CT4 & CT6 understanding

Hi All,

So I sat CT6 yesterday and I have blatantly failed. I really felt I had a grasp on the subject until I saw the exam, and now I feel like a retard. I also sat CT4 last sitting which I annoyingly FA'd on, even though I felt it was a good paper and had passed.

When I was in 6th Form, I didn;t have a clue what chemsitry was about. I just didn;t get it. Then my parents got me a tutor and everything clicked into place and I began to understand it all and was even able to adapt my understanding to other scenarios.

What I'm trying to get at is, what can I do to be able to gain some sort of understanding that allows me to click with these subjects? I know there are people who can do these subjects, and I think its a case of
1) Understanding/Interpreting the situation
2) Methodical working of such situations

Do tutorials really help with such understanding? I've never been to a tutorial, so I don't know.

Does anyone with relative success or knowledge in these subjects have any input?

Thanks

 

I've only got 3 exams so far (MAYBE 4 if I got CT6 but I'm not confident) so I'm not sure whether my progress can be considered a success (I think I'm doing well enough to not want to give up but bad enough to make me depressed or at least unhappy).

One thing I know is that I'd NEVER pass any of them without tutorials. I did 4 days worth of tutorials (regular & revision day) for CT3 and passed. CT1 I attempted not having gone to any tutorials and I failed. So they seem to work for me.

One thing to note with tutorials is that you'll get as much out as you put in. You still have to work as hard as you would without them & prepare enough b4(!) the tutorials for them to benefit you. I also make sure I get every penny's worth of help by asking the tutors about every topic and question I don't understand. Tutorials are also good for receiving eg. additional Acted Qs, a list of proofs or just pointers in the right direction (eg. we were warned that IRMs haven't come up in CT6 for a while and are very likely to be asked again soon - and there was an IRM Q)

I greatly admire ppl who pass without attending tutorials.

 

I have passed a bunch of exams and haven't done any tutorials yet.

But even I am considering them because everyone I know who goes to them swears by them.

I also waste study days a lot. I wake up late go out with friends etc at least these force you to read material and go through questions!

Don't feel bad about how the paper went it was weird and offputting and they should ensure a consistent standard between papers at each exam sitting. As there are papers I know I would score almost perfectly on and others where I know I wouldn't do as good.

 

Do any of the tutors have any suggestions???????

 

Tutorials

I would definitely recommend tutorials for these 2 subjects!

There are certain chapters in these courses which can seem very overwhelming but are broken down nicely in the tutorial, and you get the chance to practice past paper questions. Plus the tutor is there to answer any questions you may have so it's a good idea to go along to them knowing any parts of the course you need to concentrate on.

You also get given tips, e.g. which distributions you should learn, coming up with useful lists, tables, summaries, etc. which are a great way to help plan your revision.

I know tutorials are v expensive - luckily my Company pays for them... But even if you have to pay for them yourself, I would suggest that at least for CT4 and CT6, they are worthwhile. More so than for some of the other CT's, in my opinion.

 

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  I was asking about the conceptual questions of the 2 subjects, which I have trouble in grasping for certain questions and even trying to think of a starting point for solutions. I would rather be able to construct a solution from first principles (so to speak) than try to regurgitate and amend a solution in previous exams.
  
  You can take it as a given that most students read the notes at least once and go through past papers as if their lives depended on it, AS I DID! To be honest John, I felt slightly patronised by your comments, and i'm sure (and hope) that wasn't your intention.
  
  But judging from other students comments tutorials may help me to conquer the questions I have trouble with and give me a better understanding.
  
  Do Acted offer a money back guarantee?

 

Tuition

For those of us who live far far from UK (Aust resident here), is it reasonable to suggest that we are disadvantaged in that we don't have access to tuition session? Most people's feedback, in this forum, on tuition seems to be very positive and those attending it also have a higher pass rate, as confirmed by John Lee.

Any suggestions on how to improve pass rates for those who can't access tuition? Doing more questions than the UK students?

Thanks in advance.

 

Has anyone used suggested reading to help cemment the acted literture? If they did how useful were they?

I have the fear about starting CT6 and CT4!

 

I'd describe tutorials for the early (CT) exams as helpful but non-essential. For ST and beyond (and maybe CA1 too) they are very helpful in that they provide a chance to discuss the issues with a tutor and your peers. If you don't have access to a tutorial then maybe the following might help:
- discussions with colleagues also sitting same course
- use of these boards to discuss ideas
(answering questions is at least as helpful as asking them)
- plenty of past paper questions
- further reading
- Webinars (http://www.acted.co.uk/Html/tutorials_webinars.htm)

Good luck!