It’s 11:58 p.m., and you have a 15-pager due at nine. You’ve spent the past week illegally facebooking freshmen instead of skimming the 200-page course packet on which the paper is based. Blackboard’s ‘Safe Assignment’ means drawing inspiration from the Web is out, so you whip out your highlighter, crack open “The History of Feminist Thought” and thank your deity of choice for the stash of blue wonder pills that saves you in times like these.
Pharmaceuticals like Adderall and Ritalin – “study drugs” on college campuses – have become as popular in recent years as the Wildcat offense has in the past few weeks. According to Dr. Eric Heiligstein, director of clinical psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin, “Students are able to accumulate more information in a shorter time frame. (These drugs) minimize fatigue and help maintain a high performance level.” Maybe these mind enhancers should be doled out at the Rock. How ’bout a midterm magic pill for five dollars? I’ll take seven.
Unfortunately, the cost of using study drugs isn’t merely monetary. Side effects range from abnormal behavior and insomnia to anxiety attacks and impotence. So why, according to a recent NYU study, do up to 36 percent of college students use drugs as study aids? Simple. Because they work.
Dopamine, a neurotransmitter that doesn’t function properly in people with learning disability, controls attention span and helps maintain concentration. Use a drug that increases its levels – especially if you don’t actually have ADD or ADHD – and you can really get your learn on. Study drugs are effective whether they’re used via legitimate diagnosis or abused because it’s midterms and you’ve been playing online poker all quarter.
But is it fair for you to use them if you don’t really need them? Students argue that the academic demands imposed upon them by the quarter system necessitate brain-boosting stimulants. A recent issue of The Daily reported that cheating is on the rise so much so that the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences cited 90 violations last year, and you don’t want to get busted. Popping a pill doesn’t seem as devious as stealing a test file until you consider what both acts give you: an unfair advantage over your peers.
Adderall and Ritalin are designed for students who can’t complete their work at the same pace as fellow students. If you can’t complete your work because you bid on eBay t-shirts for 30 hours, these pills aren’t for you. Study drugs were intended to level the playing field, not to allow students capable of succeeding without them to pull ahead of those who need them.
Dr. Richard Sogn of WebMD states, “The question isn’t whether a dose of Adderall will help someone without ADHD to have more energy, mental alertness, and stamina to study for exams, but whether the risk is worth the benefits.” When you compromise your intellectual integrity, there is no benefit. So ditch the pills, gulp an espresso and get to work.
