Students across the nation are finding new ways to gain an advantage in the classroom, and ensue better grades. Drugs such as Adderall and Vivance are seemingly giving students a leg up while studying and taking exams. These drugs, deemed “study drugs”, are usually only available via prescription to those who are diagnosed with ADHD or other attention disorders. However, students across the nation are finding ways of obtaining these drugs and taking them in order to gain an advantage while studying or doing other school work.  The drugs are giving students long spans of unnatural attention and motivation while studying or doing any other work. These effects in turn usually lead to better grades and getting more done. While this may seem like an easy way to maintain good grades, it is widely regarded as a form of cheating as it gives students an advantage that students not taking Adderall do not have. Beyond the fact that it is a form of cheating, the drug has also been linked to health concerns and legal troubles many college students face today.

Adderall is a drug typically used by those diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder otherwise known as ADHD. It is a mental stimulant and is not meant to be taken without a prescription. Adderall as it is known today only became available in 1996, before Adderall there was nonbranded amphetamines.  Adderall is sold today in doses of 5 – 30 milligrams and runs in increments of 5. There are also different types of Adderall on the market today. For example, it can be bought in either instant release or extended release, both of which will have different effects on the body and how they affect the user. It is due to all these different varieties of the drug that Adderall has been able to expand and meet the range of customers that it does. Adderall is not the only drug of it’s type however. There are many different mental stimulants that can serve the same effect as Adderall. These drugs include vyvanse, Ritalin, and concerta. Adderall however, is the most popular of these drugs. This is likely a result of Adderall being the most commonly prescribed mental stimulant. Additionally, university health officials are relatively lenient in prescribing Adderall. Students can go to the university health center and receive a prescription for Adderall after an ADHD diagnosis with relative ease. Normally this process should involve more intensive evaluations by psychiatrists and mental health professionals. University health officials are eliminating the need for students to go through this normally extensive diagnosis process.  The more Adderall that gets prescribed in turn leads to a greater amount of it available to be sold and given to students whom it is not prescribed for. This excess of Adderall in circulation winds up in students hands whom it is not prescribed for and used to enhance one’s ability to study and retain information. It is here that one might see how this can be considered cheating. It is not just the temptation to enhance one’s ability to study however that is drawing students toward Adderall. There is also a looming financial benefit to obtaining these drugs. Many students without access to Adderall and other mental stimulants are willing to pay anywhere from $5- 10 dollars a pill. And when finals week comes around demand can push this price to up to $20 for a single pill as desperate students look to cram before exams. Students are turning to these drugs in an effort to improve grades and allow for longer, uninterrupted stints of concentration. Additionally, these mental stimulants lead to an inability to sleep and reduce appetite. This allows students to have minimal distractions or reasons to pause their studying. “At many colleges across the country, the ingredients for academic success now include a steady flow of analeptics, the class of prescription amphetamines that is used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder” writes Andrew Jacobs of the New York Times. A recent survey focused on individual college campuses throughout the nation found that 20% of college students have used Adderall to write papers, study, and take exams. That number is also only counting those students who were willing to admit that they had taken Adderall at some point, so the real number is likely much higher. One student who was willing to admit she regularly uses Adderall was Angela from Columbia University. She is quoted in Jacobs article as saying “I don’t think I could keep up a 3.9 GPA without this stuff” (referring to Adderall). This is just another example of the dependence students are building on these drugs…a dependence that could easily become an addiction. 

When discussing the topic of study drugs, the question of cheating must be brought into the conversation. As previously described, these drugs are providing students with the ability to study for longer hours, and with a deeper concentration than normal. The drugs are also able to curb natural bodily functions such as appetite and the onset of sleep. This is thereby allowing students to study late into the night with little to no interruption or problems. According to the dictionary, cheating is defined as “to act dishonestly or unfairly in order to gain an advantage, especially in a game or examination”. Therefore, one would think that Adderall use would almost certainly be classified as cheating, and schools along with officials would be looking for a way to stop its use and distribution among students. Unfortunately, this does not seem to be the case as Adderall is on a dangerous upwards trend with the number of students admitting to using it steadily growing each year. The numbers also point toward many students thinking the use of study drugs is not considered cheating. In a recent survey at an ivy league college, 33% of students claimed that they did not think taking Adderall when not prescribed it was considered cheating. 25% of students did not know whether it was cheating or not and 41% admitted that is was considered cheating. As John Grohl describes, “when a person without ADHD takes an ADHD medication, it gives them super-sharp attention and concentration. It enhances their existing cognitive abilities for many who take it. And in that way, it’s no different than an athlete who’s pumped up on steroids”. This mention of athletes who cheat by using steroids is an important comparison. It brings up a major argument that the use of mental stimulants presents. Why should athletes be punished for using performance enhancing drugs when students are not punished for using mental stimulants like Adderall?

In a sense Adderall can be seen as the steroids of academics. In both cases, the user is taking a substance with the intent of gaining an advantage he / she would not normally have without the drug. The only difference one might find is that in the case of athletics, PED use is closely monitored and tested, and harsh consequences are reigned down on anyone found in violation of the rules. On the flip side, in the world of academics, mental stimulants are almost completely unregulated and the use of study drugs is becoming the norm. There is a clear double standard in these two areas. While more eyes might be on athletes, it is unfair to severely punish athletes for looking to gain an advantage while it is regarded as a norm for students to gain an advantage in the classroom. We are creating an environment where it is normal for students to take drugs to enhance their ability to study. However, just like in athletics there ways that the study drug trend can be regulated and more closely monitored, thereby punishing those who do take Adderall and other study drugs. One method for monitoring the use of these drugs would be by requiring a drug test for students, just like athletes undergo. This test could be administered after big exams or right after final week. The reason for this is because Adderall stays in the body for about 4 days after it is taken. Therefore a drug test would only be effective if administered after exam week or after a big paper was due. Although it might be difficult to organize and require such a wide scale drug testing of students, it is simply a first step in the right direction. Those found to have failed the drug tests and are not prescribed for the drug should then be handled just as one would if found to be cheating during an exam. Another method of curbing the use of Adderall and other study drugs would be to impose harsh consequences of students seen in possession of Adderall without a prescription. Although this may not have wide scale results, it would still dissuade many students from obtaining such drugs and make many think twice before using study drugs. A third way to regulate the use of mental stimulants on campus is to make the process of being prescribed such drugs lengthy and thereby requiring a thorough review of the patient before prescribing him / her Adderall. The student should be required to see psychiatrists and mental health experts before being allowed to obtain Adderall. This would ensure no misdiagnosis’ of ADHD to students simply looking for an easy Adderall prescription. It would also ensure that the Adderall was being provided to students to whom it is actually needed. These students are not as likely to sell their prescription Adderall due to the fact that they need it to function. Students who do not actually need Adderall are much more likely to be selling it and making money off their misdiagnosis. These are just some of the ways that cheating via mental stimulants can be prevented on college campuses. 

Besides the fact that taking Adderall while not prescribed it is cheating, there are also other reasons students should think twice before taking it. Adderall can have long term, mental, physical, and legal consequences if taken without a prescription. As college students brains are still growing, taking a mental stimulant to enhance its ability to study overnight is actually hurting them in the long term. Neural pathways in the brain are still developing up until humans early 20’s. Therefore by “short circuiting” these pathways with a drug students are actually stunting their brain’s last leg of growth. This is an essential part of human mental development that students are destroying by flooding the brain with heavy mental stimulants at such a young age. The drugs are also amphetamine-based meaning that they can be “habit forming”. As Michelle Trudeau writes about the downsides of Adderall: "These are serious drugs with serious side effects," such as severe sleep deprivation and rare heart problems, she says. But most importantly, she says, the drugs can be addictive”. This all according to Martha J. Farah, director at the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Pennsylvania. As one can see it is not just moral reasons that Adderall should not be taken, but there is science which states the real life long term effects that these drugs can have on students. The long term use of these drugs leads to addiction which can make it difficult for people to then function properly down the road without the drug. They become dependent on the drug and find themselves unable to focus or maintain concentration without the study drug, in a sense giving themselves ADHD. This resulting dependency can certainly lead to the use of other, more stronger drugs down the road, when Adderall is no longer enough. In Trudeau’s article she includes the first hand account of a college student who began to notice her own dependency on Adderall. It states, "I started to notice my own addictive behaviors," she says, adding that she began using the drug more and more. "The more you use it, the more you want to use more of it”. This is a scary trend that todays college students are at risk of falling into if the use of study drugs continues to rise. Adderall also carries with it serious legal consequences. To be caught selling or purchasing Adderall without a prescription is a felony. This would make it seem the risk is far greater than the reward. The reward being increased focus and concentration for a few hours and the risk being a felony. Adderall is clearly more than just cheating, as it can have long lasting effects on the body and legally as well. 

The argument that Adderall is considered cheating is not one sided however, and there are many that argue against that point. Adderall although it is a prescribed drug, often is not thought of as a drug. While marijuana, Xanax, molly, and other popular college drugs have a drug stigma attached to them Adderall seems to be the one that is different. Students do not use Adderall like they use other recreational drugs and certainly not for the same purpose. While most of the drugs used by college students are for the purpose of “getting high” or having a good time, Adderall is used  mainly in the classroom and in the library. Both of these being places one normally would not ever think of doing drugs. This is where one can see the social divide of Adderall between other popular drugs in college. Adderall is used during exam week and while writing papers whereas most other drugs are used at parties and in social settings with friends. While most drugs make people forget things and feel high, Adderall is the exact opposite. It results in extreme concentration and motivation, thereby allowing the student to complete assignments, retain information, and study much more efficiently had they not been on Adderall. This is a major reason people do not associate Adderall with other drugs. There are many other reasons people do not consider Adderall cheating as well. Many would argue that as long as they are not hurting anyone else, no harm no foul. While others may argue that studying is studying, if there is a pill available that can help one study better, then why not make use of it. All these arguments are different opinions students hold, and until there is official school regulation declaring Adderall a form of academic cheating, then that’s all these arguments will be, opinions. 

Adderall currently has a stronghold on college campuses across America. This epidemic has no signs of slowing as health officials continue to give out easy prescriptions and colleges do not acknowledge the drug as officially cheating. There are legal consequences of the drug that keep it somewhat controlled however. Regardless, the drug continues to rapidly spread and infiltrate students looking to gain an advantage in the classroom. Whether students believe it is considered cheating or not, one thing for certain is that it is helping students gain an unfair advantage and to get better grades that they probably would not have gotten had they not taken Adderall. Besides the cheating aspect, there are also long term health concerns associated with the drug that should deter people from making use of it. The drug has been linked to long term brain development issues and has been the start of many user’s addiction problems. Any drug that can cause one to become an addict is a drug that should be stayed away from for greater reasons than that it is considered cheating. With all this being said, Adderall shows no signs of slowing its growth and it will continue to be used by thousands of college and high school students alike for many years to come. 
