AP Chemistry or AP Bio

<p>Which AP Exam is easier and which class is easier in general? At our school, we use James C. Hill, Lemay, Bursten, John Challice Edition for the AP Chem textbook and Campbell's sixth edition for AP Biology. I'm leaning towards AP Chem because our Honors Biology teacher ( teaches AP Bio) is one tough teacher. Only two ppl were able to get an A in her class last year.</p>

<p>AP Chemistry is the general feeling from your thread. Besides, if you get a 5 on it, you generally get more college credit for it than Bio. (Don't quote me on it)</p>

<p>your kidding ? yall think AP Chem is easier than Bio?</p>

<p>I hate yall. :-P</p>

<p>I', really sturggling in Chem right now cuz it's like nothing I've ever done before. it requires analytical skills AND a very good memory. I screw up so badly on tests because I 4get one or 2 key facts </p>

<p>Bio I don't have the class but I see it as just memory work that is common sense a lot of times. Self studying it but not dedicating a lot of time to it right now</p>

<p>AP Chemistry is ALOT easier than AP bio (at least the test is)</p>

<p>From what i have heard from people who have gotten 5s on it, (most of the class did last year) they said that the class was hell, and the test was a piece of cake...the book problems (if you are using a college book) are harder than rocket science, while the problems (like stoich and equations and stuff) are like 100% simpler on the real AP test....</p>

<p>I am taking both right now (bio and chem), and i find chem a lot easier...but to be decent at chem, you have to be good at math (im ok at math, so sometimes i struggle with the book problems, but they are generally not that bad)</p>

<p>chem is hard... im in it now- i doubt ill take the ap test since i need a 4 or 5 to get credit. id probably get a 2 or 3. in last years class , all got bad grades.</p>

<p>I can only speak for the AP Chem exam (as I have yet to take the AP Bio exam), but the fact that you aren't allowed to use a calculator on the multiple choice section certainly says something about the rigor of the MC problems.</p>

<p>Wow.. looks like it's going both ways. What about the textbooks? Do any of you guys use the same textbooks that our school uses? I know the Campbell Edition is pretty popular but what about our Chemistry textbook?</p>

<p>We use the Zunbahl Chem book or sumthing, its horrible to understand.</p>

<p>Zumdahl rocksss</p>

<p>We use silberberg for ap chem and it is super gay. if anyone here likes chemistry over biology, the great god of biological science will rain down on your ass.</p>

<p>If you are really good at math and critical thinking skills, I suggest Chem. If memorizing info is your thing, go for Bio. If your good at both, then I hate you.</p>

<p>Jk! :)</p>

<p>lol nice. I like biology better, even though i suck at it. I would say the test is easier... then again my school has a psycho bio program with an average grade of 4.6 last year.</p>

<p>Your decision should really depend on your honors Bio and honors Chem teachers. If Bio was a hard class, but you learned a lot, you would be better prepared for the AP Bio exam if Honors Chem was so easy a two year-old could pass with a C. In term of difficulty, the two tests are about the same. Are you good at memorizing random facts (Bio) or are you more of a math person (Chem)?</p>

<p>chem is easier than bio, hands down, bio requires um... a lot more memorization, but in chem if u get the concept down it applies over a broad spectrum of topics, in that sense it is easier</p>

<p>chem is a lot harder, u have to understand and do thigns
bio is just memorization, u could cram that in about a week...</p>

<p>the AP Test i dont know....
Chem was average test</p>

<p>Zumdahl book, is best book i've ever had</p>

<p>I recommend chemistry</p>

<p>im taking ap chemistry this year (with zumdahl's book). i agree with this thread that ap chem definately takes alot of critical thinking and reasoning skills to solve problems. the problems on the 'w/ calculator section' of the ap chem exam require you to tie in almost all of the concepts you learned in the class to solve the problem. a problem with five parts most likely will include stoichiometry, gases, and equilibrium to solve it.
the MC section does not allow calcs and definately has some problems that you have to multiply, divide, and do dimensional analysis with decimals and fractions in your head.</p>

<p>on the other hand, ap bio requires you to learn and memorize many MANY facts and ap bio questions are usually just about one type of thing one learned. but i cant say too much about ap bio cuz i haven't takin the course and didn't because it was just memorization.</p>

<p>my advice would be to talk to the teachers who teach each subject and ask them what kind of class they run and their expectations.</p>

<p>AP Biology at our school consumes 2 hours of school. If I take AP Chemistry ( which is only one hour) then I will be able to take AP US History as well. I'm probably pretty good at both problem solving and memorization. But I'm leaning towards AP Chemistry because the teacher is a little lenient.</p>

<p>It depends on your strengths/learning abilities. Chem is a piece of cake if you understand the core concepts. If you're strong at problem solving/visualization definitely take chem. Bio requries alot more memorization, but the more work you put into it the better you will do on the exam. This isn't always the case with chem; some people understand it in 10 minutes and some people take 50 hours to learn it.</p>

<p>wow AP Chem is pretty demanding... at my school only the really good science kids take it and AP Bio is the class that basically everyone takes if they can't take another AP... i'd say take AP chem if you're good and you like it</p>