To current (and former) post-baccs out there...

[bakagal]

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This question is for those of you who were career changers and began your post-bacc studies in the summer with chemistry I and II.

Is there anything I could be pre-studying now (with about 1-2 months to go before I start) that would make things easier for me? Like, would familiarity or memorization of the periodic table help? Should I buy the textbook already and start reading? I've never done that in the past with ANYTHING (I'm by no means a gunner, I'm just kind of nervous here) but would love to go into the class with any advantage possible so as to minimize stress.

 

[johnnyscans]

This question is for those of you who were career changers and began your post-bacc studies in the summer with chemistry I and II.

Is there anything I could be pre-studying now (with about 1-2 months to go before I start) that would make things easier for me? Like, would familiarity or memorization of the periodic table help? Should I buy the textbook already and start reading? I've never done that in the past with ANYTHING (I'm by no means a gunner, I'm just kind of nervous here) but would love to go into the class with any advantage possible so as to minimize stress.

I don't think there's any need to study the chemistry side of things.

If anything I'd review your algebra, trigonometry (for physics) and log rules. Having a solid math foundation will be much more beneficial than prereading the text book.

However, when you make it to organic chemistry, I would recommending reading up on molecular orbital theory before your first lecture. HOMO/LUMO interactions drive. . . well, pretty much everything in orgo.

 

[ksyhe]

Totally agree -- brush up on your basic math skills -- logs, exponents, trig, orders of operation, conversions, etc. It'll totally save you time if you can spot math shortcuts and feel comfortable manipulating equations, both for Chem and Physics. At the very least, maybe figure out how to use all the functions on your calculator. 🙂

I posted awhile back about some of the math resources I used: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?p=12981137#post12981137

Depending on how you learn, reading the book could be a waste of time -- I actually stopped reading the book about a week into Chem 1. For me, it was much more efficient to just pay attention in lecture, and then do all the suggested problems. You're probably going to get pretty familiar with the periodic table during the course of the class, so not sure if it would be a particularly good use of time trying to memorize it now (especially out of context of the class).

Hope this helps, and good luck!

 

[psychstudent601]

Totally agree -- brush up on your basic math skills -- logs, exponents, trig, orders of operation, conversions, etc. It'll totally save you time if you can spot math shortcuts and feel comfortable manipulating equations, both for Chem and Physics. At the very least, maybe figure out how to use all the functions on your calculator. 🙂

I posted awhile back about some of the math resources I used: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?p=12981137#post12981137

Depending on how you learn, reading the book could be a waste of time -- I actually stopped reading the book about a week into Chem 1. For me, it was much more efficient to just pay attention in lecture, and then do all the suggested problems. You're probably going to get pretty familiar with the periodic table during the course of the class, so not sure if it would be a particularly good use of time trying to memorize it now (especially out of context of the class).

Hope this helps, and good luck!

Thank you for this!! I've been wanting to brush up on my math for physics, I appreciate the resources listed in your previous post very much!

 

[darkjedi]

What I did in the month or two right before starting was I went through the examkrackers Gen Chem review book and tried to learn the basics. After a certain point it gets challenging to understand it without additional help as the book is geared for people who have already taken Gen Chem, but I think it did pave the way in what to expect.

 

[deleted248403]

Some of these might help too:

http://www.youtube.com/user/khanacademy

I've always been impressed with the simplicity/ease of their videos - youtube has a ton of great resources. I regularly find myself watching videos on their for med school concepts.

 

[pineapplepancakes]

Some of these might help too:

http://www.youtube.com/user/khanacademy

I've always been impressed with the simplicity/ease of their videos - youtube has a ton of great resources. I regularly find myself watching videos on their for med school concepts.

I second this. I've been using Khan academy for math, biology, and chemistry during my fellowship abroad to get back into the swing of things before post-bacc work, and I absolutely love it. I have finished almost all 400+ skills in the math practice (it fortunately includes calculus), and I watch at least a video a day on some science topic. It's a great and simple way to learn some useful material.

 

[Goucher2013]

What I did in the month or two right before starting was I went through the examkrackers Gen Chem review book and tried to learn the basics. After a certain point it gets challenging to understand it without additional help as the book is geared for people who have already taken Gen Chem, but I think it did pave the way in what to expect.

+1

I also posted some Goucher-specific suggestions in this year's Goucher thread. There are certain things worth memorizing. I don't think the textbook itself is worth pre-reading, except for the memorization, so darkjedi's suggestion can help (the Examkrackers book gives context via brief summary chapters). Key point: exactly what you have to memorize depends on the program, so don't just go on what you find on SDN.

 

[bakagal]

Thanks for all the great suggestions! Seems like the general consensus is to begin by brushing up on my math skills so I'm definitely going to get started on that. I checked out some of the sites you suggested and they seem like great resources.