How to Evaluate a College’s Safety When Making Your Choice
Choosing a college is one of the most exciting and significant decisions a family will ever make. You spend months, or even years, researching academic programs, comparing extracurricular opportunities, and touring beautiful campuses. But in the midst of all this excitement, there is one critical factor that is often overlooked: campus safety. A great education can only happen in an environment where students feel safe, secure, and supported.
Evaluating a college’s commitment to safety is a crucial part of the decision-making process. One of the most visible indicators of this commitment is the physical security infrastructure. When you visit a campus, pay attention to the entrances. Are they open and uncontrolled, or are they monitored from professional guard shacks? A strong, visible security presence at key access points is a clear sign that the university is being proactive about controlling who comes and goes from campus. But this is just one piece of a much larger puzzle.
To get a true picture of a college’s safety, you need to go beyond the glossy brochures and do some real due diligence. Here’s a guide to help you.
Start with the Data: The Clery Act
This is the most important and objective first step. The Clery Act is a federal law that requires all colleges and universities that participate in federal financial aid programs to disclose information about crime on and near their campuses.
Every year, each school must publish an Annual Security Report (ASR). This report contains three years’ worth of crime statistics, as well as detailed information about the school’s security policies and procedures. Before you visit a campus, do a simple search for “[University Name] Annual Security Report.” This document will give you a baseline of data to work with. Comparing the ASRs of the different schools you are considering is a powerful, data-driven way to start your evaluation.
The Campus Visit: Your Visual Inspection
When you are on your official campus tour, keep your eyes open and look for the physical signs of a strong safety infrastructure.
- Emergency Phones: Look for the highly visible “blue light” emergency phones. Are they plentiful and located along all the main walking paths, in parking lots, and near the dorms?
- Lighting: A campus can feel very different after dark. If you can, try to walk the campus at dusk. Are the primary pathways well-lit? Are there dark, unlit areas between the library and the main dorms? Good lighting is a simple but incredibly effective crime deterrent.
- Dormitory Access: How do students get into their residence halls? Is it an old-fashioned key system, or do they use a more secure key card access system that can be deactivated if a card is lost or stolen? Is there a front desk that is staffed 24/7?
Talk to the People on the Ground
The official data and the physical infrastructure are important, but the human element is just as crucial. Go beyond the official tour guide and talk to the people who are responsible for and experience campus safety every day.
- Visit the Campus Safety Office: Stop by the university’s public safety or campus police department. Ask them directly about their staffing levels, their relationship with the local police, and the safety programs they offer to students.
- Talk to Current Students: This is where you will get the most honest answers. When you’re in the student union or a coffee shop, strike up a conversation with a few students. Ask them a simple question: “Do you generally feel safe walking on campus at night?” Their unscripted answers will be incredibly telling.
Look at the Support Systems
A truly safe campus is about more than just preventing crime; it’s about providing a robust support system for students when they need help.
- Safe Ride Programs: Does the university offer a safe ride or an on-demand shuttle service to get students home safely from the library or other parts of campus late at night?
- Mental Health Services: A college’s investment in its counseling and psychological services is a key part of student well-being and overall safety.
Choosing a college is a massive decision. By taking the time to research these crucial safety factors, you can be confident that you are choosing an environment where your student can not only learn and grow, but also be safe and supported.
