Private nonprofit · University

Voorhees University

Denmark, South Carolina · Remote rural

#5 best value in South Carolina
Admit rate
$13,335
Avg net price
43%
Graduation rate
$35,339
Median earnings

Voorhees University is a private nonprofit bachelor's-granting institution in Denmark, South Carolina (remote rural setting), enrolling 440 undergraduates. It is a Historically Black College or University (HBCU). It has a Protestant Episcopal religious affiliation.

Private nonprofitSmall · 440 undergradsRemote ruralNAIA Division I

About Denmark, South Carolina

Denmark is a city in Bamberg County, South Carolina, United States. Cleveland Sellers oral history interview conducted by John Dittmer in Denmark, South Carolina, 2013 March 21. Denmark is home to the Dog Wood Festival, which is a festival that includes rides, games, and food/drink stands and was originally hosted 517.01 ft (15758.4648 cm [estimated]) from Beech Ave to South Beech Ave, but was moved to Cypress St as of 2019. (Wikipedia)

Setting
Remote rural
Highest degree offered
Graduate
Nearest big city
48 miles to Columbia, SC
To the ocean
55 miles
Nearest airport
44 miles to Columbia Metropolitan (CAE)

How Voorhees University compares

Graduation rate43%

Higher than 28% · #24 of 35 in South Carolina

First-year retention56%

Higher than 10%

Earnings, 10 years after entry$35,339

Higher than 8% · #30 of 35 in South Carolina

Average net price$13,335

Cheaper than 79% · #5 cheapest of 35 in South Carolina

Median debt at graduation$26,700

Lower than 19%

Student–faculty ratio13 : 1

Lower than 50%

Undergraduate enrollment440

Larger than 20%

Percentiles compare Voorhees 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

578students
  • Undergraduate44076%
  • Graduate13824%

Undergraduates by gender

440undergrads
  • Women22551%
  • Men21549%

Undergraduates by race / ethnicity

  • White4.1%
  • Black87%
  • Other or multiracial8.2%

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

By the numbers

Undergraduate enrollment
440
Graduate enrollment
138
Student–faculty ratio
13 : 1
Pell Grant recipients
77%
First-generation students
39%
Students over 25
17%
Median family income
$17,446
Avg faculty salary (academic year)
$49,428
Endowment
$10,526,987

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 129 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.

  • From South Carolina59%
  • Other U.S. states36%
  • International4.7%

A regional draw: about 59% of first-years come from South Carolina, the rest from elsewhere.

5% 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.

Cost

In-state tuition
$12,630
Room & board
$7,345
Books & supplies
$1,500
Total cost of attendance
$25,574
Average net price
$13,335

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)
43%
Graduated on time (4 years)
35%
First-year retention
56%
Transferred to another college
0%
Median earnings, 6 years after entry
$24,199
Median earnings, 10 years after entry
$35,339
Median debt at graduation
$26,700
Students with federal loans
56%
Paying down their loans (1 year in)
13%

About 8% 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
538
Dorm capacity vs undergrads
100%+
Housing charge (year)
$3,676
Meal plan (year)
$3,670
Application fee
$25
Athletics
NAIA Division I
Varsity athletes
219 (156 men · 63 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 (4)

Track and Field and Cross Country (combined)125
Baseball45
Basketball39
Softball10

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

Campus safety

Safety grade
A
Reported offenses per 1,000 students
0.0 / year
Violent offenses (2022–2024)
0
Property offenses (2022–2024)
0

On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 1 campus (578 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.

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
$11,968
$30–48k
$13,701
$48–75k
$18,453
$75–110k
$21,067
$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
$79,000

$18,453/year × about 4.3 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.

49%
of first-years get a grant from the school
$4,042
average award, among those who get one

Modest institutional aid: 49% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $4,042. 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 120 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)
$35,339
Typical debt at graduation
$26,700
Debt vs. one year's pay
76%
Out-earn a HS grad
28%

Typical debt would take roughly 7.6 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
$33,207
Men
$37,461

Men out-earn women by $4,254 (13%) 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
91°F
Winter low
36°F
Annual rain
48.5″
Annual snow
0.3″

Average temperature

HighLow
30°70°100°JFMAMJJASOND

Average precipitation (inches)

0.02.85.5JFMAMJJASOND

NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Bamberg, SC US station (5.6 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 Voorhees University

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

Colleges near Voorhees 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.