Public · University

South Carolina State University

Orangeburg, South Carolina · Distant town

82.6%
Admit rate
$18,097
Avg net price
37%
Graduation rate
$38,262
Median earnings

South Carolina State University is a public bachelor's-granting institution in Orangeburg, South Carolina (distant town setting), enrolling 2,934 undergraduates. It is a Historically Black College or University (HBCU).

PublicMidsize · 2,934 undergradsDistant townAccessible · 83% admitNCAA Division I-FCS · Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference

About Orangeburg, South Carolina

Orangeburg is the principal city in and the county seat of Orangeburg County, South Carolina, United States. To encourage settlement, the General Assembly of the Province of South Carolina in 1730 organized the area as a township, naming it Orangeburg for William IV, Prince of Orange, the son-in-law of King George II of Great Britain. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Distant town
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
36 miles to Columbia, SC
To the ocean
66 miles
Nearest airport
34 miles to Columbia Metropolitan (CAE)

How South Carolina State University compares

Selectivity82.6%

More selective than 40% · #21 most selective of 29 in South Carolina

Graduation rate37%

Higher than 18% · #28 of 35 in South Carolina

First-year retention56%

Higher than 10%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$38,262

Higher than 11% · #29 of 35 in South Carolina

Average net price$18,097

Cheaper than 59% · #16 cheapest of 35 in South Carolina

Median debt at graduation$31,000

Lower than 3%

Student–faculty ratio19 : 1

Lower than 14%

Undergraduate enrollment2,934

Larger than 68%

Percentiles compare South Carolina State University 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

Undergraduate vs. graduate

3,226students
  • Undergraduate2,93491%
  • Graduate2929%

Undergraduates by gender

2,934undergrads
  • Women1,43949%
  • Men1,49551%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White1.2%
  • Black90%
  • Other or multiracial8.1%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
2,934
Graduate enrollment
292
Student–faculty ratio
19 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
70%
First-generation students
36%
Students over 25
5%
Median family income
$22,852
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$73,566
Endowment
$19,681,117

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 1,079 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From South Carolina73%
  • Other U.S. states27%
  • International0.5%

Most first-years stay in state — South Carolina State University draws overwhelmingly from South Carolina.

1% came from outside the U.S. 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.

Admissions

Admission rate
82.6%
Test scores
Not considered
SAT range (25th–75th %)
SAT average
SAT reading
SAT math
ACT composite

Cost

In-state tuition
$11,060
Out-of-state tuition
$21,750
Room & board
$9,000
Books & supplies
$2,000
Total cost of attendance
$30,015
Average net price
$18,097

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)
37%
Graduated on time (4 years)
21%
First-year retention
56%
Transferred to another college
27%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$30,064
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$38,262
Median debt at graduation
$31,000
Students with federal loans
67%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
19%

About 16% of students who finish here need more than four years — each extra year adds roughly another year of tuition and living costs.

Graduating on time

By student background (4 years)

All students
21%
Low-income (Pell)
25%
First-generation
26%

When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.

Campus life & athletics

On-campus housing
Yes
Dorm capacity
1,460
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
50%
Housing charge (year)
$6,400
Meal plan (year)
$3,290
Application fee
$25
Athletics
NCAA Division I-FCS
Football conference
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
Varsity athletes
476 (297 men · 179 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 (7)

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)238
Football126
Basketball31
Softball25
Soccer24
Tennis18
Volleyball14

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
D
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
6.5 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
21
Property offenses (2022–2024)
42

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (3,242 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.

21reported offenses a year
7.0 violent a year14 property a year

By offense type, per year

Burglary
12
Rape
3.3
Aggravated assault
2.7
Motor vehicle theft
2.3
Robbery
1.0

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
$16,846
$30–48k
$16,968
$48–75k
$20,449
$75–110k
$22,587
$110k+
$24,523

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
$94,842

$20,449/year × about 4.6 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.

65%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$5,821
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 65% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $5,821. 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 817 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)
$38,262
Typical debt at graduation
$31,000
Debt vs. one year's pay
81%
Out-earn a HS grad
35%

Typical debt would take roughly 8.1 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
$36,876
Men
$40,060

Men out-earn women by $3,184 (9%) 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
93°F
Winter low
37°F
Annual rain
50.5″
Annual snow
0.1″

Average temperature

HighLow
30°70°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.95.8JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Orangeburg 2, SC US station (1.6 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 South Carolina State University

Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare South Carolina State University side by side →

Colleges near South Carolina State University

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.