It’s that time of the year when college campuses are preparing for students moving into dormitories, campus housing, or off-campus apartments or housing. Stores are stocked with every possible item a young, trendy college student could possibly need or want. With all of the excitement, anticipation, and stress, it is important for students and parents to revisit “college safety!” College life brings new challenges.
10 safety tips to remember as students return to campus
- Keep electric safety in mind. Don’t overload outlets, extension cords or power strips. Keep electrical cords and appliances away from bedding, curtains, and other flammable material. Make sure that all cords and electrical products are UL, CSA, or MET approved. Check with university/college housing for specific housing rules for use of hot plates, coffee makers, microwaves, air fryers, etc allowed in dorm rooms. Many colleges are banning the use of cooking appliance in on-campus housing and instead providing a designated area for the use of cooking appliances.
- Check for smoke detectors. Know the fire escape route and never assume that if an alarm sounds that it is a drill.
- Always keep dorm or apartment doors locked, even when occupied.
- Keep an inventory of valuable possessions and record serial numbers.
- Know what coverage is needed for the housing situation. A student living in a dorm may have coverage for their personal belongs under their parents’ homeowner’s insurance policy. Students living off-campus will want to consider rental insurance to cover their personal possessions.
- Make sure that health insurance coverage meets the university/college requirements. Most colleges in the United States require their students to have health insurance.
- Don’t allow technology to cause unawareness of surroundings. When one is plugged into music or a smartphone, they may no longer be aware of their surroundings leaving one open to potential dangerous situations or walking into traffic.
- Never walk alone, especially at night. Utilize the buddy system whenever possible and know where emergency call buttons or phones are located across campus. Consider carrying pepper spray or a whistle.
- Have fun, party safe. Come and go with a friend. Avoid becoming inebriated and losing control. It’s easy for others to take advantage of someone who is alone, can’t think or act rationally.
- Always have emergency contacts on you or in your device. In the event of an emergency, one of the first steps emergency responders and hospitals take when someone is admitted alone is to check a smartphone (in most cases they are able to bypass the pass code in order to access contacts) or look for medical ID tags.
Wishing all students and parents a safe academic year!
