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🎓 College profile

University of South Carolina-Columbia

SC · Public · Mid-size city · 46,682 applicants 2023

R1 Research
62% admit rate SAT 1180–1380 $28,125/yr at $110k+ income

🧭 A parent's read

  • The major moves the money more than the admit letter. Computer Engineering grads from here earn about $109,116 four years out; fine and studio arts grads about $39,517 — a 2.8× spread on the same diploma. Have the major conversation before you deposit, not after.
  • Grades and scores convert directly to dollars here. This college publishes an automatic merit grid — hit the GPA/score tiers and the discount is guaranteed, no negotiation. Check the scholarship table below before assuming the sticker.
  • The payoff holds even at full price: roughly 5× over a decade. With no aid at all — the full in-state ~$31,638/yr — a decade of median earnings (~$62,177/yr) still runs about 5× the four-year cost. This payoff doesn't depend on qualifying for anything. (Out-of-state costs more.)
  • Ask the submit question deliberately. This college is test-optional — but at many such colleges, applicants who submit strong scores are admitted at meaningfully higher rates. “Optional” is a strategy decision, not a pass.

Composed from this page's data — every claim is backed by a number in the sections below.

Get your child's odds at University of South Carolina-Columbia Free Family Decision Report — Reach / Match / Likely + your real net price. University of South Carolina-Columbia starts already on the list. Start →

🎯 Parent/student verdict

Match

Solid match for academically prepared students. Major value play for in-state residents.

✅ Best for

  • Solid academic profiles — the admitted-student bands above are within reach for strong students
  • Strong test/GPA students chasing merit aid — Horseshoe Scholars or Alumni Scholars on offer (see merit-scholarship tab below)
  • In-state residents (tuition ~$12,688 — major value play)
  • Students focused on Business, Management, & Marketing (the school's signature program)
  • Research-oriented students (R1 — top tier of federal research funding)

🎯 The reality

  • Bottom-quartile academic profile if: SAT below 1180, or ACT below 26, or unweighted GPA below 3.48 (admitted-class quartiles per the school's own data)
  • Out-of-state tuition is 2.8× the in-state rate

Verdict is composed from this college's structured data (admit rate, SAT bands, net price by income, Carnegie classification, scholarship grids) using transparent rule thresholds — not a chat-bot's opinion.

🏛️ Institutional snapshot

What kind of college is this?

Carnegie classification
R1: Doctoral - Very High Research Activity
Total enrollment
29,820
20,000 and above
In-state tuitionThe published full price before any aid. Families who don't qualify for need-based aid — common above ~$110K income — pay this, minus any merit scholarships.
$12,688
sticker, before aid
Out-of-state tuition
$35,972
+$23,284 vs in-state
Admit rateThe share of applicants a college accepts. Useful context, but your student's odds depend on their own grades and scores, not the average.
61.5%
Accessible
SAT middle 50%The middle half of enrolled students scored in this range — a quarter scored BELOW the low end and still got in, and a quarter scored above the high end. Above the top number is a genuine strength; below the bottom isn't automatic rejection.
1180–1380
EBRW + Math composite
ACT middle 50%The middle half of enrolled students scored in this range — a quarter scored BELOW the low end and still got in, and a quarter scored above the high end. Above the top number is a genuine strength; below the bottom isn't automatic rejection.
26–32
composite
Test policyApplicants choose whether to send SAT/ACT scores. At many such colleges, students who submit strong scores are still admitted at higher rates.
Test-optional
2023
10-yr earningsMedian yearly pay of former students ten years after they STARTED here — not ten years after graduating — all majors combined. The broadest single outcome number a college reports.
$62,177
median, after entry

Source: federal IPEDS Admissions 2023 for scores + admit rate; federal College Scorecard (20260606 vintage) for earnings + outcomes. SAT/ACT bands are the 25th–75th percentile of enrolled submitters.

🎓 High-school GPA

3.68 avg unweightedGPA on the plain 4.0 scale, no honors/AP bonus. When a college publishes an "average admitted GPA of 3.9," it's often this scale — don't compare it to a weighted 4.3. GPA, enrolled first-years

unweighted 4.0 scale. Common Data Set 2025-2026 ↗

As published by the college in its Common Data Set / admissions data (2025-26) — independently verified 2026-07-23 (source linked above). GPA basis (weighted vs. unweighted vs. 4.0-scale) varies by college and is labeled above.

📊 Outcomes & cost

What graduates actually earn, finish, and owe.

Federal College Scorecard data. Earnings are median annual income measured years after entering. Debt is for federal-aid borrowers only (cash-pay students aren't counted).

Earnings, 6 yrs after entry
$50,621
Earnings, 10 yrs after entryMedian yearly pay of former students ten years after they STARTED here — not ten years after graduating — all majors combined. The broadest single outcome number a college reports.
$62,177
4-year completionThe share of students who finish a bachelor's in four years. Nationally barely half do — and a fifth year quietly adds a full extra year of cost to the real price.
79%
Median debt (completers)The federal-loan balance of the typical graduating borrower. Families who pay cash aren't counted, so read it as "among those who borrowed."
$21,500

💰 The real cost

What families at your income actually pay

Above $110K income — where most Reach families sit — aid-receiving families average $28,125/yr at University of South Carolina-Columbia; families who don't qualify for aid pay the full ~$31,638/yr. Lower brackets pay less — the full ladder is below. One caveat, once: every bracket figure here averages only the families in that bracket who received aid — it says nothing about whether your family will qualify.

🔎 Earning over $110K? You're above the top federal bracket — the median family headed by a 45-to-54-year-old (the prime college-parent years) earned about $134K in 2024, and the federal data lumps everyone from $110K to $1M+ into one row.

Whether you'll get need aidGrant money based on your family's finances (via FAFSA and the college's own forms), not your student's stats. at this income is entirely college-specific: a few heavily-endowed schools meet full need well past $150K, while many others give little above the brackets shown — there, merit scholarships, where offered, become the realistic lever.

Start your Family Decision Report →

Your odds + estimated net price across your whole college list — then confirm the exact figure with University of South Carolina-Columbia's own Net Price Calculator ↗ (10–15 min; have your tax return handy).

Family income $110k+ most Reach families
$28,125/yr
Family income $75-110k
$24,478/yr
Family income $48-75k
$19,859/yr
Family income $30-48k
$14,953/yr
Family income $0-30k
$12,634/yr

📈 The payoffTen years of typical earnings divided by four years of cost. A 3× means a decade of median pay covers the cost three times over — check both the full-price and with-aid versions to see which applies to you., both ways

4.9× at full price 6.8× with aid
Full price, no aidThe all-in yearly price — tuition, housing, food, books, fees — before any aid. This is the real "full price," not just the tuition line. (4 yrs, in-state)
$126,552
~$31,638/yr all-in (out-of-state runs higher)
Aid recipients pay (4 yrs)
$91,244
$22,811/yr average
10-yr earnings total
$621,770
$62,177/yr median, 10 yrs out
Years to recoup the cost
2.0 yrs
at full price (1.5 with aid), at the median earnings rate

Source: College Scorecard (NPT41–NPT45; Title IV first-time, full-time undergraduates; suppressed brackets = small cohorts; the $110K+ ceiling is a federal data limitation — the brackets haven't been refreshed since the early 2010s). Payoff multiple = (10-yr median earnings × 10) ÷ (4-yr cost); full price is the published cost of attendance, largely in-state for publics; earnings are 10 years after enrollment, all majors combined.

📚 What students study here

Most popular majors at University of South Carolina-Columbia

Top 5 fields of study by bachelor's degrees awarded (most recent IPEDS Completions). Use this to see what University of South Carolina-Columbia actually graduates — not just what it markets.

1. Business, Management, & Marketing
1,750 degrees · 42.7%
Broad set of corporate roles. Finance + consulting pay top, accounting + HR pay middle, sales spread is wide.
2. Health Professions
781 degrees · 19.1%
Highest-paying group on this list, but most careers require additional training beyond a 4-year degree.
3. Biological & Biomedical Sciences
705 degrees · 17.2%
Many bio majors → med school / grad school. Direct-employment bio roles are lower-paid than that pipeline.
4. Engineering
442 degrees · 10.8%
Engineering majors land high-paying technical roles. Top-earning sub-disciplines: petroleum, chemical, computer engineering.
5. Communication, Journalism, & Related
416 degrees · 10.2%
Media, PR, marketing communications. Salary spread is wide.

💼 What those majors earn here

Median earnings 4 years after entry, by major — University of South Carolina-Columbia's own graduates, not national averages.

Major (CIP) Credential Cohort 1-yr earnings 4-yr earnings
Computer Engineering. Bachelor's Degree 40 $73,982 $109,116
International Business. Bachelor's Degree 172 $70,992 $107,205
Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering. Bachelor's Degree 38 $77,161 $100,042
Chemical Engineering. Bachelor's Degree 56 $75,680 $98,244
Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods. Bachelor's Degree 198 $68,804 $98,020
Biomedical/Medical Engineering. Bachelor's Degree 47 $57,311 $97,927
Insurance. Bachelor's Degree 119 $63,417 $96,539
Business/Managerial Economics. Bachelor's Degree 72 $62,692 $94,547
Finance and Financial Management Services. Bachelor's Degree 608 $62,231 $92,578
Mechanical Engineering. Bachelor's Degree 183 $72,370 $91,296

Sources: IPEDS Completions (C2023_a; bachelor's-level first majors, 2-digit CIP family — share is of the top 5 only) · College Scorecard program-level outcomes (PP-FOS). Full college-vs-major comparison: /college-outcomes →

⭐ Merit aidScholarship money awarded for grades or test scores, not financial need — at many colleges it's automatic at certain GPA/score levels.

What your test score unlocks at University of South Carolina-Columbia

Score-or-merit-based scholarships published by the institution. Stackable in most cases — confirm with the financial aid office.

Award Annual award Score gate GPA gate Renewable
Horseshoe Scholars
Horseshoe · out_of_state
 $11,000/yr 1550+ SAT — Yes
Alumni Scholars
Alumni · out_of_state
 $8,000/yr 1550+ SAT — Yes
Academic Scholars
Elite · out_of_state
 $4,000/yr 1536+ SAT — Yes
Academic Scholars
Excellence · out_of_state
 $2,000/yr 1519+ SAT — Yes
Academic Scholars
Superlative · out_of_state
 $500/yr 1447+ SAT — Yes
Academic Scholars
Distinction · out_of_state
 $500/yr 1382+ SAT — Yes
Academic Scholars
Merit · out_of_state
 $500/yr 1312+ SAT — Yes
Academic Scholars
Recognition · out_of_state
 $500/yr 1240+ SAT — Yes
Stamps Scholars
Stamps · out_of_state
 ~$24,700 + in-state tuition reduction + $15,000 enrichment 1550+ SAT — Yes
McNair Scholars
McNair · out_of_state
 $22,000 + in-state tuition reduction + $12,000 enrichment 1550+ SAT — Yes
Provost Scholars
Provost (NMF) · out_of_state
 Up to $6,000 + in-state tuition reduction — — Yes

See all merit scholarships across colleges + 13 national awards on /merit-scholarships →

See which merit tiers your child already clears — free Family Decision Report Start →

🤖 AI program signal

AI + computing education at University of South Carolina-Columbia

CS degrees (annual)
200
CIP 11.0701 + 11.0101

Full multi-lens comparison: /ai-colleges →

Alternatives to University of South Carolina-Columbia

Matched not just by selectivity, but by strategic goal — what a family actually decides on.

🏆 Better merit-aid options
These similar-selectivity schools publish merit scholarships your family can plan around — your kid’s stats could unlock real scholarship dollars.
University of Alabama in Huntsville
AL · Public
39 stats-based merit scholarships
Texas Tech University
TX · Public
30 stats-based + 1 competitive scholarships
The University of Alabama
AL · Public
21 stats-based + 2 competitive scholarships
💰 Lower full price
Similar selectivity, but a meaningfully lower full sticker price — the comparison that matters most for families who won't qualify for much need-based aid.
United States Merchant Marine Academy
NY · Public
$9,168/yr full price (in-state) · $22,470 less before aid
CUNY Hunter College
NY · Public
$13,905/yr full price (in-state) · $17,733 less before aid
CUNY Brooklyn College
NY · Public
$14,151/yr full price (in-state) · $17,487 less before aid
🛡️ Safer in-state options
Same state and similar selectivity, but with a more forgiving admit rate — useful safety / match anchors.
College of Charleston
SC · Public
72% admit rate (vs 62% here)
Winthrop University
SC · Public
75% admit rate (vs 62% here)
University of South Carolina Aiken
SC · Public
80% admit rate (vs 62% here)

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