Sophomore Cody Morgan is stressed about his percussion class. He has to learn 10 melodies on the marimba and several different drum rolls on the snare drum for a proficiency test. At 11:30 p.m. on a Thursday, he is in a practice room. He isn't sure what material might be covered, so he has spent the last three hours practicing everything he thinks might be on the test.

Morgan, a vocal performance and music education double major, will lose some sleep tonight. But that's normal, he said.

According to a fall 2008 study by the American College Health Association, students report that stress is the biggest issue that affects their studies. For Chapman students, working, papers and busy schedules all cause stress in their daily lives. To some, finding ways to diffuse stress through less sleep, organizing priorities and spirituality are just as prevalent on-campus as the pressure.

When Morgan is stressed, he remembers a saying his voice teacher's daughter told him: 'Why be anything less than you can be?'

"I keep that in mind when I feel stressed, and it drives me to strive to be the best I can in that subject even if it means getting less sleep so it will save me work in the future," said Morgan.

But sometimes a little less sleep can turn into a lot more stress, according to Ed Fox, associate director of student psychological counseling services.

"With stress, it's like we're being stalked physiologically. We're constantly in a state of hyper-alert and the body starts to break down," said Fox. "We're just not hard wired for that. It does start physically changing the body over time."

When people experience stress, their bodies produce hormones such as adrenaline that prepare them to handle the problem. But when the cycle of stress is constant, it's easy to develop headaches, insomnia and irritability or become overwhelmed, according to Fox.

"[Stress] is remittent. It's just kind of continuous, and we don't ever take a break, and the body is producing all these chemicals preparing us to constantly deal with stress, and yet it can only do that for so long before it starts to have physical affects," said Fox.

For Morgan, the physical effects don't outweigh the benefits of getting all his work accomplished, he said.

"I strive to be the best I can in that subject even if it means getting less sleep so it will save me work in the future," said Morgan.

Sophomore Allison Guilford, also a double major vocal performance and music education, thrives off of stress. Sometimes, however, she doesn't have enough hours in the day to accomplish everything she needs to, she said.

"I feel like, if I'm stressed, I get more done. It's obviously something important enough to weigh on you, so it's something that's worth spending time on, but sometimes you can't get anything done because you're so overwhelmed," she said.

According to a March 2008 survey done by the Associated Press and mtvU, 63 percent of college students said they were so stressed they couldn't get school work done.

It's very easy for students to get distracted by stress and subsequently not be productive in school, according to Freshman psychology major Pauline Slakey.

"The more stressed I am, the less work I get done, so I think it would be helpful for students to know that stressing out isn't the best solution," said Slakey.

Slakey keeps herself from becoming stressed by taking lots of breaks while she studies.

"People try to over-work themselves and work hours after hours, and honestly after a certain point, you stop being as productive as you could be if you took breaks," she said.

Junior Kayleigh Hyde, a chemistry and environmental engineering major, wasn't just lacking time to accomplish everything she needs to each day. She decided she didn't have enough time to benefit from her college career in only four years, she said. General education courses add unnecessary stress to students, according to Hyde. She plans to take four years of upper division courses that apply to her major at Chapman, and then take two more years of general education courses after that at a community college. Her method is unconventional and not endorsed by Chapman, but that doesn't matter to her, Hyde said.

"I want to actually learn and enjoy [college] and experience everything I can, and it's hard to do all that in four years ... [After four years], my scholarships will run out, and I'll go to community college," said Hyde.

Junior Abiel Bruhn shares Hyde's sentiments. Bruhn, a film and French double major, said he would prefer if a professor's expectations for a student were based on whether the student is taking the course for major, minor or general education credit.

"A lot of kids take film classes, and the teacher expects they know everything, and the student is like, 'I'm just curious and I'm not going to make movies, so I don't care,' and that's how I feel in a sociology class," said Bruhn.

At Bruhn's high school, courses were divided into higher level and standard level. Depending on their academic ability, some students were required to leave during class when the higher level material was taught.

"If there was a way of the teacher knowing what the student was taking the class for, they would have different expectations [for those students,]" said Abiel.

Abiel, who has been a practicing Taoist for five years now, said he is almost never stressed. Taoism and meditation teach the ability to center the mind and focus on the present moment, rather than thinking about the past or future, according to Bruhn.

"On a day to day basis, I'm almost never stressed out," he said.

When practicing Taoism, Bruhn meditates often.

"When I meditate, I spend time sitting and concentrating on being in that moment. It helps you realize how meaningless everything that you worry about is," he said.

Rather than become stressed, Bruhn prioritizes his obligations, he said.

"You start thinking [that] there is no way I can possibly do everything I have to do, so I start making my priorities ... College is very much doable and even if you have to miss classes, or cut corners, it's about getting out of your head," said Bruhn.

But college doesn't have to be defined by stress. Despite cutting classes, making priorities, and losing sleep, the stress is worth the gain, according to Morgan.

"I love my major, and I feel really good after I get stuff done," he said. "If you see me on campus, I have a smile on my face. I don't hate it."