CHEM 1420

As someone who took both semesters of this course with Professor Welch, I can honestly say he was one of the worst professors I had at UVA. I will say that 1420 was easier material wise for me, and I ended up with an A this semester (B last semester), however I had to work very hard to do so. This course is basically self taught, because it consists of an expo and lecture. The expo is probably the worst part, as you sit with a group of people once a week to work on a set of difficult tophat questions, and get minimal assistance from TAs who are either your age or a year above you. The individual part of the exam is easy, but the group part is near impossible and for two of the tests it is a huge portion of your grade. The expo style overall teaches you nothing, and is an easy way out for the professor. Take it with Morkowchuk if you can, as she is teaching it traditional, and she will probably prepare you better for orgo.

Okay so I got an A+ in this class. It isn't too difficult, I put in about 3-7 hours a week, usually about 4-5 for this class. I don't know what the people below me are talking about in terms of the final. I got 100% on it and so many questions were very similar to the other 3 exams that we took or questions on TopHat. That being said, the group exams and online exams are pretty dumb. They are useless grade boosters or grade destroyers, depending on how you do. They have no point at all and you don't really learn anything. The 3 exams in-class portions are pretty easy to study the TopHat LBLA and BIT questions (not Expo). An A+ habit is to always take notes while reading the chapters, this will basically double the reading time but the 2-4 hours you'll spend a week doing the chapter will 100% pay off later in the semester and before exams because you'll have good notes to look at. If there's something you don't understand google it, organic chemistry tutor on Youtube is really helpful! There's a good amount of buffers heading into the final exam. Because of the COVID thing, the final was easier, if you're taking it on-grounds I expect the final will be difficult the way it was when I took Chem1410. In that case, you should study very hard. I think Welch isn't too bad, he's a nice guy but his teaching leaves a lot to be desired. He is easy to reason with and will be very accommodating. I don't love chemistry but this class really isn't bad, I did enjoy the increase in math compared to the first semester. Make sure you remember the trends discussed in various units as Welch loves to ask questions about them. TopHat sucks but you'll get used to it. I personally didn't learn anything from lecture and I know many people that felt the same way. If you understand the stuff on TopHat you'll be completely fine. Also everyone's doing TopHat starting Fall 2020 I believe so it really doesn't matter who you take it with. Also, very little information from this will be covered in orgo so just try and get a good grade! Relax, You'll be fine, this class is nothing like the monster called Organic Chemistry that awaits many of us!

I can genuinely say that I had no idea what was going on in this class for a long time, and I'm a chem major. However, this is probably because I spent most of class doing other work. His lectures are just not captivating at all. I don't think he's that bad a professor, it just wasn't for me. TopHat was the one thing that helped me out. The powerpoints aren't that helpful (they're like 140+ slides bc he uploads a PDF version with the little animations, so they're very hard to effectively go through). You need to be in class to understand as he's explaining his ppt. However, even though I dislike TopHat, it was the most useful thing about this class. The exam questions are similar to the BIT questions, so it's useful to start studying from there (he even gave us this tip to study for the final). I ended up with an A in this class, and that's because Chem 2 is easier relative to Chem 1. It's not a bad class, but it's very individually focused (a lot of teaching it yourself type of deal).

To preface this review: I received an A- in this class. I think that is important to note because I did well in the class, and I still think it was one of the most poorly taught classes I've ever taken. I think the TopHat readings are helpful, more so than the lectures, but they still don't seem to be that relevant to the material on group exams. Those are the most absurd exams I've ever taken. You can research for hours and still not understand what is going on. I feel as though they are a game of chance because much of the time the group exam questions are not even remotely related to what we learn in class. Furthermore, I was incredibly disappointed with the way distance learning was handled. Prof. Welch had technical difficulties, which is understandable, but we should have had access to another professors materials or had a more relaxed TopHat grading scale. This is not super relevant to future classes, unless of course it is taught online in the Fall. In that case, I would recommend doing everything in your power to avoid taking this class with Prof. Welch.

This course is meant to be challenging! However, Professor Welch makes it manageable. He’s extremely knowledgeable and very kind! If you have to take this class with anyone take it with Welch! For the tests go over the practice problems in the textbook and for expo exams justify your shader’s with information you’ve learned in class! If you keep up with the work you’ll be fine!

After taking 1410 first semester of my first year, I was initially pretty intimidated by this class. That being said, for me, this class was relatively easier than 1410. Welch is a great professor and was very patient when people asked questions. He takes the time to explain things in lecture and makes class enjoyable. He cracks jokes and makes the atmosphere a little lighter, which is good because an hour and a half chem lecture is never fun. The content of the class is relatively easy with some hard chapters scattered in-between, but if you did fine in 1410, then you should do fine in this class. The class has a lecture at the beginning of the week and expo at the end. Expo is a time where you work in groups to figure out tophat questions and professor Welch has a chance to explain concepts in depth. Tests consist of in-class tests, followed by a take home individual portion that is 6-7 questions. Then during expo, you and your group discuss the answers you chose and come up with a group answer to submit. The grade you get in that group portion is your group test grade. In-class tests are easy and asked simple questions while the individual take home portion is super hard (but you get to google things). Overall, the system in which they distributed the tests don't really help, but it is a benefit to your grade. The major thing to remember is to get a 100% on the group portion because it'll help your grade a lot. The final is similar to tophat questions. Welch writes his own tophat questions and he also comes up with questions on the final so make sure that you understand the tophat questions. I got a 100% on the final and an A in the class so it's not impossible to succeed, but you do have to put in enough time to go over everything and understand concepts. (In reality, you don't need to memorize everything you read in the tophat chapters, Welch will tell you what you need to know).

Second semester chem is harder than first semester. I would not recommend taking it with Welch. Welch's lectures move slowly and never cover the most difficult part of the subjects that inevitably end up on the exams. Expo style remains confusing, frustrating, and feels pointless. The group exams are harder second semester than they were first semester and some included concepts that we literally had never talked about in expo, lecture, or the readings. Workload is about the same as first semester- I credit my success in this class to taking thorough chapter notes every week. I have been unimpressed with how difficult it is to communicate with Professor Welch and the TAs. Overall, my advice would be to avoid expo-style chem at UVA if at all possible. Also, look at the GPAs and grade distributions of all the professors before deciding to choose one because they are a nice person.

I had Welch for 1410 and 1420 and the man is awesome. 1420 is more difficult than the first semester, but Welch is super understanding and really nice. Definitely go to his office hours because he's go over TopHat and Gradescope questions that you need help with. I actually liked the class on Teams because we got to work with smaller groups which made the class seem not as massive. There are 4 tests and five homework/class assignments due throughout the week each week. It's a bit intimidating at first, but if you make a schedule and get into the rhythm of completing them you'll be fine. I ended up with an A in the class. You got this!

I can say with confidence that this class was much harder than 1410. I am premed so I had to take the year of chem courses, also I highly recommend taking this in spring right after 1410, it's a good way to stay up to date on material. The content is very dense and this semester had much more math involved, which can be a good thing for some and a bad for others. Overall, it was difficult I can't lie. It requires a lot of time and work and collaboration, but you can still come out with a good grade.#tCFspring2021

I took CHEM 1410 and 1420 back-to-back with Welch, and I highly recommend taking chemistry with him. He is super understanding, kind and responsive. With that being said, intro chemistry at UVA is HARD. I takes a ton of work and effort every single week, and despite you feeling prepared, you don't live up to your expectations. Keep your head down and work hard, but definitely take it with Welch. Because of COVID, we had the opportunity in both semesters to hear lectures from all of the professors and by far Welch's are the most thorough and complete.
#tCFspring2021