Economics Harder Than Chemistry? (Solved & Explained)

Thinking about what degree to study can be an exciting and daunting task. 

Are you considering Economics or Chemistry, two very different subjects, that may also be difficult to study?

So is Economics harder to study than Chemistry?

Chemistry is harder than Economics because a deep understanding is required to visualize atoms, molecules, structures, reactions, and processes that are not seen in everyday life.  Chemistry is also harder due to confusion caused by having to understand Chemical symbols based on Latin names. 

Another reason why Chemistry is harder than Economics is not easily understood or relatable like Economics.

At least with Economics, the concepts are relatable and more easily understood.

Despite this, what someone finds harder than another individual will be influenced by their interests, preferences, and strengths.

So now we have answered the main question let’s further explore what makes Chemistry and Economics so hard to study, and suggestions on how to make studying them not so hard.

What Makes Economics Hard To Study?

Economics is hard to study and understand because Economics involves a lot of concepts, including mathematics. Students typically find learning statistics, high levels of maths (graph analysis, algebra), and how concepts interact hard.

Economics involves studying the behavior of various agents, from households, companies, governments.

Studying Economics relies on critical thinking and mathematics, especially calculus involved in the programming of models.

So if you want to get a firm grasp of Economics, recommend taking the time to learn and understand calculus and statistics

If you can get a handle on mathematics, the terminology used in economics, and an understanding of supply and demand works, then you should be able to complete an economics degree.

Getting an understanding of the basics can be challenging, but once you have them down the degree gets much more comfortable.

The good news is there is plenty of free material out there.

For example, when I type “Macro Economics”, the search results return numerous results. And when I type in “economics” into Udemy it returns 342 search results.

Another way to improve learning is the traditional way of going to the library and reading up on Economic books.

  • Classic influential textbooks include A Monetary History of the United States (1963) by Milton Friedman and Anne Schwartz for macroeconomics, Theory of Games and Economic Behavior (1944) by John von Neumann and Oskar Morgenstern for game theory, and Value and Capital (1936) by John Hicks for microeconomics.
  • For a more contemporary book you could try Principles of Economics by N. Gregory Mankiw; the 8th edition was published in 2017. Another option is Modern Principles of Economics by Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok; the 3rd edition was published in 2014.

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What Makes Chemistry Hard To Study?

Most students find studying Chemistry hard to study because of the intensity of learning, which includes high-level maths, and difficulty understanding complex topics (molecular and atoms, etc). Students also find critical think hard, having to come up with solutions to problems.

For example, be able to explain the reasons behind reactions, Sn1 Vs Sn2 reaction, and how catalyst affected the reaction.

Chemistry is a vast and complex field, one that is easy to fall behind.

To avoid this you must have a passion to study it.

If you are still in high school, study all the Chemistry and math-related subjects (as possible). The higher the better.

To enhance your Chemistry knowledge, the good news, there is plenty of online material and some of it is free.

For example, Udemy has 600 courses when I searched for “Chemistry”.

Learning Periodic tables is also crucial to understanding Chemistry.

You will also need to understand how the trends of the periodic table work to learn more complex concepts in chemistry. Some important trends to learn about include:

  • Electronegativity
  • Ionization energy
  • Atomic radius
  • Electron affinity

You also need to be comfortable with formulas and equations that you need to solve to learn chemistry. So you need to be comfortable with the equations below

  • Algebraic equations (writing and solving them)
  • Exponents
  • Negative numbers
  • Scientific notation
  • Fractions
  • Logarithms

The goods are there is plenty of online material that you can you to brush up your Chemistry knowledge, and most of it is free or at least low cost.

For example, when I search on Youtube for “Chemistry” there are many Chemistry videos.   There are even videos explaining Scientific notation.

You can also head over to online courses such as “Udemy”, where there are 643 courses on Chemistry.

If your after a more contemporary way of studying there’s always the option of going to the library.

Once you are at College study hard and make sure you don’t fall behind.

Missing even a couple of classes or lab sessions without doing a lot of catch-up work will make it live though.

By attending every class possible, completing every assignment( and even doing a bit more), and asking for extra help when I needed it, and working hard studying you will succeed.

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Final Thoughts

If you are contemplating a maths/ finance career then Economics is worth studying.

If you leaning towards a career in medicine or science then Chemistry should be a strong consideration.

Any college major can be difficult and one may be more difficult for different people.

No major is easy and each major has a good amount of work.

The degree of difficulty largely depends on your skills, interests, and ability

As with any career choice, you should analyze yourself and assess your strengths and weaknesses before choosing a major.

Choosing the right career means taking into account your personality, interests, and goals.

Further, choosing a career you also need to consider earn capacity, demand for roles and pay.

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