Students who take AP Chemistry should have already completed Chemistry Honors and Algebra 2, as the lab-based course covers two semesters of college level introductory chemistry.
In addition to her interests in chemistry and science, junior Hritanshu Rath decided to take AP Chemistry to provide a buffer class between AP Physics 1 and AP Physics C.
“My favorite thing about the class is because it is kind of theoretical and it involves math and a lot of visualization of the topics,” Rath said. “My least favorite would be the fact that a lot of chemistry relies on probability and not actual answers like you get in math or physics. A lot of it is abstract and requires a lot more factors involved in one process that may not be fully described in one go.”
Rath recognizes that students like her who took AP Physics 1 before taking AP Chemistry have a difficult experience without a chemistry background. Due to this, Rath spent one to two hours each day studying for the class. After gaining more comfort with working with chemistry, Rath spent an average of half an hour a day during second semester.
“I would say that you should study chemistry before you actually go into AP Chem because to my knowledge, you finish an entire chemistry course in the first two weeks of AP Chem, and if you don’t [have chemistry background] then you will struggle a lot in the beginning when you first start,” Rath said. “In general, I feel like AP Chem is pretty easy if you’re good with visualization of what you’re learning and the better at math you are the easier it will be for you.”
While she believes that students who take Chemistry Honors or Chemistry as a prerequisite have a relatively easier time in this course, Rath noticed the experienced students struggling just as much as students with solely physics backgrounds in second semester, as many topics were new and not covered in lower-level chemistry classes.