College is meant to be some of the best years of everyone’s lives. Whether it’s by the memories you make or the work you are participating in, college is supposed to be a fun a safe place. Unfortunately, today’s society is very sporadic and dangerous. Accidents and tragedies happen every day and sadly, college areas are a hot spot for dangerous situations. As with everything in life, there are a few safety tips for college students to understand while they attend to their education. Let’s look at 5 safety tips that can help you stay out of a dangerous situation.
Drop the phone.
Technology runs our lives now. Every red light has people on their phones. When you drive through downtown at night, all you see are teens walking around on their phones. Out of all the safety tips, disconnecting from your phone for a few minutes might be the one that ends up saving the most lives. According to the Institute for Highway Safety reports, 11 teens die from texting and driving every day here in America. The numbers only get higher once alcohol becomes involved as well. When you’re driving, there should be no reason to be on your phone, especially if it’s night. The same applies for teens walking around by themselves at night. If you are out and are in an area you don’t know that well, then maybe you would want to be aware of your surroundings. If you need to be on your phone, then stay with a group of people or enter nearby store. If you are in the age range of 15 to 20 then you are in the range that serves as the highest numbers of kidnappings. When you are out driving or in an unfamiliar area, then please put the phone away. Whatever it is, it can wait.
Never go out alone.
Safety tips sometimes act as an obvious reminder. While it’s obvious that you shouldn’t go out at night alone, it still happens. Clubs and bars can be very dangerous places for people to go to alone. Especially if you tend to be shy or scare easily. Anything can happen, and in case something was to happen then you want a friend there with you. There are too many college students out there that truly believe that they can hold their liquor a lot better than they actually can. People pass out all the time as they want to experience the party life. There is nothing wrong with that, just have a friend there to be able to pick you up. The same goes for things such as phone’s dying. If you are out by yourself and your phone dies, well that can be a little scary for most students. You might need to call an or a friend or even just GPS your way back home. People with at least one other person that you trust can go a long way.
Don’t take drinks from anyone.
Now this might not be one of the safety tips you follow for every outing. If you are at a friend’s house or amongst people that you trust, then them pouring you a drink isn’t the problem here. This tip applies more for parties and clubs where a lot of students tend to just pass around drinks and take drinks from any person they see. A lot of accidents happen from not knowing what you are drinking. Your cup could be drugged, or it can be something not as serious such as it could have something you’re allergic to. In the wake of the pandemic, sickness can also be spread through people just passing around their drinks. If you are out and really wanting to get a drink, just go get it yourself or have someone that you trust get it for you. Also, you just never know where people have been. For all you know the guy who just passed you his drink hasn’t brushed his teeth in days. Just avoid the issue entirely and go pour yourself your own drink.
A lot of students tend to trust many people very easily. To avoid any situation going south, it’s always best to simply stay away from any people that you don’t fully know. If someone you don’t fully trust or know offers you a ride, then it would probably be best to take an Uber instead or simply stay with the group of people you trust. A lot of kidnappings occur from the willingness of students going with the kidnapper. To avoid situation such as these from occurring, try to stay with the people you trust. It’s okay to tell someone that you rather get to know them better before going on rides or to places alone with them. If you have someone that you trust with you then it’s bet to have someone that you do trust with you. At the end of the day, you need to value your gut feeling over what others are going to say about you skipping out on a ride.
Be aware of any criminal activity going on in your campus.
Being aware of any criminal activity going on in or around your campus can help you avoid danger. If there are some streets that are heavy in crime, then it would be best to not go on those roads late at night by yourself. There are tons of news sources for you to be able to check what’s going on. You always want to be aware of which spots are safer than others and maybe not go to any dangerous areas on your own. Most colleges themselves often offer their own safety alerts which will inform students of any forms of danger or criminal activity in the area. Pay close attention to any criminal alerts before you plan on going out with your friends. Safety tips are very important for college students to know. Use them to keep you and your friends safe.
