College and young adult drug use data now available online

Announcement

This is Archived Content. This content is available for historical purposes only. It may not reflect the current state of science or language from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA). View current news releases on nida.nih.gov.

Also new: list of college programs in addiction studies

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is pleased to announce that the latest Monitoring the Future (MTF) national survey results for full-time college students, and young people of the same age not attending college, are now available online. Updated infographics showing survey highlights are now also available, as well as a new comprehensive resource highlighting undergraduate and graduate addiction studies programs at campuses around the country.

Drug and Alcohol Use in College-Age Adults in 2014

The latest (2014) college age MTF data shows that more students are using marijuana daily than are drinking alcohol daily. Survey results suggest that the non-medical use of the stimulant Adderall is higher for the college group than their non-college peers; and there has been an uptick in cocaine use among college students. For the first time, the use of e-cigarettes was surveyed, with nearly 10 percent of college students reporting past month use. Use of smoking tobacco with a hookah pipe is also high -- with nearly one-third of college students reporting past year use, up significantly from last year. Also in 2014, smoking half a pack or more of cigarettes a day is four times as prevalent among non-college students than their peers in college (10.1 percent compared to 2.4 percent).

College Addiction Program cover

For the first time, NIDA has posted a comprehensive list of 400 undergraduate and graduate programs in addiction studies at colleges and universities around the country. The list offers the name and location of the programs, with links and contact information. Colleges and universities offering career studies related to addiction and public health, social work and behavioral/medical degrees are encouraged to connect with NIDA to see if their programs qualify for inclusion in the list.

The webpage also includes ongoing links to statistics and trends, treatment guides, information about careers in addiction science, as well as related videos, publications, articles, and other materials related to the young adults age group.

For more information on NIDA’s College-Age & Young Adults webpage, go to
www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics/college-age-young-adults

For more information, contact the NIDA press office at media@nida.nih.gov or 301-443-6245. Follow NIDA on Twitter and Facebook.