The Current State of Sex Education is Failing Young Men, New Research Shows

Research from It's On Us Finds Inconsistent and Incomplete Sex Education Does Not Prepare Young Men to Engage with Campus Sexual Assault Prevention Efforts

WASHINGTON, April 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, It's On Us released new research, The Preparation Problem: How the System Ignores Young Men's Sex Education Needs, exploring college men's experiences with sex education before arriving on campus and how gaps in this education impact how prepared they are to engage with sexual assault prevention programming.

The Preparation Problem examines sex education as a prevention tool, building on previous research from It's On Us highlighting the importance of engaging young men as part of the solution to combat campus sexual assault. Based on findings in It's On Us' Prevention is a Team Sport that Black and LGBTQ+ men in college athletics were more likely to correctly identify healthy versus unhealthy relationships, The Preparation Problem specifically oversampled Black and LGBTQ+ college men to better understand how their backgrounds with sex education impact their experiences with prevention programming.

"This research demonstrates that the work to prevent campus sexual assault starts long before students step onto a college campus — it begins with the movies they watch, the conversations they have with trusted adults, the content of their health classes in school and the many ways they learn about sex as they grow up. It's clear that the current system is failing young men. To set them up for success, we need to meet college men where they are with prevention programming that acknowledges their varying knowledge levels of topics like consent and sex," said Tracey Vitchers, Executive Director of It's On Us.

Key findings from the report include:

1. Most college men learned about sex outside of a formal education setting before age 12, pointing to a lack of impactful, consistent education for young people in school, even when they are exposed to these topics in other settings.
    
2. College men most commonly learned about sex through media, including in movies, television, video games, and more — sources that often do not teach young men healthy expectations about relationships.
    
3. More than half of college men did not learn about consent and sexual communication in a formal educational setting prior to college, meaning young men encounter sex and relationships in media without guidance on how to handle these topics in their own lives.
    
4. It's not just where or when men receive sex education that matters — it's also the content. Sex education that teaches rigid gender norms and fear-based messaging is more likely to contribute to feelings of hostility toward women — a known risk factor for perpetrating sexual violence.

The report also makes recommendations for ways to improve sex education to support young men before they begin college:

1. Support college men's familiarity with topics like consent, sexuality and relationship communication earlier and more comprehensively — ensuring the content is inclusive and does not enforce harmful belief systems. This includes teaching media literacy skills to critically analyze content and how it aligns with their own perspectives, especially for young LGBTQ+ men who are more likely to turn to online settings to fill sex education gaps.
    
2. Provide resources to parents and trusted adults so they can confidently, knowledgeably, and proactively discuss sex education with young people, drawing inspiration from Black communities who have consistently filled systemic gaps for boys with community-led efforts.
    
3. Advocate for systemic institutional and policy change to ensure sex education across the country meets the current needs of young men.

The full report and executive summary can be found here. It's On Us used QualtricsXM to distribute survey questions, sampling more than 1,000 college-aged men — more than half of whom identified as LGBTQ+ and more than one third of whom identified as Black. This research will be used in It's On Us' development of sexual assault prevention education materials and trainings.

ABOUT It's On Us:
It's On Us is building the movement to combat campus sexual assault by engaging all students, including young men, through grassroots organizing, prevention education programs, and large-scale culture change campaigns. Founded as an initiative of the Obama-Biden White House, It's On Us has grown into the nation's largest student organizing program dedicated to college sexual assault prevention, activating students on hundreds of campuses through awareness and education programs. It's On Us is committed to shifting the culture around campus sexual assault through partnerships with media and brands that engage with millions of college students every day. It's On Us is an initiative of Civic Nation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Learn more here.

ABOUT Civic Nation:
Civic Nation is an impact hub for ideas, leaders, and initiatives that strengthen civic culture, power, and participation. Rooted in purpose and powered by people, Civic Nation brings together individuals, grassroots organizers, industry leaders, brands, and influencers to take on the biggest issues of our time. Civic Nation is home to five national initiatives: ALL IN Campus Democracy Challenge, Change Collective, It's On Us, We The Action, and When We All Vote. Learn more here.

SOURCE It’s On Us