It seems incredible, but every year college campuses witness 20 homicides, on average. As this article points out, though, that figure rises to 70 if you include off-campus students.

What's more, the U.S. Department of Justice says that in recent years "students were 14 times more likely to be victims of violent crimes off campus than they were on campus."

Why? Evidently, off-campus digs host raucous, unsupervised parties that often lead to violence. Plus, students find trouble traveling to and from campus.

Even in "safe" towns, you can't be too cautious. It's best not to walk alone, especially at night. adopt a pack mentality---you know, the buddy system.

Simply put, use common sense.