To Sleep...or Not to Sleep? That is the Question!

Hunter Hammond


According to sources at Associated Content, an ever growing number of people throughout America LOVE sleep! Specifically, the article focuses on college students and their love of sleep; however, the article also addresses students incapability to sleep. Late night parties, all night study sessions, and late night meals are all factors which compromise students ability to get a good night sleep.

Furthermore, studies have shown that these college students perform worse and pay attention less than students who get a full night of sleep. USA Today reported on several case studies ranging from St. Lawrence University in New York to Stanford in California that found that "all-nighters" and atypical sleeping patterns keep students awake at night. This can have a negative impact on many students' daily lives.

Science Daily reported that a large percentage of undergraduate and graduate students are adversely affected by unfavorable sleeping patterns; however, the reasons behind harmful sleep patterns are often self imposed. Students can control if, and when, they sleep! This assumed truth introduces the question: To sleep...or not to sleep?



It is true that a lack of sleep has an adverse effect on the body and the mind of most people, specifically college students; however, do the benefits of not sleeping outweigh the consequences? For example, if something highly memorable happened on a particular night, then many students would choose the memory over the negative consequences. By not sleeping the student might not perform well the next day; however, he (or she) will have an interesting story to tell.

Furthermore, it can be argued that not sleeping is all part of the experience. All nighters, parties, time for friends, late night dinners, and so on are all components of a college experience. Even though studies may find that students LOVE sleep and that sleep is good for your health, many students will choose to opt out of those benefits in an attempt to have a fun and enriched experience while at college.