Living alone can be joyous and a chance to enjoy freedom from roommate-related shenanigans. You get a broader perspective of life and a quiet place to reflect, plan, and look inside for inspiration in work or education. Beware, though that as a woman living alone on-campus or off-campus, you can be a target for criminals of all kinds. You are more vulnerable to stalkers, robbers, rapists, and other malefactors. So what options are available for you?

College Rape Statistics

Millennial’s live alone, perhaps more than any other generation. As you take on life independently, it would be wise to explore solutions that protect college students from crime because the statistics are scary. That is not to say that you should move in with someone—you deserve your space to maintain your individualism and chase your dreams. Just be alert and remember to take charge of your personal safety.

Recent data shows that:

Women between the ages of 18 and 24 in college are three times more likely than all other women to experience sexual violence. Females of ages between 18 and 24 that live off-campus are four times more likely to be victims of sexual assault. In an average year in the US, there are 433,648 rape incidences involving females aged 12 and older.

Nearly 50% of rape victims reported that they were doing activities at home or sleeping when the attack occurred. 30% of rape victims said that they were traveling to or from a common destination, including work and school, when the attack happened.

The Risk Factors for Rape and Physical Violence in College

The numbers above are a crucial eye-opener to the prevalent nature of sexual violence in college. Understanding the risk factors is essential in all approaches taken to protect college students from crime. The risk factors for sexual assault in college include:

Culture of sexual objectification: Street harassment and catcalling can morph into full scope sexual and physical violence against women on campuses.

Sorority membership: Most sexual violence victims are sorority members. Drugs, alcohol, and a culture of secrecy in sorority groups can make it challenging to protect college students from crime.

Multiple sexual partners: Women with more sexual partners on campus are at a higher risk of encountering sexual violence than other categories of women.

Freshman and sophomore status: The first few years of joining campus are the riskiest for women in terms of security. Doorstop alarms and self-defense tools like pepper sprays are highly recommendable as security solutions.

Late and early morning schedules: Women that move late evening and early morning are more times to encounter incidences of stalking and sexual assault on campus.

Day of the week: A significant percentage of sexual assaults happen on weekends between midnight and 6 a.m.

Off-campus living and parties: A majority of sexual assaults happen in off-campus settings and at parties.

The Long-term Effects of Sexual Violence in College

Sexual assault, whether on campus, can have lifelong consequences. The effects and aftermath of rape can range from physical injuries to the mental

and emotional hurting. What victims feel and go through at a personal level is worse than can ever be verbally expressed.

The chilling long term consequences of rape, as outlined below, underscore the need to protect college students from crime with education in self-defense and personal protection gear.

Suicide and personal harm: The likelihood of one suffering from suicidal and depressive thoughts increases after sexual assault.

PTSD: In 94% of rape cases, the victims experience post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) shortly or long after the incident. Symptoms could include flashbacks, nightmares, and anxiety breakdowns.

Dissociation: Rape victims in colleges may find it hard to focus on school-work. Many might end up with low grades or opt to drop out.

Victim-perpetrator Relationships and Sexual Violence in College

Self-defense and personal protection gadgets are highly recommendable for safety against rape in colleges because of the personal aspect of the atrocious acts. Icasa.org reports that 84 % of rape victims know their attacker. The perpetrator can be a friend or acquaintance that catches you with your guard down.

Victim-perpetrator relationships make it all the more challenging for existing campus security measures to adequately protect college students from crime. Whether away in an off-campus college dorm within the campus, it falls on the students themselves to take charge of their persona safety and security.

Acquaintance rape makes up 39% of all reported rape cases in colleges. However, experts argue that a majority of unreported rape cases are perpetrated by people known to the victim. Even when in the company of friends, college women are still in the corona of sexual predators.

Intimate rape is another highly prevalent form of sexual assault in colleges, perpetrated by exes and current partners. Healthy relationships in college can quickly turn abusive and toxic. These factors, compounded by lapses in college dorm security, make campus life a significant risk for women living alone.

Lapses in Campus Security and College Rape Culture

Colleges and universities struggle to meet the safety and personal security needs of students. Studies have exposed severe gaps in campus perimeter security, lighting, and alarm systems. Even where these systems operate optimally, they cannot help protect college students from crime in off-campus apartments and dorms.

Communication and power: In most campuses, communication and alarm systems operations are dependent on the grid power supply. A power outage incident renders all emergency security systems dysfunctional.

Perimeter lapses: In most institutions, an unauthorized entrance can be achieved through access points other than the designated main entrance.

Inadequate monitoring: The designated entry points in college dorms and off-campus apartments may be inadequately monitored, leading to a free for all’ building access.

Video surveillance: In many institutions, video surveillance and alarm system are outdated and dysfunctional, but that only comes to light after an incident has transpired.

Door security issues: Some college dorm doors are not designed to be locked from the inside. Some feature broken or weak latching and locking hardware, exposing students to thieves and rapists that strike in the middle of the night.

What You Must Do to Stay Safe

The above security vulnerabilities, unfortunately, captures the situation in many universities across the countries. It explains why most institutions cannot confidently assure and protect college students from crime when they are an institution. Students must, therefore, invest in personal safety tools and tips to stay safe from criminals.

Lock your door and windows

How safe is your college dorm door when you sleep? Invest in a college door wedge alarm to help you robustly bolt your door from the inside. The door wedge alarm is a small portable device that goes in the small space between the door and the floor. It holds firmly in place, ensuring that a college student stays safe inside at night or during the day.

Stay alert

As seen before, most incidences of rape involve a perpetrator known to the victim. Watch out what transpires around you and in your relationships and set boundaries if need be. Once again, the doorstop alarm comes highly recommendable to protect college students from crime. The portable security gadget firmly holds your door in place, and a loud alarm siren is activated when someone tries to push the door from the outside. This is an intuitive solution for staying safe from the crazy ex-boyfriend or a creepy acquaintance.

Make the right friends.

Don’t walk alone late at night or early morning. Even when you live alone, stay in the company of trusted friends and neighbors. If, for some reason, you prefer a solitary life, consider taking self-defense classes. Additionally, ensure that you have a pepper spray or stun gun handy when walking alone in dimly lit places at night.

Maintain your privacy

Undesirable situations can happen when people come and go from your college dorm or apartment as they please. Privacy is highly recommendable to protect college students from crime. Keep your apartment address/room number secret and only share your keys with people you can trust.

While door chains can help with security when dealing with strangers, most are made of flimsy materials and are, therefore, prone to breakage. A door stop wedge is more reliable at reinforcing doors and can effectively protect college students from crime.

Embrace technology

Your smartphone can be a reliable campus security solution if used in the right way. Today many safety apps can give college students instant access to authorities, their fellow students, and parents when they feel unsafe.

College institutions may recommend tracking and emergency alert apps to protect college students from crime. These apps offer helpful ways for students to share their location with loved ones and send distress signals.

Take charge of your personal protection.

Whether in or outside a college dorm, your security and safety start and end with you. Have a personal protection plan for when you enter your room at night and exit in the morning. Be sure to confirm that you have everything, from alarms to portable self-defense tools. Be sure to verify that you know and trust your friends and have reliable help on your speed dial.

Colleges are prime breeding grounds for rape culture. Perpetrators take advantage of flaws in security policies and controls to target college women living alone. Don’t be a victim. Use the above solutions and insights to stay safe.