<p>I'm going to be taking AP Chemistry this year and I was wondering if anyone has any tips on passing the class as well as getting a 5 on the AP exam? I'm terrible at math btw so I'm not sure how I will manage.</p>
<p>I only got a 4 so I’m probably not the best person to give advice, but the math definitely isn’t the hard part.</p>
<p>If I recall correctly, there is very little math in AP Chem (basic multiplication and the like, from what I remember; definitely nothing above algebra level).</p>
<p>Do you guys have any suggestions on what I should do to prep? Should I buy the AP prep book now and just study off of that?</p>
<p>Yes. Start early. And good luck. Hopefully you’ll get a good teacher, unlike me.</p>
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<p>There are logarithms, but it’s not too bad.</p>
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<p>Thanks for the correction! Clearly, it’s been a while since I’ve taken it.</p>
<p>I got a 5 this year, so I’ll offer my advice.</p>
<p>Curriculum is changing for this next year, so I can’t offer much help in terms of exam structure. If next years test is similar however, you do not need to answer every part of free response to get a 5. I skipped 3 or 4 sub-questions, and still managed a 5. The average percentage for a five is about 65%, so it’s far from perfection.</p>
<p>Math will include logarithms, and the ability to manipulate basic equations and variables will help a ton. i.e. q=mcΔT, if you have q, m and c, find ΔT. That sort of thing. Keep in mind, when you’re working with equilibrium, you’ll probably have to do both of these things at the same time. That can get tricky, but it’s far from impossible.</p>
<p>You’ll have to think outside the box on some concepts, but never overthink it. That was the problem for a lot of students in my class this year. You learn concepts, and with a few exceptions, everything you are tested on will pertain to these concepts. Don’t think in the middle of a chem exam that Gas B is suddenly going to go against all the laws and principles you’ve learned so far. I’ve watched a lot of classmates fail exams because they spent too much time thinking of the “what if”.</p>
<p>My teacher was excellent, absolutely excellent. Maybe that’s why I enjoyed the class so much. My best advice is to do practice tests in the weeks before the exam. Not just going through the questions, but taking the test with the time parameters you’ll experience in the exam. In fact, I would cut my time short during practice exams; so after a while, I was able to do all 75 mc questions with 20 minutes to spare, allowing for more time to review my answers. </p>
<p>If your teacher offers practice exams, take advantage of it. I can’t stress this enough. My teacher had two Saturday test prep sessions in the lead up to the exam. I can honestly say that was a major reason I did as well as I did. I knew what to expect.</p>
<p>I also got the 5 steps to a 5 study book, and it was a great supplement. I can’t speak for how the 2014 edition will be, but I still recommend taking a look at it.</p>
<p>Have fun next year! A lot of people hate AP chem, but that’s only because it requires a lot of dedication and it’s hard to slide through like some other classes. If you have the desire and drive to do well, you’ll be fine.</p>
<p>tl;dr AP chem rocks, and you’ll have a good time if you want to.</p>
<p>I got a 2 on my AP chemistry exam so…take this comment apart if you want.</p>
<p>AP chemistry was my favorite class, and it was really fun. The math isn’t hard, just basic algebra II manipulation. Because of the curriculum change, a lot of the calculus solved equations (e.g., the equations in chemical kinetics) will most likely be taken out I believe. </p>
<p>I wish someone told me this but get a review book early, about halfway through the course and start going through the past subjects because you will forget them. I don’t want to get slammed hard again for saying that AP chemistry is a tough subject, but it is. Work hard and keep at it. I got an A for the final term and I never worked so hard in my life. so lastly, listen to the students on here, they are very intelligent and know what they’re talking about. Good luck :)</p>
<p>I would assume knowing dimensional analysis like its the back of your hand can help</p>
<p>^ Good point.</p>
<p>@OP, if you don’t know how to do dimensional analysis, it’s cool, but you will be doing it a lot in AP chemistry, so much that it’ll become routine, like breathing.</p>
<p>My best advice is to make sure you’ve master a subject before having to move on. I got stuck a some of the conceptual stuff and it hurt me because I couldn’t make some of the connections. I did manage a 4 on the exam, but if I would have put more time into understanding things on my own I probably would have pulled a 5. And definitely don’t worry about the math.</p>