College is often the first time kids are away from home, making their own decisions and living on their own.

So how safe are they?

There have been eight reported sexual offenses in University of Hawaii dorms in the past three years and there were likely more that were not reported.

The most recent case happened in August when a man got into the dorms and sexually assaulted a student in her dorm room. He is still on the loose.

The University said it has increased security. But have they? We put them to the test.

On the first try our producer walked into the lobby of a freshman dorm. He stopped at the front desk to show identification, but before he even pulled out his wallet he was waved on through. He then got into an elevator and went right up wandering from floor to floor.

Then I went in. In less than a minute I too was upstairs roaming hallways walking right past open rooms with women inside.

I also found another rather glaring security concern at a place where women expect full privacy, the bathroom and showers. One of the female restroom doors, which are supposed to be locked at all times, was broken. The door was off its hinges and did not fit into the door jam making impossible to close, let alone lock.

As we walked around more no one questioned why we were there. Students even offered to let us use their elevator key to get between floors.

Kaui Souza said she's worried about security, but that didn't stop her from helping us get around.

"You didn't look like strange people. I was just trying to be nice to see if I could help you out," Souza said.

She said she assumed we were there to see a friend and figured if we got past the front desk we were alright.

"There is someone sitting there but obviously they weren't doing their job," Souza said.

We tried to get in three times and each time no one stopped us. Afterwards we confronted the resident assistant at the front desk. He admits he never saw us come in.

"Yeah it is kind of easy for people, if you really want to get in and there's a bunch of people you can just wait for a crowd of people and it's, it's not fool proof," he said.

"He's accurate it isn't fool proof, it's not a courtroom, it’s not a jail it’s a residence hall," said Francisco Hernandez, University of Hawaii at Manoa Vice Chancellor for Students. "Having your staffer get in so easily concerns us."

We showed our video to members of the University administration who were not happy with what they saw.

They said the students at the front desk are trained to check everyone's ID, but clearly that doesn't always happen, which is why the University plans to use electronic key cards for students to get in and out. It also wants to install video cameras to deter people from sneaking in.

"I think that if we have those in place we will strike a better balance between having it be completely closed up and having students feel like they're in a prison versus a residence hall," Hernandez said.

Trouble is, those changes are expensive. The school administration is asking the state for more money and they hope this proves they need it.

In the meantime it plans to retrain those responsible for checking identification.

"I think with this incident (the Housing Department) will once again remind students what they have to do to consider their own safety," Hernandez said.

"I think the students and the school and faculty have to work together to do it because the school can't control everything," said Chassis Tavares, student.

As for the broken female bathroom and shower door, it is on the list to be fixed.

"It's a deep concern if it doesn't close or lock," Hernandez said.

They want to hire more staff to monitor and repair problems like that before the wrong person gets in.

Vice Chancellor Hernandez said the electronic doors will be part of renovation plans and are expected to be implemented next fall.

As for the surveillance cameras they hope to get the money from the state this spring. Hernandez also said campus safety will be better addressed at student orientation.

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Click here for more of the Vice Chancellor's reaction and his plans for improving security.

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