This is the first semester course of a two semester sequence of organic chemistry. This course is designed to give the student, interested in the health professions, an introduction to structure, reactivity, and analysis of organic molecules. Students will be introduced to organic structures (functional groups, nomenclature, stereochemistry, and conformations) and then learn carbonyl reactions (nucleophilic additions to ketones/aldehydes and nucleophilic substitution to acid derivatives). Students will apply these topics to biochemical settings. Finally, the course ends with an introduction to spectroscopic analysis. These topics will prepare students for entrance exams in the health professions and will prepare students to understand important biological pathways that the student will encounter in his/her professional studies. In addition, this course will lay the groundwork for more advanced understanding of the chemical reactivity topics covered in Online Organic Chemistry II.
The course is designed to take lecture and lab concurrently for four credits. However, students have the option to take the lecture only (three credits) or lab only (one credit).
Course Prerequisite: Two semesters of college level general chemistry.
In lecture courses, students should be able to:
In lab courses, students should be able to:
On the course start date, students will have access to orientation. This must be completed to be able to gain access to the first module in the course. Students must complete the first module to gain access to the next one. We recommend that students spend about 15 hours per week to complete a course in 16 weeks. When trying to complete the course in less than 16 weeks, we typically see students do this successfully within 12-14 weeks. Instructors will be timely in grading and feedback, but it will not be instant.
Each week, you will explore the new topics through the readings, videos, and worksheets. The worksheets are a place for you to take notes, draw, and try to answer problems. The materials are designed to help you walk through key ideas for the week. You can read the texts or watch the videos or play a game while you are doing the worksheets. You might find it effective to move back and forth between these activities. In fact, some of the videos will work through examples in the worksheets! Research shows that active engagement can increase your understanding and retention of the materials. To that end, you are strongly encouraged to print each week’s guided worksheets out first to have them on hand while reading or viewing the learning materials. As they are a form of practice and engagement, you will receive points for completion alone. If you are not understanding a topic through these materials, please contact the instructor!
Each week, you will complete one or two short homework assignments in the Achieve system. These homework assignments will be a chance for you to assess your understanding of the key concepts covered during that week.
In these activities, you can view hints without being penalized. You are also able to attempt each question multiple times, but be aware that you will receive a small penalty (5%) for each attempt after your first. Note that you can compare your attempts to chart your progress with a question and review your work. Finally, be sure to review the feedback that you receive to better understand the correct responses. You will be able to see the correct answer after you have submitted your assignment.
You will complete four shorter quizzes in the Achieve platform. These quizzes will be 20 questions and you will have 45 minutes to complete each one. Each quiz will be worth 20 points. They will usually cover 2-3 weeks of material and will ensure that you are retaining the material as we progress through the semester.
There will be four discussion boards this semester. There is an introductory board to foster a sense of community. There will be two discussion boards on topics of metacognition (how to study and learn). The last discussion board will involve a project analyzing who can be a scientist.
There are six activities in this course (and one optional extra credit activity!). These activities will ask you to apply the knowledge that you are learning. You will create a concept map and an infographic to help you create and communicate connections between related chemistry ideas. At the first mid-term, you will assess your learning strategies and set goals for utilizing new metacognitive strategies. There are two case studies that ask you to apply your knowledge to new medically relevant situations. One final assignment will involve you recording a description of how you solved a spectral problem.
You will complete two mid-term exams in the Achieve platform. These quizzes will be worth 50 points each. The exams will be 25 questions and you will have 60 minutes to complete them. You will have two exam attempts with the highest being kept. They will usually cover 3-5 weeks of material and will ensure that you are retaining the material as we progress through the semester.
This will be a cumulative exam. It will be a timed and proctored exam. There will be approximately 50 questions. You will have 90 minutes to complete the exam, and you will be allowed to use an approved whiteboard, as well as your modeling kit. You will have two exam attempts with the highest being kept. This assignment is worth 100 points toward your final grade.
This exam must be taken through ProctorU. See UNE’s Online ProctorU Site for information about signing up and scheduling your exam. A UNE-compliant webcam is required (see the Course Materials section, above, for more information).
For proctored finals, grades will be posted 48-72 hours after taking the exams. At that time, you can expect an unofficial transcript.
Your grade in this course will be determined by the following criteria:
Assignment Category | Number of Assignments & Points | Total Point Values |
---|---|---|
Achieve Homework | 12 x 10 pts, 8 x 5 pts | 160 points |
Achieve Quizzes | 4 x 20 pts | 80 points |
Worksheets | 14 x 5 pts | 70 points |
Discussions Boards | 4 x 10 pts | 40 points |
Activities | Infographic (10 pts), Concept Map (10 pts) , Metacognitive Goal-Setting (10 pts), Case Study 1 (25 pts), Case Study 2 (20 pts), Spectral Video (20 pts), Meme (5 pts, extra credit) | 95 points (+5 points extra credit) |
Midterm Exams | 2 x 50 pts | 100 points |
Final Exam | 1 x 100 pts | 100 points |
Total | 645 points |
Grade | Points Grade | Point Average (GPA) |
A | 94 – 100% | 4.00 |
A- | 90 – 93% | 3.75 |
B+ | 87 – 89% | 3.50 |
B | 84 – 86% | 3.00 |
B- | 80 – 83% | 2.75 |
C+ | 77 – 79% | 2.50 |
C | 74 – 76% | 2.00 |
C- | 70 – 73% | 1.75 |
D | 64 – 69% | 1.00 |
F | 00 – 63% | 0.00 |
Week |
Topic |
Assignments |
1 |
Structure, Bonding, and Representation of Organic Molecules |
Discussion #1 Create an infographic |
2 |
Acid-Base Chemistry of Organic Molecules |
2 Achieve HW |
3 |
Structure and Properties of Alkanes |
2 Achieve HW Worksheet |
4 |
Cyclic Conformations |
Worksheet |
5 |
Stereochemistry |
Worksheet |
6 |
Review and Apply: Molecular Structure |
Metacognitive Assessment and Goal-Setting |
7 |
Introduction to Carbonyl Reactions |
2 Achieve HW |
8 |
Nucleophilic Addition to Aldehydes and Ketones |
2 Achieve HW |
9 |
Introduction to Nucleophilic Substitution to Carboxylic Acid Derivatives |
2 Achieve HW Worksheet Optional Extra Credit |
10 |
Nucleophilic Substitutions to Carboxylic Acid Derivatives Part II |
Worksheet Achieve HW Quiz #4 |
11 |
Enzymatic Catalysis |
Worksheet |
12 |
Review and Apply: Carbonyl Reactivity |
Case Study #2 Midterm Exam #2 |
13 |
Introduction to Spectroscopy: IR and 13C NMR Spectral Analysis |
Worksheet |
14 |
Spectroscopy: 1H NMR Analysis |
Worksheet |
15 |
Spectroscopy: Combined Spectral Problems |
Worksheet |
16 |
Review and Apply: Final Exam |
Final Exam |
Your Student Support Specialist is a resource for you - they will monitor course progression and provide assistance or guidance when needed. Please don’t hesitate to contact them for assistance, including, but not limited to course planning, course materials, billing, current problems or issues in a course, technology concerns, or personal emergencies.
Questions? Visit the Student Support Science Prerequisites page
Check Brightspace for specific instructor and support specialist contact information.
The Student Lounge Discussion Board is a designated support forum in which students may engage with each other and grapple with course content. Feel free to post questions, seek clarification, and support each other, but be mindful of UNE's Academic Integrity Policy.
Your instructor will monitor this forum. However, if you are seeking specific and timely answers to questions about course content or your personal grades, please contact your instructor via course messages. For questions about course materials, program policy, and how to navigate and proceed through the course, please contact your Student Service Advisor through the Student Portal.
Your course may have proctored exams. The University of New England has contracted with ProctorU to provide students with the most convenient online exam proctoring system. This system provides a simple, no cost to the student, secure, online proctor for exams and allows the student to take all the exams at home and on their own schedule.
Upon enrollment into the course, each student will register with ProctorU and establish a login name and password. This will give the student access to all of ProctorU's services. When ready, students will schedule each of their proctored exams with ProctorU. Exams must be scheduled at least 72 hours in advance to avoid fees. Prior to taking their exams, students must be sure that they have downloaded any required additional software. They must also be sure their testing site's connection meets the minimum requirements by using ProctorU's "Test It Out" utility.
Upon the exam day and hour, students will log in to ProctorU and click on "exams". After following the procedures outlined at ProctorU's website, the student will log in to Brightspace and locate their correct exam. The proctor will then allow student access to that exam.
Students must use ProctorU and must follow all proctoring requirements for their exams to be credited. Please contact your instructor for specific feedback.
Students will receive two attempts at all proctored examinations. The higher score of the two attempts will be calculated into the final grade. Students can schedule their second attempt by following the same ProctorU instructions as with the original exam.
All students are encouraged to utilize a second attempt on their exams in order to improve their overall performance in the course.
Discussion topics cover events or materials related to this course that contribute to a deeper understanding of key concepts and allow you to interact with your classmates and the instructor. Each discussion topic may require you to conduct internet research, read additional materials, visit a specific webpage, AND/OR view a short video before writing a response following the specific guidelines in the discussion topic prompt.
To earn full credit you will need to post a response to the discussion topic, respond to the original posts of other students, and then contribute meaningfully to an ongoing discussion. You may need to post your initial response before you will see any posts from your classmates. For special cases where one or two students are accelerating faster through the course, the instructor will participate in the discussion so that everyone has the opportunity to interact.
Please see Brightspace for a full description, along with specific guidelines, for each discussion topic. Discussion board assignments should be completed, along with all other assignments in the course, in the order that they appear. Due to the course design, you may be unable to take a proctored exam if you do not complete all assignments that appear prior to that exam.
Please also refer to the Grading Policy/Grade Breakdown section of the syllabus to learn the percentage of your grade that each discussion is worth.
Please review the technical requirements for UNE Online Programs: Technical Requirements
A schedule of lectures and assignments is included in this syllabus. This is, however a self-paced course and you can complete the course in less time.
Please visit the enrollment page to review the withdrawal and refund policies.
Students are expected to attempt and complete all graded assignments and proctored exams by the end date of the course. View the incomplete grade policy..
Due to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, only the student may request official transcripts. This may be done online by going to the University of New England Registrar website and following the directions on the page.
The University of New England values academic integrity in all aspects of the educational experience. Academic dishonesty in any form undermines this standard and devalues the original contributions of others. It is the responsibility of all members of the University community to actively uphold the integrity of the academy; failure to act, for any reason, is not acceptable.
Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to the following:
Charges of academic dishonesty will be reviewed by the Program Director. Penalties for students found responsible for violations may depend upon the seriousness and circumstances of the violation, the degree of premeditation involved, and/or the student’s previous record of violations. Appeal of a decision may be made to the Dean whose decision will be final. Student appeals will take place through the grievance process outlined in the student handbook.