One of the suggestions that unigo.com makes on its campus tour checklist is that you tour the city and town around campus. While you are not planning to buy a home, you will be living in or near this community for the better part of the next four years and, as with real estate, one of the prime considerations is location, location, location! Depending on the distance the campus is from your family home, you may not be able to leave the environs often during your college years so you need to know as much as you can about the area surrounding your campus.
A site which is actually geared for prospective real estate buyers is invaluable for those searching not only for a college that fits their wants but a community that suits their needs, specifically safety. www.neighborhoodscout.com is touted as a "Neighborhood Search for Home Buyers and Real Estate Investment". You can search an address or neighborhood by city, state or zip code or actually click on a state on the map. You will be taken to information about the area which includes a "Crime Rates" tab. You will be able to locate the "10 Safest Cities" in that state. If you put in the college's actual address, (You can use the location of the admissions building.) you can get details for that specific area. These details include a shaded map of the area which denotes the safest to least safe areas.
You could and should visit the college's security division and ask for this information but keep in mind that they are part of the institution. The local police department or precinct would also have these statistics but someone may not be available to you on your visit. Another source would be the school paper but not all security incidents may be reported. Overall, www.neighborhoodscout.com might provide the most detailed and accurate information regarding the degree of safety and security you can expect in a specific locale.
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