Campus safety rates, explained
Every college reports its campus crime statistics each year; our safety pages read the last three calendar years.
What is counted
- Offences reported to campus police or officials on campus geography — the campus, residence halls, and public property adjacent to it — not city-wide crime.
- Categories: murder, sex offences (rape, fondling, incest, statutory rape), robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor-vehicle theft, arson; the VAWA offences (domestic violence, dating violence, stalking); and residence-hall fires.
- Reports, not convictions. A campus with strong reporting culture and support services can show more reports than one where incidents go unreported. Read the numbers with that in mind.
How we present it
- Three calendar years are summed, then divided by three and by thousands of students, for a rate per 1,000 students per year. Single-year counts at one school swing too much to compare.
- Violent = murder + sex offences + robbery + aggravated assault. Property = burglary + vehicle theft + arson.
- Each school is placed in a percentile among its division, and the division median sits beside its numbers.
- Multi-campus institutions are summed across campuses; enrollment is taken once.