Georgetown students believe that alcohol use remains very widespread on campus but classify their own drinking behavior as light or moderate, according to the results of last fall’s alcohol survey.

The survey, to which 72 percent of students responded, also found that students use a variety of precautions when they drink and that alcohol use remains relatively unchanged since a similar survey in Fall 2000.

The results of the survey come as Georgetown reexamines its alcohol policy, including a proposal from the FRIENDS Initiative that would change enforcement of alcohol regulations and eliminate “dry dorms.”

“The fact that the patterns are similar over time means that the ways we have been thinking about those issues are not likely to change as a result of this survey,” Todd Olson, interim vice president for student affairs, said.

Nearly one-third of students described their alcohol behavior as “light,” 40 percent said they are “moderate” drinkers and 18 percent of students said they do not drink at all.

While the survey found that only 8 percent of students drink alcohol excessively, 96 percent of respondents said that drinking is “very much” or “somewhat” a significant element in campus social life.

“It was also evident in the data that while it was a minority of our students drinking excessively, the negative impact of the few was felt by the many,” Olson said yesterday in a letter to the university community.

Open-ended responses from students indicated that while many students choose to drink and socialize in a safe environment, they do not “want to be subjected to the secondary problems stemming from the minority who drink without consideration of care,” Olson said.

Georgetown residents have long complained about rowdiness and trash problems often caused by weekend parties.

Student attitudes and behavior about alcohol consumption at Georgetown mirrors national findings, Olson added.

The survey follows up on a 2000 survey that found nearly the same results and prompted a number of programs to increase community and encourage safe alcohol behavior.

The FRIENDS Initiative began in 2001, focusing on building a stronger community and reducing high-risk drinking. In 2002 the university launched a Social Norms campaign aiming to increase education about student attitudes toward alcohol.

Olson said that the Social Norms campaign has been working to eliminate the discrepancy between students who say they are light or moderate drinkers and the majority of students who feel that drinking remains very prevalent on campus.

In September, students launched a health-oriented Web site, be.georgetown.edu, and Residence Life and Student Affairs are currently working to implement an online course that educates students about drinking.

“Student alcohol use is not something quickly dealt with through a specific program,” he said. “It requires precisely the type of student- and community-based support that has been built at Georgetown since 2001.”

These new educational resources may account for the high percentages of students who say they take precautions when drinking. Nearly 98 percent of students said they make sure they look out for their friends’ safety, including walking someone who is drunk back to campus.

“We needed clear, comprehensive and definitive data regarding issues relating to alcohol use on Georgetown’s campus,” Dr. Patrick Kilcarr, director of the Center for Personal Development, said last November.

The survey asked 17 questions to Georgetown students with questions designed to address the proactive responses developed after the 2000 results were released.

“We basically left the survey intact with a few tweakings in 2003, so we [can] see if there has been any change over time in student perceptions,” Michael McGuire, executive director of the Office of Planning and Institutional Research said.