The topic I have chosen to write about is sleep deprivation more specifically how sleep deprivation effects college students and their low academic performances. I’m interested in this topic because it relates to me and to many of my piers. I find that there is less and less time for sleep as a modern day college student. Not only do you have to keep your grades up but, you must make time for academic clubs, jobs, internships, socializing, and of course time with your family. There is a struggle when trying to find the balance for all of these activities. The questions I really want to try and answer is are college students depressed or are they just sleep deprived? Are students being misdiagnosed? These questions will be the main focus of my paper. My audience will consist of college students from undergrad to graduate schools and the councilors of the colleges. The reason I choose this audience is because I think students should be informed that sleep deprivation is a serious matter and should not be taken so lightly. I also choose the councilors because it is my opinion that some councilors may be overlooking sleep deprivation as a factor in college students’ low academic performance.