Kaplan SAT II: Chemistry 2004-2005

Rating:
Summary: Convinced Me To Never Buy Another Kaplan Book
Review: I was skeptical about ditching the traditional Barron's and Princeton Review study guides and switching over to this book. But, since this seemed to be the latest edition out there, I thought that I'd give it a shot. Basically, after working through the whole thing, taking the test, and receiving my score, I knew that I would never buy another Kaplan book. I expected to get a much higher score after coming out of a very rigorous AP Chemistry class and as, I would later find out, getting a five on the extremely hard AP test. Obviously, I was dissapointed. But I don't know, maybe this just wasn't the right book for me. I knew my chemistry, I just didn't know the SAT II test, and basically, Kaplan did a pretty lousy job of explaining it. It could have given a lot more practice for the totally bizzare 'Relationship Analysis Questions' just because they're so out of the ordinary. Also, the diagnostic tests are pretty bad in that they include quite a bit of problems that you absolutely cannot do without a calculator, even though the SAT II does not allow the use of a calculator. The review section, though, wasn't that bad. Not to say that it couldn't have been better, but I think that it gives a pretty good review of chemistry. If all you need is more chemistry review, then maybe this is a good book for you. But as for me, I'm sticking to Barron's and Princeton Review from now on.

Rating:
Summary: IF YOU NEED HELP FOR THE SAT II, THIS IS THE BOOK
Review: The best way to prepare yourself for the chemistry SAT II is to take practice tests and review the material. This book has the best information to help you do that. The only downside to this book is that it goes over many things that will not be on the actual test. I just got my results back and I got a 700+, which I'm happy with. Out of all the test prep books availible, I'd recomeend this one.

Rating:
Summary: Ok but unorganized
Review: The Kaplan book is quite comprehensive but the lack of diagrams and the disorganized state of the book can make this a boring read. It goes over a lot of useless info that may be confusing and the text may lose you in some parts. If you have a lot of self motivation and patience, this book may work out for you. Be sure to read up on Barrons because it is quite a bit more user friendly and is organized more like a high school chemistry book which is much more familiar to most students.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent Preparation
Review: The Kaplan SAT II Chemistry book provides excellent preparation for the exam. The extensive information covered details almost everthing that you could possibly want to know for this exam. However, there are several useless pieces of information in this book. The equilibrium equations with natural logs, etc. are all extra useless stuff. Also the extra material for atomic orbitals is not on the SAT II. No one will ask you about the specific name of quantum numbers. This extra stuff means that they didn't put in enough descriptive chemistry review and experimentation, hence only 4 stars. Not perfect, but if you buy either Chemistry the Easy way or the other Barrons SAT II book and read up on the two great chapters on experiments and descriptive chemistry you're all set. I recommend buying the REA book as well for the practice. Nothing improves your score as much as practice.

Rating:
Summary: Doesn't cover all the material
Review: This book covers basicly everything that will appear on SAT II chem. I think the most useful feature of the book is the tables. Everything is so organized that you are not going to mess up basic concepts. I got a 670 even though I didn't finish the book. You can get a 750+ if you go over everything in the book. Plus, it's very helpful if you are taking chem 2 AP.

Rating:
Summary: superb!!
Review: This is overally is excellent. Every chapter covers the concepts which you need on the SAT II examination. The depth is actually much deeper, compared with the Baron's and Princeton Review. If one wants a in depth review on the chemistry, this book is for him. After finishing this book(I mean really really understand every conception shown on the book), one is not only well prepared for the SATII chemistry test, but also well equiped for a undergraduate chemistry study. However, I recommend everyone who is using this book also use the baron's because this book is hard enough to confuse anyone by its simple appearance and lack of calculation practice.