Adderall Abuse

Kevin Corley

As academic rigor increases at universities, students must find ways to cope with the increased workload. While the true solution is the devotion of more studying time, many students turn to illegal ways of coping with school work. The abuse of Adderall to help study is becoming more prevalent in today’s college society. Adderall is a drug used to help people with ADHD focus. However, many students in college illegally use Adderall to help them focus on their studies and schoolwork. According to an article referencing the Washington post, Adderall sales have increased by 3100 percent between 2002 and 2005. At Georgia Tech, the academic rigor is so great that it is not uncommon to hear of people taking Adderall to get their studies done. Personally, having been here for only a semester, I have heard many students talking about using Adderall to help them with their work.

In an article about Adderall abuse, Lucy Blair states, “It’s cheating. It’s cutting corners. It’s kind of like the easy way out”. Students who are prescribed Adderall take it because they need it to focus. Students who do not have ADHD and take it have an unfair advantage over other students. It is a form of cheating that helps give students an edge over others. While it not directly cheating by providing them information for a test, it is altering their mental state. Similar to steroid abuse in sports, Adderall abuse is a form of cheating that is not only dangerous to the health of those abusing the drug but unfair to those that are completing their work and taking tests without abusing drugs. Abuse of such a drug undermines the grading systems in schools and undermines the true value of an education to students. Students who get better grades because they are utilizing Adderall make the integrity all students grades and degrees questionable. Unless colleges do something, people with integrity are being hurt while cheaters are being rewarded.