<p>Haha, I’m also in the same situation, so I’m planning on reading through my Honors chem textbook and borrowing an AP one.</p>
<p>Hey guys, im actually intimidated about how all of you are preparing for TOP 150 in nationals while all i wanna do is get a chance to participate in nats…anyways, i got 56/70 on my local chapter exam (idk why we have 70, but the last 10 seem to be orgo) and this time i wanna get a 63+ to qualify for nats. How are you guys all preparing?</p>
<p>@fooiey and @billgates42</p>
<p>Honestly, Honor chem books for Pre-AP/ intro textbooks and SAT chem are terrible ways to approach the chem Olympiad. Chemistry Olympiad is very in- depth, and prep books only cover a general scope of major topics and skip many detailed explanations. These books skip the details of titrations, kinetics, and more (including Organics :o :o). I would recommend (if you have not been exposed to a decent amount of AP chem material yet) to not take the test because YOU WILL BE DISAPPOINTED AT YOUR SCORE. (I would hold off until next year and prepare properly) </p>
<p>1 month to prepare will not cut it (unless you have previous AP experience) And simply memorizing formulas from an AP textbook will also not cut it. </p>
<p>The people who generally do well have practiced for long, arduous months (in some cases, many, many years)</p>
<p>@Sophia7X</p>
<p>Do you recommend studying past the spect chapter in Klein’s Organics? </p>
<p>I’m also a sophomore and planning to take AP Chem next year, so I’d love to do the Chemistry Olympiad. I’m doing a few other competitions (already prepping) so I’d be grateful just to make nationals. But is this a state-wide thing? How do I find out if my state offers testing and stuff for it? And if they don’t, could I get someone to start it or would I have to figure it out myself?</p>
<p>@CallmeC</p>
<p>Chemistry Olympiad is a local/national/international competition. </p>
<p>According to past threads, they make the top 150 cutoff based solely on MC results, so whoever does best on MC makes top 150. Then they look at their FRQs to determine top 50, and camp. So i guess getting in the 50s in the MC would allow you to make top 150 automatically?</p>
<p>Do we need to know black-body radiation and how that works? Going through Atkins, and it seems like theres a lot of extraneous info, Do we rly need to know this for locals and nationals? </p>
<p>Also, does Atkins really cover more material than Chemistry: The Central Science by Brown, and does it help more for locals / nationals? I’m gonna review gen. Chem and I don’t know which book to use…</p>
<p>Did they change the local exam’s time from 110 minutes to 75 minutes? According to my coordinator, you only get 75 minutes to answer, yet previous years allow 110 minutes… </p>
<p>Um no, I don’t remember black body radiation anywhere on any of the past exams. </p>
<p>There are a lot of books that are perfectly fine. If Brown doesn’t look too different from Atkins, I wouldn’t sweat it. I studied out of a book by Raymond Chang, and I did better than fine :)</p>
<p>perhaps your teacher was thinking of the F=ma test or something.
I really think the exam gives you more time than is strictly needed, but 75 seems too little. I would be skeptical of a time less than 90m unless the length of the exam has also changed</p>
<p>We had 75 minutes to take the test, but it doesn’t matter. I made it to the Nationals! (Don’t know score yet but at least above a 53 since our region is extremely competitive)</p>
<p>I’m a freshman in honors chem so I won’t be able to compete this year.
As for next year I’ll be taking AP Chemistry so that will strengthen my knowledge in general Chemistry. I plan to read and work through Brown the central science for general chem and Klein Organic Chemistry. Would thoroughly studying those texts and doing practice tests put me in a good standing for making theTop20 camp? Thanks!</p>
<p>I could’ve sworn we had 2 hours to take the local exams… </p>
<p>I mean 110 min. But does anyone know if it got changed this year?!?!?!</p>
<p>Nvr mind… I guess it depends on the region where you’re taking it. </p>
<p>I am mainly studying from Atkins Principles of Chemistry, as well as Klien, Morrison and Boyd, and Leninger Biochemistry. There is a sample syllabus out there for the UK exam, if that interests anyone (The US doesn’t put anything like that out there). But anyway, after looking through a few multiple choice and free response section seem very fair, not very far from my AP Chemistry Exam. I am thus assuming that the practical separates the pack. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to prepare for the practical. (Feel free to add any other tips you might have).</p>
<p>From the syllabus: “Simple Schrodringer calculations”</p>
<p>^The lab section is the bane of my existence. Do you guys how to adequately prepare for the lab part III? </p>
<p>Nope I screwed up so bad on it last year.</p>
<p>There has to be a way to come out of that lab with flying colors. </p>
<p>Other than replicating the labs from previous years, what else might you guys suggest? (studying a lab manual??)
I searched up past chem Olympiad threads, but the practical part was rarely mentioned</p>