Is that all-nighter or late-night study session worth it? Studies have said no, and here’s why. I’m a psychology major here at WVU, and I have done research on sleep and GPA for weeks now. Sleep education is underrepresented, and while I can’t give you my results on WVU students at this moment, I can give you other studies and facts behind why your sleep can affect your GPA.Â
How Both Variables are Measured
There have been many studies done on sleep and academic performance. Most studies use the Pittsburgh Quality Sleep Index (Buysse et al, 1989), which is a self-report questionnaire that assesses your sleep quality over the past month. Though I’ve seen other questionnaires and one that measures sleep quality through a FitBit (Okano et al, 2019), where students wore it throughout the semester to measure their sleep quality. Usually, when asked about sleep quality, it is measured on a Likert scale ranging from 1 (poor) to 10 (excellent). Academic performance has been measured in numerous ways. Some studies take grades in classes, midterms, exam grades, etc., while others just take a student’s GPA.Â
Results of Studies
Consistent and higher quality sleep was associated with improved academic success (Okano et al, 2019). Not getting enough sleep, or poor quality sleep, resulted in poorer performance in classes and students reporting they could’ve done better with more sleep (Suardiaz-Muro et al, 2023). It was also found that better sleep over a month before a big exam, like a midterm, was associated with better performance as well (Okano et al, 2019).Â
Breaking it DownÂ
Overall, sleep is very important for many aspects of learning. First, it is important for your memory. The better sleep you get, the better your brain will store what you learned in your memory. Sleep improves your focus to help you pay attention during boring lectures and focus while you’re at the library studying. You’re more motivated to get that work done or study a little longer. On exam day, you’ll make fewer careless mistakes and have better recall on the questions.Â
Listen to Me or NotÂ
I may not be an expert on sleep, but I have read a few studies and can tell you that the research is pretty clear: poor sleep causes more than just fatigue. Our bodies need sleep. It’s the foundation for success. Choosing all-nighters or staying up til 3 am isn’t a healthy or successful way to improve your academics. Research continues to show that your rest is more important than that cram session. Prioritizing sleep is one of the most effective ways to support your education.Â
References
Okano, K., Kaczmarzyk, J. R., Dave, N., Gabrieli J. D. E., & Grossman, J. C. (2019). Sleep quality, duration, and consistency are associated with better academic performance in college students. Science of Learning, 4, 16. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41539-019-0055-z
Suardiaz-Muro, M., Ortega-Moreno, M., Morante-Ruiz, M., Monroy, M., Ruiz, M. A., MartĂn-Plasencia, P., & Vela-Bueno, A. (2023). Sleep quality and sleep deprivation: relationship with academic performance in university students during examination period. Sleep and biological rhythms, 21, 377–383. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41105-023-00457-1