US vs. UK Students: Who Smokes the Most Weed? (+ INFOGRAPHIC)

As of 2018, states and Washington, DC, have legalized marijuana for recreational use for adults over 21. And, another 29 US states made medical marijuana legal. According to 2017 Gallup poll, 64% of US citizens are in favor of legalization. According to gov.uk, Cannabis is illegal to possess, grow, distribute, sell or grow in the UK. The penalty is quite harsh: up to 5 years for cannabis possession and up to 14 years for cannabis supply and production. So, why is smoking weed still condemned?

Most certainly, you’ve tried smoking weed at least once in your student life. Whether your answer is positive or not, the statistic is pretty explicit! The Typical Student team decided to compare UK and US students in terms of their pot smoking habits. Are you ready for this exciting ride?

How Many Students in US Smoke Weed?

According to the statistical data presented by Monitoringthefuture in 2016:

• 39.3% of US college students 1 to 4 years beyond high school admitted to smoking pot.
• As for the gender distribution, males are prevailing with 41.2% compared to 38.2% female students.
• Full-time college students tend to smoke less. Only 22% of them admitted to smoking weed on a regular basis.
• However, full-time female students turned out to be more prone to smoking weed than male students (22.5% and 21.6% of respondents, respectively).

How Many UK Students Smoke Weed?

Since weed is illegal in the UK, the numbers are a bit more modest compared to the US. However, they are still quite impressive for the very same period of time (2016-2017). According to the Home Office survey, young adults aged 16 to 24 named cannabis as the most frequently used drug.

• Out of 975,000 respondents, 16.4% have admitted to using cannabis in the year preceding the survey.
• The gender distribution of cannabis use in the 2016/17 survey: in the age group of 16-24-year-olds, 9.0% men would admit to using cannabis in the last year compared with 4.2% of women.
• The Tab carried out a survey among 11,000 students to clarify the picture of cannabis use among UK student communities. Turns out, Sussex students smoke the most (86.01%), followed by Sheffield (84.69%) and Bristol (84.20%).

Bottom Line

The available statistical data lets us assume that UK students smoke weed less compared to their US counterparts. Also, the available statistical data shows the decline in the weed-smoking trend among young adults in both US and UK. American society has shown consistency in supporting marijuana legalization. Gallup research shows the record-high support of 87% for legalizing marijuana use among US adults.

Take a look at the infographic below to learn the key facts about students and weed.