The increasing number of crimes at and around NMU makes students’ accommodations prime crime targets. Break-ins in student accommodations have become a norm and these break-ins contribute to students’ poor academic success. Find a summary of this article in chapter three of the main article and other related articles.

To have a university in your town is every community’s dream since universities uplift the name of a town and change its economic value. According to Universities UK, universities are important centers for their local areas, boosting employment. Also, their social and cultural influence places them right at the heart of the community. Having a university in your neighborhood is beneficial because it cut tertiary costs and as a parent who want to take your child to university you do not have to pay student accommodation, you only need to organize transport fare and sometimes he can even walk to campus. However, not everyone gets to experience the benefits of leaving next to a university since to some parents it is a nightmare. When the university is nearby, the crime rate increases.

Talking to Mr. Machingura, a resident from Sydenham in Port Elizabeth, said Sydenham used to be a quiet and safe place to live before it had several student accommodations. Students brought a vibe to that place which made it a target for criminals. In the middle of the night, students roam around the street drunk and singing their lungs out, which makes it easier for thieves to break in without being noticed as they can track the students’ whereabouts.

The growing demand for tertiary education worldwide has overtaken the capacity of institutions of higher learning to cope. Twenty years ago, 80% of the total global student population was accommodated in residences, today with the dramatic increase of learners heading to university, this figure has dropped to less than 20%. Although universities have their own on-campus accommodations, they cannot accommodate all those students who are admitted every year. Hence, they saw a need for off-campus accredited accommodations. Off-campus accredited accommodations also operate based on university safety and security regulations policy and everything that those off-campus accommodations have should be almost like what on-campus accommodations have, in terms of services and infrastructure.

With the coming high demand for student accommodations, many citizens have developed the idea of changing their rooms and houses to accommodate students. It came as a business opportunity that resulted in their areas such as Summerstrand, Humewood, and surrounding areas targets of crime.

The technology devices that students have, to help them with their studies such as laptops and cell phones seem to make them prime targets. Student rooms are targeted almost every day, and students do not feel safe whether they are on or off campus. “I don’t feel safe being around campus and even being at the residence due to all these incidents happening in our university. As students we want the university to ensure that the SAPS is patrolling the whole day so that we could at least feel safe,” Sinoxolo Ntlabathi.

The way students dress and present themselves makes people assume that they have money. When they meet people who they last saw before starting at universities, those people will make comments such as they are looking good, clearly, NSFAS pays well.

National Students Financial Aid Scheme gives students money, for meals and also some of the things that are needed at university. The NSFAS money has made them as well as the communities they live in crime targets. Although on, on-campus accommodations there’s hardly a report about break-ins, off-campus accommodations, and private houses are targeted by criminals. Even on South African crime statistics those towns or cities with universities are taking turns staying on position one on crimes such as theft, break-ins, and robberies.

Towns or suburbs that have many students’ accommodations face lots of break-ins such as Humewood and Summerstrand.

One of Nelson Mandela University students Samkelisiwe* who once stayed in an off-campus accommodation in Sydenham said, there was a break-in on her accommodation that time more than two times. In all incidents, it was believed that the perpetrators jumped over the wall and no student was injured in all incidents.

According to Samkelisiwe, in the first incident thieves did not take any student belongings, they took a television and one of the things that go with surveillance cameras and all students were inside their rooms although some of them heard what was happening outside.

On the second time, thieves held a lady at gunpoint, while she was in a corridor from the bathroom at night and took her phone. And on the third time, they went inside a male student’s room, took his laptop and a cell phone, and some electric appliances that were in the kitchen. That accommodation is between houses, but it was the only house that had endless break-ins, as it was also the only house with students, and students are always targeted. The matter was reported to the South African Police Service but there was no further communication on the ongoing case. After the incidents, Samkelisiwe is scared to study or use the bathroom at night.

The issue of break-ins in student accommodations is a national issue. Walter Sisulu University students embarked on a strike first week of May 2019 outside their residence on Wodehouse Street. Students were concerned about their safety as the accommodation was targeted by criminals and as a result, three break-ins occurred in April 2019. Three rooms have been broken into and laptops, clothes, blankets, food, and cell phones were stolen. Speaking to one of the publications, the mother of the break-in victim said her daughter was home the weekend of a break in but when she received a call from her roommate, she was scared to even go back to school as she feared for her life since criminals are capable of doing anything.

According to Eastern Cape crime statistics, Humewood police station in Port Elizabeth has burglary statistics that fluctuate yearly. The Humewood police station is near the Summerstrand suburb where Nelson Mandela University, as well as several NMU off-campus accommodations, are located. There were 457 burglaries at residential premises and 230 in non-residential cases reported in Humewood SAPS in 2017 but during 2018 the numbers decreased, there were 434 burglaries at residential premises and 180 burglaries in non-residential premises.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

A security who patrols at night in some of the NMU off-campus accommodations in Summerstrand called Thinus Van Jaarsveld said incidents are more likely to happen every day around the accommodations although hours that can be considered risky hours are between 23H00 to 4H00. When asked what they do to make sure that a person that enters the accommodations belongs there it’s not an intruder or whatsoever said they are not able to differentiate those who stay there from those who are visiting.

Nelson Mandela University has encountered more than two break-ins this year 2019 and we are only in the 4^th month since the accommodations have been operating, in its off-campus accommodation where some students lost their valuables.

A study by a group called Student Accommodation Crisis reveals that there is an 80% chance for first-year students that live on campus to pass well. However, the pass rate for those who live off campus is 20%.  In the survey I conducted out of 56 students 90% of them said they only feel safe when they are on campus. Those off-campus accommodations are not really safe even though the areas they are in are the most dangerous areas.

Student accommodation should be a student’s home away from home, it should be a place where students are able to relax and have fun. When living condition is poor, it is likely to have a negative impact on a student. Students who reside in insecure areas live in constant fear that even prevents them from studying. No student can be able to study in a place where he does not feel safe. Break-ins do not only take away their valuables, but they take away their future. Almost every student uses a laptop to study and do an assignment and all their schoolwork is saved in a laptop. When this break-in happens, they take all their future and be required to start from scratch, and some do not even have money to buy new things which results in them becoming university dropouts.

(*) not a real name.

Other related articles:

Main article: The Increasing Crimes at and Around Nelson Mandela University

Chapter 1: Problematic alcohol consumption and smuggling at NMU student accommodations

Chapter 2: Poor safety and security threatens NMU students

Chapter 3:  How increasing break-ins Influence student’s academic Failure

Chapter 4: Theft in student residences