David Matheny
Three percent of college women experience a completed and/or attempted rape during a college year, according to a study released Monday.
“The Sexual Victimization of College Women,” offers an in-depth look into the prevalence and nature of sexual assault on college campuses.
The report was released by the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Institute of Justice and the Bureau of Justice Statistics. The study was federally funded, and conducted by Bonnie S. Fisher, a professor at the University of Cincinnati, Francis T. Cullen and Michael G. Turner.
The study reported these statistics:
· 1.7% of college women reported being coerced to have sex
· 13% of women have been stalked since the beginning of the year
· 60% of assault took place in victims residence
· 31% of assault took place in other living quarters
· 10% of assault occurred at a fraternity
Also note the study also showed that the vast majority of incidents occurred after 6 p.m. And when considering unwelcome sexual contact and threatened victimization, incidents also took place in bars, night clubs, and work settings.
The study also pointed out who is doing the assaulting. “Most victims knew the person who sexually victimized them,” the authors wrote. “For both completed and attempted rapes, about nine in 10 offenders were known to the victim, most often a boyfriend, ex-boyfriend, classmate, friend acquaintance, or co worker sexually victimized the women. College professors were not identified as committing any rapes or sexual coercions, but they were cited as the offender in a low percentage of cases involving unwanted sexual contact.”
Fisher and her colleagues estimate that at a college of 10,000 female students, more than 350 rapes a year could occur. The victim will often not go to authorities because of embarrassment, not knowing the definition of rape, and not wanting to associate attacker with being a rapist.
It is for this reason the study reinforces the importance of many organizations efforts to improve education and knowledge about sexual assault.
Attention to sexual victimization has been prompted by rising fear that college campuses have become hot spots for criminal activity. Researchers suggest that a college female may be at more risk for sexual victimization than women in the general public.
Surveys for these reports were given over telephone in national samples. The samples include 4,446 women who were attending a 2 or 4 year college. The samples were limited to schools with at least 1,000 people. The most eye popping figure that was discover was that for every 1,000 women on these campuses, that 35 incidents of rape will occur.

What to do if victimized
Study