UT Tyler Students Struggle with Sleep

By CARTER PHILLIPS/Contributor

College students often juggle heavy workloads, especially near deadlines. When this happens, one of the first things they tend to neglect is proper sleep.

“Due to having a job and going to class five days a week, I find it hard to balance homework load and sleep and often get four to five hours per night if my homework and job load do not mix,” John White, a senior business major, said.

White said the strain from lack of sleep affects his grades, personality and even relationships.

“I can’t wait till I graduate this December,” he said. “I feel like once I can finally focus on my career, my sleepless nights of cramming assignments and studying will be over.”

White is not alone in yearning for more sleep.

More than 70% of college students get less than eight hours of sleep according to the National Institutes of Health. A 2023 American College Health Association study linked sleep deprivation among college students to lower academic performance, high stress and increased anxiety and depression.

Students who consistently sleep fewer than six hours a night have difficulty focusing, low energy and mood swings, researchers found.

“I get about five to seven hours of sleep each night, sometimes even less depending on the project,” said Amelia Matecek, a freshman art major. “For art or graphic design projects, I stay up 3 in the morning and wake up around 7 or 8, running on just four to six hours.”

Lauren McClure, a freshman fine arts major, often stays up late at night to have time for herself after spending time with her family.

“I get about six or seven hours of sleep,” she said. “I stay up to have my own time, just a quiet hour and a half to myself. I’m usually going to sleep at midnight or one, depending on how late my parents stay up.”

McClure believes that her sleep routine doesn’t interfere with her academic performance but does have a deeper impact on her stress.

White admits the toll of his sleep habits is reaching a breaking point.

“Sometimes, I become so tired that I begin to zone out during classes, and it feels like I’m just going through the motions nowadays,” White said. “It is frustrating because I know I could do better if I just had more time or less homework to rest.”

Balancing academics, work and personal time is a challenge.

Julian Ramirez, a sophomore computer science major, is often caught between his passion for doing coding projects and his body’s need for rest.

“I am usually working on assignments way past midnight because programming can be so time-consuming,” he said. “Sometimes I look up and it is already 2 in the morning. I know I need to get some sleep, but there is always that one issue in my code that turns into a nightmare.”

Michael McKelvey, a junior biology major, regularly stays up late to study.

“I never tend to feel like I am prepared for my exams, so sleep is the first thing to go as I cram information days before I am tested,” McKelvey said. “I will pull back-to-back all-nighters if I have to, which is exhausting, but I feel like I do not have a choice especially when I am pressured to get good grades to have a higher chance of getting accepted into medical school.”