School of PE Blog

Organic chemistry demands significant emphasis from students preparing for their FE exams. It is considered to be one of the most difficult topics that deserves intense effort and continuous practice. While all this hype may cause scary illusions about the subject, in reality, there is no class more rewarding than organic chemistry when it is understood correctly.

Compiled together is a set of simple yet effective guidelines that can make organic chemistry a piece of cake for anyone preparing to take the FE exams.

Ask questions

Never take anything for granted while learning organic chemistry! Reason out every single step of the mechanism and every formula you derive. While advanced subject experts may at times miss out on mentioning certain minute details, students must be willing to explore deeper to get to the very roots of the subject. Also, remember that one of the fundamentals of engineering exam preparation is to never postpone learning, and this especially applies to the case of organic chemistry. Thus students must not hesitate to ask questions and clarify doubts right then and there.

Try the notecard trick

While understanding concepts is one part of the subject, the ability to remember the facts is another. With so much to remember and so little time, preparing for FE exam efficiently can be a challenge. Prepare notecards with different reactions and chemical naming rules, and carry them around while quizzing your own memory. Although the practice may seem a little excessive, the additional effort is sure to pay off largely in the end.

Make optimal use of resources

From study material to FE exam review and practice sets, do not spare a single resource that can provide a good opportunity to learn and practice organic chemistry. Leverage the good resources to learn the nomenclature rules, draw the complex molecular structures and gain an in-depth understanding of the various mechanisms involved. The motive here is to familiarize oneself with the subject and thus eliminate the unwarranted fear before taking the FE exam.

Opt for spaced repetition

"Spaced repetition" is a smart learning technique which involves breaking down the information into smaller chunks and reviewing them regularly for an extended time period. For instance, do not attempt to memorize the chemical properties of acids, aldehydes and alcohols in one single shot. Instead, familiarize yourself with acids first, give yourself a few good hours of break and follow up with aldehydes but only after you have reviewed the acids. Come back the next day to the properties of alcohol but only after you have reviewed acids as well as aldehydes. With time, the properties of all three compounds will stay intact in the student's memory.

Remember, organic chemistry is not just meant for the chemical engineers who will be appearing for FE exams. It involves the study of molecular mechanisms and chemical reactions that lay the foundation for other branches of science too.