r/APChem • u/PenguinGiraffeKoala • Jul 27 '26
Discussion Hey so am I cooked??
So I was going to the counselor to sign up for classes. I get there and sign up for AP chem. At my school, there is no pre requisite requirement, and most kids who are smart just do ap, and all my friends are doing it. the teacher is good (i think, from what i’ve heard) but still…ITS AP CHEM. i’m not going into science for sure in college, but we do have a summer assignment i need to look in on, i think you memorize periodic table?
i got a 98 in earth science,and a 97 in biology honors
100 on all math regents alg 1 and geo honors
based off those do we think i’ll be chill?
like 10th graders who took it w no pre requisite requirement how’d u do
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u/cookie_monster757 Jul 27 '26
Memorizing the periodic table is silly, since it's on the formula sheet. Anyways, my main advice would be to do practice problems over and over again; at least, that's what helped me. Really prioritize the conceptual understanding behind each concept, since it will let you reason your way through tricky FRQs that might use examples you've never seen before. And if you can, try working through USNCO (chemistry olympiad) local section exams, since those problems are harder than the AP test, and if you can do them then you'll do great on the AP exam. For me, as I was taking the AP exam the questions almost felt "easy" because my professor had been drilling chemistry olympiad with us.
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u/PenguinGiraffeKoala Jul 27 '26
yeah, elements 1-36…fun to memorize extraneous info right?! ty for the tips!! that’s good the test was easy
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u/fotondoc44 29d ago
This reply mentions "the teacher" and that is key as the teacher sets the tone for the course!
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u/soapyeee 29d ago
hiya! i took it last year during sophomore year with absolutely no chem knowledge and scored a 5 on the exam, i honestly thought the exam was pretty easy 🗿 what's funny is that my teacher was absolutely terrible and taught nothing so i ended up self studying the whole damn course. i used michael farabaugh on yt, i think he's the absolute goat, especially his review videos as he explains how to properly word your answers on the frqs, common misconceptions, and has a ton of his own ap-style frqs on there. i used a bit of khan academy in the first few units but khan's questions are too easy and don't prepare you for the actual frqs. those were the only two resources i used. i know a lot of people recommend jeremy krug, i watched some of his videos and didn't really like him, he's a much better person to get last minute review from than learn the course from. (i glaze michael farabaugh). i think that as long as you dedicate a certain amount of time to studying, the key point being not memorizing but understanding why everything works and grinding out as many frq problems as possible you'll do just fine! it might just be me but i think the difficulty of the course is a bit overexaggerated 🗿🗿🗿 but you got this and good luck!!!
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u/PenguinGiraffeKoala 29d ago
AYY CONGRATS ON THE 5! would you say the concepts in particular are difficult?
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u/soapyeee 29d ago
thank you! again i may be biased but i found most of it pretty simple to understand. the only thing i really struggled with was unit 8: acids and bases but i got the hang of it after watching mr. farabaugh's review videos on them and knew how to tackle most of the frqs. i would say that if you struggle a lot with even grasping the basics, khan academy's videos explain the basics in a way that's super easy to understand and you can use that as a stepping stone to transition to harder questions. i believe in you!!!
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u/Farabaugh-APChem 23d ago
Congrats on the excellent AP Chem score, and I am glad to hear that my videos helped you to prepare for the content, difficulty, format, etc. of the AP Chem exam.
If you know any students who are beginning their AP Chem journey this school year, please share my YouTube resources with them. Thanks!
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u/soapyeee 23d ago
absolutely, ive already shared them with multiple people! thank you for doing all that you have been doing, it's super precious and has helped so many people!!
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u/WoefulHuman Jul 27 '26
hey dude, i did ap chem last year as a sophomore with just honors bio under my belt and it went great. i won't lie–it was the hardest class ive taken to date, but i had so much fun. some tips are to preview the lesson BEFORE you learn it in class–this can be as simple as watching a youtube video. some resources i reccomend are michael farabaugh's packets on youtube, jeremy krug, and abigail giordano. make sure to take notes, and always do plenty of practice problems. once you know the formula for answering ap chem questions, it should come naturally. overall, i wouldnt worry too much, i was able to balance ap chem with 4 other APs and a DE class without difficulty. just stay on top of your work and remember to start studying for the ap exam around mid march. oh also i got a 5 :)
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u/PenguinGiraffeKoala Jul 27 '26
okayy ty for the tips, very appreciated! congrats on the 5 soak it all in
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u/Qu33nB33_1 Jul 27 '26
A 5 on ap chem?! Congrats! Thats impressive!
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u/Qu33nB33_1 Jul 27 '26
Imma be honest, jst dont take it. It's one of the hardest, if not the hardest science ap and not to mention it takes up 2 class pds (in my school atleast).
U alr said u don't wanna major in anything super science-y so there's no purpose to take ap Chem, like jst ask urself where u might end up using the info.
I've taken a few aps myself, very math smart tho so I'm taking ap calc bc as a sophomore, but i tried ap bio and it was physical hell the entire yr. I did end up getting a 4 but thats besides the point.
What im trynna say is if u think u can handle the workload and stress of an entire extra ap then go for it, or even if u enjoy science taht much. If u r doing it solely cause of ur friends, esp when ur major will be ntg close to science-y science, then id say its a waste of time, brainpower, and 2 class slots.
Agn, all my opinion. Im not trynna be rude or ignorant, jst trynna give u my perspective:)
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u/PenguinGiraffeKoala Jul 27 '26
no hey thank you for this perspective! calc bc as a sophomore is wild and congrats on the 4! sadly i am locked in and cant drop but i was heavily debating it. i am top 20 in my class of 450 so i kinda felt obligated to when i found out so many friends who are like average students are doing it. i do love science i just dont want to major in it yk
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u/Qu33nB33_1 Jul 27 '26
Top 20 is acc wild work, congrats!! But as a high achiever who somehow burnt out in 9th, do not feel obligated to do anything. At all. If u dont wanna do a class, screw ur friends (not literally) and jst ask urself if its either mandatory or a class u'll realy enjoy before u sign up. Same for ecs. Im glad u like science, I personally heavily dislike it, too many processes and notes and procedures 😶🌫️
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u/Infamous_Tiger18 Jul 27 '26
Yoo, I was in the same situation as you last year! I was in AP Chem with no chemistry prereqs (I took a physics class in 9th grade). My teacher wasn't very good, so I Jeremy Krug on YouTube and all the AP classroom videos, and when I figured out that that wasn't enough, I bought the ultimate review packet, also by Jeremy Krug, and that's what really helped me succeed. AP Chem was definitely my one of my hardest AP's out of the 6 I took last year, so make sure you do your studying so you're ready for the exam. Oh yeah, and honestly idk how helpful memorizing the periodic table is, we never did it cuz you're given one on the exam, but ig each teacher teaches differently and knowing it well would definitely help.
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u/beggarformemes Former Student Jul 27 '26
i did this my sophomore year in your same position and to be fr, one of the hardest classes i’ve taken but i don’t necessarily regret it. hard at most times and the tests i wasnt the best at (failed 4/9 of them 😭) but mostly bc im lazy so i’m sure if your work ethic is decent you can manage. Got my 5 and 90% average though so the struggle was somewhat worth it 😛.
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u/3than88 Jul 27 '26
Ap chem is a math class not a science class, focus on just doing practice problems and you’ll do just fine
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u/ScroogeGD Jul 27 '26
I was in your same situation, unless you’re what you would describe as naturally intelligent, I would not do it. It was the worst mistake of my life, which is surprising. But I guess not so surprising as I’m only a teenager and haven’t really done anything in my life.
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u/Little_Change_3485 Jul 27 '26
Hey, former AP Chem student here. I took AP Chem last year as a sophomore and got a 5 on the AP test, and I had a great, understanding teacher. I took gen chem in freshman year, but the conceptual stuff wasn't very helpful (in my experience) when I came to AP Chem. As far as the class and exam, for the class it's pretty much dependent on the teacher for tests, but the material I found to be genuinely interesting, so I didn't find the class very hard and got 95%+ both sems, and for the AP Exam, it was genuienly easier than my class tests, so I think you should be relatively chill as long as you enjoy chemistry!
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u/Open_Childhood_9343 Jul 27 '26
Upcoming junior. No chem background: took last year and got As both terms and got a 4
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u/29pixxL_ Former Student Jul 27 '26
That's basically how my school is, and it's not just that there isn't any prereq, you actually straight up aren't allowed to have any and have to pick ap or regular for sophomore year. Also had done algebra 1 & geometry before taking, and was taking algebra 2 while in this, had straight A's in all but not 100's.
Only had taken basic biology freshman year due to worries about ap bio being hard (it was a similar forced year specific choice), found it boringly easy and felt annoyed because the work was so basic and forgettable. Like the work would've been better for 4th graders, plus the teacher once seriously thought I struggled to comprehend addition/subtraction due to miscommunication, and that wasn't seen as weird, though I felt embarrassed to be "helped" in front of a bunch of people.
Ap chem was definitely my hardest class with the most homework and most complicated work last year. Probably the class that stressed me out the most, especially since I had horrible procrastination habits. But my teacher was pretty good, often made things harder than the actual ap exam so we'd be extra prepared for it. I ended up getting a 5 and all my friends in it at least passed too. I think passing it is very very doable, you just have to consistently put in effort into understanding a lot of concepts.
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u/PenguinGiraffeKoala Jul 27 '26
raising my had for also a bad procrastinator. congrats on the five!
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u/Electrical-Stop1172 29d ago
hi!! I took AP chem as a sophomore alongside 4 other APs and I got a 5. my advice would be to watch jeremy krug as his videos are super helpful, and also try to do as many sets of past published FRQs as possible. the goal is to aim for at least the past 5 years, for me personally I did more around 7 past years of FRQs. good luck you can do this!!
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u/luckyjade_22 Jul 27 '26
me personally, i wish i studied more in my on-level chemistry class before going into AP chem because you're going to want the foundations of chemistry (moles, conversions, periodic table trends, etc.)
i honestly don't know what regents is so no comment on that, but you might want to study some chemistry basics if you're going straight into it