Words of Advice for Studying Chemistry

Chemistry is all about practice practice and more practice

As you can see from the syllabus we have to cover 8 chapters in 15 weeks. We will all have to work hard to keep up with the concepts and practice of problems.

My advice for your mental sanity is:

• keep cool
• never get frustrated at the book or the subject
• take a break when studying
• eat a banana when really stressed out
• find a good friend to study with, however if the friend is confusing you then dump her/him
• my office is always open, use it to your advantage
• come and see me if you know you have test anxiety

 Most common techniques for studying Chemistry

• Rewrite your notes in more organized way the same day
• You are advised to dedicated at least one hour on practicing problems (this time does not include reading notes and revising).
• Practicing problems, not only the ones that have been assigned in the syllabus but other problems in the book.
• Form a study group with students you study well with and meet regularly to solve problems.
• Solve the problems again and again for better understanding.
• Come and see me if you are stuck on a problem
• Use other books for practicing problems (you can find these in the library or get them from me)

If you like practicing on the computer then see me for the software. (Keep in mind that this is the not the best way to learn to write out mechanisms, but this is still good for practice)

Learning the course material is your responsibility, I am there to help you understand concepts and how to apply them. Your learning is in your hands, the more time you spend on it the better your understanding will be and the consequently you will earn a better grade. My job is not to give you answers to all your questions but to guide you to the answer.

For a full load of 12 credit hours you should be spending 36-48 hours studying on your time. For every science class of 3 credit hours you need to spend four times the credit hours (12 hours) practicing and studying. If you are not committed to put the time and effort required for a class then you should also be expected to earn a lower grade in class.

 The above is only my advice. If you think you have a better way of studying by all means follow it.