When Good Parties Go Bad: The College Party Scene
October 31, 2009 | admin
You’ve seen them glorified in movies…Your friends have told you stories that have made your head spin…And now you’re about to experience them for yourself! But hold on a minute–college parties are not all fun and games. Don’t get us wrong, we know that socializing at your new campus is an integral part of the college experience, but there are real risks to partying too hard. The Journal of Alcohol and Drug Education reports that about 25 percent of college students face significant academic consequences to their drinking including missing class, falling behind, doing poorly on exams or papers, and receiving lower grades overall. So let’s discuss how you can navigate the college party scene to have the maximum amount of fun without jeopardizing your academic objectives.
The Drinking Dilemma
The one mainstay of college parties not held by teetotalers is alcohol. Drinking has become a major part of the party scene and the statistics don’t paint a very pretty picture of its effects. According to a 1997 national study conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, nearly half of all college students surveyed drank four or five drinks in one sitting within the previous 2 weeks. That level of drinking is often referred to as binge drinking.
The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism defines binge drinking as a pattern of alcohol consumption that brings the blood alcohol concentration (BAC) level to 0.08% or above. This pattern corresponds to more than 4 drinks on a single occasion for men or more than 3 drinks on a single occasion for women, generally within about 2 hours. Adding to an established stereotype, the Harvard study found that students who live in a fraternity or sorority house are the heaviest drinkers – 86 percent of fraternity residents and 80 percent of sorority residents report binge drinking.
Why is binge drinking a problem? Well, for one it can lead to death through alcohol poisoning, a severe and potentially fatal physical reaction to an alcohol overdose. Putting large amounts of alcohol into your system deprives your brain of oxygen. When that happens, the brain stops regulating breathing as well as your heart. Symptoms include vomiting, unconsciousness, bluish skin, and irregular breathing.
As for the academic consequences, Harvard found that frequent binge drinkers were 21 times more likely than non-binge drinkers to miss class, fall behind on school work, have unprotected sex, and engage in illegal activities. In addition, the American Journal of Public Health reports that 1,700 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die each year from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor vehicle crashes. The adverse effects don’t end there…Even if you don’t drink, the statistics show you’ll likely have to confront those who do. Nearly three out of four students responding to the Harvard study reported experiencing at least one negative consequence of another student’s drinking during the school year—the most prevalent being sleep or study interruptions.
Tips for Staying Safe
The first step to successfully navigating the party scene starts while you’re still researching prospective colleges. We recommend you take the school’s partying reputation into consideration. A campus that is well known for its partying ways will no doubt have an effect on your studies.
Once you’re ready to hit the party scene, go slowly. In other words, don’t try to break the record for number of parties attended by a freshman. Be responsible and ease into it. For women, it’s smart to go in a group. Arrive together and leave together, so that you can look out for each other. Of course, if you ever feel uncomfortable at a party it’s time to leave. You’ll also want to consider the theme of a party when deciding whether to attend. A party with the theme “CEO’s and Corporate Hos” is likely to generate a particular kind of attitude and behavior among its attendees.
Obviously, the amount of alcohol at a party is another major contributor to its level of raucousness. Although many students drink to loosen their inhibitions, we’ve shown that it can lead to unsafe activities. Be aware of your surroundings and partner up with a buddy who will ensure you get home safely if you wind up having too much to drink. Lastly, don’t feel pressured into the party scene. Just because your sorority sisters or roommates are hard partiers, it doesn’t mean you have to be. Your education is what’s most important about your college experience so don’t let anything get in its way.
