SD
University of South Dakota
2.17 incidents / 1,000 students
Vermillion, SD · Clery Act 2024 · Public
University of South Dakota
Across 2022–2024, University of South Dakota reported 33 incidents in the Clery Criminal Offenses section, and the yearly count rose over that span (largest filed category: Rape). Nearby same-state same-level comparison: South Dakota State University.
- 2.17
- Incidents / 1k students
- #1,084
- Rank of 2,072
- #15
- SD rank
- 10,619
- Enrolled students
2.17 reported score-category incidents per 1,000 students
University of South Dakota reports 2.17 2024 score-category incidents per 1,000 - 174% above University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez. Similar-enrollment scored peers: University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez (0.00/1k); Community College of Allegheny County (0.47/1k); Wright State University-Main Campus (2.36/1k); Regent University (0.19/1k); Phoenix College (0.94/1k). Same-state same-level set also includes South Dakota State University (1.33/1k); Dakota State University (0.79/1k); Northern State University (1.62/1k); Black Hills State University (0.90/1k); South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (0.78/1k); Augustana University (8.79/1k); University of Sioux Falls (0.69/1k); Mount Marty University (4.67/1k). Largest Criminal Offenses total across filed years: Rape.
Data source U.S. Department of Education, OPE Campus Safety and Security Survey
- incidents / 1,000 students
- 2.17
- of 2,072 ranked nationally
- #1,084
- report fewer incidents than this campus
- 52%
- Criminal Offenses, 2024
- 9
Source: U.S. Department of Education OPE Campus Safety and Security Survey
Data updated August 2026
Clery Act plate
Sheet 219471 · University of South Dakota 2.17/1k score rate · #1,084/2,072
RATE-MID · RANK-LOWER · ST-MID · BELOW-PEER · ZERO-NONE · TREND-UP · CAT-LEAD · ENR-MID · FIRE-REPORT
- RATE-MID 2.17/1k
- RANK-LOWER #1,084/2,072
- ST-MID #15 in state
- BELOW-PEER Wright State University-Main Campus · 0.19 back
- ZERO-NONE Scored
- TREND-UP ↑ 13%
- CAT-LEAD Rape
- ENR-MID 10,619
- FIRE-REPORT 3 fires
Nearest enrollment peer: Wright State University-Main Campus (+0.19/1k)
University of South Dakota sheet RATE-MID · RANK-LOWER · ST-MID · BELOW-PEER · ZERO-NONE · TREND-UP · CAT-LEAD · ENR-MID · FIRE-REPORT · peer Wright State University-Main Campus. Codes from this campus OPE filing: score-category rate, national/state rank, named enrollment peer, zero posture, Criminal Offenses trend, lead category, enrollment band, fire filing. Not a moving recommendation.
Clery plate RATE-MID · RANK-LOWER · ST-MID · BELOW-PEER · ZERO-NONE · TREND-UP · CAT-LEAD · ENR-MID · FIRE-REPORT. Nearest similar-enrollment peer is Wright State University-Main Campus (+0.19/1k). National rank #1,084 of 2,072 scored campuses. Instrument codes from this campus OPE sheet; compare similarly sized peers before treating any single rate as decisive.
University of South Dakota reports 2.17 2024 score-category incidents per 1,000 - 174% above University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez. Similar-enrollment scored peers: University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez (0.00/1k); Community College of Allegheny County (0.47/1k); Wright State University-Main Campus (2.36/1k); Regent University (0.19/1k); Phoenix College (0.94/1k). Same-state same-level set also includes South Dakota State University (1.33/1k); Dakota State University (0.79/1k); Northern State University (1.62/1k); Black Hills State University (0.90/1k); South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (0.78/1k); Augustana University (8.79/1k); University of Sioux Falls (0.69/1k); Mount Marty University (4.67/1k). Largest Criminal Offenses total across filed years: Rape.
Peer-rate neighbourhood around University of South
Lowest/highest enrollment peers plus campuses nearest University on score-category rate. Full ladder: /rankings/safest-campuses.
- University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez · lowest peer 0
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez — lowest peer
0 per 1,000 students
- Community College of Allegheny · near 0.47
Community College of Allegheny County — near
0.47 per 1,000 students
- Phoenix College · near 0.94
Phoenix College — near
0.94 per 1,000 students
- University of South Dakota · this campus
University of South Dakota — this campus
2.17 per 1,000 students
- Wright State University-Main Campus · highest peer
Wright State University-Main Campus — highest peer
2.36 per 1,000 students
What this shows Neighbourhood of similar-enrollment peers around University of South Dakota's 2.17/1k rate, not a full-corpus distribution reprint.
Reporting-period change
What changed in 2024
University of South Dakota decreased from 16 to 9 reported on-campus incidents between the 2023 and 2024 reporting years in the U.S. Department of Education OPE Campus Safety Survey.
This is a change in reported incidents, not a measure of individual safety. Enrollment, reporting practice, and category coverage can affect the count.
See national reporting-year changesSignature insight · size does not equal danger
Campus size vs reported safety rate
Among 14 SD 4-year peers in this comparison, University of South Dakota is larger than 92% and safer-reporting than 15% - the larger, higher-reporting quadrant. Axes are within-sample percentiles so outliers share the same frame; a higher safety percentile means a lower Clery incidents-per-1,000 rate.
Read the chart as text
- Point 1: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 100, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 38
- Point 2: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 85, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 54
- Point 3: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 77, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 31
- Point 4: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 69, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 46
- Point 5: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 62, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 62
- Point 6: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 54, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 0
- Point 7: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 46, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 69
- Point 8: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 38, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 8
- Point 9: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 31, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 77
- Point 10: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 23, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 77
- Point 11: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 15, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 77
- Point 12: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 8, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 23
- Point 13: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 0, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 77
- University of South Dakota: Enrollment size, percentile in sample 92, Safer-reporting percentile (lower rate) 15
Read the chart as a table
| Campus | Enrollment | Rate / 1k | Size pct | Safety pct |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sisseton Wahpeton College | 206 | 0.00 | 0 | 77 |
| Sinte Gleska University | 592 | 1.69 | 8 | 23 |
| Dakota Wesleyan University | 892 | 0.00 | 15 | 77 |
| Oglala Lakota College | 1,188 | 0.00 | 23 | 77 |
| Kairos University | 1,239 | 0.00 | 31 | 77 |
| Mount Marty University | 1,284 | 4.67 | 38 | 8 |
| University of Sioux Falls | 1,450 | 0.69 | 46 | 69 |
| Augustana University | 2,390 | 8.79 | 54 | 0 |
| South Dakota School of Mines and Technology | 2,576 | 0.78 | 62 | 62 |
| Black Hills State University | 3,346 | 0.90 | 69 | 46 |
| Northern State University | 3,708 | 1.62 | 77 | 31 |
| University of South Dakota (this campus) | 10,619 | 2.17 | 92 | 15 |
Sample of 12 campuses from the plot (sorted by enrollment). Source: U.S. Department of Education OPE Campus Safety Survey + IPEDS enrollment. Rate = on-campus Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents per 1,000 students; lower is safer-reporting, not a personal-risk forecast.
What changed between 2023 and 2024
Reported on-campus incidents at University of South Dakota fell from 16 to 9 (-44%). The increase shows up in Burglary (1 to 2). Falling over the same period: Rape (11 to 6), Fondling (3 to 1) and Motor Vehicle Theft (1 to 0).
This describes reported incidents, not crime. Clery counts move with reporting policy, awareness campaigns and how a campus staffs its security authorities, so a rise can reflect better capture of reports and a fall can reflect worse capture. One year of movement at a single campus is not a trend.
What actually gets reported at University of South Dakota
Across 3 reporting years, on-campus incidents were recorded in 4 Clery Act categories here: Rape, Burglary, Fondling and Motor Vehicle Theft. Rape accounts for most of them.
The remaining 7 categories were reported with no on-campus incidents, among them Aggravated Assault, Arson, Incest and Murder / Non-Negligent Manslaughter. Under the Clery Act that zero is an affirmative report that nothing in the category occurred, not an absence of data, which is why the table below lists those rows rather than dropping them.
Counts describe incidents reported under the Clery Act for the on-campus geography. Reporting practice varies between institutions, so counts are not a direct measure of relative safety.
Crime Statistics by Year
11 categories 3 reporting years on-campus onlyUniversity of South Dakota: Criminal Offenses by year
Rising 13% (8 → 9 incidents)
Read the chart as text
| Period | On-campus incidents |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 8 |
| 2023 | 16 |
| 2024 | 9 |
| Crime Type | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rape | 6 | 11 | 5 |
| Burglary | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Fondling | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Motor Vehicle Theft | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Aggravated Assault | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Arson | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Incest | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Murder / Non-Negligent Manslaughter | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Negligent Manslaughter | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Robbery | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Statutory Rape | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Source: US Dept of Education OPE Campus Safety Survey. Table figures show the Criminal Offenses section; other Clery tables are separate
Fire Safety
| Year | Fires | Inj. | Deaths | Cat I | Cat II |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Arrests & Disciplinary Actions
27 category-year records| Category | Year | Arrests | Discipline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drugs | 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 2024 | 1 | 2 |
| Liquor | 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Liquor | 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Liquor | 2024 | 3 | 51 |
| Weapons | 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Weapons | 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Weapons | 2024 | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 2023 | 0 | 9 |
| Liquor | 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Liquor | 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Liquor | 2023 | 9 | 144 |
| Weapons | 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Weapons | 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Weapons | 2023 | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 2022 | 0 | 0 |
| Drugs | 2022 | 0 | 0 |
University of South Dakota vs peer institutions
Side-by-side safety scores for 3 peers of similar enrollment
Scores are $2024 Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents per 1,000 enrolled students (lower is fewer in those categories).
PR
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez
0.00 incidents / 1,000 students
PA
Community College of Allegheny County
0.47 incidents / 1,000 students
Cost context
Where University of South Dakota sits on price and outcomes
At $19,858, University of South Dakota's reported average net price is cheaper than 70% among 20 South Dakota colleges with a reported figure. The state median is $18,146.
- $19,858
- average net price
- $18,146
- South Dakota median
- 2.0×
- six-year earnings to median debt
- $7,272
- reported income-bracket spread
Net price moves with income here, but not sharply: $14,921 for families reporting under $30,000 against $22,193 above $110,000, a difference of $7,272. Aid narrows the gap without closing it, so the $19,858 average sits reasonably close to what most brackets report.
Six-year median earnings of $46,290 run about 2.3 times the annual net price. The margin is real but narrow, so how many years of price a student actually pays matters a great deal here.
Average net price reflects grant and scholarship aid for aided students, not a personal offer. Earnings cover former students who received federal aid; neither measure predicts an individual's outcome.
Academic & Financial Profile
Tuition & Costs
- In-State Tuition
- $9,432
- Out-of-State Tuition
- $12,942
- Avg Net Price
- $19,858
- Median Debt
- $23,592
- Pell Grant Recipients
- 19%
Admissions
- Acceptance Rate
- 99%
- SAT Average
- 1125
- SAT Math Range
- 595-695
- ACT Average
- 22
- ACT Range
- 19-25
Outcomes
- 4-Year Graduation Rate
- 61%
- Retention Rate
- 79%
- Median Earnings (6yr)
- $46,290
- Median Earnings (10yr)
- $51,926
- Loan Repayment (3yr)
- 82%
Source: IPEDS & College Scorecard. Methodology.
Similar Institutions
Showing 5 of 767 similar institutions by enrollment size.
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez
Mayaguez, PR · 10,618 enrolled
Safety Score 0.00
Community College of Allegheny County
Pittsburgh, PA · 10,609 enrolled
Safety Score 0.47
Wright State University-Main Campus
Dayton, OH · 10,603 enrolled
Safety Score 2.36
Regent University
Virginia Beach, VA · 10,657 enrolled
Safety Score 0.19
Phoenix College
Phoenix, AZ · 10,660 enrolled
Safety Score 0.94
Closest by National Rank
University of South Dakota (national rank #1084) sits near California State University-Chico (#1083) and St. John Fisher University (#1085) on the scored national list, nearest by rank, not by size or state.
California State University-Chico
Chico, CA
National Rank #1083
St. John Fisher University
Rochester, NY
National Rank #1085
Eastern Kentucky University
Richmond, KY
National Rank #1086
Carl Albert State College
Poteau, OK
National Rank #1082
University of the Pacific
Stockton, CA
National Rank #1081
Nationwide campuses with similar scale or Clery rate
Two Clery-derived peer sets for University of South Dakota, both outside SD so the neighborhoods are not state containment (Similar Institutions and national-rank neighbors above stay enrollment- or rank-based).
Similar enrollment (nationwide)
University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez
Mayaguez, PR · 10,618 enrolled
Safety score 0.00
Wright State University-Main Campus
Dayton, OH · 10,603 enrolled
Safety score 2.36
Regent University
Virginia Beach, VA · 10,657 enrolled
Safety score 0.19
Hofstra University
Hempstead, NY · 10,685 enrolled
Safety score 2.15
Tennessee Technological University
Cookeville, TN · 10,511 enrolled
Safety score 3.33
Saint Cloud State University
Saint Cloud, MN · 10,732 enrolled
Safety score 1.58
University of Dayton
Dayton, OH · 10,506 enrolled
Safety score 10.09
Morgan State University
Baltimore, MD · 10,739 enrolled
Safety score 5.77
Similar 2024 Clery rate (nationwide)
St. John Fisher University
Rochester, NY · 3,693 enrolled
Safety score 2.17
California State University-Chico
Chico, CA · 15,257 enrolled
Safety score 2.16
Eastern Kentucky University
Richmond, KY · 15,673 enrolled
Safety score 2.17
University of the Pacific
Stockton, CA · 6,944 enrolled
Safety score 2.16
University of Toledo
Toledo, OH · 14,358 enrolled
Safety score 2.16
Western Connecticut State University
Danbury, CT · 4,169 enrolled
Safety score 2.16
Virginia Wesleyan University
Virginia Beach, VA · 1,853 enrolled
Safety score 2.16
Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine
Erie, PA · 4,133 enrolled
Safety score 2.18
Frequently Asked Questions
Is University of South Dakota safe?
University of South Dakota has a safety score of 2.17 (2024 on-campus Criminal Offenses and VAWA incidents per 1,000 enrolled students) and ranks #1,084 nationally out of 2,072 ranked institutions - nearest similar-enrollment comparison: University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez (0.00/1k). Same-state same-level set: South Dakota State University (1.33/1k); Dakota State University (0.79/1k); Northern State University (1.62/1k); Black Hills State University (0.90/1k); South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (0.78/1k); Augustana University (8.79/1k); University of Sioux Falls (0.69/1k); Mount Marty University (4.67/1k).
What crimes are reported at University of South Dakota?
For calendar year 2024, University of South Dakota reported Rape (6), Burglary (2) and Fondling (1) in the Criminal Offenses section. Every other category in that section was reported at zero; other Clery tables are separate.
How does University of South Dakota compare to similar schools?
University of South Dakota reports 174% more 2024 score-category incidents per 1,000 than University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez. Scored similar-enrollment peers on this page: University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez (0.00/1k); Community College of Allegheny County (0.47/1k); Wright State University-Main Campus (2.36/1k); Regent University (0.19/1k); Phoenix College (0.94/1k). Same-state same-level set: South Dakota State University (1.33/1k); Dakota State University (0.79/1k); Northern State University (1.62/1k); Black Hills State University (0.90/1k); South Dakota School of Mines and Technology (0.78/1k); Augustana University (8.79/1k); University of Sioux Falls (0.69/1k); Mount Marty University (4.67/1k).
Does University of South Dakota have fire safety data?
Yes. University of South Dakota reports fire safety data for on-campus residential facilities, including total fires, injuries, deaths, and fire damage categories. 3 fires were reported in the most recent year.
Every figure on PlainCampus is rendered directly from federal Clery Act source data, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on federal Clery Act source data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.
PlainCampus is for informational purposes only and does not constitute safety, security, legal, or enrollment advice; the data describes reported on-campus activity, it is not a complete picture of safety at any campus and cannot predict any individual student's experience. See our appropriate use guidance.
PlainCampus is for informational purposes only and does not constitute safety, security, legal, or enrollment advice.