CHEM 2410

Serbulea is a good lecturer but her exams are extremely difficult, even though I have to admit that they're pretty fair. She maintains that she does not curve the class at all, which is kind of ridiculous considering the averages were usually high 60s. Also, I know from taking her class that my overall letter grade was higher than my calculated number grade. Still, if you want the sure curve, I'd take McGarvey.

Serbulea is a probably the best teacher there is for this course. That being said, she does not curve the class at all. The exam averages are ~60% and exams count for 75% of your overall grade. This makes the course extremely frustrating and difficult to get a good grade. The homeworks are helpful in mastering the material but not necessarily helpful for tests. The discussion section is required with 10% clicker points. Lectures are required as well with 5% clicker points.

Serbulea is great. Obviously the class is hard... its organic chemistry, but if you study hard you well do well. The test are hard and she is very approachable. That being said, she is a hard ass. It is also bullshit that there is no curve. I got a 90 both semesters and got an A. The curve is around 3 points.

Organic chemistry is difficult, regardless of which professor you take. Serbulea's tests are difficult, but doable - I recommend doing every single problem in the book before each test and understanding the concepts behind each problem, not just memorizing. The discussion sections are annoying, but the 10% clicker questions actually helped most peoples grades. Don't worry as much about individual midterms - they are only 13% each (there are 3) The final will make or break you - its cumulative and 33%. She's adamant about the fact that there's no curve. This class id definitely a time commitment. But it's doable if you put in the significant amount of time that mastering the coursework requires. You can't bullshit orgo.

Great class. Super interesting and Serbulea is a great professor, but this class can and will take over your life if you want to do well. Try to take a lighter course load if you take this class.

Orgo is hard, there's no way around it. Prof. Serbulea is an amazing professor, however. She explains things multiple times in her lecture powerpoints, and her office hours are SO helpful - one on one and she'll keep you in there until you understand what she's trying to explain. With all that being said, the tests are very, very difficult. Averages are around 60, and she makes it very clear that there is no curve. The 2 hour mandatory discussion sections SUCK and were not very helpful anyway. An actual review session during this time instead of essentially an additional 2 hour lecture would have been much more helpful. Expect to spend hours on hours doing practice problems and reading the book, and try problems from different sources because she doesn't even test from the required textbook. Only take it if you have to.

Excellent professor, very hard but fair course. Lots of pre-meds got their dreams killed by this class. Go to her office hours, expect to spend hours on hours outside of class and try to have a good understanding of the material before class so she can fill in the gaps. You kind of have to understand and memorize everything for this class. Just memorizing won't cut it but there's an element of memorization too. It's a lot of work all semester long but do NOT get behind in the beginning or you'll be lost forever. The tests are very hard and a level up from the book problems, but a very fair test of your understanding. There are a lot of components to your final grade though, so there are buffers and even the tests are doable. The final can make or break you so there is pretty much no such thing as too much studying. I got an A in the class-it's very possible but you really have to work for it. I see on here the average hours of reading a week were 6.5 for the other reviews...I probably spent more like 10 or 12. It's a lot, but Laura's the bomb.

Overall Serbulea is a great teacher. She makes sure to go over each top over and over until it gets in your head. Her clickers are super fast (30 seconds) and her lecture can be a tad bit boring. Not too bad. The discussion can be boring, but its sort of forcing you to study. Overall it depends what kind of professor you want. From what I've heard, McGarvey is a lot less structured and his students tend to teach themselves while Serbulea's homework and discussions force you to study but obviously, its more work. Personally, I would recommend Serbulea.

I took this class over the summer too. Serbulea is a wonderful professor. Very clear and very cute. Like everyone has mentioned, she doesn't curve. Even though the clickers, homework, and learn smarts were your 'curve,' it still sucks when the exam average is so low and you know half the people will literally fail. Her exams are hard, but not hard at the same time. You have to pay attention to everything, which is honestly just exhausting. And sad. But I think everyone can agree that they're fair. Homework and learn smarts were online through connect. It was the WORST! Half the class couldn't even get one of the questions on the last homework, and the correct answer didn't even make sense! They also take FOREVER. But you'll learn so much from her that it's worth the frustration. If you're pre-med, you should take it with Serbulea. Heck, take it with Serbulea even if you're not premed. Go to the discussions because the TAs go over problems! I liked Chi because was organized, knew her stuff, and had original questions that even showed up on exams! Her questions were challenging, but they weren't unreasonable, just long. She also makes a lot of helpful charts. I don't know why she stopped second semester! Dan was also good too, but different. Get Chi as your TA if you can during the year!! Wish me luck on my final tomorrow because I'm writing this review instead of studying.

I took Orgo in the summer and it's a common misconception that the course is "easier" in the summer. Lecture was most certainly not easier (although maybe lab may be easier). Taking it in the summer time really helps you focus on the material, but be prepared to have your life basically just be all about organic chemistry if you want to do well in the course. Organic chemistry by itself is already a challenging course to master, and I have to admit, Serbulea does not make it easier either. Nonetheless, she was an amazing professor, very interested in the subject matter, and willing to help explain concepts one on one until they made sense (go to her office hours!) Just remember, to practice practice practice to perform best on the exams. Do practice problems in the book, as well as chapter end Self Tests in the solution manual (definitely purchase this, well worth it). Although the class is very hard, it is definitely doable. Orgo is really not about how smart you are, but how much work you are willing to put it. I really enjoyed the course overall, and learned a bunch. Also, don't get consumed into the hype that Orgo is possible and you will fail on Day 1. That will just make you nervous and set you up for failure. Enter the course with a positive mind and just be disciplined. Good luck!