Controversial ... Susan Patton said university rape is a learning experience for victims. Picture: CNN Source: Supplied

Susan Patton, author of Marry Smart,made headlines in February for telling women education is a “curse” and “smart girls” dedicate time at uni to finding a man.

Ms Patton, who graduated from Princeton University in 1977, has again caused outrage for saying rape could be a “learning experience” for victims.

“We’re now talking about or identifying as rape what really is a clumsy hook-up melodrama or a fumbled attempt at a kiss or a caress. In many cases this is what it is,” she said during a CNN interview on Thursday.

“It makes one wonder, why don’t you [rape victims] get up and leave? Why, as a woman, do you not tell a man who is making advances you’re not comfortable with, ‘Stop. Leave’.”

Wait, there’s more.

Ms Patton added that there was more than one type of rape, saying: “There’s rape and then there’s rape.”

She said that women should stay “sober enough” to get out of dangerous situations.

“We could teach burglars not to steal, but better advice: Lock your door,” Ms Patton said.

Referring to the recent Rolling Stone article about a University of Virginia student who claimed she was gang raped, Ms Patton said accused rapists are treated like they are guilty.

“Any young man on any college campus who is accused of having sexually assaulted a woman starts from the position of being guilty until they can prove their own innocence,” she said.

RELATED: Susan Patton says forget your education, find a husband

Community shaken ... a University of Virginia student looks over postings on the door of Peabody Hall related to the Phi Kappa Psi gang rape allegations. Picture: AP Source: AP

What does Rolling Stone magazines retraction of the University of Virginia rape story mean for future victims and responsible journalism? University of Wisconsin-Madison's Katy Culver explains. Photo: Getty

Social media users have hit out at Ms Patton’s rape comments, saying she “blames victims” and is “an embarrassment”.

Earlier this year, Ms Patton fired off a timely Valentine’s Day missive to young women around the world to let them know careers are nice, but wedded bliss is nicer.

“Despite all of the focus on professional advancement, for most of you the cornerstone of your future happiness will be the man you marry,” she wrote in The Wall Street Journal.

“But chances are that you haven’t been investing nearly as much energy in planning for your personal happiness as you are planning for your next promotion at work. What are you waiting for? You’re not getting any younger, but the competition for the men you’d be interested in marrying most definitely is.”

She continued: “Think about it: If you spend the first 10 years out of college focused entirely on building your career, when you finally get around to looking for a husband you’ll be in your 30s, competing with women in their 20s,” she calculates. That’s not a competition in which you’re likely to fare well.”