Other Drugs

While alcohol is the drug of choice on most college campuses, the use of drugs other than alcohol is also a serious concern. According to Monitoring the Future (MTF) research, college students typically use drugs other than alcohol less than their noncollege-attending peers. The term other drug use refers to any drug besides alcohol. The illicit drugs most frequently used by college students include marijuana, hallucinogens, narcotics, and amphetamines.

Several trends are apparent in college students’ other drug use. For instance, MTF reports a significant increase in the late 1990s in the annual use of ecstasy (MDMA) among college students, which then dropped off and has seemed to increase modestly in recent years. Other “club drugs,” including gamma hydroxybutyrate (GHB), rohypnol, and ketamine also gained popularity in their use as predatory drugs during that time. College students increasingly use prescription drugs for nonmedical purposes, with the use of narcotics other than heroin (e.g., OxyContin, Vicodin) steadily increasing since 1994 and then leveling off after 2002. As a counterpoint to these increases, marijuana use among college students has remained fairly steady since 2000, decreasing only modestly since 2003.

Often, the most recently adopted behaviors concerning college students’ other drug use are difficult to track nationally, as major studies may not yet include questions regarding them in their surveys. However, through law enforcement and institutional and media reports, we know students use these substances for a variety of purposes, accessing them and ingesting them through myriad methods and channels. Research may also point to regional patterns of use, with use of a certain drug being popular in one area but almost nonexistent in others.

While students use illegal drugs at much lower rates than alcohol, illicit drug use can lead to serious tragedies, including violence, sexual assault and rape, hospitalization for overdoses, and premature death. Campus prevention specialists, therefore, should assess and address student illicit drug use when designing comprehensive alcohol and other drug abuse prevention and treatment programs for their students.