Safety & Emergency Contacts

Safety Planning

The University has temporarily made Lyft Ride Smart at UChicago available 7 evenings per week, from 5 p.m until 4 a.m. This change is in effect through the end of the 2021-22 academic year.

An image of the UChicago Safe App interface. A red background with options to select emergency contacts, Mobile BlueLight, and Friend Walk.

How to contact the University of Chicago Police Department

To call the UCPD in an emergency:

  • 773-702-8181 from any phone
  • 1-2-3 from a campus phone
  • Press the red button on an emergency phone. Campus has nearly 400 emergency phones; look for a blue light atop a white pole. (Map of phone locations.)

UCPD headquarters is located at 850 E. 61st Street and is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week. They can be reached via email at at cops@uchicago.edu Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.  More about the University of Chicago Police Department. 

Chicago Police Department

911 or, from a campus phone, 9-911

University Dean-on-call and University Sexual Assault Dean-on-call

  • The Dean-on-Call will respond to student emergencies and critical incidents 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
  • A separate Sexual Assault Dean-on-Call is also available around the clock and is trained as a Sexual Assault Survivor Advocate through the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault. For more information and resources about gender-based misconduct, see the University's UMatter website.
  • Students may call UCPD Dispatch at 773-702-8181 and ask for the Dean-on-call or Sexual Assault Dean-on-call or may reach the Dean-on-call or Sexual Assault Dean-on-call directly by calling 773-834-HELP (4357).

More safety resources

UChicago HELP provides a comprehensive listing of emergency and crisis resources.

In the Law School

  • We have a VCA (Visitor Control Attendant) on duty at the front desk each weekday evening from 5 p.m. to midnight (later during exams) and all day Saturday and Sunday. VCAs monitor building entry and may inspect bags. Any problems in the building should be reported to the VCA immediately.
  • If you are parked in the Law School parking lot late at night, the VCA can watch you walk to your car.

Visit the Department of Safety & Security's webpage for additional information.