CHEM 2420

I took CHEM2410 with him during the fall semester but it won't let me choose that so I will write it here.

Disclaimer: This review is based off of my own personal opinion and I will acknowledge the fact that this year (2024) is his first year teaching and that I was also flawed in my approach for this class.

This class was a struggle lmao. He is a nice person but as a professor...there are things that can be worked upon. His class is formatted as 25% homework, 25% discussion quizzes (+ quiz corrections with full credit), 25% based off of two midterms (3 midterms in total, you drop your lowest), and 25% final. 50% (hw and quiz corrections) of your grade should be easy to get high marks on but for the exams, that was the part that I struggled with and what tanked my grade. Here's some advice on how to get a good grade and to avoid doing poorly like I did lol:
- READ THE TEXTBOOK IN ADVANCE! Serbulea doesn't teach the content directly from the textbook, he expects you to have read the textbook beforehand and will go into harder concepts that are related to the chapters that you should've read prior. In order to have an understanding of what is going on in class, be familiar with the overall concept. That will help you understand what is going on in class, what concepts you are stuck on, and how does the content Serbulea teach integrate with the overall picture.
- PARTICIPATE IN CLASS! This kind of goes off of the first tip but try your best to answer the questions he ask in class, ask for help to clarify a topic, and make yourself known to him. Not only will this help you engage in the class more so you get the most out of your money but it also helps you understand the content and form a relationship with Serbulea. He's not intimidating lol and he'll remember you more if you're willing to be active in class. Also make sure to go to class, Serbulea isn't concerned about attendance but that proved to be my weakness since I wouldn't understand the concepts of the classes that I missed.
- UTILIZE EVERY PRACTICE/HELP RESOURCE! Go through every problem in the chapter that the lecture is about, redo the practice problems he did in class, if you don't understand a certain concept - utilize Google, the TAs (god bless them), P2L, basically any resource to help you engrain the content in your brain. Do it until it basically feels like second nature. I really wish I went to the TA office hours and more P2L sessions, they are super nice and are willing to help you.
- DO WELL ON THE FIRST EXAM. It only gets worst from here LOL. The first exam should basically be a hint of gen chem review and you should have a solid understanding of the first few topics. The second exam was notorious for being brutal and the third exam/final are no easier. MEMORIZE YOUR REACTION WHEEL (what reagents make what product), that will help you so much in the later exams. I still have nightmares about his exams lol.

Orgo is a nightmare/weed-out class for a reason but if you truly have motivation and want to push yourself forward, then you will survive. Practice makes perfect and don't let mistakes stop you. Study consistently and there's a really good chance that your hard work will pay off.