New Data Released on Sexual Assault and Misconduct at 10 Universities

The 2024 Higher Education Sexual Misconduct and Awareness (HESMA) Survey (PDF), conducted by Westat, provides information on the prevalence, knowledge, and perceptions surrounding sexual assault and misconduct for the 10 participating colleges and universities. The goal of the research is to help inform administrators and staff at these schools as they create strategies to evaluate and address sexual assault and misconduct on their campuses. All 10 schools also participated in the 2019 Association of American Universities (AAU) Campus Climate Survey on Sexual Assault and Sexual Misconduct.

To maintain the ability to track changes since 2019, the HESMA survey employed a questionnaire consistent with the 2019 AAU survey. As a result, the 2024 HESMA survey not only informs on the incidence, prevalence, and characteristics surrounding sexual assault and misconduct at the participating schools, it also shows the extent of change since 2019.

The online survey was administered from February to May 2024 and was conducted over a different 4- to 6-week period for each school within this 4-month period. The total sample was 180,323 undergraduate, graduate, or professional students in the 10 participating schools: California Institute of Technology, Georgetown University, Harvard University, Iowa State University, Stanford University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Pittsburgh, University of Virginia, Washington University at St. Louis, and Yale University. This resulted in 42,133 completed surveys, yielding a 23.4 percent response rate.

Key Takeaways

• The survey estimated the prevalence rate of nonconsensual sexual contact by force or inability to consent. This type of sexual misconduct involves behaviors and tactics that are specified in legal definitions for rape and sexual assault, as well as Clery Act crime statistics requirements. The prevalence rate for this type of misconduct varied significantly by gender and affiliation. The rate since the student first enrolled in school:
  • Among undergraduates, women (18.9%) and nonbinary, transgender, questioning, or self-identified students (21.1%) had rates three times higher than men (6.5%).
• The survey revealed that rates of nonconsensual sexual contact by force or inability to consent decreased between 2019 and 2024.
• Relatively few victims of nonconsensual penetration by physical force or inability to consent made contact with a program or resource after the incident (32%).
• A significant number of students experienced sexual harassment:
  • Overall,18.7 percent of students reported sexually harassing behavior that met the federal standards defining sexual harassment.
• The rate of sexual harassment decreased slightly between 2019 and 2024.
• The prevalence rate since first enrolling in school of intimate partner violence was 8.3 percent.
• The prevalence rate since first enrolling in school of stalking was 5.8 percent.
• The prevalence of intimate partner violence and stalking did not change between 2019 and 2024.
• A majority of students (57.6%) believe that a school official will take a report of a sexual assault seriously.

“This survey helps the participating schools identify trends and opportunities in efforts and also ensures that key stakeholders have the reliable information needed to develop targeted interventions,” notes David Cantor, PhD, the Westat co-principal investigator of the survey. “The survey can contribute to creating a safer, more informed, and responsive community.”

These studies shine a light on the fact that sexual assault and misconduct are prevalent among young people and have serious social and emotional consequences for those who have such experiences.

Read the full report

Report on the 2024 Higher Education Sexual Misconduct and Awareness Survey: Aggregate Report (PDF)