Survey: Campus gun laws are a dealbreaker, say college-bound teens
Laws, policies, and political affiliations vary significantly across the United States. In a recent study, CollegeIQ sought to understand how these differences impact students’ college choices.
CollegeIQ commissioned a survey of high school juniors and seniors actively researching four-year colleges to ask their opinions on how these issues will impact their decision on where to apply to and attend college.
More than 600 geographically and politically diverse students provided their opinions about how local and state politics, abortion laws, LGBTQIA+ friendliness, DEI laws, and campus gun laws will affect their decisions.
While most students declared that these issues would impact their decisions at least somewhat, some issues were much more pronounced than others.
Key Takeaways from the Survey
Most students said all of these issues will have at least some impact on their choice of college.
Campus gun laws were the most significant factor. 63% of students said campus carry gun laws will have a moderate or significant impact on their college choice.
Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) laws are also on students’ minds. 46% said these laws will have a moderate or significant impact on their college decision.
State laws and general community acceptance of the LGBTQIA+ community are nearly as significant as DEI laws. 44% said this will have a moderate or significant impact on their decision.
Abortion laws are a lesser concern but still important to students, with 35% saying these laws will have a moderate or significant impact on their decision. Women are more likely than men to cite abortion laws as a factor.
General politics are less of a concern to students. Still, one in three said political preferences will have a moderate or significant impact on their decision.
Campus Carry Gun Laws
Many states have laws that dictate how schools, particularly public colleges and universities, must permit or restrict guns on campus. States fall into three general buckets:
Require schools to allow guns on campus with limited exceptions
Forbid guns
Leave it up to individual institutions
CollegeIQ’s study shows that campus carry is a significant concern among future college students. 63% said these laws will have a moderate or significant impact on their college choice, and 84% said they will have at least some impact.
The high rate is perhaps not surprising given that this generation of students has grown up with active shooter drills and news of school shootings.
Of the students who said campus carry laws will make a significant impact on their decision, 89% prefer more restrictive gun laws, while 11% prefer more permissive gun laws. Other findings about campus gun laws are:
Black students were the most likely to state that gun laws would have a moderate or significant impact on their decision (70%), with 45% stating it would have a significant impact. However, in all races and ethnicities, at least 59% said these laws would have a moderate or significant impact.
Women are somewhat more concerned about gun laws than men. 69% of women respondents said gun laws would have a moderate or significant impact on their decision; 55% of men said they would.
Students who identify as Democrats were much more likely to state that gun laws are a concern. 74% of Democrats said these laws would have a moderate or significant impact; 51% of Republican students said this.
College administrator takeaways on campus carry gun laws:
The survey shows that students who are most concerned about gun laws prefer more restrictive rules. In states that leave campus carry rules up to the individual schools, administrators should carefully consider the impact of their gun policy on student recruitment. In states that mandate less restrictive gun requirements, colleges could take actions to assuage students’ concerns, such as visible security and mental health programs.
Choosing colleges based on gun laws
Students typically consider many factors when selecting a college: academics, majors, location, cost, and more. It's clear that students are also considering laws around having a gun on campus.
CollegeIQ displays state laws for each college in its database on the "Lifestyle" page for the school. These laws are divided into three categories:
Permissive, meaning the state requires colleges to generally allow guns on campus with limited restrictions.
Restrictive, meaning the state requires colleges to place strong restrictions on guns or ban them outright.
Institutional, meaning the state leaves it up to each school.
Most states only apply these laws to public institutions.
CollegeIQ's advanced search allows students and parents to filter schools based on gun laws. In the search filters, select Lifestyle > State Gun Laws to apply this filter. For example, this filter shows only schools in states with restrictive campus carry gun laws.
Takeaways
Clearly, current high school students are paying close attention to issues that impact college communities, especially campus carry gun laws.
While colleges may have limited control over their state legislatures and local communities, they might be able to address students’ concerns about these issues by implementing college policies and programs.
Survey Details
CollegeIQ surveyed 630 U.S. high school juniors and seniors who indicated they are actively researching four-year colleges to attend after high school.
Students were geographically diverse, living in 49 states plus the District of Columbia. Students were generally distributed according to the size of the state, with no state accounting for more than 9% of responses.
59% of respondents were female, 40% male, and 1% non-binary/other. Due to the small number of non-binary/other students, breakouts were unavailable for this group.
Students ranged across the political spectrum, with 31% saying they had no political preference, 27% Democrat, 22% Republican, and 20% independent.
About CollegeIQ
CollegeIQ helps students and their parents find the right college for them. CollegeIQ goes beyond ordinary college filters, allowing students to find colleges based on weather, politics, lifestyle, and more.