Advanced Organic Chemistry
MIT OpenCourseWare's graduate-level course applies structure and theory to organic reaction mechanisms. Topics include stereochemical features such as conformation and stereoelectronic effects, reaction dynamics and isotope effects, molecular orbital theory as applied to pericyclic and photochemical reactions, and reactive intermediates including carbenes, carbanions, and free radicals. The course follows MIT's OCW format of lecture notes, problem sets, and readings drawn from the department's graduate organic chemistry sequence, offered free with no certificate. It suits students who already have a solid undergraduate grounding in organic chemistry and want to move into mechanistic detail and orbital-symmetry arguments used to explain why certain reactions proceed and others do not. No instructor video lectures are guaranteed, but the full set of course materials is posted for self study.