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CHEM 265Organic Chemistry 2

Units
0.50
Faculty
Science
Subject
Chemistry

When it runs

  1. F24
  2. W25
  3. S25
  4. F25
  5. W26
  6. S26
  7. F26
  8. W27
  9. S27

Ran in 4 of the last 7 terms. Winter 2027: scheduled, 2 lecture sections. Spring 2027: schedule not out yet.

Nucleophilic addition and substitution at CO carbon. Aromaticity and simple MO theory of conjugated systems. Electrophilic and nucleophilic aromatic substitution reactions. Applications of spectroscopic techniques in organic chemistry.

Prerequisites

  • Complete all of the following
    • Must have completed the following:
      • CHEM264 - Organic Chemistry 1 (0.50)
    • Enrolled in an Honours program

Antirequisites

  • Not completed nor concurrently enrolled in any of the following:
    • CHEM267 - Basic Organic Chemistry 2 (0.50)

Leads to

Winter 2027 sections

Enrolment from UW Open Data, which can trail Quest by up to two days. Instructors and rooms: Schedule of Classes.
SectionClassEnrolledMeets
LEC 00166590 / 80TTh 11:30–12:50
LEC 701250654 / 9999Online or by arrangement
TUT 10169580 / 80M 10:30–11:20

Reviewed on UW Flow

69% liked it30% easy88% useful

From 49 ratings and 13 comments on UW Flow. The most helpful comments, quoted as written, without names. Read them all on UW Flow.

  • This course is straight up memorization. Memorize these 80+ reactions. Best bet is to get one of those massive flow charts and repeat it 1 million times.

    Dec 2018 · didn’t like it · 1 found this helpfulOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Take this course with Julie if you can. I took it with Fillion in the spring and got a 58%, and when I took it with Julie the following winter, I got a 98%....Julie made the lectures more engaging and fun, so the students actually interacted with the in-class questions more. The main problem I had with Fillion was the complete lack of practice problems given to prepare the students for the midterms or final exam. He did give us a link to the Chem LibreTexts website and said to use that for practice, but the issue I had with it was that there weren't clear solutions to the questions. This meant we couldn't check what we did wrong when doing practice to correct our mistakes unless we emailed…

    Aug 2026 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Organic Chem 2 is not an easy course, and though you might pass by doing the bare minimum, you will not succeed or understand the foundational info you need moving forward if you don't show up to class or put in the amount of time that the class demands.
    That being said, this class can be extremely interesting and feel like it was worth your time if you allow the class to be something more than just a means to an end, though your ability to do that is more than likely going to be dependent on the prof you end up with. Some profs have a rigid marking scheme with three midterm "term tests" and a final, while others have problem sets as well as the midterms and finals, with multiple different…

    May 2026 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • how can orgo get any worse? add a God awful french accent and quickly watch it descend into the worst thing you've been presented. This class feels like crying at the kitchen table while doing "jacob has 809 apples" kinda math questions.

    Dec 2025 · didn’t like itOn UW FlowRemove this

  • Very useful course. Go to class!! Lots of examples written out on the board that aren't in the notes. I would also recommend doing as many practice questions as possible.

    Sep 2025 · liked itOn UW FlowRemove this

Discussed on r/uwaterloo

59 posts and comments in 52 threads mention CHEM 265, February 2011 to December 2024. Quoted word for word, newest first; each reply sits under the post and the comment that started its branch. Search r/uwaterloo for newer posts.

Fall 2024

biochem at waterloo 3 points, 2 comments

“Hi! I’m applying to university this fall for biochemistry/life sciences and I'm having trouble deciding which school to choose. …”

u/vimeomaster54: “… also due to the straight difficulty of some of their required courses (CHEM 140, CHEM 264, CHEM 265, etc.) It's much more of a chem program than a bio program, so if you were looking for a balance between the two, you're not going to find it there. …”

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Spring 2024

400 Orgo with Fillion 1 point, 0 comments

“Hi there I had Dr Fillion for Orgo 3 this term although not the best prof he was a nice guys, he is teaching his Green chemistry for organic synthesis and am debating on whether to take it or not. …”

u/ConsiderationBroad98: “Hey did you take Chem265”

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Can I do Orgo after CHEM 266/267 1 point, 2 comments

“Hi there. I am in honours science, I just finished 266 and 267 which is basic organic chemistry 1 and 2. I got a 69 and 67 for them. …”

u/DwarvesInATrenchcoat: “To my knowledge Chem 360 requires that you have taken the non-basic organic chemistry courses of Chem 264 & 265 to be allowed to take them. That being said, talk to a chemistry advisor as you may be able to override the requirement. …”

u/TheRealDrMurph: “… The same goes for other courses such as Chem464, which has Chem265 as a pre-req. So yes, you can, and while you need to recognize that it's going to be a bit of a challenge, it's one that many have done before. …”

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Winter 2024

waterloo chem 3 points, 1 comment

“Trying to decide between going to TMU or Waterloo for chem. Does anyone here know which one will prepare me for grad school better? Im either gonna go into pharmacy or do something in chem. …”

u/MysteriousAura: “… For example, as a chemistry major orgo 1 and 2 are CHEM 264 and 265, respectively, while there's CHEM 266 and 267 which is for life science majors (chem version is written exams while it's mcq for the other version). Just something to keep in mind. …”

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Spring 2022

CHEM 265 Final 7 points, 1 comment

u/Korayjt: “Having an Orgo Chem final be 60% of your entire grade and cover the entire course is kind of brutal considering the sheer amount of content I can’t lie.”

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EASY SCIENCE MAJORS AT UWATERLOO 5 points, 20 comments

“SOMEONE PLS HELP Hey, so I'm planning on doing Biochem, co-op major at Uwaterloo this fall and I dont know if it's the best for me since everyone is saying that it's a very hard major. …”

u/Korayjt: “Switch into pure Chem it’s way easier, you get to take bird courses like CHEM 212 and CHEM 265. Highly recommend.”

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Winter 2022

CHEM 265 at Waterloo 3 points, 11 comments

u/randomperson443: “Hey guys im planning on to take CHEM 265 (organic chemistry 2) as a visiting student from another school. I was wondering how hard CHEM 265 is and what about it is hard. Also wondering if the profs are fair with their exams.”

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Fall 2021

Check it elsewhere for Fall 2026

Calendar versions

Undergraduate Calendar