The 'Student Athlete / STEM Major' meme highlights the performative nature of 'grind culture' within university life. It gained traction by parodying the intense, emoji-heavy 'rise and grind' tweets typically posted by student-athletes, which was soon adopted by STEM students to showcase their own grueling academic schedules. The meme usually employs a split-screen or comparison format to joke about who has the harder life, less sleep, or more dedication. It serves as a humorous social commentary on the competitive 'hustle' mentality found in higher education, often featuring exaggerated claims about 4 AM workouts versus 4 AM coding sessions.