<p>i jumped into phys c without b and was aiight.... so im wondering..... will i be able to handle ap chem wit no chem background.... i kinda want an A 1st sem of my senior year. and i guess i want to have fun too...</p>
<p>so im wondering. is there a lot more memorization, etc in chem that makes it more difficult than phys c. or should i be able to handle it easily in shadow of mech and E and M...</p>
<p>Coming from no chem background, there's going to be tons of memorization. AP Chem even with a chem background is harder than E & M.</p>
<p>I LOVE Chemistry. Lots of formulas in Physics.</p>
<p>anyone else? how about the ap tests?</p>
<p>will a prep book help if i memorize stuff for chem over the summer?</p>
<p>I am sure u are very intelligent but jumping into ap chem with zero prep will not be good at all and it will be difficult to keep a good grade. However, if u have some chem background, maybe learn basic stoichiometry, acid base, equilibrium and electro, u should be able to jump into ap no problem.
Just for some perspective, my honors chem class was an absolute joke but AP chem was an even bigger joke and the AP exam was, if possible, a downright hilarious joke. But I know that going through normal chem first was hugely beneficial.</p>
<p>The response will vary from student to student, but I am of the opinion that there is absolutely no problem with taking AP Chem without having had regular chem. I did just that this past academic year and have succeeded in getting the top grade in a class whose teacher has sent students on three or more occasions to the National Chemistry Olympiad training camp (top 20 chem students in the nation). I myself am a USNCO semifinalist. In addition, I disagree that there is a lot of memorization in AP Chem. Certainly, there is quite a bit to remember about the periodic table trends, solubility rules, molecular structures, but these principles tend to coalesce and will become a natural part of your "intellectual equipment" if you take enough quizzes and tests. If you have a strong work ethic and a penchant for math/science, GO FOR IT. Good luck!</p>
<p>i totally agree with lobgent. i just finished up AP chem this year, and i gotta say, it was a joke. the ap exam was even easier than i expected (and i had VERY low expectations of it). i know a got a 5, and on an SAT II chem practice test, i got 89/90 right, so i would have gotten an 800 (im taking SAT chem in june). i did have a chem background, but it didn't help substantially. truth be told, there is NOTHING that is conceptually challenging about AP chem. the only advise i'd say is to learn stiochiometry, which ought to take no more than an hour (if you're slow) before you go in, cuz its a skill u'll use throughout the year. you shouldn't worry too much about memorization. the only things you'll have to really memorize are solubility / redox rules and colors. basically everything else, as long as you know the basic theory, you can figure out on test day (ap exam gives WAY too much time)</p>
<p>Don't take it before regular chem. Reg chem is slower first of all so all the basic basic concepts sink in well. Plus Ap chem asks a lot of general chem like flame tests etc, which many schools for Ap chem don't have time for. I did okay in AP chem, i got an A this year and prolly a 5 on the exam and feel the reg chem kinda saved me. 1st semester of AP chem, is a lot of repeat of reg chem with more advanced topics, so if you did well in reg chem, 1st semester should not bo too hard. I would recomend to take like a summer chem course, and then have fun senior year.</p>
<p>if you can do physics c, then you can definitely do chem.</p>
<p>E&M Physics C >>>> ALL OTHER AP TEST (Including CHEM)</p>
<p>If you successfully did Physics C without any physics background, Chem shouldn't be too tough.</p>
<p>actually, most people can do physics c work without any prior knowlegde about physics principles because all that stuff is gone over in class
I dont reccommend you doing AP Chem without a Honors or Regular Chem course because there would be way too much material to cover in one year. You need to have a good foundation in the basic chemical principles before covering it in more depth in AP.</p>
<p>From what I've seen, only two students I know of have taken AP Chem without any background and pulled off an A in that class. It's hard enough WITH a background for most people.</p>
<p>thanks for the advice everyone! the only reason i guess im thinking of going straight into AP chem my senior year. is coz if i took reg chem. id be with a ton of freshies.... and i don't wanna do soemthing like ap environ. bc ill need at least some knowledge of chem b4 college....</p>
<p>im thinkng ill get the ap chem princeton review book and study it over the summer.... take ap chem and if i do badly... level down..</p>
<p>any thought? thank you everyone!</p>
<p>I think it's doable. I can't speak from personal experience, but a girl I know took it in 9th grade without prior chem experience, got A's in the class, and got a 5 on the AP Chemistry exam. She is no super genius, but she is a VERY hard worker and studies like crazy. Try studying over the summer.</p>
<p>If you're willing to spend alot of time studying/working for chem, then go for it.</p>
<p>I'm doing the 1st half of AP Chem (our school splits every AP course into two years...), and from experience I'd say that you only need to know the basics (nomenclature, basic bonding, moles, stoichiometry, etc) before going in. Get a prep book. I went in with only nomenclature and ended up acing the course.</p>