Reddit reviews Organic Chemistry

1. I didn't dive head first, I was pre-med when I entered college. I thought I liked bio because yeah science is cool. Then I took organic chemistry and realized what a profound and interesting subject chemistry is. Switched to become a chemistry major and now I hate bio because it's too fundamental.
   
   
2. Sorry, I did good at the start. Chemistry aligns with my thinking (concept based) than biology did (memory based) and so I just excelled a lot more.
   
   
3. Mixed reviews. Almost everyone I talk to either loves it or hates it. Those who hate it are only taking chemistry because they were like me (pre-med, biology) and had to take it for requirements. They never invested the time to think about the concepts and how everything played together. They only thought "yeah yeah, memorize this and that, do well on the test and become a doctor." Those who love it, I can have serious conversations with them about reactions and research (but mostly talk about illegal drug synthesis because let's face it breaking bad is awesome). Also, do not get a masters in chemistry (or biology even). It's a waste; see next point.
   
   
4. In Chemistry, it's PhD "or-go" home. ^^hehe All job offers that are open for a masters are open for a bachelors, and all offers that require a phd do not take masters. There are chemistry jobs, entry level, for bachelors but really you're going to want a PhD in the field. Otherwise you're doing grunt-work. (wouldn't you rather be doing paper-work?!) But seriously, more opportunities and more money if you get a PhD. And no masters!
   
   
5. Read the textbooks. Seriously. Idc what student you were in high school, you're going to read the textbook and invest time into it. In my organic class, 3 Hours a chapter for me (My pace: 30 pages per chapter, 6 minutes a page), but go more if you need. My undergrad used this textbook and I'm not going to lie, it's actually a really good read. I recommend this over whatever crappy textbook your teacher might require for your class; it's extremely thorough, it's honest, and it's kinda humorous at times. READ THE TEXTBOOKS!!!
   
   
6. If you want, you can buy a copy of the orgo textbook I recommended and read through a bit of it to get a feel of what youre getting into. It would be a huge time commitment to actually learn anything; instead, read it to see if you can (there's a PDF of the 1st edition floating around somehwere). You may not be interested in orgo, but other things (kinetics, thermo, equilibrium, acid/base, etc. all discussed in the book) are in all of your main classes as well. Orgo is just the biggie that makes/breaks students.
   
   
7. A deep understanding of the theory is essential for any branch of chemistry. If you do not understand the fundamental concepts, you are not a chemist. The hard part is that there are no set-in-stone rules in chemistry like there are in biology or physics. Almost everything has exceptions and you have to understand why they aren't really an exception.
   
   
8. Organic is cool because you have an applicable/practical outlet for the chemistry you learn. Yeah yeah you learn about bonds and MO theory and kinetics/thermodynamics but where do you apply it all? Organic is the common answer because it's in your shampoos, your beauty products, your food preservatives blah blah... Physical chemistry is cool if you like calculus/physics. Biochemistry is ehh I know some friends who like it but I never thought random protein stuff was that cool. Other branches: nuclear, medicinal, polymer, inorganic, analytical, green...find one that's cool for you!
   
   
9. I worked under a CE and a chemist, both in making drugs, so this may help explain how they're different and what you'd be more interested in.
   
   The CE mass produced your typical OTC drugs for pharmacies like Walgreen. He made literally millions of pills a day with fancy machines which--as the boss of a small company--he didn't even operate. In fact I don't even remember him doing anything CE technical, just doing phone calls and stuff. Anyways because drugs are a hot industry, he made serious bank. Millionaire, easily. So much money in the field, not a lot of workers.
   
   But IMO, relatively boring. The chemist on the other hand was making NEW drugs. Never before used, never before tested. He used his vast knowledge of chemistry theory to predict and answer questions like "How would the molecule's function be different if it was less polar or more soluble?" and stuff like that. Then he'd put the theory in practice by making the molecule and testing it in vitro or something. Makes waaay less money. No hot wife or condo in Hawaii. But much more satisfying and requires much more knowledge.
   
   Every job is different, everybody is different. Disclaimer, experiences are not typical. Whatever you decide to do, you can easily make it less boring by being an exciting person.

I've never really used books except for organic Chemistry.

For organic Chemistry I first used this (Prof used it in the lecture): http://www.springer.com/springer+spektrum/chemie/organische+chemie/book/978-3-642-36592-8

which is terrible, don't use that!

Many people say this is pretty good but on the other hand Vollhardt is teaching at Berkeley and it's just a translation which brings me to the point: most good german text books are just translated english ones.

I personally like the Warren but I'm using it in english, not sure if there's a german version but imo the best basic org.chem book.

A really good book written by a german is this, I guess that one is translated in english too. But it's for an advanced level and there it can easily blow your mind ;-)

In the UK the standard textbook is Organic Chemistry by Clayden et al - it is absolutely brilliant and I highly recommend it.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Organic-Chemistry-Jonathan-Clayden/dp/0199270295/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=550XCD3M66R1R0Q29C28

To understand organic synthesis you need to understand organic chem and spectroscopy methods, so here, this book is the best on the market in my opinion and starts with basic reactivity and spectro methods and ends in hetrocyclic synthetic methods, protecting groups and such things. So, here you go! Oxford Press

Well I posted this in another thread, but here you go.

Greenwood and Earnshaw Chemistry of the elements - This is pretty much prefect for main group chemistry.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Chemistry-Elements-N-N-Greenwood/dp/0750633654/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345966730&sr=8-1

Atkins Physical - This is okay and pretty useful as it is full of questions. There's a smaller version called 'Elements of Physical Chemistry'
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Atkins-Physical-Chemistry-Peter/dp/0199543372/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345966803&sr=1-1

Clayden Organic Chemistry - A very good guide to organic chemistry, however the lack of questions in the new edition is a bit annoying.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Organic-Chemistry-Jonathan-Clayden/dp/0199270295/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345967204&sr=1-2

Hartwig Organotransitional Metal Chemistry - Very good but goes a little beyond most chemistry degrees if not focussing on organometallic chemistry.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Organotransition-Metal-Chemistry-Bonding-Catalysis/dp/189138953X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1345967182&sr=1-1

For cheap and detailed books on a very specific subject the Oxford Chemistry Primers are extremely useful.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=oxford+chemistry+primers&x=0&y=0

> generally reading and working through a book will provide you with greater depth of knowledge and experience than any lecture or lecture + practice problems course could give you

I completely agree, I've learned a lot by working through problems in "Linear Algebra and Its Applications". I'm on page 17 so far, it made me realise how long it'll take to digest the book.

I know from my Experience as a Chemist, if someone with minimal chemical experience read through all of Clayden's textbook on Organic Chemistry then they would probably know much better Organic Chem than I do. (I can't remember if it has problems, that's how much I feel like I wasted my time at University.) Though, this person would be missing on lab experience and having a video view into Inorganic and Physical chemistry would be useful. They would probably need to set their goal first.

(Edit: After checking, it seems Clayden does have practice questions. I can't believe I didn't take advantage of this.)

At least I know that I want to do data science, though I understand the job specifications can vary a lot based on what companies need. That's partly what's causing me some confusion.

My big question is, how badly will I be judged for doing this outside of University and not having a piece of paper saying that I've done the work?

I'm more than happy to work out of a textbook. I'm happy to study for years if I have to. I'll do what It takes, and I've already spent the last couple of months learning using MOOCs. I just want to know if that'll work. (Well, I guess it always has been a calculated risk from the start.)

I'm aware that I can do some networking, when I am done doing all this studying I can join some Meetups, I already have a blog that I write in (perhaps not often enough, but still) and I'm quite active on LinkedIn and the community you can find on there. I know that if I do a couple of Kaggle competitions, that will also help prove the case that I know what I am doing.

What do you think?

Edit: I looked at the link you gave me and it seems to hit the nail on the head in terms of what's useful. But it will take me a long time to work through this, which is fine by me, I just don't know how someone in HR will view it. (Although that's why I mentioned networking above.)

No no no no. This is the perfect example of how not to learn. You need to learn how to learn. Learning form videos is a horrible idea if you want to beat the average. Please I tell you this from experience. There are studies out there if you don't believe me. If you're looking for a textbook to read check out http://www.amazon.com/Organic-Chemistry-Jonathan-Clayden/dp/0199270295