College Student Perception of Safety

Background: Many incidents that occur on college campuses are negative and are most likely a violent altercation. These incidents can be frightening for some students and can greatly alter their perceptions of safety on campus. The purpose of this study was to explore the sense of college campus safety in undergraduate males versus females. Method: Undergraduate college students at a university in the northeast were recruited to participate in a cross-sectional study exploring different college experiences. An online survey was used to collect data. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the sample. Frequencies and chi-square analysis were used to explore the relationship among the different variables. Results: Many students n = 264 (53.9%) felt safe on campus most of the time. There was a statistical difference about feeling safe on campus based on gender (p < 0.001). Females reported feeling safe just sometimes when compared to males. There was also a statistical difference between commuters feeling safer on campus compared to residents (p < 0.04). Discussion: With these results, nurses can create ways to increase campus safety perceptions for both female and male students. Our campus currently has 150 “blue lights.” By instituting more blue lights we can increase a sense of campus safety. Another way nurses can play a role in improving the sense of college safety is by promoting the use of “E-Tips” and the “SART Response”, which are two systems already put in place to report suspicious incidents. Lastly, nurses can create support groups and meetings.