When a student goes away to college they aren’t just going to the campus, but they are also going to the surrounding community the college resides in. When you look at the college website they always try and put their best foot forward and their main focus is typically on the campus itself.
So what things should you be looking for when evaluating the area surrounding a college campus and how can you evaluate these things?
What to Evaluate in the Area Surrounding a College Campus?
Depending on who you are talking to and if they are the student or a parent the list of things to evaluate as well as the importance of each item can vary from person to person, but here are several things for you to think about.
Safety
The one thing that is usually at the top of most parents list is safety. They don’t want to send their son or daughter to a place that isn’t safe. While safety might not be on the top of every student’s list it is usually something that is pretty important to them as well.
So you will want to look at crime statistics for both the campus as well as the community the campus is in.
Thanks to the Clery Act, a 1990 law which was named for Lehigh University student Jeanne Clery, a 19-year-old woman who was raped and murdered in her dorm room four years prior, each college must publish an Annual Security Report and Fire Safety Report for their campus. The Clery Act requires schools to publish an annual report of crime statistics, disclose the location incidents take place, issue warnings of crimes, compile an annual fire safety report of on-campus housing, enact policies for missing students, and implement an emergency response policy to notify students quickly if a situation on campus poses a real and present danger.
The Clery Act makes sure that the college tells you about what has been happening on campus, but doesn’t list what is happening off-campus. So you will need to look elsewhere for this information.
Community Statistics
Beyond safety statistics, there is a lot of other statistical data about the community that you might be interested in looking at.
- Population – The size of the community can be a deal-breaker for some students
- Income and poverty numbers
- Diversity
- Cost of housing – Unless you plan on living on campus every year most students will be impacted by the cost of local housing at some point in your college career.
Business Environment
This is one that a lot of people don’t think a lot about, but it can be important for a few reasons.
One reason relates to employment. If a student would like to get a part-time job off-campus the business environment of the community will have a huge impact on what job opportunities there will be available there.
Another reason why the business environment of the community is important relates to internships. Internships are very helpful and depending on your major are often required in order to graduate. Having a large thriving local business environment will greatly increase the chances of finding a local internship opportunity.
Entertainment, Stores, and Restaurants
No matter how great a college campus is, students will be leaving campus throughout the year for a variety of reasons. Eventually, every student will need to buy clothes, shoes, or other personal items. Plus, most students will also want to venture off campus to go to restaurants or other entertainment locations with friends from time to time throughout the school year.
So you want to know what stores, restaurants, and entertainment options are available. You also want to know if they are conveniently located by the campus.
Public Transportation Options
Related to entertainment, stores, and restaurants is transportation.
Many students don’t have a car on-campus. So if the places they need or want to go off-campus aren’t within walking distance knowing about the public transportation options is very important.
How to Evaluate the Community a College Resides In?
There really isn’t one all-inclusive way to find out the information you might be looking for. Below are several ideas about sources of information that can help you get a more complete picture of the community.
Talk to People at the College
The admissions counselors and other people who work at the college often live in the local community or, at the very least, are very familiar with it. So don’t be afraid to ask them some questions. That said, you don’t need to let them be your only source of information.
Talk to People in the Community
When you make a college visit, take some time to visit the community, especially if you are going to stay overnight. Drive around and see where things are at. Visit a local restaurant. Go for a walk. As you are doing all of these things don’t forget to strike up a conversation with some of the people that you meet.
Ask Questions of the Student Leader Who is Giving a Campus-Tour
When you visit a college campus a lot of times current students will be the ones who will be giving the campus tour. Those student leaders can be your inside source for all sorts of information.
They can tell you where students go when they need to shop for different things or where students go for entertainment. Plus, they will be able to tell you how easy it is to get to these places.
You can also ask these students how safe they feel on campus and what they think about campus security.
City Government Webpage
As far as getting information about community crime or safety statistics you might want to start at the city government website. Often they will have some helpful data available there, but the helpfulness of these websites isn’t just limited crime statistics.
City government websites give important information about services that are offered in the community. They also are a great way to learn about community events and activities.
Newspapers
Local newspapers are a good source of information about the community.
Most newspapers will limit the amount of content you can see for free without a subscription. So if you go for a campus visit it might be worth buying a copy of the local paper while you are there.
Here Are Some Great Websites That You Can Use to Check Out City Data:
Final Thoughts
When you decide to go to a college you are also going to and getting the community that the college resides in whether you like it or not. They are a package deal.
So it is better to think about these things before you commit to going to a school.
That said, doing all this research can feel daunting and be time-consuming. So you may want to wait until you have narrowed down your college list a little bit before taking a deep dive into this data.
