<![CDATA[Sexual violence in higher education constitutes a multidimensional problem that extends beyond regulatory and policy frameworks to encompass students’ psychological processes, particularly during the critical transition into university life. This study critically examines first-year students’ self-awareness of sexual violence in the university context and conceptualizes conscious silence as a distinct psychological response situated between awareness and agency, drawing on a Guidance and Counseling perspective. Employing a quantitative descriptive-analytic design, data were collected from 352 first-year students at Universitas PGRI Kanjurhan Malang during the 2025–2026 academic year using a Guttman-scale questionnaire assessing awareness, perceptions, lived experiences, contributory factors, and institutional services and policies related to sexual violence. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, including percentage distributions and response tendency patterns. The findings reveal a paradoxical condition of being aware but not empowered. While a majority of students (64.2%) had never participated in sexual violence prevention training and only 40.2% demonstrated a comprehensive understanding of sexual violence forms, a substantial proportion (82.4%) reported having witnessed or heard about sexual violence incidents, frequently responding with silence. These results indicate that silence functions not as ignorance, but as a psychologically informed yet constrained response shaped by limited agency, perceived risk, and insufficient response competencies. ]]>
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