Student’s Plan To Drink Before Exams Leaves People Baffled, She Says “I Know What I’m Doing”

Prepare, practice, sleep, and repeat are usually the pieces of advice that students who want to get better test results hear. However, cramming a semester’s worth of information isn’t always enough. Sometimes anxiety takes over while being presented with a quiz and everything you ever knew evaporates from your mind.

To help combat the nerves before a test, a college student and social media creator, Yazmin Adalynn, tried pregaming her midterm. She was prompted to do so by some studies, which claim that slight amounts of alcohol can improve performance on tests. Below you’ll find the whole video of Yazmin going more in-depth about it, as well as some comments from people, who had mixed opinions on her approach to test-taking.

While you’re scrolling through, don’t forget to check out a conversation with an educational psychologist, consultant, and writer, Lori Day, who kindly agreed to talk with us more about drinking alcohol before taking a test.

There are many strategies that help to be better at test-taking

College student pregaming with a bottle, smiling, holding a glass, possibly preparing for a midterm.

Image credits: yazmin.adalynn

This college student tried pregaming her midterm—a strategy that yet lacks substantial scientific proof

College student pregaming for midterm, discussing research on alcohol improving test performance.

College student in front of study results discussing alcohol's impact on test performance.

Image credits: yazmin.adalynn

Text about research findings suggesting benefits for test anxiety in students.

College student discusses study linking alcohol and memory improvement, referencing a scientific article.

Image credits: yazmin.adalynn

Psych major confidently prepares for midterm, asserting, "I know what I'm doing. Ready? Cheers.

College student pregaming, taking a shot from a small pink bottle in a casual setting.

Image credits: yazmin.adalynn

College student humorously pregaming midterm with a small alcohol shot, questioning the benefits of pregaming before exams.

Image credits: yazmin.adalynn

You can find full Yazmin’s video here:

@yazmin.adalynn ok wait the first research says they did equally well but we talked about research in one of my classes that says it can be beneficial for those who experience test taking anxiety #girls#females#grwm#getreadywithme#college#midterms#funny#relatable#pregame♬ original sound – Yazz🐣

“Alcohol is known to negatively affect cognition in a lot of ways that outweigh any reduction in anxiety”

College student preparing for midterm, sitting at a table with a drink, deep in thought.

Image credits: prostooleh / freepik (not the actual photo)

Educational psychologist, consultant, and writer, Lori Day, says that students shouldn’t use alcohol to improve test results, as the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.

“While some studies may show a reduction in test-taking anxiety and enhanced relaxation, temporarily, alcohol is known to negatively affect cognition in a lot of ways that outweigh any reduction in anxiety. Plus, it is illegal for students under 21 to drink alcohol, so how could I or any other responsible educational psychologist endorse it?”

So far, the research on drinking and test-taking is quite contradictory. Therefore, it can’t be fully trusted. For example, the study by Andrew F. Jarosz and his colleagues at the University of Illinois has found that a blood alcohol level of 0.075% gave participants a slight edge in creative problem-solving, which could mean that our creativity can be enhanced with moderate alcohol use.

Molly Carlyle’s and her team’s findings from the University of Exeter in 2017 were similar. Their study claims that drinking alcohol before taking a test can improve memory and information retention.

However, other sources, like one of the most quoted by Jonathan Howland from Boston University, suggest that binge drinking doesn’t affect students’ next-day test performance. There are also those studies that state that studying and drinking interfere with memory consolidation, a process where the brain transforms short-term memories into long-term ones.

In general, drinking has been associated with poorer academic performance, as students who drink have less motivation to do well in school compared to their peers. This has been proved by finding a link between frequent drinking and lower grade point averages.

It might be better to skip alcohol for test-taking and choose water or coffee

College student pregaming midterm online, holding a drink, and smiling at her laptop.

Image credits: pvproductions/ freepik (not the actual photo)

On top of that, Day says that there are many other risks to using alcohol to improve test results. “Alcohol, even in small amounts, can slow reaction times, impair memory, and reduce problem-solving ability. It negatively affects concentration by making it harder to focus, which is critical for reading and analyzing test questions,” she explains.

“Students are more likely to misinterpret questions, rush through the test, or make careless mistakes. There are also short-term memory problems associated with drinking alcohol, like difficulty recalling what was just studied. Sometimes alcohol increases drowsiness, too, and students need to be awake and alert when taking a test.”

Alcohol is also known to interfere with REM (rapid eye movement) sleep, which is responsible for us feeling awake, refreshed and alert after waking up. However, if alcohol has to be metabolized during the night, our sleep becomes progressively lighter and more disturbed. This could result in learning difficulties, poor concentration, decreased cognitive abilities, memory deficits, instability, and so on.

So to avoid these negative effects of alcohol on test results, it’s better to find alternative ways to manage anxiety or be better at test-taking. “Strategies like deep breathing, meditation, proper nutrition and getting a good night’s sleep would be far more effective than drinking alcohol and more sustainable into adulthood,” says Day.

“Developing a dependence on alcohol as a coping mechanism at a young age in order to get through taking tests is a poor foundation for all of the stressful moments awaiting kids in adulthood. And finally, I would add that more studying and less scrolling will help kids feel prepared for tests, and feeling/being prepared is the healthy way to approach exams. Drinking is not,” she concludes.

While hydration is an important part of studying as our brain needs it to function properly, it might be better to skip the alcohol and choose water or coffee, which have been proven to enhance concentration and the amount of information we retain, facilitating learning and better understanding.

The reactions to Yazmin’s video were mixed

College student comment about drivers test with 1898 likes.

College student pregaming midterm, text comment from Josh.f237, saying "i'm a psych major ik what im doing".

College student expressing confidence before midterm in a social media comment with 3409 likes.

Comment discussing pregame drinking, asking if 10 shots of Henny is okay for better college midterm results.

College student shares humorous comment about drinking improving thesis writing, garners 179 likes.

Comment on pregaming midterm by college student, Kasper: 'Yeah but I drive to school,' with 1737 likes.

Comment on college student's humorous take on being a psych major, related to midterm preparation.

College student discusses alcohol metabolism timing with humor in a comment thread.

College student comments humorously on pregaming before midterm exam, expressing willingness for more than half a shot.

Comment on pregaming midterm, discussing relaxation and confidence boost before exams, with high engagement.

Comment on alcohol effects with an anime avatar and 316 likes.

College student comment on pregaming midterm for better results.

Comment on pregame strategy for midterm, humorously noting forgetfulness when drinking.

College student preps for midterm, comment: "I would get a headache," liked by two users.

College student shares comment about pregaming midterm, saying "team pre game" with a profile picture and two likes.

Comment by user "violet" expressing support for midterm pregame approach.

College student shares advice on substance studying techniques for midterms in a social media post.

Comment from a college student discussing a movie, referencing pregaming midterms.

College student asserts pregaming improves test performance, humorous social media comment with 223 likes.

Comment joking about exam preparation results with 5 likes.

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