Dope Your Grades
THE USE OF SMART DRUGS IN US COLLEGES

The rise of study drugs in US colleges

In the last years, the use of prescription drugs has grown among college students in the US. These drugs are primarily used to treat ADHDAttention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, narcolepsy and sleep apnea. During the years though, students have started to take them in order to be more focus on their studies.

From 2009 until 2017 there has been an increase in non-medical usage of stimulants by full-time college students. This growth is comparable only to that of marijuana.

Change of percentage 4,0 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 3,0 2,0 1,0 0,0 -1,0 -2,0 -3,0 Pain Relievers 2010 - 5,7% 2017 - 2,2% 3,5 Tranquilizers 2010 - 2,0% 2017 - 1,7% 0,3 Sedatives 2010 - 0,2% 2017 - 0,1% 0,1 2010 - 0,5% 2017 - 0,6% Inhalants + 0,1 2010 - 2,3% 2017 - 1,8% 0,5 Halucinogens 2010 - 0,4% 2017 - 0,5% + 0,1 Methamphetamine 2010 - 0,3% 2017 - 0,3% Heroin 0,0 Cocaine 2010 - 1,6% 2017 - 2,0% + 0,4 2010 - 20,3% 2017 - 23,7% + 3,4 Marijuana Stimulants 2010 - 1,3% 2017 - 1,6% + 0,3 Change of percentage 4,0 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 3,0 2,0 1,0 0,0 -1,0 -2,0 -3,0 Pain Relievers 2010 - 3,1% 2017 - 1,4% 1,7 Tranquilizers 2010 - 2,4% 2017 - 1,2% 1,2 Sedatives 2010 - 0,2% 2017 - 0,1% 0,1 2010 - 0,3% 2017 - 0,3% 0,0 Inhalants 2010 - 2,2% 2017 - 1,8% 0,4 Halucinogens 2010 - 0,1% 2017 - 0,1% 0,0 Methamphetamine 2010 - 0,1% 2017 - 0% Heroin 0,1 Cocaine 2010 - 1,3% 2017 - 1,9% + 0,6 2010 - 19,6% 2017 - 21,6% + 2,0 Marijuana Stimulants 2010 - 1,3% 2017 - 3,3% + 2,0

National Survey on Drug Use and Health from 2010 to 2017

National Survey on Drug Use and Health 2012 to 2013

Why do they use them?

There are different reasons for college students to use these kind of drugs. A National Survey made by Ohio State University displays that the main one is to focus more on studies, followed by the curiosity of the effects and motivations for socializing.

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 All institutions % I'd rather not say Other To relieve anxiety To get high Because they felt safer than street drugs To counter the effects of other drugs To enhance social interactions or situations Because I felt dependent on it Because I felt pressured by others To focus on studies To sleep To escape from reality Because of a personal or emotional problem To see what it was like Because they felt less addictive than street drugs Because I don't consider it illegal Because I like the way they make me feel To relieve pain To feel better

“College Prescription Drug Study” from Ohio State University

No prescription needed?

Theoretically prescription is required to buy and use these drugs. However, 59% of users among full time college students take study drugs for non-medical purpose.

NEW ENGLAND MIDDLE ATLANTIC EAST NORTH CENTRAL WEST NORTH CENTRAL SOUTH ATLANTIC EAST SOUTH CENTRAL WEST SOUTH CENTRAL MOUNTAIN PACIFIC USA Full time college student (18-22 years old) Other people between 18-22 years old All the youth popolation between 18-22 years old Each line +10% 66% 61% 63% 72% 50% 48% 53% 53% 68% 59% 94 000 44 000 87 000 61 000 110 000 1 893 000 158 000 182 000 99 000 155 000 13% 16% 10% 9% 7% 9% 6% 9% 7% 9% 72 000 68 000 109 000 90 000 148 000 1 200 000 258 000 189 000 79 000 187 000 24% 22% 17% 18% 12% 13% 10% 14% 11% 15% 166 000 112 000 196 000 151 000 258 000 2 190 000 416 000 371 000 178 000 342 000

National Survey on Drug Use and Health 2015 to 2016

SO HOW DO THEY THEM? GET 100% From a friend 79,2% From a peer 16,8% From a drug dealer 10,3% From a pharmacy 7,1% From a relative 7% I’d rather not say 3,7% Other 2,6%

“College Prescription Drug Study” from Ohio State University

Competitive Drugs in USA

The increasing pressure in the American universities led to a greater diffusion of the study drugs phenomenon. According to students’ perceptionPercentage of students who say study drugs are popular on campus percentage of students who say study drugs are popular on campus., top colleges of the North East and New England have a greater response compared to the B-band colleges with a lower ACTAmerican College Testing- a test for admitance to the US colleges. (1-36).

ID NE AK HI WV DE NM GA MS KS NJ ND OK IA KY OR IL MO AZ WA UT NV NC TX AL SD SC OH WI FL TN PA MT AR IN CA CO MN WY MD VA MI LA NH ME NY CT VT MA RI DC IDAHO MOUNTAINACT 25,83 PCT 10% NEBRASKA WEST NORTH CENTRALACT 26 PCT 14% ALASKA PACIFICACT 26 PCT 14% HAWAII PACIFICACT 25,83 PCT 10% WEST VIRGINIA SOUTH ATLANTICACT 23,33 PCT 14% DELAWARE SOUTH ATLANTICACT 22,33 PCT 18% NEW MEXICO MOUNTAINACT 24 PCT 15% GEORGIA SOUTH ATLANTICACT 24,45 PCT 17% MISSISSIPPI EAST SOUTH CENTRALACT 24,33 PCT 17% KANSAS WEST NORTH CENTRALACT 24.75 PCT 18% NEW JERSEY MIDDLE ATLANTICACT 24,8 PCT 18% NORTH DAKOTA WEST NORTH CENTRALACT 24,83 PCT 17% OKLAHOMA WEST SOUTH CENTRALACT 24,88 PCT 18% IOWA WEST NORTH CENTRALACT 25,88 PCT 17% KENTUCKY EAST SOUTH CENTRALACT 25,95 PCT 18% OREGON PACIFICACT 26 PCT 16% ILLINOIS EAST NORTH CENTRALACT 26,02 PCT 19% MISSOURI WEST NORTH CENTRALACT 26,27 PCT 17% ARIZONA MOUNTAINACT 26,28 PCT 19% WASHINGTON PACIFICACT 27,28 PCT 18% UTAH MOUNTAINACT 27,6 PCT 17% NEVADA MOUNTAINACT 24 PCT 20% NORTH CAROLINA SOUTH ATLANTICACT 24,30 PCT 22% TEXAS WEST SOUTH CENTRALACT 24,74 PCT 21% ALABAMA EAST SOUTH CENTRALACT 24,77 PCT 22% SOUTH DAKOTA WEST NORTH CENTRALACT 25 PCT 21% SOUTH CAROLINA SOUTH ATLANTICACT 25 PCT 24% OHIO EAST NORTH CENTRALACT 25,98 PCT 23% WISCONSIN EAST NORTH CENTRALACT 26 PCT 21% FLORIDA SOUTH ATLANTICACT 26,09 PCT 22% TENNESSEE EAST SOUTH CENTRALACT 26,1PCT 20% PENNSYLVANIA MIDDLE ATLANTICACT 26,19 PCT 24% MONTANA MOUNTAINACT 26,2 PCT 20% ARKANSAS WEST SOUTH CENTRAL ACT 26,27 PCT 21% INDIANA EAST NORTH CENTRALACT 26,5 PCT 20% CALIFORNIA PACIFICACT 26,65 PCT 20% COLORADO MOUNTAINACT 26,68 PCT 22% MINNESOTA WEST NORTH CENTRALACT 26,93 PCT 20% WYOMING MOUNTAINACT 27 PCT 22% MARYLAND SOUTH ATLANTICACT 25,68 PCT 25% VIRGINIA SOUTH ATLANTICACT 25,73 PCT 26% MICHIGAN EAST NORTH CENTRALACT 26,38PCT 27% LOUISIANA WEST SOUTH CENTRALACT 25,05 PCT 30% NEW HAMPSHIRE NEW ENGLANDACT 25,43 PCT 32% MAINE NEW ENGLANDACT 26,78 PCT 32% NEW YORK MIDDLE ATLANTICACT 27,23 PCT 30% CONNECTICUT NEW ENGLANDACT 27,35 PCT 32% VERMONT NEW ENGLANDACT 28,16 PCT 30% MASSACHUSSETTS NEW ENGLANDACT 27,78 PCT 30% RHODE ISLAND NEW ENGLANDACT 27,43 PCT 40% DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA SOUTH ATLANTICACT 28,83 PCT 45% 75 th Percentile ACT Score 29-28,5 22,4-22 US STATE Popularity of the study drugs in the campus 10-14% +35%

Poll on Drugs Safety from Niche.com, IPEDS

AL AK AZ AR CA CO CT DE DC FL GA HI ID IL IN IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MN MS MO MT NE NV NH NJ NM NY NC ND OH OK OR PA RI SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV WI WY 35 33 31 29 27 25 23 21 19 17 ACT 75 th Percentile State Percentage of popularityperception of stimulants among college’s students(from a min. of 0% to a max. of 75%) 0% 75% 1 9 or more 1 9 or more Number of Colleges(on each level of ACT per State) Centenary College of LouisianaACT 28 75% Bowdoin College ACT 33 70 Sewanee - The University of the South ACT 30 66,7% Barnard College ACT 33 66,7% Lesley University ACT 26 64,7% DePauw University ACT 29 64,7% Boston College ACT 33 64,7% Tulane University ACT 32 64,6% Texas Christian University ACT 30 63,5% Washington & Lee University ACT 33 62,5% Bryant University ACT 26 62,1% Pacific Union College ACT 25 61,7% University of Minnesota - DuluthACT 26 60,5% George Washington University ACT 32 60,2% Auburn University ACT 30 60% Denison UniversityACT 32 68,7% Tuskegee University ACT 22 <1% Delaware State UniversityACT 21 <1% Coppin State UniversityACT 18 <1% Bethune-Cookman UniversityACT 18 <1% Fort Valley State UniversityACT 19 <1% Cornerstone UniversityACT 25 <1% Fayetteville State UniversityACT 21 <1% Cedarville UniversityACT 29 <1% Lincoln University of PennsylvaniaACT 19 <1% Penn State AbingtonACT 27 <1% Southern Adventist UniversityACT 26 <1% University of Houston - Clear LakeACT 23 <1% Paul Quinn CollegeACT 25 <1% Virginia Union UniversityACT 18 <1% Regent UniversityACT 25 <1% Harvard UniversityACT 35 31 Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyACT 35 13% Yale UniversityACT 35 28% Princeton UniversityACT 35 17% University of PennsylvaniaACT 35 38% Columbia UniversityACT 35 40% Duke UniversityACT 34 34% Brown UniversityACT 34 29% Washington University in St. LouisACT 34 27% Rice UniversityACT 35 20% University of Notre DameACT 35 19% University of ChicagoACT 35 38% Northwestern UniversityACT 34 33% Pomona College ACT 34 20% Rogers State UniversityACT 18 12% Huston-Tillotson UniversityACT 18 11% Bowie State UniversityACT 17 <1% Central State UniversityACT 18 <1% Bethune-Cookman UniversityACT 17 <1% Wesley CollegeACT 17 10,5% Stillman CollegeACT 17 <1% South Carolina State UniversityACT 17 2% Rust CollegeACT 17 <1% Paine CollegeACT 17 <1% New Jersey City UniversityACT 17 <1% Livingstone CollegeACT 17 10,5% Chowan UniversityACT 17 <1% Saint Augustine's UniversityACT 16 8% Lane CollegeACT 16 <1% Stanford UniversityACT 35 21%

Poll on Drugs Safety from Niche.com, IPEDS

Are drugs really useful?

According to the CPDSStudy conducted in over twenty institutions in the United States of America., most students using smart drugs for non-medical purposes do not see significant side effects related to their health or interpersonal relationships. The controversy arises from the question about their positive effect on academic achievements.

y es n o 1800 0 1800 students in total

“College Prescription Drug Study” from Ohio State University

This might be the question that has been wandering through your mind. The interesting part is that these prescription drugs are actually not helping students to dope their grades. Studies made by a team from the University of Maryland, through a time span from 2004 until 2009, show how the GPAGrade Point Average in US (1-4) of the sample (898 tot) between year 2 and 3 of college career was decreasing for persistersUsed stimulants during both years. and initiatorsDidn't use the stimulants in the 2nd year but they did in the 3rd. while the one of desistorsUsed stimulants in the 2nd year but stopped in the 3rd. and abstainersNon-Users. was increasing.

Another survey made by a team from West Virginia University displayed that the non-users participants were located in a higher GPA range while just a small percentage of users was set in the high bands.

0.7% 1.4% 5.6% 4.9% 36.6% 22.4% 27.6% 9.9% 46.5% 44.4% Nonmedical users Non users 0 50 0,1 - 1,99 2,0 - 2,49 2,5 - 2,99 3,5 - 4,0 3,0 - 3,49

" Sleep quality and characteristics of college students who use prescription psychostimulants nonmedically” from
M. M. Clegg-Kraynok, A. L. McBean, H. E. Montgomery-Downs of West Virginia University, Department of Psychology