Taking Chem In The Summer, A Bad Idea?

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Hello!

I was supposed to take Chemistry in the Spring, but due to scheduling issues (none of the sections had a time I needed) I had to push it back and take it in a later semester. I'm looking into taking Chemistry in Summer 2023, but I know I'm probably setting myself for failure, so I would like to ask; has anyone here taken Chemistry in the Summer and did really well? I'd love to hear from your experiences.

I don't have children nor do I work full time, if this information helps. And in regards to how my school's Summer session is like, it is either 6 or 8 weeks, depending on the section and what the professor offers. I am fully aware it is better to take the 8 week course if possible for obvious reasons.

(And yes, I know it's probably a little too early to ask this as Spring isn't even around. But I like planning ahead)

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Start reading now. Also, Aleks is a great resource for self teaching Chemistry before you start. 

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I took Chemistry last Summer. It was 5 weeks and I got an A. I opted to take it all "in-person" because I didn't think I could do well in hybrid. I don't have kids and I live at home with my parents. I took those 5 weeks off from my part-time job. It wasn't too bad because that is the only thing I had to worry about for those 5 weeks. 

 

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@CloCloAA

Yeah, I prefer in person too. Crossing my fingers a professor offers it fully in person in the Summer. How many hours did you spent studying for Chemistry per week? I know I will have to start reading and studying Chemistry as soon as possible so I don't overwhelm myself ?

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16 hours ago, rougewitch said:

@CloCloAA

Yeah, I prefer in person too. Crossing my fingers a professor offers it fully in person in the Summer. How many hours did you spent studying for Chemistry per week? I know I will have to start reading and studying Chemistry as soon as possible so I don't overwhelm myself ?

I studied about 2 hours each day, five days/week and didn’t miss a class or lab.

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I took Chemistry a couple of years ago, and it was fine. While I had other classes, I would suggest that you take General Chemistry, Orgo I and II, and BioChem as the sole class if you can afford it( that is if you need those classes). The key is to keep practicing! If the instructor is receptive, ask them for sample problems similar to the exams: I remember our first exam being different from the practice problems we worked on, so the instructor had to curve the exam grade.  

Good luck!

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ruleighdy said:

I took Chemistry a couple of years ago, and it was fine. While I had other classes, I would suggest that you take General Chemistry, Orgo I and II, and BioChem as the sole class if you can afford it( that is if you need those classes). The key is to keep practicing! If the instructor is receptive, ask them for sample problems similar to the exams: I remember our first exam being different from the practice problems we worked on, so the instructor had to curve the exam grade.  

Good luck!

None of those classes you listed is required for a Cal State, where I want to apply to (All are needed for UCLA/UCI but that's not my plan, taking those classes would mean I'd have to be at my college for 3-4 years)

The Chemistry class that I do need is a  fundamentals class which does go over inorganic, organic, and biochem, however, if it means anything

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Be very careful choosing the Chem class. I had to take it at a different CC than the one I'm attending because I wanted it to be accepted at all the CSUs that I might apply to (and my CC doesn't offer it), as well as CCs. CSUF and CSULB wanted a different Chem than CSULA. If it's not very clear on Assist, email the CSUs you want to apply to and verify that it's accepted. I also decided not to apply to UCLA or UCI because it would take an extra 2 years to get all the prereqs with extremely low odds of being accepted. 

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CloCloAA said:

Be very careful choosing the Chem class. I had to take it at a different CC than the one I'm attending because I wanted it to be accepted at all the CSUs that I might apply to (and my CC doesn't offer it), as well as CCs. CSUF and CSULB wanted a different Chem than CSULA. If it's not very clear on Assist, email the CSUs you want to apply to and verify that it's accepted. I also decided not to apply to UCLA or UCI because it would take an extra 2 years to get all the prereqs with extremely low odds of being accepted. 

That's really interesting, because for CSULA, CSUF, and CSULB, they all accept the Fundamentals of Chemistry class according to Assist. I just reread an older post you made about taking Gen Chem, Orgo, and biochem as one class, and I realized that my CC has a sequence of  two classes that go over that.

I'd PM you about this, but as my account is still fairly new and I admittely do not go often on this site, I am unfortunately not able to.

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I misspoke the details are a bit foggy because it was a year ago that I was figuring this out. The Chem class at PCC would be accepted by CSULA but not CSUF or CSULB. I could have taken Chem 2A and 2B at PCC for CUSLB, but why take two when I can take one? So I took Chem 51 (Integrated Chemistry) at ELAC which is accepted by all three CSUs, and also PCC. Anyway, the point is, do your homework and don't just take what the CC counselor tells you to take. If I had, I wouldn't have taken the right Chem class for the places I want to apply. Good luck! 

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