GRADUATE RECORD EXAMINATIONS Chemistry Test Practice Book · 2011-02-25 · Chemistry Test Practice Book Listening. Learning. Leading. This practice book contains one actual full-length

G R A D U A T E R E C O R D E X A M I N A T I O N S ®

Chemistry TestPractice Book

Listening.

Learning.

Leading.

This practice book contains� one actual full-length GRE Chemistry Test

� test-taking strategies

Become familiar with� test structure and content

� test instructions and answering procedures

Compare your practice test results with the performance of those who

took the test at a GRE administration.

Visit GRE Online at www.ets.org/gre

This book is provided FREE with test registration by the Graduate Record Examinations Board.

007625 • 54082 • ETS/ GRE Practicing to Take the CHEMISTRY Test • RI51620 • OC 5/9/0 • revs 5/17/01 rkc • revs 6/25/01 rKc* • revs 7/23/01 las• revs 5/15/02 jjh • Preflight Disc 6/25/02 rKc*

CHEMISTRY TESTPRACTICE BOOK

Copyright © 2002 by Educational Testing Service. All rights reserved.EDUCATIONAL TESTING SERVICE, ETS, the ETS logos, GRADUATE RECORD EXAMINATIONS,

and GRE are registered trademarks of Educational Testing Service.

Note to Test Takers: Keep this practice book until you receive your score report.The book contains important information about content specifications and scoring.

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007625 • 54082 • ETS/ GRE Practicing to Take the CHEMISTRY Test • RI51620 • OC 5/9/0 • revs 5/17/01 rkc • revs 6/25/01 rKc* • revs 7/23/01 las• revs 8/1/01 las • revs 5/15/02 jjh • revs 6/11/02 plt • Preflight Disc 6/25/02 rKc*


Purpose of theGRE Subject TestsThe GRE Subject Tests are designed to help graduateschool admission committees and fellowship sponsorsassess the qualifications of applicants in specific fieldsof study. The tests also provide you with an assessmentof your own qualifications.

Scores on the tests are intended to indicate knowl-edge of the subject matter emphasized in many under-graduate programs as preparation for graduate study.Because past achievement is usually a good indicator offuture performance, the scores are helpful in predictingsuccess in graduate study. Because the tests are standard-ized, the test scores permit comparison of students fromdifferent institutions with different undergraduateprograms. For some Subject Tests, subscores are providedin addition to the total score; these subscores indicatethe strengths and weaknesses of your preparation, andthey may help you plan future studies.

The GRE Board recommends that scores on theSubject Tests be considered in conjunction with otherrelevant information about applicants. Because numer-ous factors influence success in graduate school, relianceon a single measure to predict success is not advisable.Other indicators of competence typically include under-graduate transcripts showing courses taken and grades

earned, letters of recommendation, and GRE GeneralTest scores. For information about the appropriate useof GRE scores, write to GRE Program, EducationalTesting Service, Mail Stop 57-L, Princeton, NJ 08541,or visit our Web site at www.gre.org/codelst.html.

Development of theSubject TestsEach new edition of a Subject Test is developed by acommittee of examiners composed of professors in thesubject who are on undergraduate and graduate facultiesin different types of institutions and in different regionsof the United States and Canada. In selecting membersfor each committee, the GRE Program seeks the adviceof the appropriate professional associations in the subject.

The content and scope of each test are specified andreviewed periodically by the committee of examiners.Test questions are written by the committee and byother faculty who are also subject-matter specialistsand by subject-matter specialists at ETS. All questionsproposed for the test are reviewed by the committeeand revised as necessary. The accepted questions areassembled into a test in accordance with the contentspecifications developed by the committee to ensureadequate coverage of the various aspects of the fieldand, at the same time, to prevent overemphasis onany single topic. The entire test is then reviewed andapproved by the committee.

Subject-matter and measurement specialists on theETS staff assist the committee, providing informationand advice about methods of test construction andhelping to prepare the questions and assemble the test.In addition, each test question is reviewed to eliminatelanguage, symbols, or content considered potentiallyoffensive, inappropriate for major subgroups of thetest-taking population, or likely to perpetuate anynegative attitude that may be conveyed to these sub-groups. The test as a whole is also reviewed to ensurethat the test questions, where applicable, include anappropriate balance of people in different groups anddifferent roles.

Table of ContentsPurpose of the GRE Subject Tests ........................ 3

Development of the Subject Tests ....................... 3

Content of the Chemistry Test ............................ 4

Preparing for a Subject Test ................................. 6

Test-Taking Strategies .......................................... 6

What Your Scores Mean ...................................... 7

Practice GRE Chemistry Test .............................. 9

Scoring Your Subject Test .................................. 51

Evaluating Your Performance ............................. 54

Answer Sheet ..................................................... 55

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Because of the diversity of undergraduate curricula,it is not possible for a single test to cover all thematerial you may have studied. The examiners, there-fore, select questions that test the basic knowledge andskills most important for successful graduate study inthe particular field. The committee keeps the testup-to-date by regularly developing new editions andrevising existing editions. In this way, the test contentchanges steadily but gradually, much like most cur-ricula. In addition, curriculum surveys are conductedperiodically to ensure that the content of a testreflects what is currently being taught in the under-graduate curriculum.

After a new edition of a Subject Test is first admin-istered, examinees’ responses to each test question areanalyzed in a variety of ways to determine whethereach question functioned as expected. These analysesmay reveal that a question is ambiguous, requiresknowledge beyond the scope of the test, or is inappro-priate for the total group or a particular subgroup ofexaminees taking the test. Answers to such questionsare not used in computing scores.

Following this analysis, the new test edition isequated to an existing test edition. In the equatingprocess, statistical methods are used to assess thedifficulty of the new test. Then scores are adjusted sothat examinees who took a difficult edition of the testare not penalized, and examinees who took an easieredition of the test do not have an advantage. Varia-tions in the number of questions in the differenteditions of the test are also taken into account inthis process.

Scores on the Subject Tests are reported as three-digit scaled scores with the third digit always zero.The maximum possible range for all Subject Test totalscores is from 200 to 990. The actual range of scores fora particular Subject Test, however, may be smaller. Themaximum possible range of Subject Test subscores is20 to 99; however, the actual range of subscores forany test or test edition may be smaller than 20 to 99.Subject Test score interpretive information is providedin Interpreting Your GRE Scores, which you will receivewith your GRE score report, and on the GRE Web siteat www.gre.org/codelst.html.

Content of the Chemistry TestThe test consists of about 136 multiple-choice ques-tions. A periodic table is printed in the test booklet aswell as a table of information (see page 10) presentingvarious physical constants and a few conversion factorsamong SI units. Whenever necessary, additional valuesof physical constants are printed with the text of thequestion. Test questions are constructed to simplifymathematical manipulations. As a result, neithercalculators nor tables of logarithms are needed. If thesolution to a problem requires the use of logarithms,the necessary values are included with the question.

The content of the test emphasizes the four fieldsinto which chemistry has been traditionally dividedand some interrelationships among the fields. Becauseof these interrelationships, individual questions maytest more than one field of chemistry. Some examineesmay associate a particular question with one field,whereas other examinees may have encountered thesame material in a different field. For example, theknowledge necessary to answer some questions classi-fied as testing organic chemistry may well have beenacquired in analytical chemistry courses by someexaminees. Consequently, the emphases of the fourfields indicated in the following outline of materialcovered by the test should not be considered definitive.

I. ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY — 15%

A. Data Acquisition and Use of Statistics —Errors, statistical considerations

B. Solutions and Standardization —Concentration terms, primary standards

C. Homogeneous Equilibria — Acid-base,oxidation-reduction, complexometry

D. Heterogeneous Equilibria — Gravimetricanalysis, solubility, precipitation titrations,chemical separations

E. Instrumental Methods — Electrochemicalmethods, spectroscopic methods,chromatographic methods, thermalmethods, calibration of instruments

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F. Environmental ApplicationsG. Radiochemical Methods — Detectors,

applications

II. INORGANIC CHEMISTRY — 25%

A. General Chemistry — Periodic trends,oxidation states, nuclear chemistry

B. Ionic Substances — Lattice geometries,lattice energies, ionic radii and radius/ratio effects

C. Covalent Molecular Substances — Lewisdiagrams, molecular point groups,VSEPR concept, valence bond descriptionand hybridization, molecular orbitaldescription, bond energies, covalent andvan der Waals radii of the elements,intermolecular forces

D. Metals and Semiconductors — Structure,band theory, physical and chemicalconsequences of band theory

E. Concepts of Acids and Bases — Brønsted-Lowry approaches, Lewis theory, solventsystem approaches

F. Chemistry of the Main Group Elements —Electronic structures, occurrences andrecovery, physical and chemical propertiesof the elements and their compounds

G. Chemistry of the Transition Elements —Electronic structures, occurrences andrecovery, physical and chemical propertiesof the elements and their compounds, coor-dination chemistry

H. Special Topics — Organometallic chemistry,catalysis, bioinorganic chemistry, appliedsolid-state chemistry, environmentalchemistry

III. ORGANIC CHEMISTRY — 30%

A. Structure, Bonding, and Nomenclature —Lewis structures, orbital hybridization,configuration and stereochemical notation,conformational analysis, systematic IUPACnomenclature, spectroscopy (IR and 1H and13 C NMR)

B. Functional Groups — Preparation, reactions,and interconversions of alkanes, alkenes,alkynes, dienes, alkyl halides, alcohols,ethers, epoxides, sulfides, thiols, aromaticcompounds, aldehydes, ketones, carboxylicacids and their derivatives, amines

C. Reaction Mechanisms — Nucleophilicdisplacements and addition, nucleophilicaromatic substitution, electrophilicadditions, electrophilic aromaticsubstitutions, eliminations, Diels-Alderand other cycloadditions

D. Reactive Intermediates — Chemistry andnature of carbocations, carbanions,free radicals, carbenes, benzynes, enols

E. Organometallics — Preparation and reactionsof Grignard and organolithium reagents,lithium organocuprates, and other modernmain group and transition metal reagentsand catalysts

F. Special Topics — Resonance, molecularorbital theory, catalysis, acid-base theory,carbon acidity, aromaticity, antiaromaticity,macromolecules, lipids, amino acids, pep-tides, carbohydrates, nucleic acids, terpenes,asymmetric synthesis, orbital symmetry,polymers

IV. PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY — 30%

A. Thermodynamics — First, second, andthird laws, thermochemistry, ideal andreal gases and solutions, Gibbs and Helmholtzenergy, chemical potential, chemicalequilibria, phase equilibria, colligativeproperties, statistical thermodynamics

B. Quantum Chemistry and Applicationsto Spectroscopy — Classical experiments,principles of quantum mechanics,atomic and molecular structure, molec-ular spectroscopy

C. Dynamics — Experimental and theoreticalchemical kinetics, solution and liquiddynamics, photochemistry

6



Preparing for a Subject TestGRE Subject Test questions are designed to measureskills and knowledge gained over a long period of time.Although you might increase your scores to someextent through preparation a few weeks or monthsbefore you take the test, last-minute cramming isunlikely to be of further help. The following informa-tion may be helpful.

� A general review of your college courses isprobably the best preparation for the test. How-ever, the test covers a broad range of subjectmatter, and no one is expected to be familiarwith the content of every question.

� Use this practice book to become familiar withthe types of questions in the GRE Chemistry Test,paying special attention to the directions. If youthoroughly understand the directions before youtake the test, you will have more time during thetest to focus on the questions themselves.

Test-Taking StrategiesThe questions in the practice test in this book illus-trate the types of multiple-choice questions in the test.When you take the test, you will mark your answerson a separate machine-scorable answer sheet. Totaltesting time is two hours and fifty minutes; there areno separately timed sections. Following are somegeneral test-taking strategies you may want to consider.

� Read the test directions carefully, and work asrapidly as you can without being careless. Foreach question, choose the best answer from theavailable options.

� All questions are of equal value; do not wastetime pondering individual questions you findextremely difficult or unfamiliar.

� You may want to work through the test quiterapidly, first answering only the questions aboutwhich you feel confident, then going back andanswering questions that require more thought,and concluding with the most difficult questionsif there is time.

� If you decide to change an answer, make sure youcompletely erase it and fill in the oval corre-sponding to your desired answer.

� Questions for which you mark no answer or morethan one answer are not counted in scoring.

� As a correction for haphazard guessing, one-fourth of the number of questions you answerincorrectly is subtracted from the number ofquestions you answer correctly. It is improbablethat mere guessing will improve your scoresignificantly; it may even lower your score.If, however, you are not certain of the correctanswer but have some knowledge of the questionand are able to eliminate one or more of theanswer choices, your chance of getting the rightanswer is improved, and it may be to your advan-tage to answer the question.

� Record all answers on your answer sheet.Answers recorded in your test book will notbe counted.

� Do not wait until the last five minutes of atesting session to record answers on youranswer sheet.

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Range of Raw Scores* Needed to EarnSelected Scaled Scores on Three

Chemistry Test Editions ThatDiffer in Difficulty

Raw Scores

Scaled Score Form A Form B Form C

900 115-117 113-115 112-114800 93-94 89-90 88-89700 70-71 64-66 63-65600 47-48 40-41 39-40

Number of Questions Used to Compute Raw Score135 135 133

What Your Scores MeanYour raw score — that is, the number of questions youanswered correctly minus one-fourth of the numberyou answered incorrectly — is converted to the scaledscore that is reported. This conversion ensures that ascaled score reported for any edition of a Subject Testis comparable to the same scaled score earned on anyother edition of the same test. Thus, equal scaledscores on a particular Subject Test indicate essentiallyequal levels of performance regardless of the testedition taken. Test scores should be compared onlywith other scores on the same Subject Test. (Forexample, a 680 on the Computer Science Test is notequivalent to a 680 on the Mathematics Test.)

Before taking the test, you may find it useful toknow approximately what raw scores would be requiredto obtain a certain scaled score. Several factors influ-ence the conversion of your raw score to your scaledscore, such as the difficulty of the test edition and thenumber of test questions included in the computationof your raw score. Based on recent editions of theChemistry Test, the following table gives the range ofraw scores associated with selected scaled scores forthree different test editions. (Note that when thenumber of scored questions for a given test is greaterthan the range of possible scaled scores, it is likely thattwo or more raw scores will convert to the same scaledscore.) The three test editions in the table that followswere selected to reflect varying degrees of difficulty.Examinees should note that future test editions may besomewhat more or less difficult than the test editionsillustrated in the table.

For a particular test edition, there are many ways toearn the same raw score. For example, on the editionlisted above as “Form A,” a raw score of 70 through 71would earn a scaled score of 700. Below are a few of thepossible ways in which a scaled score of 700 could beearned on that edition.

Examples of Ways to Earn a Scaled Scoreof 700 on the Edition Labeled as “Form A”

Number ofQuestions Questions Questions Questions UsedAnswered Answered Not to Compute

Raw Score Correctly Incorrectly Answered Raw Score70 70 0 65 13570 76 25 34 135

70 83 51 1 13571 71 0 64 13571 77 24 34 13571 83 49 3 135

*Raw Score = Number of correct answers minus one-fourth thenumber of incorrect answers, rounded to the nearest integer.

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Practice TestTo become familiar with how the administration will be conducted at the test cen-ter, first remove the answer sheet (pages 55 and 56). Then go to the back cover ofthe test book (page 50) and follow the instructions for completing the identificationareas of the answer sheet. When you are ready to begin the test, note the time andbegin marking your answers on the answer sheet.

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007625 • 54082 • ETS/ GRE Practicing to Take the CHEMISTRY Test • RI51620 • OC 5/9/01 • revs 5/17/01 rkc • revs 6/25/01 rKc* • revs 5/15/02 jjh• revs 6/13/02 plt • Preflight Disc 6/25/02 rKc*

FORM GR0027

9

10


Material in the tables on pages 10 and 11 may be useful in answering the questions in this examination.

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12


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007625 • 54082 • ETS/ GRE Practicing to Take the CHEMISTRY Test • RI51620 • OC 5/9/01 • revs 5/17/01 rkc • revs 6/26/01 rKc* • revs 5/16/02 jjh• revs 6/13/02 plt • revs 6/25/02 rKc*

51CHEMISTRY TESTPRACTICE BOOK

007625 • 54082 • ETS/ GRE Practicing to Take the CHEMISTRY Test • RI51620 • OC 5/9/01 • revs 5/17/01 rkc • revs 7/23/01 las • revs 8/1/01 las• revs 5/15/02 jjh • revs 6/13/02 plt • Preflight Disc 6/25/02 rKc*

Scoring Your Subject TestChemistry Test scores typically range from 490 to 910.The range for different editions of a given test mayvary because different editions are not of preciselythe same difficulty. The differences in ranges amongdifferent editions of a given test, however, usually aresmall. This should be taken into account, especiallywhen comparing two very high scores. The scoreconversion table on page 53 shows the score rangefor this edition of the test only.

The worksheet on page 52 lists the correctanswers to the questions. Columns are provided foryou to mark whether you chose the correct (C) answeror an incorrect (I) answer to each question. Draw aline across any question you omitted, because it is not

counted in the scoring. At the bottom of the page,enter the total number correct and the total numberincorrect. Divide the total incorrect by 4 and subtractthe resulting number from the total correct. This isthe adjustment made for guessing. Then round theresult to the nearest whole number. This will give youyour raw total score. Use the total score conversiontable to find the scaled total score that correspondsto your raw total score.

Example: Suppose you chose the correct answersto 80 questions and incorrect answers to 46. Dividing46 by 4 yields 11.5. Subtracting 11.5 from 80 equals68.5, which is rounded to 69. The raw score of 69corresponds to a scaled score of 690.

52 CHEMISTRY TESTPRACTICE BOOK

007625 • 54082 • ETS/ GRE Practicing to Take the CHEMISTRY Test • RI51620 • OC 5/9/01 • revs 5/17/01 rkc • revs 7/23/01 las • revs 8/1/01 las

Worksheet for the Chemistry Test, Form GR0027 OnlyAnswer Key and Percentages* of Examinees Answering Each Question Correctly

QUESTION TOTALNumber Answer P + C I


1 ** **2 B 803 E 554 D 955 A 86

6 C 587 B 538 B 579 C 84

10 D 85

11 E 4712 C 5613 E 7514 B 8115 E 63

16 B 6317 B 8218 B 6319 C 5220 A 72

21 C 5322 E 6323 B 6824 B 5625 B 66

26 D 6327 A 5228 E 4929 E 7530 B 57

31 A 6732 A 9033 D 6834 E 6335 E 73

36 D 7337 D 8138 B 5739 E 7740 C 30

41 A 8142 A 3043 E 5744 C 6745 C 41

46 C 6647 D 8048 D 3849 A 7050 E 12

Correct (C)

Incorrect (I)

Total Score:

C – I/4 = ____________

Scaled Score (SS) = ____________

* The P+ column indicates the percent of CHEMISTRY Test examinees who answered each question correctly; it is based ona sample of November 2000 examinees selected to represent all CHEMISTRY Test examinees tested between October 1,1998 and September 30, 2001.

** Item 1 was not scored when this form of the test was originally administered.

51 A 5352 B 5253 D 8354 D 5655 A 70

56 D 7557 D 7758 C 4759 A 7460 D 18

61 E 6862 C 3463 E 1564 D 6465 E 53

66 C 4167 B 4768 C 7069 D 2270 A 50

71 C 4472 E 3373 B 4274 C 4775 B 58

76 E 8277 D 6278 C 5379 B 1580 A 24

81 B 6182 B 4583 D 3984 A 3385 D 27

86 D 5187 B 5488 E 7789 C 7990 B 63

91 C 6992 D 6393 A 6894 A 7095 E 55

96 E 6297 D 6898 A 3399 D 60

100 B 79


101 B 56102 A 59103 E 48104 C 60105 E 33

106 E 76107 C 48108 B 55109 E 47110 E 33

111 E 36112 D 94113 B 50114 B 30115 A 19

116 E 48117 A 77118 C 41119 E 69120 C 56

121 D 57122 A 58123 D 39124 E 31125 D 26

126 E 78127 E 35128 D 40129 D 46130 D 57

131 C 30132 D 53133 A 60134 B 42135 C 35

136 B 85

53CHEMISTRY TESTPRACTICE BOOK

007625 • 54082 • ETS/ GRE Practicing to Take the CHEMISTRY Test • RI51620 • OC 5/9/01 • revs 5/17/01 rkc • revs 7/23/01 las • revs 8/1/01 las• revs 5/15/02 jjh • revs 6/13/02 plt • Preflight Disc 6/25/02 rKc*

TOTAL SCORE

Raw Score Scaled Score % Raw Score Scaled Score %

133-135 980 99131-132 970 99129-130 960 99126-128 950 99124-125 940 98122-123 930 97120-121 920 96118-119 910 95115-117 900 94

113-114 890 92111-112 880 90109-110 870 88106-108 860 87104-105 850 85102-103 840 83100-101 830 81

97-99 820 7995-96 810 7793-94 800 76

91-92 790 7488-90 780 7286-87 770 7084-85 760 6882-83 750 6679-81 740 6477-78 730 6175-76 720 5972-74 710 5770-71 700 55

68-69 690 5265-67 680 5063-64 670 4861-62 660 4559-60 650 4356-58 640 4054-55 630 3752-53 620 3449-51 610 3147-48 600 29

45-46 590 2642-44 580 2440-41 570 2138-39 560 1935-37 550 1633-34 540 1431-32 530 1128-30 520 1026-27 510 824-25 500 6

21-23 490 519-20 480 317-18 470 214-16 460 212-13 450 110-11 440 1

7-9 430 15-6 420 13-4 410 10-2 400 1

Score Conversions and Percents Below*for GRE Chemistry Test, Form GR0027 Only

*Percentage scoring below the scaled score is based on the performance of9,359 examinees who took the CHEMISTRY Test between October 1, 1998and September 30, 2001.

54 CHEMISTRY TESTPRACTICE BOOK

007625 • 54082 • ETS/ GRE Practicing to Take the CHEMISTRY Test • RI51620 • OC 5/9/01 • revs 5/17/01 rkc • revs 7/23/01 las • revs 8/1/01 las

Evaluating YourPerformanceNow that you have scored your test, you may wish tocompare your performance with the performance ofothers who took this test. Both the worksheet on page52 and the table on page 53 use performance datafrom GRE Chemistry Test examinees.

The data in the worksheet on page 52 are based onthe performance of a sample of the examinees who tookthis test in November 2000. This sample was selectedto represent the total population of GRE ChemistryTest examinees tested between October 1998 andSeptember 2001. The numbers in the column labeled“P+” on the worksheet indicate the percentages ofexaminees in this sample who answered each questioncorrectly. You may use these numbers as a guide forevaluating your performance on each test question.

The table on page 53 contains, for each scaledscore, the percentage of examinees tested betweenOctober 1998 and September 2001 who received lowerscores. Interpretive data based on the scores earned byexaminees tested in this three-year period will be usedby admissions officers in the 2002 – 03 testing year.

These percentages appear in the score conversiontable in a column to the right of the scaled scores.For example, in the percentage column opposite thescaled score of 690 is the number 52. This means that52 percent of the GRE Chemistry Test examineestested between October 1998 and September 2001scored lower than 690. To compare yourself with thispopulation, look at the percentage next to the scaledscore you earned on the practice test.

It is important to realize that the conditions underwhich you tested yourself were not exactly the same asthose you will encounter at a test center. It is impossibleto predict how different test-taking conditions willaffect test performance, and this is only one factor thatmay account for differences between your practice testscores and your actual test scores. By comparing yourperformance on this practice test with the performanceof other GRE Chemistry Test examinees, however, youwill be able to determine your strengths and weaknessesand can then plan a program of study to prepareyourself for taking the GRE Chemistry Test understandard conditions.

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GRADUATE RECORD EXAMINATIONS Chemistry Test Practice Book · 2011-02-25 · Chemistry Test Practice Book Listening. Learning. Leading. This practice book contains one actual full-length