The University Police Department (UPD) provides year round 24/7 law enforcement service for South Dakota State University. Police officers are state trained and certified with full law enforcement authority.
The department is responsible for protecting the campus community, ensuring a safe environment for continued education and research, providing enhanced security for the campus infrastructure and large scale public events, investigating crimes, providing uniformed patrol, deterring and detecting criminal activity and other policing services as needed.
The South Dakota State University Police Department has been accredited through the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA) since 2017.