Private nonprofit · College

Morris College

Sumter, South Carolina · Small city

Admit rate
$20,555
Avg net price
17%
Graduation rate
$30,614
Median earnings

Morris College is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Sumter, South Carolina (small city setting), enrolling 383 undergraduates. It is a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). It has a Baptist religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 383 undergradsSmall cityNAIA Division I

About Sumter, South Carolina

Sumter is a city in and the county seat of Sumter County, South Carolina, United States. During the Civil War, the town was an important supply and railroad repair center for the Confederacy. After the war, Sumter grew and prospered, using its large railroad network to supply cotton, timber, and by the start of the 20th century, tobacco to the region. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Small city
Highest degree offered
Bachelor's
Nearest big city
40 miles to Columbia, SC
To the ocean
73 miles
Nearest airport
39 miles to Florence (FLO)

How Morris College compares

Graduation rate17%

Higher than 5% · #32 of 35 in South Carolina

First-year retention41%

Higher than 3%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$30,614

Higher than 3% · #33 of 35 in South Carolina

Average net price$20,555

Cheaper than 48% · #23 cheapest of 35 in South Carolina

Median debt at graduation$31,400

Lower than 2%

Student–faculty ratio10 : 1

Lower than 76%

Undergraduate enrollment383

Larger than 18%

Percentiles compare Morris College with the nation's 2,196 four-year colleges, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count four-year colleges in South Carolina.

Student body

Undergraduates by gender

383undergrads
  • Women21055%
  • Men17345%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White0.8%
  • Black92%
  • Hispanic0.5%
  • Other or multiracial7.1%

Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
383
Student–faculty ratio
10 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
96%
First-generation students
40%
Students over 25
17%
Median family income
$18,311
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$52,344
Endowment
$13,127,079

Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.

Where students come from

Home state of the 126 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From South Carolina85%
  • Other U.S. states15%

Most first-years stay in state — Morris College draws overwhelmingly from South Carolina.

Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.

Cost

In-state tuition
$16,664
Room & board
$7,602
Books & supplies
$3,500
Total cost of attendance
$30,148
Average net price
$20,555

Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.

Outcomes

Graduated (within 6 years)
17%
Graduated on time (4 years)
7%
First-year retention
41%
Transferred to another college
36%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$24,250
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$30,614
Median debt at graduation
$31,400
Students with federal loans
100%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
10%

About 11% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
834
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
100%+
Housing charge (year)
$4,058
Meal plan (year)
$3,322
Application fee
$20
Athletics
NAIA Division I
Varsity athletes
65 (34 men · 31 women)

Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.

Varsity sports (3)

Basketball34
Baseball16
Volleyball15

Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.

Campus safety

Safety grade
D
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
11.3 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
4
Property offenses (2022–2024)
9

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (383 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.

Reported offenses in an average year

The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.

4.3reported offenses a year
1.3 violent a year3.0 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
2.7
Aggravated assault
1.3
Arson
0.3

Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.

What you'll actually pay, by family income

Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.

< $30k
$20,485
$30–48k
$20,609
$48–75k
$20,727
$75–110k
$21,121
$110k+

College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.

Four-year (or more) true cost

Net price for your family's income, projected across the time it actually takes students here to graduate.

Est. total to a degree
$102,118

$20,727/year × about 4.9 years — most students here don't finish in exactly four, and each extra term adds cost. A planning estimate from net-price and graduation-timing data, not a bill.

Does the school pay you to attend?

Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.

24%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$2,315
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 24% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $2,315. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.

Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 118 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.

Is it worth it?

A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.

Median earnings (10 years)
$30,614
Typical debt at graduation
$31,400
Debt vs. one year's pay
103%
Out-earn a HS grad
19%

Typical debt would take roughly 10.3 years to repay at about a tenth of median earnings.

Weigh it value

The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.

Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.

The pay gap here

Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.

Women
$29,566
Men
$32,788

Men out-earn women by $3,222 (11%) a decade out.

Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.

Campus climate

Summer high
90°F
Winter low
33°F
Annual rain
48.8″
Annual snow
0.3″

Average temperature

HighLow
20°60°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.95.8JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Sumter, SC US station (0.6 mi from campus).

Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.

Colleges similar to Morris College

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Morris College side by side →

Colleges near Morris College

Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.