse155]

At the school I attend you need a 3.5 gpa in the subject matter to TA/Tutor for it...which I guess is a good thing.

Generally in my school its you need at least an A- so 3.66 to get it. However some teachers will make an exception if they know you know your ****.

 

[sacapuntas]

Generally in my school its you need at least an A- so 3.66 to get it. However some teachers will make an exception if they know you know your ****.

That makes sense, especially because those that struggled with material and eventually mastered it are likely better teachers anyways.

 

[JLum]

who is this chad?

Oh and everyone else who is just spouting off how great they are at Ochem...good job. But guess what I can eat 12 cookies in one sitting.

No, I'm not Chad! Just someone who greatly benefited from his videos in my DAT prep. Apparently it paid off, i scored 23+ in Gen Chem and Orgo. So check out his videos, he deserves your dollar bills!

 

[zandra08]

B+ in Ochem1 and Ochem2. for 2... i definitely recommend making a reaction notebook. so helpful!

 

[polola55]

I love Ochem. Aced both OChem I and II. Study and practice a lot is the key to succeeding in OChem. Don't strictly memorize it and forget about it after each exams.

Took Physical OChem after taking PChem. Physical OChem was a true bitch! I actually like PChem (A- in both Quantum and Thermo side of PChem), but not as much as OChem.

 

[PreDent321]

I don't know if this is consistent at all dental schools, but a former dental student, who was on the Adcom, told me that his school wants to see at least one A or A- in your orgo classes. Same with physics. His reasoning was that the difficulty of these courses were comparable to ones in dental school and thus they were a good barometer of an applicant's ability.

 

[UltimateHombre]

To the above 4 posters...

This thread is like 3 months old and i think the OP got all the responses they needed. Thanks for your time and consideration though....

 

[MuskieMan33]

I think most people just got done with their first Ochem test and are looking for things that might be able to help them, as am I! I know I could use help in that class. 🙁

 

[Seahawk]

I just got a 100 on my first ochem test 😛.

 

[youknowthedrill]

B+ in Ochem1 and Ochem2. for 2... i definitely recommend making a reaction notebook. so helpful!

What is a reaction notebook? How is it organized?

 

[Psychohexane13]

What is a reaction notebook? How is it organized?

I'm guessing it's a just a notebook filled with reactions.. 🙄

List the basic reaction, include important points to look out for, and then a few examples of how to apply it.

 

[PreDent321]

At least with orgo, unlike gen chem, there's no math involved. Plus, it's easier on the DAT than in school.

 

[zandra08]

I'm guessing it's a just a notebook filled with reactions.. 🙄

List the basic reaction, include important points to look out for, and then a few examples of how to apply it.

exactly, you just draw out the step-wise reaction. ochem1 we didn't have many reactions to learn, but once you hit ochem2.... i think i had about 50 pages in my rxn notebook

 

[shiftypoptart]

http://www.***********.com/showthread.php?2890-Free-O-Chem-VideosWatch chads videos on course saver .com. Used them for my DAT and basically learned it better through these videos than I did through the year at school I took ochem. Even got a 23 on the ochem part just by using these videos. Really wish I had known about these while I was taken ochem but they are definitely worth your time and money trust me.