Taking Organic Chemistry in the Summer to get a better grade

[ericbchoe]

Hi guys,

I am going to be a freshmen this coming fall and undergoing the pre pharmacy track. In most common cases, a freshmen would be taking General Biology, General Chemistry, Math, and Writing their first year, however; in the summer, I was wondering if taking Organic Chemistry is a better choice than taking it during my sophomore year in the fall and spring semesters. There seems to be a lot of pros and cons for taking organic chemistry in the summer, so what do you guys think?

Is it easier than taking o-chem in the fall? How is the course load? Etc.?

Thank you

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[helpme1]

As long as you take general chem before o-chem then it's fine. The work load for a semester of o-chem during the summer is doable.

 

[Rouelle]

If you are exceptionally disciplined it can be a great idea. There is a lot of info to comprehend, but less time to forget it from beginning to end. If you have trouble with discipline or time management, doing ochem in the summer might not be best for you. I would not plan to take other classes or work very much that summer. Just curious, are you looking at a 2 month organic 1 course, or taking each (organic 1 and 2) as abbreviated 1 month summer courses? I've seen both, and the latter seems kinda scary.

 

[ericbchoe]

If you are exceptionally disciplined it can be a great idea. There is a lot of info to comprehend, but less time to forget it from beginning to end. If you have trouble with discipline or time management, doing ochem in the summer might not be best for you. I would not plan to take other classes or work very much that summer. Just curious, are you looking at a 2 month organic 1 course, or taking each (organic 1 and 2) as abbreviated 1 month summer courses? I've seen both, and the latter seems kinda scary.

I wanted to take both organic 1 and 2 in the summr to open up an easy schudele my sophomore year. But if that seems to much, what would you recommend?

 

[kalikat]

I would absolutely encourage you NOT to take organic chemistry in the summer. Summer sessions are typically a month a half long, which means youre going to be learning a lot of stuff in an exceptionally short period of time. I think organic chemistry is the kind of course that requires time to sink in. Its so different from general chemistry or from biology so unless you've had at least some organic chem in high school, I wouldn't even attempt it if I were you.

 

[JADpharm28]

I'm currently taking orgo I this summer (8 weeks long). Started yesterday and it's already a lot of work. I go to class Mon-Thurs 10:45-12pm for lecture and 12:15-2:55pm for lab everyday. If you don't have anything else going on, it will be doable. I would not recommend taking orgo I and II in the same summer. Seems like overkill to me. There's nothing wrong with a difficult or rigorous 16 week semester in your sophomore year

 

[Corpseman]

I wanted to take both organic 1 and 2 in the summr to open up an easy schudele my sophomore year. But if that seems to much, what would you recommend?

Ochem is too important to shove into a summer session. I could give you other ideas if you gave more information, like what your frosh/soph plans are, are you working, etc.

 

[ericbchoe]

Ochem is too important to shove into a summer session. I could give you other ideas if you gave more information, like what your frosh/soph plans are, are you working, etc.

First Year -Fall Semester
Intro. to Biological Science I
Intro. to Biological Science I Lab
Fundamentals of Chemistry I
Fundamentals of Chemistry I Lab
First Year Writing I
Calculus I


First Year - Spring Semester
Introduction to Biological Science II
Introduction to Biological Science II Lab
Fundamentals of Chemistry II
Fundamentals of Chemistry II Lab
First Year Writing II
Introduction to Statistical Analysis


First Year - Summer Semester
The United States to 1877
The United States Since 1877
Humanities

---------------------------------
Second Year - Fall Semester

Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry I
Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry I Lab
U.S. & Texas Constitution/Politics
Introduction to Psychology
Introductory General Physics
Visual/Performing Arts


First Year - Spring Semester
Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry II
Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry II Lab
Elementary Microbiology
Elementary Microbiology Lab
US Government: Congress, President, and Courts
Writing in the Disciplines
Fundamentals of Public Speaking


-------------------------
And I will not have a job in the summer if I take Orgo Chem in the summer.

 

[smercer]

Some advice I would submit is:

Chill out and enjoy life. College is supposed to be a time have fun and to learn about yourself. Take plently of courses in subjects the interest you. Take multiple professors. Yes I know you are going to come up with some story about how Pharmacy is the only job you can see yourself doing...Really? Your 18...I'm sorry, but there are literally millions of jobs out there. Don't pigeon hole yourself into one specific job because you have done some research on it. How many other jobs have you seriously done research on? I am not trying to tell you Pharmacy is not the field for you, instead I am offering the idea that maybe there is something that you could enjoy more.

 

[Rouelle]

With regard to org 1 and 2 in the summer, it is tough. But, every year many people do it and are successful. If you do it, be prepared to study several hours every day.

 

[frabu04]

Some advice I would submit is:

Chill out and enjoy life. College is supposed to be a time have fun and to learn about yourself. Take plently of courses in subjects the interest you. Take multiple professors. Yes I know you are going to come up with some story about how Pharmacy is the only job you can see yourself doing...Really? Your 18...I'm sorry, but there are literally millions of jobs out there. Don't pigeon hole yourself into one specific job because you have done some research on it. How many other jobs have you seriously done research on? I am not trying to tell you Pharmacy is not the field for you, instead I am offering the idea that maybe there is something that you could enjoy more.

Agreed. The worst thing to happen is to overload on coursework and later find out you'd rather do something else. I don't see why there should be such a rush. Even an taking an extra year before applying wouldn't hurt.

 

[ericbchoe]

I believe taking Organic Chemistry 1 during the summer is doable if theres nothing else going on. So by the time the PCAT comes around in September (start of Sophomore year), the student will be prepared compared to someone who didn't take Organic Chemistry 1 in the summer. Yes, it will be hard, especially since the student would be going to class everyday and having lab twice a week, but as long as they focus and manage time well, I believe it would be a smart idea in the end. Especially if a student could pull off atleast a B. That will free up a whole semesters worth of hard work.

 

[YB Kim]

I just joined this forum and I am pretty new here. I am thinking hard about taking Organic
Chemistry I and II over the next summer in my home town(Boston).

There many colleges in Boston like Harvard, BC, BU, Tufts, and Northeastern.
I know it is tough to take both of them during summer. But I like to challenge.

I'd appreciate it if you'd answer the following questions:

1) Is it a good idea to take them in summer?
2) If I take them in Harvard, it might look better but it may be harder to get a good
grade. So I like to ask if it matters where to take the sumer courses(Organic Chems) for medical
application ?
if not, I like to take the courses in a less expensive and closer place to my home.
3) Let me ask one more(sorry and thank you if you answer):
Becasue I got 5 on AP calculus BC, I am curently taking calculus 3 now(freshemen), and
I am planning to take statistics for psychology in Spring. Does this class count for premed
requirement? A math prof in the math department said that it does. Bu I like to
get it confirmed.

Thank you very much!

 

[Snowbaby213]

If the Orgo course is a month long, I wouldn't even touch it. For myself, Orgo takes time to sink in. It's literately one of those courses that just one day it won't make sense, so you'll study it, maybe it'll sink in, finally it'll start to sink in. Somethings in Orgo make sense more than others. If your wondering, I'm in Orgo right now and I have an A, 93. I'm at the top trend of my class. This is how Orgo is for me. I did average at best in General Chemistry, but did great in Organic.

From what I know a lot of schools do not like AP credits. I had a few AP credits in Psychology, English. And I decided to just retake the classes just incase the school I was applying too was not very much a fan of the AP credits. So check with the school on this.

 

[jerbearox]

I wanted to take both organic 1 and 2 in the summr to open up an easy schudele my sophomore year. But if that seems to much, what would you recommend?

my school offered that. entire ochem series in 9 weeks. got a C, B, B+. was it worth it? depends how you look at it. if you are trying to graduate fast then yes its worth it. otherwise, i would not. since graduating i went back to CC just to replace those grades with A's. if you're gonna do something, do it right the first time!

 

[Pojman]

I would also agree that O. chem need some time. I would recommend to anyone (other than very sharp students) to take O. chem in full semester intervals.

 

[rei1088]

1) Is it a good idea to take them in summer?
2) If I take them in Harvard, it might look better but it may be harder to get a good
grade. So I like to ask if it matters where to take the summer courses (Organic Chems) for medical application? if not, I like to take the courses in a less expensive and closer place to my home.
3) Let me ask one more(sorry and thank you if you answer):
Because I got 5 on AP calculus BC, I am currently taking calculus 3 now (freshman), and I am planning to take statistics for psychology in Spring. Does this class count for premed requirement? A math prof in the math department said that it does. But I'd like to get it confirmed.

It depends on what type of student you are. If you take Organic Chemistry in 6 weeks (or however long summer sessions are), will you remember it even after the class is over? It's not just about you getting an A or not in that class. It's whether you can remember it while you're in pharmacy school. Personally, I wouldn't take it. My second semester in sophomore prior to transfer--I had a calculus class, two physics classes and the organic chemistry 2. Was it hard? Sure but I remember all of them (yes, I got As in all too but that's beside the point).

Will it affect your medical application? I don't know. I only applied to pharmacy schools. I don't think it affected my pharmacy application. Again, to the rest of your questions, this is the pharmacy forum. Yes, you can use psychology for pharmacy. No clue for premed.

 

[Snowbaby213]

my school offered that. entire ochem series in 9 weeks. got a C, B, B+. was it worth it? depends how you look at it. if you are trying to graduate fast then yes its worth it. otherwise, i would not. since graduating i went back to CC just to replace those grades with A's. if you're gonna do something, do it right the first time!

Definitely agree on doing it right the first time! It will definitely save you time and money.

 

[Chip Chipperson]

I just completed Organic 1 and 2 this summer. Each was a 4 week course, and we are on a quarter system. Instead of offering my subjective advice, I will offer quantitative data from O-chem 2 - directly from the class webpage. I go to a major (20K + students) public university in the NW United States.




Organic 2 final grade breakdown:

A:18
A-:9
B+:8
B:18
B-:7
C+:9
C:25
C-:8
D+:8
D:10
D-:3
F:16 ( including four students who did not take the final.)


(I got an A!)


In Organic 1 I got a B+, the average on the FINAL EXAM was 82%.

 

[AlPacino]

Have you completed Gen Chem1? If not then take that first and then Organic. I also took Orgo1 during the summer. 'Twas not fun -_-

 

[joetrisman]

Took orgo II during the summer along with two other classes, a lab, and working weekends. It was the closest I came to in having to nail time management to a T before taking therapeutics in rx school last school year.

 

[YB Kim]

Heyeveryone.

What about taking the organic chem in Northeastern University? It is not as great as Harvard, but they offer Organic Chem 1 and 2 for 12 weeks in summer(6 weeks each).
I think that will be less intense and I can have more time to obsorb.

The only question is, "How would do most medical school differentiate Northeastern
from Harvard?" Of course Northeastern university is not a bad school but a good one and nearby my home.

 

[medicalpassion]

Hate to bump an old thread but what are everyone's opinions on taking Orgo 1 over a 12 week summer session and then taking Orgo 2 in the Fall for a full semester? Would it be doable to take Orgo 1 over 12 weeks while also taking a few other classes?

 

[Skrumpy]

Hate to bump an old thread but what are everyone's opinions on taking Orgo 1 over a 12 week summer session and then taking Orgo 2 in the Fall for a full semester? Would it be doable to take Orgo 1 over 12 weeks while also taking a few other classes?

Should be fine. OChem is not as bad as people make it out to be. The issue is that it requires some measure of memorization and a lot of the knowledge builds on itself throughout the course. So if you try to BS your way through it (which you can do with most classes) and forget everything you learned from your previous exam, you may run into trouble. Just be diligent in your study of the material and make sure to ask if you have questions.

 

[AlPacino]

Hate to bump an old thread but what are everyone's opinions on taking Orgo 1 over a 12 week summer session and then taking Orgo 2 in the Fall for a full semester? Would it be doable to take Orgo 1 over 12 weeks while also taking a few other classes?

http://www.amazon.com/Organic-Chemi...F8&qid=1367551961&sr=1-5&keywords=david+Klein

Get that book and you will be fine.

 

[PharmLife4Me]

First Year -Fall Semester
Intro. to Biological Science I
Intro. to Biological Science I Lab
Fundamentals of Chemistry I
Fundamentals of Chemistry I Lab
First Year Writing I
Calculus I


First Year - Spring Semester
Introduction to Biological Science II
Introduction to Biological Science II Lab
Fundamentals of Chemistry II
Fundamentals of Chemistry II Lab
First Year Writing II
Introduction to Statistical Analysis


First Year - Summer Semester
The United States to 1877
The United States Since 1877
Humanities

---------------------------------
Second Year - Fall Semester

Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry I
Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry I Lab
U.S. & Texas Constitution/Politics
Introduction to Psychology
Introductory General Physics
Visual/Performing Arts


First Year - Spring Semester
Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry II
Fundamentals of Organic Chemistry II Lab
Elementary Microbiology
Elementary Microbiology Lab
US Government: Congress, President, and Courts
Writing in the Disciplines
Fundamentals of Public Speaking


-------------------------
And I will not have a job in the summer if I take Orgo Chem in the summer.

This looks good Looks like 2 hard classes each semester... but don't overload yourself so that you can't get experience, volunteer, etc.

 

[KasHfg]

I wanted to take both organic 1 and 2 in the summr to open up an easy schudele my sophomore year. But if that seems to much, what would you recommend?

Organic Chemistry is important... the less time you spend on studying something the faster you forget the material when school is over, so I would not take organic (or any other crucial classes) during the summer semester.

 

[rxtech2012]

I took organic 1 and lab over a summer and worked about 30-35 hours a week..I personally didn't have an issue and still earned my A.

 

[SeaSid]

Chemistry

 

[SClENCE]

I think it's a great idea. You will only have 1 class so you can focus all of your energy into it.