More than half of students who use alcohol said they drink to get drunk. As you know, there are unmistakable consequences of such behavioral patterns. Among the respondents in the survey, frequent binge drinkers were 22 times more likely than non-binge drinkers to report having had five or more problems such as doing something they regretted, missing a class, forgetting where they were, getting behind in school work, arguing with friends, engaging in unplanned sexual activity, getting hurt, damaging property, and so on. The toll of these behaviors is substantial, academically, financially, and socially. Alcohol is a factor in 40 percent of all academic problems and 28 percent of all dropouts.
Alcohol is the number one health risk to college students.
About 50 students die each year from drinking-related causes. Approximately 300,000 of today's students will eventually die of alcohol and other drug-related causes. Nearly all violent campus crimes involve the use of alcohol. Ten years ago, a survey of college and university presidents reported 67 percent considered alcohol abuse to be a problem on their campuses. Not much change occurred until recently, however.