Campus safety is a major selling point when choosing a school, but one Midwestern university can claim the title of America's safest.
According to a ranking Academic Influence edPurdue University's West Lafayette campus earned the top spot, with researchers praising the school's Crisis Intervention Teams, strong building security and a student safety patrol among the factors for the high score.
West Lafayette's low violent crime rate also won praise from researchers, according to the website.
According to officials, compliance with the Clery Act, which requires schools to provide transparent information about policy and crime statistics, is one of the key metrics assessed by the survey.
Schools are also rated on the number of security officers on campus, the presence of easily accessible blue-light emergency phones and the availability of services such as parking lot escorts, student buses and mental health offices.
Crime statistics and the implementation of surveillance systems were also reviewed, according to the website.
Academic Influence describes itself as a “team of academics and data scientists” that aims to rank different aspects of the world of higher education, “identifying and promoting the best in higher education”. according to its website.
The University of Idaho and the Brigham Young University-Idaho campus filled the next two spots, with Bridgewater State University in Massachusetts and the University of Massachusetts completing the top five.
Two other Midwestern schools also made the list, with Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan earning the No. 7 spot and Northern Kentucky University checking in at No. 9.
