<p>Good advice, but it is also important to remember the relative dangers. You are much worse off going to a suburban or rural campus, where you will be tempted to drive more often, than you are going to an urban school like, say, Harvard, Yale, Northwestern, Georgetown, NYU or Columbia (even though a student was murdered right by the Morningside Heights campus just a few weeks ago in a robbery). Overall, your risk of death or injury in a motor vehicle accident is 100-200 times greater than your risk from random street crime. Of course, crime and auto accidents can happen anywhere, whether you are on an urban or a rural campus, so you have to be careful regardless. But, to be completely rational, the best way to be safe is to go somewhere where you won’t be tempted to set foot in a car.</p>
<p>I have looked very closely at traffic safety and crime statistics to form this opinion. I’ve also taken my own experience as an example - of the hundreds and hundreds of college students & college graduates that I know well, I can name at least 10 who died or were seriously injured in auto accidents, almost all of whom were driving in suburban or rural areas (where not only do you drive more, but speeds are higher; just three or four MPH = exponential increase in death risk). It is very sad to lose your friends in this way. I only know of one person who was injured in a crime – he was punched randomly while walking through Harlem late at night. I know people who have lived in the “worst” neighborhoods of various major cities including New York, New Haven, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Buffalo, Syracuse, New Orleans, Washington, Chicago and Los Angeles for decades, and have never had a problem with crime. As long as you aren’t a drug dealer or prostitute, etc., you are very unlikely to be affected by crime. You can reduce your risk even more if you just pay close attention to your surroundings, whether you are in a deserted suburban campus or in a vibrant, thriving downtown area like NYC, Boston or New Haven with million dollar condos, 24/7 eateries and hundreds upon hundreds of restaurants lining the streets.</p>
<p>So bottom line, be careful out there no matter what you do, but don’t have completely irrational fears (like the OP seems to).</p>