University of Michigan Chemistry Tutoring

I’ve worked with over 30 students in Chem 125, Chem 210, and Chem 215 to great success in the class. I’m intricately familiar with the material, and understand the challenges that students face.

Chemistry 210: Structure and Reactivity

This course is the strongest intro organic chemistry course in the entire country. It demands a strong logical understanding, chemical understanding, and the ability to perform under time pressure. In general, the work with students follows this outline through the course of the semester.

Exam 1

  • Curved arrows and formal charges, Resonance, and Reaction Mechanisms (fundamental for everything else on the course)

  • Acid-Base chemistry: Logic, Finding closest analogues on the pKa table. Stability and Strength. The six factors (Size, Electronegativity, Resonance, Inductive Effect, Hybridization, Charge). Predicting the most acidic and basic sites. Keq

  • Hybridization and Orbital Drawings.

  • Bond line geometries and constitutional isomerism.

    Exam 2

  • Stereochemistry, R/S determination, Planes and Centers of Symmetry. Enantiomers, Diastereomers, and Meso Compounds. Optical activity. E/Z diastereomers, oppositely substituted rings.

  • Conformational analysis. Newman proyections, rotating newman proyections, gauche interactions. staggered vs. eclipsed conformers., Turning newmans into wedge/dash drawings. intramolecular H-bonding.

  • Chair conformations, chair flips,

  • NMR Spectroscopy, number of signals, integration ratio.

  • Electrophilic addition of alkenes with strong and weak acids. Intramolecular cases.

    Exam 3

  • SN1/SN2/E1/E2, Decision making, The 4 factors (Substitution, Nucleophile Strength, Solvent Effects, Temperature)

  • Executing SN2, Inversion of configuration, intramolecular examples. Predicting reactants.

  • Executing SN1, with or without A/B, carbocation rearrangements.

  • Executing E2, the role of the Beta Hydrogen. E2 w/ newmans, E2, w/ chairs, etc.

  • Executing E1, role of heat, possible products, carbocation rearrangements.

  • Double bond reactions, understanding and executing Syn & Anti Additions with stereochemistry, working backwards, going over all of the reactions (Ozonolysis, Hydroboration-Oxidation, Halogenation, Mixed Halogenation, Epoxidation, Hydrogenation, etc…)

  • Triple bond reactions, partial hydrogenation, hydration and hydroboration followed by tautomerization.

    Final

  • Electrophilic Aromatic Substitution. Directing Groups. Review.

Chemistry 215: Structure & Reactivity II

In CHEM 215, we build off of the mechanistic understanding from CHEM 210 and use it in order