Archive for the "Q and A" Category

Many students that we have taught began the session by saying they have the “hard” organic chemistry professor.  Typically, they mention inequalities such as nitpicky grading, impossible problems and __.  But, a major epiphany the successful Orgo students must have is; there is no upper hand any professor has over their students.  The materials and principles of Orgo 1 have not changed in over 50 years!  Therefore, there is no question a professor can ask that isn’t straight out of your text book. So what makes them so hard? Here are a few categories of professor behavior and advice on how to meet or beat their course!

Problem #1: Bad presentation.

This is by far the most common problem of “hard” professors.  Some will use hand-written notes, a chalk-talk where they do more erasing than writing, or a PowerPoint with figures straight out of the text book but no notes. Most of these teaching tools are not very useful for the confused Orgo student, because it causes more confusion than it clears up.  This leads to frustration and makes the student fall further behind.

The Fix:

Stay on top of the material.  Divide your time over how many chapters of material you have and this will give yourself a deadline to complete the material.  Read the book, as painful as it sounds.  Read each chapter non-stop the first time and then go back to trouble sections for help.  StudyOrgo.com has developed a customized presentation of difficult concepts in organic chemistry into an easy to understand format with a step-by-step breakdown and description of common reaction mechanisms in organic chemistry.  Are you studying on the go? Check out the mobile app for the ultimate study aid!

Problem #2: Weeding out the A’s from the B’s.

You are likely in a class where Orgo Chem is a degree requirement.  Many professors will throw in “really hard” questions that terrify students and it may seem like they are just being plain evil.  There is a reason for everything!  Professors use this tactic to assign A’s to the students who have kept up and followed along the whole time and rightfully so since these questions cannot be answered without understanding everything they have covered.  You can be one of the few who aces these questions!

The Fix:

Check out the solution manual for your text book from the local library and try as many problems as you can on the material you find most difficult.  An important realization to have is that there are only so many ways a professor can ask you a question.  Therefore, if you see a ton of practice problems, the probability of them asking a question you have already seen is extremely high. This means you will master any question they ask.  At StudyOrgo.com, we break down each mechanism in detail so when you practice your problem sets, you’ll be ready.

Problem #3: High expectations.

Many times, professors will expect you to apply your knowledge to a problem you haven’t seen before.  After all, this is what scientists do every single day!  Since almost all professors are scientists, they often mix their research ideals with teaching, which can make it seem very hard.  But you can do it!

The Fix:

Learning organic chemistry is like building pyramid; the top will fall without a strong base. Remember those homework questions your professor assigned? Go back to Chapter 1 and complete every one and DO NOT STOP until you can answer them all!  By the middle of the practice problems, you will start to feel like this isn’t so bad.  Then you are ready for Chapter 2, Chapter 3, and so on and in no time you’ll be ready for the final!  When confronted by these questions, think: “what is this question asking for that we covered already?”  When you come up with an answer, this can help you narrow down what concept to recall and help beat that “overwhelming” anxious feeling after reading the question.  After you relax, you’ll be ready because of all of you preparation!

Following these tips will allow you to pass any Orgo Chem class taught be even the most difficult professor. Although it might not seem like it in the moment, they want you to do well so get out there an impress them!

Many past organic chemistry students have asked themselves this question. The statement subtly asks two questions that require two different answers, neither of which have to do with faith and everything to do with strategy. The first query “late in the game” likely refers to the reader’s expectation of successfully passing the course with the exams remaining. This is probably the true motive for concern. Failing two tests is demoralizing but does not make it impossible to receive a passing grade in the course. If this is your concern, the best advice is confront the situation directly and to clearly communicate with your course instructor. Since he or she is the person, in fact, who will issue you the grade and not this author, only they can comment on the feasibility of passing. However, you can control your strategy. If you cannot receive a passing grade, audit or withdraw from the course, but whatever you do, DO NOT stop attending lectures and keeping up with homework. It may sound like a worthless effort but remember: you may have ‘lost the battle’ this time around, but you WILL ‘win the war’ the second time with perseverance and expert help.

If you can pass or have headed advice to retake organic chemistry, we move to the second query of “understanding before the final.” The short answer is, yes you can! This is where your strategy now turns to tackling the material in a systematic approach. Learning organic chemistry, and most sciences for that matter, is like building like a pyramid; the top will fall without a strong base. Remember those homework questions your professor assigned? Go back to Chapter 1 and complete every one and DO NOT STOP until you can answer every one! I know, you are one week away from the exam and you don’t have time to go back, right? Absolutely wrong! You failed the last two exams right? Remember: you can’t move forward without solidifying the material you missed in the past. As a T.A. with over 8 years of experience, I estimate 70-90% of the tests are modeled after questions assigned from instructors based on homework and in-class problems. If you only mastered these problems and nothing else, you have already passed the test!!!

If you are crunched for time, set a series of achievable goals to reach. Divide your time over how many chapters of material you have and this will give yourself a deadline to complete the material. Check out the solution manual for your text book from the local library and try as many problems as you can on the material you find most difficult. Once you reach your deadline, reward yourself! Grab your favorite beverage or food and recharge yourself before the tackling the next goal. After a few successful sessions of material review, you WILL be shocked at how your understanding has dramatically improved. Only at this point will you be ready to take on the material on the final but unlike the last two tests, you won’t feel overwhelmed because you are ready.

For some students, self-instruction is a too large a leap in faith. These students need assurance they are on the right track. Fortunately such a person has many resources at their disposal, the best of which is professional help from private and website tutoring. StudyOrgo.com is devoted to customizing the presentation of difficult concepts in organic chemistry into an easy to understand format with a step-by-step breakdown and description of common reaction mechanisms in organic chemistry. With your determination and a successful strategy, I assure you will live through the experience of organic chemistry!

Here is a question we got from one of our students:

Question: 

Do you guys have any information on synthesis?

Answer:

Dear Student,

Thank you for your inquiry to StudyOrgo.com. We definitely cover synthesis problems. In fact, the entire premise of our site is to prepare students for multi-step synthesis problems. Here is how you can use StudyOrgo.com to prepare for synthesis problems:

1) Read/Study all of the flashcard information presented in our “Study Mode’

2) Create custom quizzes in “Quiz Mode”- this is the opportunity to learn the reactions backwards and forwards. This is how you should prepare for synthesis. This mode gives you the opportunity to be tested on any part of a reaction.

3) Use the “Reaction Roadmap” to keep track of how to use/make a particular functional group. For example, if your synthesis problem involves preparing an alkene, review all the various reactions that “give you” an alkene.

Additionally, I would be more than happy to walk you through this process in more detail so you can see how effective our site is for synthesis problems. Call me anytime.

Best,

Daniel
Chief Educator
StudyOrgo.com