Updated: Sept. 21, 2015 at 5:15 p.m.
About 20 percent of female undergraduate students at top national universities said they experienced sexual assault or other sexual misconduct this year, according to a new survey by the Association of American Universities.
Of the 20 percent of students who have experienced sexual misconduct, about 12 percent reported nonconsensual sexual contact through physical force or threats of physical force.
The survey also found low rates of victims reporting instances of sexual violence to campus or law enforcement officials with rates ranging from five to 28 percent, depending on the university. Students surveyed cited embarrassment or emotional difficulty as reasons for not reporting.
Researchers surveyed more than 150,000 students at 27 nationally prominent institutions, including most of the Ivy League universities. GW’s peer institution Washington University in St. Louis was included in the survey. GW was not included in the survey.
AAU researchers conducted this survey last year to better understand attitudes surrounding sexual misconduct on college campuses surveyed students at the end of this spring, according to the report.
GW conducted its own sexual violence campus climate survey last year. Results found that 36 percent of female upperclassmen had experienced unwanted sexual behavior on campus, and 80 percent of respondents said they did not know how to contact GW’s Title IX office.
