There is no doubt that with college life comes more academic demands, which involve more time committed to studies. 80% of the students I surveyed stated that their limited sleep time is due to the heavy workload and time they commit to studying and completing academic assignments. Furthermore, it is evident that many people do not know how to balance sleep, school, and a social life; therefore, people tend to sacrifice one of the three, which in many cases is sleep. However, it is not certain that these students are aware of the toll sleep deprivation takes on their body or how severe the effects of sleep deprivation actually are.
Due to high demands from college as well as the struggle to fairly balance all factors that make up our daily life, it is no wonder why college students are so sleep deprived. Students encounter difficulty in juggling their academics with life outside the classroom. Thus, it is easy for sleep to drop to the bottom of a student’s to-do list. Roughly 68% of the students I surveyed admitted that they do not prioritize sleep over school and social life. Consequently, 72% of the students stated that being more time efficient and managing their time better would allow them to get more sleep. However, it is easier said than done. College students all over the nation embrace their inner night-owl during weekdays when they are up all night doing homework or studying. Based on observations by Shelley Hershner and Ronald Chervin from the Department of Neurology at the University of Michigan, “many college students are sleep deprived because they go to sleep late and wake up for classes or employment before adequate sleep is obtained” (74). Based on the Chegg College Student Sleep Survey mentioned in an article by Terri Williams, it is very common for students to agree to the fact that sleep is important for their health; however, they do not prioritize sleep over other tasks, such as homework because after all, who has time for sleep nowadays anyway?