[morningstarmoon]

I need to pick another chemistry lecture and lab in order to finish my minor. The only two options I have to choose from are analytical or inorganic chemistry, as biochem 2 isn't offered in my last term .

Ive been trying to figure out what inorganic chemistry actually deals with and how it might be applicable to someone with a biological sciences major. I know that it is sometimes labeled as gen chem on steroids but I've not been able to find any specific examples.

How does it compare to organic chemistry in terms of difficulty? For general chemistry and organic Ive typically been around the B+ range.

[AWK]

Just see the programs of the offered courses and choose the one that suits you better. In further studies, you will always have to learn something extra.

[Borek]

Honestly, no matter what they really offer (well, I am assuming we are in both cases talking about reasonably decent courses), given the choice I would go the analytical path. There is no branch of chemistry/biochemistry/medicine/name the branch of science of your choice where you won't have to deal with some kind of analysis, be it done by yourself or just seeing the results. Understanding what you are doing/seeing and limitations of the methods/results always helps.

[Corribus]

Inorganic is probably more thematically relevant to a biological major, because of the ubiquity of metal centers in proteins, but analytical will be useful in finding just about any science-based industry job, for reasons Borek mentioned. All things being equal: If your intent is to go on to medical school or graduate school in biology, I would probably choose inorganic. If you are going to be looking for jobs right out of college, particularly in industry, I'd go with analytical.

[OrganicH2O]

Analytical and inorganic uses completely different parts of your brain, IMO. The hardest thing about inorganic is group theory, which requires either excellent 3-D visualization skills, or a lot of random memorizing. I found it very difficult, personally. The 3-D parts were much more intense than organic chem. There is also some emphasis on other complicated 3-D structures, such as salts and boron compounds. There is also some gen chem type algebra stuff.

Analytical chem is basically the closest class to "gen chem 3". Lots of algebraic problem solving. I personally took analytical for biochem majors so it was kind of dumbed down. If you liked ICE tables, you will love analytical. Analytical in general is also MUCH more practical. Inorganic is mostly useful if you get a PhD in many chemistry fields. And like others have stated, it could be useful for understanding some stuff in biochemistry. But only if you actually have the brain for it.