“A Qualitative Study of Survivors’ Experiences with and Recommendations for Improving Responses to Sexual Violence at UCLA”

Sexual violence is a pervasive problem on college and university campuses that has far-reaching impact on individuals, campus communities, and society as a whole. While institutions of higher education (IHE), including the University of California (UC), have created policies and procedures to prevent and respond to sexual violence, both anecdotal and research evidence suggest most of these approaches are ineffective when it comes to helping victim-survivors heal and achieve justice. Research conducted across the UC system in 2021 found a large proportion of students lacked awareness of two key campus-based resources for victim-survivor healing, namely Campus Assault Resources & Education (CARE) and Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS). It was also found that most victim-survivors were uncomfortable reporting incidents of sexual violence to the UC Police Department, especially LGBTQ students. Further, while recognizing justice for victim-survivors involves much more than evidence collection, our preliminary assessments reveal that most UC victim-survivors never seek or receive post-sexual assault forensic examinations, representing critical gaps in the IHE response to sexual violence.

The objective of the current is to explore the extent to which UCLA victim-survivors access relevant resources, their experiences in navigating and receiving care, and the role of institutional policies and practices in shaping their experiences. We aim to investigate the accessibility of medical facilities, support services, and resources for student victim-survivors at UCLA, and to answer specific questions such as the extent to which, and the experiences of UCLA student victim-survivors in accessing relevant post-sexual assault resources such as the Santa Monica Rape Treatment Center, CAPS, CARE, and Ronald Reagan Medical Center. By addressing these research questions, the study aims to provide valuable insights that can inform improvements in the support and care provided to students who are victim-survivors at UCLA