When university student Jen* faced a seven-hour shift at work after a night of socialising, she turned away from coffee to help her stay awake and picked up a little white pill.

The Charles Sturt University student took a Ritalin pill just before midnight and when she got home, she was able to study, tidy her room and watch a movie before starting work at 5am.

"I hate caffeine, so it was an alternative for me when I needed to feel awake for work," she said, although she had never been prescribed the drug commonly used to treat behavioural disorders like a

Jen said more people were turning to prescription medications as stimulants to balance study, work and social commitments.

She estimates about 40 per cent of the people who live on campus have experimented with drugs like Ritalin or Adderall to concentrate on completing assignments and studying for exams.