By Joanne Goldwater, Associate Dean for Retention & Student Success/
Seahawk Family Liaison
Office of Student Success Services (OS3)
“To sleep perchance to dream” (Shakespeare in the play, “Hamlet”)
How many hours of sleep should a college student get each night? If you answered 7-9, you are correct. Between classwork, their social life, stress due to family/friends, a job, living on their own for the first time, etc., it is very easy for college students to sleep 6 hours or less. This can be physically, mentally, and academically harmful.
- Improved attention and focus
- Better memory
- Lower risk of high-blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease, stroke
- Improved immunity
- Reduced stress levels, improved mood, better mental and emotional health
- Maintain healthy weight
- Better grades
The results of too little sleep include
- Moodiness
- Illness
- Lack of energy
- Brain fog
- Hard time remembering info (it’s bad when this happens during a quiz or exam!)
- Stress
- Anger
- Cannot focus/concentrate
- Falling asleep at bad times (like during class or while driving!)
- Weight gain
- Falling grades
How to Improve Sleep
- Prep for sleep
- Avoid alcohol, caffeine, nicotine for at least 4-6 hours before bedtime (alcohol interrupts the quality of sleep)
- Stop exercising at least 2 hours before bedtime
- Stop working at least 1 hour before bedtime
- No screens
- Take a warm shower, brush teeth
- Meditate, listen to relaxing music, read for pleasure
- Close shade/curtains to create a dark room. Use an eye mask to help keep out the light.
- Cool rooms work best for sleep
- Relax
- Use one of the many (free!) sleep apps
- Do deep breathing
- Meditate
- Do progressive muscle relaxation
- Consistency
- Go to bed at the same time every night
- Wake up at the same time every morning (even on days when the student doesn’t have an early class)
- Sleep when sleepy (if the student can’t get to sleep within 20 minutes, they should get up and do something boring for 10-15 minutes and then try again to go to sleep)
- General Tips
- Avoid taking long afternoon naps. Naps should be 24-29 minutes long to get the most benefit and to avoid having a hard time falling asleep that night.
- An early evening walk can help a student get to sleep faster.
- Avoid eating heavy food late at night.
- Students must get into REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep in order to form memories (e.g., so they remember what they learned in class the day before).
- Avoid watching the clock.
- Avoid studying on or in the bed.
- Use good time management skills (for help with this, encourage your student to meet with someone in OS3).
Want to see if someone’s level of fatigue is cause for concern? Try using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale on the CDC Archives (click here).
Helping your student develop a good sleep routine will be useful for the rest of their life. Happy ZZZZZZs!