Important note for students interested in taking these Organic Chemistry courses, but have been taking chemistry courses at an institution outside of SMC: You will need to get a prerequisite waiver approved before being allowed to add the organic chemistry class (Chem 21, Chem 22, or Chem 24). Please visit the Physical Sciences Department Waiver webpage and follow the instructions there to apply for the waiver. Students without the waiver will be unable to complete the official registration process and thus cannot be added to the class.
Here is a brief summary of the Organic Chemistry courses offered at SMC (the topics below are not exhaustive, but give you a good idea of the way we divide the topics between first semester and second semester):
Chem 21 - first semester Organic Chemistry (LECTURE + LAB in one class) (some example of the topics covered: SN1, SN2, E1, E2, Alkene Reactions, Alkyne Reactions, Radical Reactions, and Spectroscopy (Mass Spec, IR, 1H-NMR, 13C-NMR). This course includes both a lecture and a lab component
Chem 22 - second semester Organic Chemistry Lecture (LECTURE ONLY) (some examples of the topics covered: Chemistry of alcohols and ethers; Chemistry of carbonyl compounds (reduction with hydride reagents; reaction with Grignard Reagent); Diels-Alder Reaction; Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution Reactions; SnAR; Diels-Alder; Formation of acetals/ketals; Wittig Reaction; Chemistry involving the alpha position of carbonyls (Aldol, Claisen, Dieckmann), Michael Reaction, Chemistry of amines (Gabriel, Azides, Reductive amination, Hoffman elimination, Diazonium salts); Chemistry of biomolecules (carbohydrates, amino acids, lipids).
Note: Chem 22 only covers the lecture component of second semester Organic Chemsitry. The second semester lab is a completely separate course called Chem 24.
Chem 24 - second semester Organic Chemistry Lab (LAB ONLY) - This is the lab course that can either be taken while a student is concurrently taking Chem 22 or after a student has already completed Chem 22. Students carry out lab experiments based on the reactions learned in Chem 22 and also use NMR and IR to characterize the molecules. Students are also introduced to some advanced NMR techniques, including 13C-NMR DEPT-135 as well as 2-dimensional NMR (1H-1H COSY).
Chem 19 - Introductory General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, and Biochemistry (also known as GOB) - one semester course that has both a Lecture and Lab component in one class. There are no chemistry prerequisites required to take Chem 19. Students get an overview of a bit of general chemistry, a bit of organic chemistry, and a bit of biochemistry. It is generally taken by students who are pursuing Allied Health professions such as respiratory therapy or nursing to satisfy their one semester chemistry lecture and lab requirement. Students who take Chem 19 do not generally take Chem 21/22/24 because they are on different tracks. Chem 19 is not a prerequisite for taking Chem 21/22/24. A student who took Chem 19 and wanted to enroll in Chem 21, would then need to pursue the Chem 10/Chem 11/Chem 12 sequence since Chem 12 is a prerequisite for Chem 21.
Chem 22 begins right where Chem 21 finishes. Different schools divide the topics of the year-long organic chemistry sequence differently, so it is important to know what material you are expected to have mastered already by Day 1 of Chem 22.
The following resources are exam review packets for our Chem 21 students. A student taking Chem 22 should be able to do the problems in these review packets.
Chem 21 Review Packets (many of the links below have embedded video recordings of the solutions to help you review)
Exam 1 (Chap 1 to 4; Gen Chem Review, Molecular Representations, Acid Base Chemistry, Newman Projections/Chairs)
- Exam 1 Table of Constants/Equations
Exam 2 (Chap 5, 6, and 7 Stereochemistry, Mechanisms, Substitution, Elimination)
- Exam 2 Table of Constants/Equations
Exam 3 (Chap 14 and 15, 8 to 10); Spectroscopy and Alkenes, Alkynes, and Radicals)
- Exam 3 Table of Constants/Equations
Final Exam (all chapters and topics)
- Final Exam Table of Constants and Equations
In addition, here are some helpful "review" materials summarizing the most important aspects of Chem 21 prior to entering Chem 22:
Chap 8, 9, 10 Reaction summary for Chem 21 (reactions of alkenes, alkynes, radicals
Topics to review and sample questions – the review quiz will be variations of this list of problems. The key is available here