Geography vs Chemistry for the LC

Johnny__Storm

I can't decide which to take they have there pros and cons. Geogrphy from what I hear is easier but im not sure I would have the interest for it. But for chemistry I dont know if I will be good at it or not. I would love some advice on what to pick and what the subjects are actually like. I got a B in both science and in geography in the JC, with a small bit of study in science(really smalll bit) and absoultly none in geography.

Troxck

Johnny__Storm wrote: »

I can't decide which to take they have there pros and cons. Geogrphy from what I hear is easier but im not sure I would have the interest for it. But for chemistry I dont know if I will be good at it or not. I would love some advice on what to pick and what the subjects are actually like. I got a B in both science and in geography in the JC, with a small bit of study in science(really smalll bit) and absoultly none in geography.

Depends on what you want to study after school and where your interests lie.

If you plan on studying any STEM degree in college, Chemistry would be the most useful (along with either Physics or Biology). For example, I plan on studying a Physics degree which has Chemistry in first year. Chem is not a requirement but imagine how much of an advantage I would have with it. It's a tough subject but from what I've heard very interesting and rewarding. It's often a requirement for certain Chemistry courses.

Geography would be easier to grasp than Chem, but it's just lots of rote learning and the exam (from what I have heard, again I did not study it) tests how much you can write. IfBasically, it comes down to what you like and what you want to study!

On a side note, there is a decent jump between JC Science and the LC Lab sciences as JC Science barely scratches the surface of any of them.

Johnny__Storm

Lets say i didnt know any chemistry what so ever going in would it make a difference?

PhoenixParker

What are your other subjects and what areas (roughly speaking) might you be interested in for after school?

Blue giant

Johnny__Storm wrote: »

Lets say i didnt know any chemistry what so ever going in would it make a difference?

What exactly do you mean by this now? Tbh there's a big difference between the JC chemistry part and the LC chemistry course. You're really only covering the basics in junior cert. Even though it is mostly an understanding subject you will have to rote learn a good few definitions and some rules.

Geography is more similar to the JC course. It's basically just a more in-depth study of physical and regional geography. You then have an option and elective with most schools choosing economic and geoecology. There's also a field study that's worth 20%. There will also be a lot of learning and writing in geography though.

0byme75341jo28

Johnny__Storm wrote: »

Lets say i didnt know any chemistry what so ever going in would it make a difference?

Nah won't make much of a difference, you'll basically learn it from the bottom up for the Leaving as the JC curriculum for chemistry is, quite frankly, a joke. Most of the stuff you learned in chemistry for the JC is flawed or incorrect. (Apparently this is the case with the LC too if you plan on studying it in 3rd level, so I've been told by friends studying it.)

What kind of grades do you want? A lot of people go into chemistry thinking it's simple because the percentage of people who get As is so high, but they're completely wrong. The kind of people who get As in chemistry definitely have a much greater interest in it than the average student would, the fact that so few students take it every year also makes it look much easier than it is because (according to my chemistry teacher) 90% or so of those who take it up are good/very good students, that was the case in my school anyway. Chemistry is NOT an easy A, and to be honest unless you're interested in it there's only a very, very slim chance that you'll come out with anything more than a B3 in my opinion. Even with a lot of work I don't think you could improve your grades by much, understanding is key in chemistry, there's not a lot of learning.

Geography on the other hand is basically complete rote learning. If any Leaving Cert exam deserves the label of being a "memory test" then this is it. It will be much easier to get yourself a B or an A in geography than it will be in chemistry if you're not interested in the latter subject. Geography is much harder work though, if you're not willing to work at it there's, again, little chance of you getting anything above a B3. On the other hand if you do work hard it is a very manageable subject and a high B or an A is certainly not unattainable.

If you're purely concerned with points or would consider yourself a "weaker" student then I would strongly suggest picking geography, but if you're looking at doing a science course in college and are a good student then I would pick chemistry. I'm not saying don't pick chemistry if you're not a genius or anything though, if you think you'll have an interest in it go for it!

Also, I'd like to make a point that if you do choose a subject and dislike it you should definitely change. I moved to geography about 6 months after I started doing physics and ended up with an A1 in it, so if you do make the wrong decision don't stick with it if you think you could do better/be more interested in another one.

Johnny__Storm

thanks these really helped

qweerty

I don't agree that Geography is merely a memory test. Nor that one has to work very hard at it. The course is astoundingly similar to JC Geography and a lot of the information is either common knowledge or easy to understand and repeat - i.e. you mightn't know how an oxbow lake forms, but once you've seen the steps, it's very basic. The method of answering is also very favourable (bullet points), which encourages that you give all the information you know. I unquestionably worked harder for Chemistry and did more rote-learning for it.

sotisme

Do chemistry.

pleindespoir

I hated and still do hate chemistry. Tons of experiments. I think Geog is easier to study but it's a very long exam. Plus Geog has a project that carries 20%.

OMGeary

Depends what the teachers are like in your school, pick the one with a better teacher.

Mr Murphy

Is there any chance that Chemistry can be done in a year at Higher Level? I will be doing the 2016 Leaving Cert as an External Candidate. Any help would be great! Thanks.

spurious

OMGeary wrote: »

Depends what the teachers are like in your school, pick the one with a better teacher.

It mainly depends on the person wanting to do the subject.
All these threads about one subject over another depend mainly on the person's individual abilities/workrate etc..

I could ask Sonia O'Sullivan or James Reilly is it easy run 1km - both would give very different answers, but if I am closer to Mr Reilly in shape than Ms O'Sullivan, I'm going to struggle with the 'easy' 1km run.