is it even SAFE to attend college in D.C. (crime rate, home)

[dscholar08]

For the past week I've been doing my research on Howard University and I must say everyday with google is making my decision easier with "HELL NO IM NOT LEAVING FLORIDA" My area is one of the SAFEST in Florida- its beautiful it's diverse and the schools are wonderful.

The D.C. area is ALL over the internet for being THE WORST area to live in. And Im only trying to go to school- and of course there would be no difference.

I told my parents that I wanted to at LEAST visit the campus but they said just go online.....and to my surprise there are articles on murders, and violence, robberies, car thefts and I dont think I read anything about rape but what I did read is enough to ask HOW AND WHY are people sending their children to these schools.


Im 19years old, and smart enough to know that the university has nothing to do with the crime but its SMACK dead in the middle of it and Im supposed to believe its safe??????

Im SO upset! I already moved back home from living in Orlando Florida and the drug and crime rate gave me first hand HORRIBLE in counters.

Im SO torn because Im only moving to better my education and I cant even do that.
How could I not be scared to live in D.C.???
How is it that the president is there and all this stuff happens SO easily????

Its horrible thought knowing that I cant attend because the area is SO bad.

[nigel08]

I've lived in London, Boston, LA, Philadelphia and DC. DC is by far my favorite city. It's very livable. The only two drawbacks are the heat at the worst of the summer (like right now) and not having representation in Congress.

The crime here is normal big city stuff. I've lived here for 8 years, about five blocks from Howard. If you use common sense you should be fine.

That said, I'm nervous about you coming here. If you are that easily scared by a bunch of Internet posts, you might not like it. You might be better off sticking with what you are used to, with your parents making your decisions for you and making sure your safe, suburban view of the world is never threatened.

Good luck in whatever you choose.

[yankee.peddler]

The Internet is famous for exaggeration motived more by emotion than reality. I am skeptical of posts that paint a doomsday image of a city or region.

With that said, D.C. is a large city with a significant urban core. Crime exists. However, if you exercise common sense, you should run into no problems. D.C. has several thousand college students who make out quite well.

I highly recommend that you visit the city before making a decision. If you're going to spend the next four years of your life in a city, it's wise to determine whether or not that city fits your personality and meets your needs. The Internet will not help you with that.

Good Luck.

[Adrian71]

A lot of what you're reading is true ... D.C. is notorious for its crime rate. HOWEVER, if you know which parts of the city to avoid, you'll be relatively safe ... no worse off than in any other big city.

In general, Northwest is the safest area, and Southeast is the most dangerous. In between, Southwest isn't too bad, and Northeast is sketchy. Basically, the touristy parts of town are OK, but the rest is up for grabs, anywhere from "so-so" to "stay away if you value your life."

Yes, these are broad generalizations, but they'll serve you pretty well if you do choose to come to D.C.

[Shopaholic]

Yes, DC has a high crime rate, but that crime is concentrated in a few areas. If you stay away from them you are usually fine. I went to Georgetown and there were muggings, but these usually happened while people were being stupid like walking around late at night by themselves.

[Zippy7fo]

Okay Okay Okay yes their is crime not to far from Howard University but they do have security and its a high trafficed area. Just use common sense and never walk alone late at night. But its a great school with great tradition and Howard U has major influence in the area, especially in the AA community. You'll build many connections and if you decided to stay after graduation you'll have many people to turn to for advice and support. I think you'll be fine and I've never heard of anybody getting shot or stabbed at HU....

[saganista]

Keep in mind that the indexed crime rates in DC are about half what they were as little as 10-15 years ago. Some people haven't gotten the memo yet. If you volunteer to become the victim of a crime here, it is likely that someone will oblige you, just as they would in New York, LA, Chicago, St. Louis, Detroit, Cleveland, Houston, Atlanta, or any other major urban center. But DC is not Baghdad. People do not live their lives here barricaded in terror behind their front doors, afraid to go outside. Indeed, except during the very cold and very hot months (one of which is right now), outdoor activities are a hallmark of DC because there are so many local venues and opportunities for such.

That said, the area around Howard University is not one of the best in the city. It is part of a swath across the northern tier that was seriously damaged during the riots that followed Martin Luther King's assassination. Home rule for the District was still five years away at that point, so the city, and the obligation for repairing it, were in the hands of Congress, who didn't exactly trip over themselves in getting repair and reconstruction going. Many areas sank into poverty, crime, drugs, and despair. Some of these were areas that had been among the city's finest just a few decades prior, but no one cared. This situation persisted in general until the late 1980's. Since that time, the seeds of recovery have at last begun to grow. Sometimes slowly, and always unevenly, areas are being reborn. Columbia Heights (which is where Howard is) is behind the curve, but the whole curve is moving. Using nothing more than standard urban street sense, thousands live in this and similar areas with no signifcant thought of crime at all.

At the same time, and as per the above, if one is phobic over various aspects of typical middle class urban living, the neighborhood around Howard is not going to be one's cup of tea. But again per above, the best bet will be to go there and see what it feels like to you. No one else can do that for you, and you shouldn't let them...

[ayannaaaliyah]

DC is a wonderfully diverse, progressive city. Yes there is crime, crime is everywhere. We can't run from it, we can't hide. HU is a great school, and as one poster said, you can build many strong bonds and relationships over the years. Students come from all over the country to attend school at HU, as well as the other colleges in and around the city.

With that being said, it seems as though you have been totally out of touch with the world around you, in your 19 years. Do you want national news? obviously not, because you would know that crime is EVERYWHERE.

Harvard University
OPE ID: 00215500

The crime data reported by the institutions have not been subjected to independent verification by the U.S. Department of Education. Therefore, the Department cannot vouch for the accuracy of the data reported here.

Criminal Offenses


Criminal Offenses - On Campus 2003 2004 2005
a. Murder/Non-negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
b. Negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
c. Sex offenses - Forcible 16 30 12
d. Sex offenses - Non-forcible (incest and statutory rape only) 0 0 0
e. Robbery 2 0 1
f. Aggravated assault 6 2 5
g. Burglary 451 372 327
h. Motor vehicle theft 6 7 2
i. Arson 0 1 1
Caveat:
2004 Forcible Sex Offenses increased by 1 due to earlier misclassificaton.
2004 Aggravated Assaults - 2 reclassifed from campus to public.
2004 Arsons increased by 1 due to earlier misclassification.


Criminal Offenses - On-Campus Residence Halls
(Residence Halls are a subset of On Campus) 2003 2004 2005
a. Murder/Non-negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
b. Negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
c. Sex offenses - Forcible 15 26 12
d. Sex offenses - Non-forcible (incest and statutory rape only) 0 0 0
e. Robbery 0 0 0
f. Aggravated assault 0 0 3
g. Burglary 119 89 88
h. Motor vehicle theft 0 0 0
i. Arson 0 1 0
Caveat:
2004 Arson increased by 1 due to earlier misclassification.


Criminal Offenses - Public Property 2003 2004 2005
a. Murder/Non-negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
b. Negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
c. Sex offenses - Forcible 10 23 17
d. Sex offenses - Non-forcible (incest and statutory rape only) 0 0 0
e. Robbery 23 17 16
f. Aggravated assault 11 24 19
g. Burglary 13 0 0
h. Motor vehicle theft 30 25 31
i. Arson 0 0 0
Caveat:
2004 Aggravated Assault increased by 2 due to earlier misclassification.

Howard University OPE ID: 00144800

The crime data reported by the institutions have not been subjected to independent verification by the U.S. Department of Education. Therefore, the Department cannot vouch for the accuracy of the data reported here.

Criminal Offenses


Criminal Offenses - On Campus 2003 2004 2005
a. Murder/Non-negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
b. Negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
c. Sex offenses - Forcible 0 1 2
d. Sex offenses - Non-forcible (incest and statutory rape only) 0 0 0
e. Robbery 7 1 8
f. Aggravated assault 20 7 4
g. Burglary 34 45 31
h. Motor vehicle theft 9 0 23
i. Arson 0 0 0


Criminal Offenses - On-Campus Residence Halls
(Residence Halls are a subset of On Campus) 2003 2004 2005
a. Murder/Non-negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
b. Negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
c. Sex offenses - Forcible 0 1 1
d. Sex offenses - Non-forcible (incest and statutory rape only) 0 0 0
e. Robbery 0 0 0
f. Aggravated assault 6 4 0
g. Burglary 34 30 14
h. Motor vehicle theft 0 0 0
i. Arson 0 0 0


Criminal Offenses - Public Property 2003 2004 2005
a. Murder/Non-negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
b. Negligent manslaughter 0 0 0
c. Sex offenses - Forcible 0 5 2
d. Sex offenses - Non-forcible (incest and statutory rape only) 0 0 0
e. Robbery 2 43 22
f. Aggravated assault 1 6 8
g. Burglary 5 2 2
h. Motor vehicle theft 9 42 28
i. Arson 0 0 0

[Adrian71]

Originally Posted by ayannaaaliyah

With that being said, it seems as though you have been totally out of touch with the world around you, in your 19 years. Do you want national news? obviously not, because you would know that crime is EVERYWHERE.

I don't think that's quite a fair thing to tell the OP. DC has a reputation for crime for a very good reason. He deserves to know what he's getting into, without having it sugar-coated or downplayed.

[saganista]

Originally Posted by YoAdrian

I don't think that's quite a fair thing to tell the OP. DC has a reputation for crime for a very good reason. He deserves to know what he's getting into, without having it sugar-coated or downplayed.

What the OP would be getting into would be a city. Although DC's crime rates are hardly what they were 10 to 15 years ago, it is still a city. The chances of being involved in a crime here are higher than what they are in many more rural areas. Then again, the chances of being mauled by a bear or attacked by a bobcat here are somewhat lower...