As the end of the semester draws near, more and more students are resorting to using stimulants to pass classes.

Instead of being diligent and avoiding procrastination, students may opt to pop pills and buckle down before important exams.

Use of drugs such as Adderall, Dexedrine and Ritalin is on the rise as students realize there’s an easy way out of working for their grades.

Seven percent of college students have used prescription stimulants for nonmedical reasons, according to the Harvard School of Public Health.

Stimulants offer short-term benefits such as helping students focus and giving them more energy. However, the drugs pose long-term risks for problems such as heart conditions and even death, said Libby Zivalich, the corporate clinician for the Illinois Institute for Addiction Recovery at Proctor Hospital.

What’s alarming is more students are relying on stimulants to concentrate.

One student said he would use them “under extreme circumstances,” but what’s considered extreme? Where do we draw the line?

If students use stimulants to pass one exam, there may be nothing stopping them from using them all the time.

An addiction is something students shouldn’t overlook.

We all learned at a young age that hard work equals success. So it’s difficult to understand why now, when we’re learning how to succeed in the real world, students feel as if they have to use drugs to focus.

Students don’t have to search for these miracle drugs. Anyone can buy stimulants in residence halls from friends and classmates.

One student said he bought two pills for $5, which seems like a pretty fair price for an A.

And college is a time when students should be studying what they enjoy. If students need to use drugs to get through their major classes, they should change their prospective career paths.

College is about choosing to continue an education after high school and learning about what’s important. Stimulant use is a waste of students’ intellects and money.

Students who use drugs to study aren’t getting much out of their educations.

College also offers social opportunities as well. But while living in a residence hall or apartment with friends is fun, it’s also distracting.

Distractions eat up students’ time. Many of us say we don’t have time to study because we’re so busy. But some of us work, take extra classes and participate in extracurricular activities on campus – and not all of us use stimulants to study.

If students were to step away from distractions – turn off computers and TVs – they would find more time to study and not have an excuse to take drugs.

Allowing sufficient time to study is important to stress relief. Taking drugs only puts stress on the body as students may crash after long nights of cramming.

Opting to use stimulants says something about students’ values. The values of diligence and hard work have gone down the drain as students find themselves taking the easy way out when it comes to their educations.