LLOYD JUSTO
No sleep. Caffeine. Looming deadlines. Sometimes, a student has to burn the candle from both ends. Lloyd Justo of Prism ventured into Marston at 4 AM the week of mid-terms to document the University of Florida’s unsung heroes: students pulling all-nighters. These are their stories.
Daniel, a first-year computer engineering major, usually “can’t be found” during these early hours. Still, he reported that he was “feeling okay.”
Roberto and Steve, both engineering seniors, often stay up the entire night before an exam. Roberto said he was extremely tired, and Steve credited his continued consciousness to the fact that coffee prevented him from sleeping.
Maury, a senior, and Thomas, a sophomore, are both computer science engineering majors. Maury, a senior indicated that she, as a person, “always ends up doing an all-nighter.” The Prism medical staff have diagnosed her with “senioritis.” Thomas, studying for digital logic, told us that he was “calling it a night” because of his looming 7:25 AM presentation. Thomas felt “very accomplished.”
Kaleb and Kaylyn, both junior family, youth, and community sciences majors, study together in an attempt to stay awake. They stayed at Library West from 10:30 PM until 1:15 AM, but then migrated to Marston. Kaleb said he was writing a paper about “social and economic perspectives on community issues.” Kaylyn drank her last cup of coffee at 1:30 AM. In general, she recommended that late-night studiers “stay away from sugar,” as it can interfere with focused studying – she definitely regretted her chai tea latte with a shot of expresso.
Our last subject, Austin, remained positive despite his unfortunate and unintended prolonged study session. Though he missed the last bus home by five minutes, he flashed us an upbeat two thumbs-up. His thoughts on the matter? “Whatever.”
UF PRISM 