Night classes are a great, convenient way to advance your education, but students should be careful when walking around campus at night. Your focus should be on your studies, but don’t forget about your safety too. Let’s look at six ways to stay safe when you’re walking to night classes.
1. Know your campus
The best way to stay safe while attending night classes is to know your surroundings, especially if you’re going to a new school. Before you head out for your night class, go around campus during the day and look for everything you might need in an emergency. This could include spotting all the emergency call buttons, any dark corners where someone could hide, and the best-lit paths to walk along at night. Knowing your campus inside and out during the day will help keep you safe at night.
Related: An Important Guide to Student Safety and Support on Campus
2. Download safety apps to help
Your phone can be a very powerful tool with countless apps available that can help keep you safe at night. Some popular ones include:
- Watch Over Me: This app tracks your GPS location and can alert your emergency contacts if you don’t arrive home safely or if you leave the designated GPS area. There’s also an emergency alarm and recording camera that are triggered if your phone is shaken vigorously, such as if someone is trying to grab you.
- Circle of 6: This app lets users designate six people that they want to reach in case of an emergency and in two clicks, you can notify these six people if you need help. This app can work to protect you when you’re stuck in the dark and need assistance walking to and from your night classes.
There are always new apps coming out to help keep you safe at night and in dangerous situations, so if you’re enrolled in night classes, consider making your smartphone safer.
3. Be conscious of your surroundings
Any self-defense class will teach you that being conscious of your surroundings may help prevent an attack. When you’re walking around at night alone, you may want to talk to someone on the phone to distract yourself or so they know you’re safe. But doing so actually makes you less aware of your surroundings and more vulnerable to the unexpected. Instead, stay conscious of what’s around you. Study the sounds, smells, shadows, and landscape to be hyper-aware of any changes.
Related: 5 Smart Personal Safety Tips for High School and College Students
4. Stay sober
Alcohol impairs your ability to act quickly and make sound judgments. Keep your mind functioning at its top performance by avoiding drugs or alcohol. As stated above, being on top of your game and aware of your surroundings can help keep you safe on a dark campus. Also, why would you be going to class with a few drinks or drugs in your system anyway?
5. Implement the buddy system
We all remember the buddy system from when we were kids, and now is a great time to implement it. If you can, try to walk home from night classes with a buddy so you can keep each other safe. It’s harder for someone to commit a crime when there are people around, so safety is in the numbers when attending night classes. And if you're leaving for class when it's already dark, reach out to a fellow classmate ahead of time, see if your roommate is on their way somewhere on campus close by, or at least keep your phone on hand and text someone as you're walking.
6. Have an emergency plan
Hopefully nothing happens, but it’s always a good idea to speak to your emergency contact in case anything does. Have a conversation about what to do if you don’t make it home at your usual time without giving a heads up or if your emergency contact hasn’t heard from you in a while. Establishing this process before something happens will make it easier to act in an emergency if it ever arises.
Related: How to Stay Safe on Your College Campus
Your college classes can really change your life for the better, but they're not always at the most convenient time of day. Make sure you’re safe if you have to walk around campus at night by taking these precautions and communicating with people about where you're going and when you should be back. The more people who are aware of your comings and goings, the more likely you'll receive help should anything dangerous happen to you.
Keep yourself aware and ready for anything with all the tips under our "campus safety" tag!
