Exclusive | Over 8K rapes were reported at US colleges in one year: Here are the schools most plagued by sexual violence

A staggering 8,227 rapes were reported at American colleges and universities in 2024 — and elite New York schools such as Columbia, Cornell and NYU were far from immune from the plague of sexual violence, a Post review of federal and state crime data found.Nationally, the University of Utah had the most reported rapes — nearly double the number logged at the next-highest schools.The 36,894-student public university in Salt Lake City recorded a shocking 146 rape accusations in 2024, according to data from the US Department of Education.Most of the alleged attacks, 122, took place in dorms, while another 18 reportedly happened in other campus buildings, and six occurred in off-campus property run by the school or a student organization.The University of Colorado Boulder had the second highest count, with 96 rapes reported in 2024, followed by Ohio State University, with 67.The other schools that made the national top 10 in 2024 were Penn State University, with 57 reported rape cases; UCLA with 52 cases; the University of California Santa Cruz, 46; the University of California Santa Barbara, 43; Indiana University, 43; University of Kansas, 39 and University of Kentucky, 37.In New York, Columbia University stood out with 262 reported incidents of sexual violence in 2024.While federal data tracks rape, New York’s state reporting rules require colleges to report more broadly — sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence and stalking in a combined tally.The Big Apple Ivy logged 21 reported rapes on campus, all of which were reported in residence halls.Not only did Columbia have the highest number of sexual violence incidents reported, it also had the worst record out of the large New York schools when it came to investigating and taking disciplinary action, a Post analysis found.Of the 262 incidents reported to the school’s Title IX coordinator in 2024, only three were investigated.Of those, only a single case resulted in the accused student being expell...