Download a PDF of the fact sheet
In the spring semester of 2017, Tulane University administered a sexual misconduct campus climate survey. Tulane used the Administrator-Researcher Campus Climate Collaborative (ARC3) survey.
9,958 full-time students received an invitation to take the survey. 4,644 students at Tulane completed the survey, a response rate of 47%.
This was the university’s second student survey on these topics. In 2014-15, Tulane administered the American College Health Association-National Collegiate Health Assessment (NCHA-II) and the Healthy Minds Study (HMS) surveys.
9,958 students were invited to participate in the survey. 4,644 students completed the survey, a 47% response rate.
Key Findings:
• Undergraduate women, especially LGBQ+ women, reported the highest rates of sexual assault. Overall, 41% of undergraduate women reported experiencing sexual assault since enrolling at Tulane. Fifty-one percent of undergraduate LGBQ+ women and 39% of undergraduate heterosexual women reported sexual assault.
Overall, 18% of undergraduate men reported experiencing sexual assault. Forty-four percent of undergraduate GBQ+ men reported experiencing sexual assault, compared to 13% of undergraduate heterosexual men.
Collectively, graduate and undergraduate students of color reported lower rates of sexual assault than their white peers. Heterosexual women of color reported an 18% rate of sexual assault versus 35% for white heterosexual women. LGBQ+ women of color reported a rate of 38% and GBQ+ men of color reported 21% versus 46% for white LGBQ+ women and 42% for white GBQ+ men.
• Alcohol is often involved in perpetrating the sexual assault of Tulane undergraduates, with 74% of women and 87% of men who experienced sexual assault reporting they were incapacitated by alcohol at the time of assault.
• Graduate students experience higher rates of sexism, crude comments and sexual harassment by faculty and staff in the academic setting than their undergraduate colleagues. LGBQ+ graduate student women, reported the highest rates of sexism or sex discrimination by faculty or staff at 42%, followed by heterosexual women (29%), GBQ+ men (24%) and heterosexual men (19%) in graduate and professional programs.
• LGBQ+ undergraduate students reported the highest rates of dating violence: 38% for LGBQ+ undergraduate women and 32% for GBQ+ undergraduate men.
• Most undergraduate sexual misconduct victims feel that Tulane did or would provide them with needed support and valued them. Eighty-four percent of both undergraduate men and women said that Tulane did or would actively support them with formal or informal resources.
• Fewer than half of undergraduate women (42%) and a quarter of men (23%) who experienced sexual misconduct reported disclosing their experiences with anyone.
Only 42% of undergraduate women disclosed their incidents to anyone. Only 23% of undergraduate men disclosed their incidents to anyone. 84% of undergraduate sexual misconduct victims said Tulane did/would support them.
Creating a Prevention Culture
Working with experts among from our community and others across the country to apply national best practices in the prevention of sexual assault and harassment, Tulane will strive to become a leader in finding answers. This work will include evaluation of its efforts, and sharing insights with higher education colleagues.
Tulane will focus on the following:
- Increase integration of sexual violence prevention into the Tulane experience
- Increase the visibility of specific issues of intersectionality and sexual violence
- Establish greater means for student engagement
- Expand community support for survivors and encourage reporting
- Articulate a transparent evaluation plan and further research.
