Surveys show that up to 85 percent of all college students imbibe and that nearly half drink heavily. In 1949, when the first thorough study of college drinking was made, undergraduates drank no more than others their age, and college life did not encourage excessive tippling. The same can't be said today. College students drink more because college officials are less strict and many young people drink in high school or before. The result is that students now encounter college cultures in which drinking is not only common but is done mainly to get drunk.
Schools tend to respond with handwringing, saying there is little they can do.
Recent research, including a study by U.S. News, indicates that's not so. U.S. News got responses from 69 percent of the 1,320 presidents of four-year colleges and universities it surveyed to learn what makes a difference. The survey found that while college presidents try to highlight the evils of student alcohol abuse, many don't see how common binge drinking really is. The U.S. News survey and follow-up reporting suggest that schools that allow drinking on campus are up to three times more likely to experience high numbers of binge drinkers. Now she deals with students who don't seem to mind the drunken behavior, wooziness, vomiting, and passing out that accompany too much alcohol.