Self Defense for College

This course teaches effective physical tactics that require minutes or hours rather than years to master and can be adapted for any woman. Most assaults are perpetrated by acquaintances and/ or people you know well.  This course provides strategies appropriate for these situations including boundary-setting, de-escalation, and verbal self-defense, as well as physical techniques. These skills empower young women to stop assaults in their early stages, before they escalate to physical danger. Six major studies over the past several years, including a large, randomized control trial, found that women who complete an empowered self defense class are both more likely to avoid rape if they are targeted, and less likely to be targeted in the first place. Studies also report significant decreases in sexual harassment, sexual coercion, and physical violence. (Hollander, 2022)

Empowered self defense training decreases women’s fear and anxiety and increases their confidence, their sense of self-efficacy, and their self-esteem. Learning self-defense helps women feel stronger and more confident in their bodies. Women report more comfortable and empowered interactions with strangers, acquaintances, and intimates, both in situations that seem dangerous and those that do not. This is an essential course for all young women entering college.