---
title: South Carolina State University — cost, debt & earnings (College Scorecard)
location: Orangeburg, SC
control: Public
source: U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard (2026-06-10 release)
sourceUrl: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/
---

# South Carolina State University

Orangeburg, SC · Public · Bachelor-granting

> Federal College Scorecard institution **medians** — not a prediction of any one student's outcome, and not a figure for any single program. Earnings/debt cover federally-aided students.

## The bottom line

| Figure | Value | Status |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Typical earnings, 10 yrs after entry | $38,262 | recorded |
| Earnings range (25th–75th pct) | $22,900 – $55,233 | recorded |
| Typical federal debt | $20,900 | recorded |
| Debt of students who withdrew | $12,250 | recorded |
| Completion rate | 37% | recorded |
| Average annual net cost | $30,015 | recorded |
| % earning above a $28k HS-grad wage | 54% | recorded |
| Debt ÷ a year's earnings | 0.55× | derived |
| Earnings premium vs $28k HS benchmark | $10,262 | derived |

**37% of students finish** — the loans are owed whether or not you graduate, so read every figure below next to this number.

Typical **federal** loan debt is $20,900 (≈ 55% of a year's typical earnings here). Note: this counts federal loans only — not private loans, Parent PLUS, or family savings — so true borrowing is usually higher; and because dropouts borrow less, low-completion schools can show a deceptively low debt figure.

## Earnings by major (the number that decides "worth it")

> **Different measure — read on its own terms.** These are median earnings **1 year after completing the program** (early career, graduates only) — NOT the 10-years-after-entry school-wide figure above. Do not compare a program figure to the school figure; compare majors to each other. The Dept. of Education omits programs with too few graduates.

By program, early-career pay ranges from $17,125 to $43,798 across 12 program(s).

| Major | Credential | Pay (1 yr out) | Median debt |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Communication Disorders Sciences and Services. | Master's Degree | $43,798 | $56,000 |
| Student Counseling and Personnel Services. | Master's Degree | $42,160 | $59,950 |
| Mechanical Engineering Related Technologies/Technicians. | Bachelor's Degree | $41,941 | not reported |
| Rehabilitation and Therapeutic Professions. | Master's Degree | $35,494 | $41,000 |
| Business Administration, Management and Operations. | Bachelor's Degree | $29,870 | $31,500 |
| Criminal Justice and Corrections. | Bachelor's Degree | $28,987 | $27,000 |
| Social Work. | Bachelor's Degree | $26,194 | not reported |
| Psychology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $24,764 | not reported |
| Teacher Education and Professional Development, Specific Subject Areas. | Bachelor's Degree | $21,752 | $31,000 |
| Biology, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $20,692 | $30,450 |
| Family and Consumer Sciences/Human Sciences, General. | Bachelor's Degree | $17,756 | $32,625 |
| Communication and Media Studies. | Bachelor's Degree | $17,125 | $31,000 |

## What this is — and is NOT

Institution-wide medians from the U.S. Dept. of Education College Scorecard. **Not** a prediction of what you would earn or owe, **not** a figure for any single program (a CS and a fine-arts graduate of the same school diverge enormously), **not** proof the school caused the outcome (selection, not causation), and **not** a "best college" ranking. Explore South Carolina State University by field of study at the official Scorecard: https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?218733

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Structured data (JSON-LD), each figure labeled by epistemic status: `/education/south-carolina-state-university-sc.jsonld` · all schools: `/education`