Organic chemistry is known for being a tough subject that requires hours of problem-solving and memorization to fully master. It's comparable to biology in terms of how many reactions to memorize and physics in terms of conceptual understanding. However, I put together these tips to help your organic chemistry experience become a lot more bearable.
1. Carbon can't make 5 bonds!
My organic chemistry teacher in high school keeps a stamp that literally says, "5 bonds!"
2. Don't forget formal charges!
As my math teacher used to say, don't make your negative signs take a vacation!
3. Struggle solo and then ask for help!
This really does apply to any class, but I've received invaluable advice from my teachers regarding struggling solo—you want to always try and see if you can solve a problem yourself without consulting any external resources until you've spent a considerable amount of time working on it.
4. Don't cram!
I know, I know. Cramming is a skill that people have been using since high school to quickly store information into their heads. Sounds fun, right?
5. Try to look for similarities and patterns in reactions!
This has helped me immensely with the countless reactions that you need to know and understand. It's a good thing that nature likes to repeat itself!
6. Don't ever forget stereochemistry!
Stereochemistry refers to how atoms and molecules are oriented in space. The difference in orientation at one carbon is enough to determine whether you'd be killed by it.
7. You won't normally have to deal with most of the elements on the periodic table!
You might need to remember a few periodic trends from general chemistry, but on the bright side, you don't need to memorize 90 elements and their atomic masses!
8. If you're in the lab and it gets really smelly, chances are it's a Swern oxidation.
At least it's environmentally friendly!
9. Collaborate with others!
If you really don't get how a reaction proceeds, you can always collaborate with friends and/or attend office hours!
10. Seriously, don't cram!
I think this really doesn't need further explanation.
11. Make funny (and bad) jokes about the various reactions!
You get to annoy your friends and effectively study the material, a win-win situation!
