6 out of 10 Ryerson students say that they do not get enough sleep on most nights, according to a ne

More than 60 per cent of students said that they do not get enough sleep and nearly 84 per cent said that lack of sleep affects their productivity at school, according to a poll conducted by first-year journalism students at Ryerson University.

1,235 students were surveyed at Ryerson University from March 9-13 about their sleeping habits and mode of transport to school.

“My instructors have such high expectations from me that I cannot take any time off of my schedule,” said Victoria Martins, an undergraduate student of Fashion at Ryerson.

Victoria Martins is a first-year fashion student at Ryerson University. (RSJ/Abhi Raheja)

“Everyone has to have such a heavy course load, it is not surprising that no one gets enough sleep,” Martins said.

According to a 2014 study by Shelley D Hershner on causes and consequences of sleepiness among college students, sleep deprivation can lead to multiple consequences for students which include reduced concentration, stress and anxiety among many others. Hershner is the director of Collegiate Sleep Clinic at University of Michigan.

‘Consequences of less sleep are risky’

According to a study conducted in 2015 by the National Sleep Foundation in the U.S., a sleep time of 7 to 9 hours is considered appropriate for a young adult.

At Ryerson, more than 52 per cent of the students surveyed get six or fewer hours of sleep.

“If you do not give your brain enough time to rest, the brain energy goes down and accessing information becomes hard,” said Juannittah Kamera, a Health Promotion Programs Coordinator at Ryerson University, said in a phone interview.

“With sleep deprivation, attention span is reduced and the individual is at a high risk of stress related problems and anxiety,” Kamera said.

‘Commuting to school leaves no time for rest’

President-elect for the Ryerson Students’ Union Ram Ganesh said that a lack of sleep among students is one of the most serious problems facing Ryerson students today.

While campaigning during the election, Ganesh said that his team found out that students are “really tired”.

Ram Ganesh is the newly elected president of the RSU. (RSJ/Abhi Raheja)

“Students are tired because they commute and there is a lot of work from university,” said Ganesh.

He said that when he used to commute, he would get a five-hour sleep each night.

“Commuting is the major reason why students do not get enough sleep,” said Larissa Lobo, an engineering student at Ryerson.

“By the time I reach home, it is midnight and then I have to wake up early for my 8 a.m. class.”

Larissa Lobo is a first-year chemical engineering student at Ryerson University. (RSJ/Abhi Raheja)

The poll by journalism students also found that nearly 75 percent of students commute to university campus by either public transportation or personal vehicle.

RSU president-elect Ganesh said that his team is working with a private company to introduce sleeping pods on campus to “provide a space for commuter students where they can rest during breaks between classes.”

These pods will first be introduced in the Ryerson Student Centre (SCC) and then expanded to other parts of campus, according to Ganesh.

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Results for the full sample have a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points, 19 times out of 20; it may be larger for subgroups.