As the title says, what’s the best prep book for chemistry? Preferably one with detailed answer explanations and accurate practice tests. I have a prep book for AP Chemistry-- am I wasting my money if I buy another one for the SAT II? I noticed they have slightly different scopes, and there aren’t many current practice tests online. Also, how much can I expect to improve my score by? I got a 690 with no prep (wasted $40, lol), and this was right after I took AP (4).
The official CollegeBoard one seems nice, although it feels like a waste since I’ll only be taking 2 of the 20 tests. Are the explanations good, at least? I heard Barron’s is more difficult than the actual exam.
I would recommend that you buy the Barron’s review book. The AP review books don’t cover a lot of the the important topics that appear on the subject last like gas experiment setup/flame-color tests nor do they have practice True/False/CorrectExplanation questions. Barron’s goes very in-depth on all of the topics on the exam. It is true that the practice tests are harder than the actual test, which I personally think is good. I was scoring around 750 on the practice tests and I got an 800 on the actual test. If you are willing to spend the money on the official CollegeBoard book, it is definitely a good supplement, but I think the Barron’s book is sufficient.
It is also a good idea to supplement your studying with the online practice tests on ■■■■■■■■■■■■ because they have practice question sets for specific topics on the test and its free. It’s a great way to reinforce your weak areas!
I can’t tell you how much your score will change, but if you spend at least two weeks with Barron’s and cracksat, its highly likely that your score will improve.
I second that ^. I used Barron’s right at the end of/after AP Chem (4 as well haha), and I got an 800. The tests are harder than the real thing but that’s better than being under-prepared.
Barron’s. Though to be honest getting extra practice from other books like (kaplans, Princeton review) isn’t a bad idea if you really want to score high. You don’t have to but if you have friends who have those copies then i’d make use of the practice tests from there too. Even though they are slightly less accurate than barrons, again its good practice and exposure.
Look for the College Board Chemistry subject test book, it will give two real practice exams instead of just the one in the phone book sized volume. Real practice tests beat any other source of practice tests.
