Adderall, Ritalin, Vyvanse—all three of these prescription drugs are intended only for the use of students who have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). However, many students within the LT community are finding it easier to purchase and use non-prescribed ADHD medication for upcoming summative and standardized assessments.

“I would say there is probably a fair amount of abuse in this category of medication,” Student Assistance Program Coordinator Jeanne Widing said. “All of the suburban areas are seeing an increase in abuse of all prescription drugs due to their availability. People have a mistaken assumption that because [Adderall] is prescribed for somebody then it’s safe, but that’s not always true.”

The prevalence of these drugs in LT, most commonly Adderall, has given rise to the concern over whether or not taking these pills gives students without ADHD an unfair advantage in their academic performance while under the influence of these drugs.

According to an anonymous student he feels that taking Adderall to focus and perform better in school is acceptable because they have a family history of ADHD diagnoses.

“I use Adderall to study and I use it during tests because I think I have ADHD,” he said. “Every guy in my family has it and it’s hereditary, which is why I don’t feel bad using it.”

The majority of students who use Adderall believe that it shouldn’t be considered cheating because it is not drug that enhances the ability to achieve success on assessments, but rather the ability to concentrate on the material in front of them.

“We’re really being tested on our knowledge,” the anonymous student said. “I don’t think the issue should be whether or not you can focus on school.”

According to a study presented at the Pediatric Academic Societies (PAS) annual meeting in Vancouver, B.C. in 2014, students who were surveyed at an undisclosed Ivy League college found as many as 18 percent of the students admit to misusing stimulant drugs. In addition to those numbers, the study also revealed that a third of students said they did not consider it cheating.

“I am more concerned about taking non-prescribed ADHD meds as a dangerous thing to do rather than a character flaw or a cheating incident,” Widing said. “If you want to define cheating as something that enhances your performance artificially then I suppose you could call taking Adderall cheating, but I know some students might see that as simply trying to gain an edge.”

The reason that one person is prescribed medication and another person is not is because of their bio-chemical makeup—so if one takes it without being under the care of a doctor they are changing their neurological function and really rolling the dice, Widing said.