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What is CHEM HL like?


macbakeib88

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Personally, I think that chemistry is something that really depends on how you learn and what you excel at. I find some concepts in chemistry hard to grasp as they can be quite abstract - I like to think I am a practical learner. Off the top of my head, the most challenging topics would be organic chem, topic 4 and topic 13. This is of course just my view, others might find these topics easier and others harder. The difficulty also will depend on how your teacher teachers. For example, my teacher was very intent on getting the syllabus finished as soon as possible. This meant that at times there wasn't sufficient time spent on explaining and processing information, so I've pretty much forgotten a lot of the earlier topics. This means that I have to spend a lot of time - re-learning, revising, and attempting questions - in order to be at the level I want to be, or at least to be moderately comfortable with a topic. I guess what I'm trying to say here is that if you aren't naturally proficient at chemistry, studying for chem will be very time-consuming and require a lot of effort on your part. 

I quite liked the IA, because it allowed me to focus on an aspect of chemistry I found interesting. Time-management is very important of course, as you will learn with other science IAs, and there aren't major differences in terms of writing up the papers themselves. But of course, chem IAs, in my experience, tend to be marked and graded quite harshly so if your teacher has experience and a checklist for you to follow, that will be all you can do.

I realise that my answer is quite negative in some aspects, but to be honest, the HL topics at times help you to understand SL content better as it is explored more in depth. All in all, HL Chem needs hard work, initiative and time. Hope this helps you, and feel free to ask questions!

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17 hours ago, yara560 said:

Personally, I think that chemistry is something that really depends on how you learn and what you excel at. I find some concepts in chemistry hard to grasp as they can be quite abstract - I like to think I am a practical learner. Off the top of my head, the most challenging topics would be organic chem, topic 4 and topic 13. This is of course just my view, others might find these topics easier and others harder. The difficulty also will depend on how your teacher teachers. For example, my teacher was very intent on getting the syllabus finished as soon as possible. This meant that at times there wasn't sufficient time spent on explaining and processing information, so I've pretty much forgotten a lot of the earlier topics. This means that I have to spend a lot of time - re-learning, revising, and attempting questions - in order to be at the level I want to be, or at least to be moderately comfortable with a topic. I guess what I'm trying to say here is that if you aren't naturally proficient at chemistry, studying for chem will be very time-consuming and require a lot of effort on your part. 

I quite liked the IA, because it allowed me to focus on an aspect of chemistry I found interesting. Time-management is very important of course, as you will learn with other science IAs, and there aren't major differences in terms of writing up the papers themselves. But of course, chem IAs, in my experience, tend to be marked and graded quite harshly so if your teacher has experience and a checklist for you to follow, that will be all you can do.

I realise that my answer is quite negative in some aspects, but to be honest, the HL topics at times help you to understand SL content better as it is explored more in depth. All in all, HL Chem needs hard work, initiative and time. Hope this helps you, and feel free to ask questions!

Thank you so much! This really gave me a lot of insight into the rest of the course. 

Personally I'm not very good at experiments (hopeless at them, which is bad considering I'm taking chemistry HL) so I'm kind of dreading the IA!  

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Hi there!
 

I am yet to take my exams however I have completed the entire HL chemistry syllabus including option B (biochemistry), so I feel like I might be able to give some insight as well. 

 

Chemistry is honestly my favourite subject in IB. It's just so diverse and incorporated so many different learning styles and questions that you really have to think how to approach a problem presented to you. In chemistry (especially HL) you will have to be able to not only memorise certain concepts and formulas (acids/bases, different definitions of what an acid/base is etc.) , but also apply them to new situations that you haven't thought of before. Personally, I use flashcards to summarise the entire unit using all the handouts, notes, and the textbook. 

Personally, the trickiest unit for me was chapter 18 (HL part of acids and bases), and chapter B9 (HL: biological pigments) and B7 (HL: proteins). The first one is part of the core so you'll come across it as well, and the other two are part of the option we have chosen to study. Honestly, I think consistent practice is what kept my average high in chemistry throughout the course. I am in no way shape or form a genius, and it's just the hard work that I put in that yields in good grades. 

 

(also, Richard Thornley on YouTube is bae. chemninja is amazing as well <3)

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5 hours ago, mac117 said:

Hi there!
 

I am yet to take my exams however I have completed the entire HL chemistry syllabus including option B (biochemistry), so I feel like I might be able to give some insight as well. 

 

Chemistry is honestly my favourite subject in IB. It's just so diverse and incorporated so many different learning styles and questions that you really have to think how to approach a problem presented to you. In chemistry (especially HL) you will have to be able to not only memorise certain concepts and formulas (acids/bases, different definitions of what an acid/base is etc.) , but also apply them to new situations that you haven't thought of before. Personally, I use flashcards to summarise the entire unit using all the handouts, notes, and the textbook. 

Personally, the trickiest unit for me was chapter 18 (HL part of acids and bases), and chapter B9 (HL: biological pigments) and B7 (HL: proteins). The first one is part of the core so you'll come across it as well, and the other two are part of the option we have chosen to study. Honestly, I think consistent practice is what kept my average high in chemistry throughout the course. I am in no way shape or form a genius, and it's just the hard work that I put in that yields in good grades. 

 

(also, Richard Thornley on YouTube is bae. chemninja is amazing as well <3)

Thank you so much! How did you find the IA? 

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7 hours ago, macbakeib88 said:

Thank you so much! How did you find the IA? 

For me it was quite good. I did a rather simple experiment (kinetics and energetics) but with a lot of calculations. Our teacher gave us a 2 week deadline to do the experiments and the first draft, and then an additional week to make corrections and turn in the final draft. I really like that idea as it was all condensed (and usually people postpone writing the IAs anyway). I'd say my chemistry IA is the one I'm most proud of :lol:

 

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