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A Level Chemistry

Reply 20

Flash6289

3

About 7/10 overall I'd say. 5/10 for AS, 8/10 for A2. It's alright though if you're remotely interested in it.

Reply 21

Sycren

11

leedsmedic_07

well wen u start AS it can be a daunting 8/10. but by the time u get to A2

AS seems like a paltry 2/10. whilst some of the A2 can be difficult so overall

8/10.

mind u when u finish alevels people usually look back and think that was quite easy why couldnt i get that. just the way things are i suppose.

:dito:

At Gcse you may learn something, then you get to AS and get told tht "actually..thats not completely true...its actually a bit more complicated.."

eg) with electron shell configuration.

Then later down the line in 5 you have to deal with anomalities in this trend (transition elements have 1/2 an s orbital) which I believe makes it hard to learn.

I find AS very easy now but hell when I was trying to understand it. I got an A at gsce without trying and then a D in AS, as I didnt understand the concepts. Iv upped my marks so that Im on a high B. Modules 5 and 6 are solid as they are both synoptic and so require that I learn the whole subjects worth of information. It doesnt help that I have been ill and that this is my last exam, I dont think I have been able to prepare as much as I would have liked to and now 9 hours from the exam, the suspense is killing my sleep.

Im averaging B's on both papers and I need 2 75% for an A drop 30 to 45% on both papers for a B. Im so tired and so stressed....

Reply 22

Sycren

11

leedsmedic_07

well wen u start AS it can be a daunting 8/10. but by the time u get to A2

AS seems like a paltry 2/10. whilst some of the A2 can be difficult so overall

8/10.

mind u when u finish alevels people usually look back and think that was quite easy why couldnt i get that. just the way things are i suppose.

:dito:

At Gcse you may learn something, then you get to AS and get told tht "actually..thats not completely true...its actually a bit more complicated.."

eg) with electron shell configuration.

Then later down the line in 5 you have to deal with anomalities in this trend (transition elements have 1/2 an s orbital) which I believe makes it hard to learn.

I find AS very easy now but hell when I was trying to understand it. I got an A at gsce without trying and then a D in AS, as I didnt understand the concepts. Iv upped my marks so that Im on a high B. Modules 5 and 6 are solid as they are both synoptic and so require that I learn the whole subjects worth of information. It doesnt help that I have been ill and that this is my last exam, I dont think I have been able to prepare as much as I would have liked to and now 9 hours from the exam, the suspense is killing my sleep.

Im averaging B's on both papers and I need 2 75% for an A drop 30 to 45% on both papers for a B. Im so tired and so stressed....

Reply 23

.ACS.

19

Chemistry is a very challenging subject. It requires a lot of understanding and a lot of memorisation. Indeed, it’s regarded by many people as the most difficult A-Level available.

K!&R@N

Thanks for all those comments and from the looks of things i'll have to work extremely hard to succeed! From what the posts have suggested chemistry is difficult but i would now also like to know whether it is boring or interesting?

I’d say it’s very interesting and very enjoyable. However, I don’t really see a point in it being taken at A-Level unless you will need it later on (i.e.: medicine, chemistry, biochemistry, pharmacology, etc.).

Reply 24

silent ninja

19

Andrzej S.

However, I don’t really see a point in it being taken at A-Level unless you will need it later on (i.e.: medicine, chemistry, biochemistry, pharmacology, etc.).

That can be said of a lot of subjects: most of us have no intention of carrying on with 2/3 of our subjects, so why are we taking them?

I agree with Excalibur's post completely on page 1.

I dont see how you need a a great memory for Chemistry, there's only a few things to memorise as such. In comparison, studying biology, I feel like i've learned the basics of a new language.

Chemistry is pretty satisfying in A2 when everything comes together. Great A level and much less work than a few other A levels out there.
Dont base your decision too much on other people's weaknesses and failings. You never know what you are capable of, and there's no reason why you cant do well if you like the subject.

Pick something you enjoy and you want to study, dont limit yourself.

Reply 25

shahir001

I think Chemistry is one of those subjects where a little effort can earn you a good grade. I will be taking the A2 today and I found A2 relatively more interesting than As. Just a little bit of concentration and getting the concept makes it all. Getting the concepts aren't as dificult as studying waves of Physics. Trust me Chemistry is one subject where you will only need to keep in slight practice and a little revision right before the exam will work. I would give Chemistry a difficulty level of 6.

Reply 26

gooner88

10

shahir001

I think Chemistry is one of those subjects where a little effort can earn you a good grade. I will be taking the A2 today and I found A2 relatively more interesting than As. Just a little bit of concentration and getting the concept makes it all. Getting the concepts aren't as dificult as studying waves of Physics. Trust me Chemistry is one subject where you will only need to keep in slight practice and a little revision right before the exam will work. I would give Chemistry a difficulty level of 6.

I found A2 chemistry a bit more interesting therefore I found A2 to be easier than AS although I had a crap teacher during AS. However, when I did do resits, the calculations and concepts in AS chemistry seemed so easy compared to A2. So as a result, I ended up with high A in the January resits compared to the low B I got during the AS year. Maybe it took some time get around the concepts so regular practice would make Chemistry much more easier. AS: 8/10 A2:6/10 Overall: 7/10

Reply 27

Kennychan222

AS Chemistry: 7.5/10

A2 Chemistry: 5-6/10

A-level Chemistry: 7/10

Reply 28

Flash6289

3

Kennychan222

AS Chemistry: 7.5/10

A2 Chemistry: 5-6/10

A-level Chemistry: 7/10

A2 easier than AS? o_O

Reply 29

NASSAfellow

I flopped Chemistry A-level big time... didn't understand any organic.... organic came up... big time.

Screwed...
BBB offer at KCL for Biomedical Science (Firm)
BBC offer at Exeter for Biological Medicinal Chemistry. (Insurance)

Reply 30

NASSAfellow

Biology, Physics and English Lit are sooooooooooo much more interesting to revise for... what else can I say.

Reply 31

sng

1

Out of all the subjects at A Level standard, Chemistry is the most CONCEPTUALLY DIFFICULT to understand. Even maths and physics at this level is easy to understand. The problem is that in order to get an A you dont need to understand, you just need to learn. So, while it is the hardest theoretically, in exams they tend to ask the same questions every year, so it is not that difficult to get an A.

Reply 32

username68316

3

I'd say 8/10 or something.

Having come to the end of my A Level exams today, I can categorically say that chemistry was the most challenging subject i faced. That said, it was also the most enjoyable. The thrill of a concept clicking after hours of toil cannot be beaten! (infact it becomes so routine that you get you used to it in a way)

There's a little bit of memory and regurgetation needed, but this, in turn, becomes alot easier if you have understood the main concept frameworks and have questioned yourselves on these topics. For example, today in my last exam there was a 2 mark question on describing a test to show the presence of an alkene group. I was completely stumped since i hadn't memorised that reaction. However, I knew about the concept of addition of certain molecules (electrophiles) to unsaturated molecules, and then i remembered from a different time that Br2 reacted with an alkene group, hence an associated colour change may be the test. It turned out after the exam that i was right! So It dosen't depend entirely on memory.

So yeah, understand the basic concepts, practice, then memorise what you need to at the end. And then chemistry ain't so hard. It's pretty hard, but I don't regret taking it for a second.

Reply 33

gooner88

10

Flash6289

A2 easier than AS? o_O

Yes because if you learn your AS really well, then A2 will be much easier because a lot of it synoptic.

Reply 34

Pheonixx

15

yea, revising synoptic i was like what... 3 reactions mech. for unit 3, used to think that was hard until module 4!

hang on, a2 easier.... i think you forgot module 5 :tongue:

Reply 35

Swyn

1

K!&R@N

Thanks for all those comments and from the looks of things i'll have to work extremely hard to succeed! From what the posts have suggested chemistry is difficult but i would now also like to know whether it is boring or interesting?

It depends really. If you love Chemistry now, then you'll probably love most of the course and find it massively interesting. On the other hand, if you were never particularly fond of Chemistry at GCSE, then you'll find some parts interesting and some very boring. For example, I find most of inorganic Chemistry deathly boring, but most of the organic stuff is actually quite interesting. It also helps if you're good at Maths (not necessarily doing it for AS though) because the mathematical aspect will be so much easier in inorganic! Such as working out concentrations, percentage yields etc.

Out of the 13 people in my class for AS, only 5 of us got A's and B's. The other eight got E's and U's. But we have a rubbish teacher. And the 5 of us who got good grades are good at maths. That's not to say that you'll struggle with the mathematical side of things if you've got a good teacher though.

Reply 36

gooner88

10

Swyn

It depends really. If you love Chemistry now, then you'll probably love most of the course and find it massively interesting. On the other hand, if you were never particularly fond of Chemistry at GCSE, then you'll find some parts interesting and some very boring. For example, I find most of inorganic Chemistry deathly boring, but most of the organic stuff is actually quite interesting. It also helps if you're good at Maths (not necessarily doing it for AS though) because the mathematical aspect will be so much easier in inorganic! Such as working out concentrations, percentage yields etc.

Out of the 13 people in my class for AS, only 5 of us got A's and B's. The other eight got E's and U's. But we have a rubbish teacher. And the 5 of us who got good grades are good at maths. That's not to say that you'll struggle with the mathematical side of things if you've got a good teacher though.

There isn't really that much difficult Maths in chemistry. Just a few logs now and then but most is what is learnt at hgher level maths at GCSE.

Reply 37

Matrix

After two years of chemistry, I would rate it a 7/10. This covers the interesting (and boring) aspects of chemistry and the amount of learning (especially rote, like some have mentioned). I think from where you are at the moment as I see it, is that you have probably finished your GCSE's and that you sound adamant on doing chemistry as it a course requirement such as Medicine, Pharmacy etc. My best advice is that if this is the case then don't get yourself too tied up about asking how chemistry is becuase your going to have to do it anyway. And so many different people up and down the country have their slant on how hard and uninteresting they found chemistry maybe because they did a different Board.
Dont get me wrong theres nothing wrong with seeing what your letting yourself in for, but all I can best advise you is look now at what you want to be and how to acheive it. And remember no matter what anybody says how hard or easy any A-level is you still have to 'sweat' it out to get that decent or highflying grade you need to get where you want to be. Theres no cutting corners to getting a good grade. Solid revision, lots of questions, perfect planning and plenty of past exam papers will all stand you in good stead for a two years you'll never forget.

Hope that helps

Matrix

Reply 38

silent ninja

19

Rote learning in Chemistry? I must have did a different A level. Rote learning= Biology, so I suppose you guys who dont do biology might call memorising a few reactions 'rote learning.'

A Level Chemistry

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