“,and is situated in an urban but relatively safe area, as compared to Chicago, Penn, Yale, Harvard, and Columbia”
http://www.latimes.com/local/crime/la-me-usc-killing-20150116-story.html
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-usc-double-murder-sentencing-20141117-story.html
http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2014/12/23/woman-62-fatally-stabbed-near-usc-campus/
Its location is not any better than the above mentioned schools when it comes to safety.