More than half of Scotland’s universities now ask students to sign contracts promising to heed strict rules in a bid to crack down on harassment and hate crimes on campus.
It comes amid growing alarm in recent years at the scale of violence and sexual harassment against female students.
One horrific case saw 18-year-old Emily Drouet take her own life after a campaign of abuse in Aberdeen in 2016.
A survey by umbrella body Universities Scotland outlines actions taken to clamp down on sexual misconduct and other problems.
It showed 11 of Scotland’s 19 universities said they now use signed documents or contracts, up from just 9 per cent in 2019.
Examples of revamped procedures include those at the University of Aberdeen – where Ms Drouet studied. It has a team of dedicated support advisers who have had specialist training on issues such as gender-based violence, anti-Semitism awareness and LGBTQ issues.
In 2020/21, the University of St Andrews introduced compulsory training covering issues such as consent for all students as part of matriculation.
Iain Gillespie, convener of Universities Scotland, said: ‘Institutions have a responsibility to listen to students, staff and particularly survivors to learn from their lived experience. There are many examples of positive change occurring thanks to the courage of survivors in speaking out.’
Tensions on some campuses have been heightened in the wake of Israel’s war in Gaza and the issue of transgender rights.
Stella Maris, rector of the University of St Andrews, was removed from her role on its governing body after sending an email to all students referring to ‘genocidal attacks’ by the Israeli government.
There have also been protests at the University of Edinburgh over the screening of Adult Human Female, a documentary on women’s rights and trans issues.
Ten universities which responded to the survey said they worked with Rape Crisis Scotland and the same number had engaged with EmilyTest, a campaign in memory of Ms Drouet. Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth said she was ‘absolutely committed’ to eliminating hatred and sexual violence.