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Most Popular Nursing Schools in South Carolina

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2023 Most Popular Nursing Schools in South Carolina

37 Colleges
$69,985 Avg Salary
$28,053 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Nursing School for You

Nursing is the most popular major in South Carolina with 3,296 degrees and certificates handed out in 2021-2022.

With all the nursing programs available today, it can be tough to choose which one is the best for you. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school to be a better alternative for you.

The Most Popular Nursing Schools in South Carolina ranking is one of many tools that Nursing Degree Search has developed to help you make your educational decision. This report analyzed 37 schools in South Carolina to see which ones were the most popular programs for nursing students. To create this ranking we looked at how many students graduated from the Nursing program at each school on the list.

The following schools top our list of the Most Popular Nursing Colleges.

Our 2023 rankings named University of South Carolina - Columbia the most popular school in South Carolina for nursing students. Located in the medium-sized city of Columbia, UofSC is a public school with a very large student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at UofSC take out is $43,323. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $478, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Nursing at University of South Carolina - Columbia Report

The excellent programs at Medical University of South Carolina helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in South Carolina. Located in the midsize city of Charleston, MUSC is a public college with a small student population.

On average, nursing graduates from MUSC take out $69,867 in student loans while working on their degree. Assuming that a graduate chooses a 10-year repayment plan, the average monthly loan payment is $470.

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The excellent programs at University of South Carolina - Upstate helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in South Carolina. Located in the suburb of Spartanburg, USC Upstate is a public college with a small student population.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at USC Upstate take out is $18,000. When it comes time to repay the loan, graduates who are on a 10-year repayment plan pay an average monthly payment of $142.

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#4

Clemson University

Clemson, SC

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Clemson University. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Most Popular Nursing Schools in South Carolina list. Clemson is a fairly large public school located in the suburb of Clemson.

Nursing majors at Clemson take out an average of $26,832 in student loans while working on their egree. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $511, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

Full Nursing at Clemson University Report

#5

Trident Technical College

Charleston, SC

The excellent programs at Trident Technical College helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best nursing schools in South Carolina. Trident Technical College is a large public school located in the city of Charleston.

On average, nursing graduates from Trident Technical College take out $21,050 in student loans while working on their degree.

Read full report on Nursing at Trident Technical College

Greenville Technical College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Most Popular Nursing Schools in South Carolina ranking. GTC is a fairly large public school located in the small city of Greenville.

On average, nursing graduates from GTC take out $19,232 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#7

Midlands Technical College

West Columbia, SC

With a ranking of #7, Midlands Technical College did quite well on this year’s most popular schools for nursing students. MTC is a medium-sized public school located in the suburb of West Columbia.

The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at MTC take out is $16,000.

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Anderson University South Carolina did quite well in this year’s ranking of the most popular schools for nursing students. It came in at #8 on the list. Located in the city of Anderson, Anderson University South Carolina is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

While working on their degree, nursing majors at Anderson University South Carolina accumulate an average of around $27,875 in student debt. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $492, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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University of South Carolina - Aiken landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the most popular nursing programs. UofSC Aiken is a small public school located in the large suburb of Aiken.

While working on their degree, nursing majors at UofSC Aiken accumulate an average of around $23,667 in student debt.

Full Nursing at University of South Carolina - Aiken Report

#10

Francis Marion University

Florence, SC

Francis Marion University ranked #10 on this year’s Most Popular Nursing Schools in South Carolina list. Francis Marion University is a small public school located in the suburb of Florence.

After completing their degree, nursing graduates from Francis Marion University carry an average student debt load of $25,500. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $141, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

Read full report on Nursing at Francis Marion University

Best Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Most Popular Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Alabama 7,364
Kentucky 6,395
Tennessee 6,004
Louisiana 3,502
Mississippi 2,838
Florida 21,209
Arkansas 2,882
North Carolina 7,425
West Virginia 1,771
Georgia 7,112
Virginia 6,775

Nursing Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing 262,974
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 16,647
Nursing Practice 8,862
Nursing Administration 8,663
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 4,717
Nursing Science 4,701
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 2,895
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 2,075
Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing 2,011
Nurse Anesthetist 1,768
Critical Care Nursing 747
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 622
Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery 567
School Nursing 539
Clinical Nurse Leader 502
Clinical Nurse Specialist 340
Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing 269
Women’s Health Nurse/Nursing 262
Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing 192
Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing 87
Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing 26
Forensic Nursing 23
Palliative Care Nursing 13

Related Major Annual Graduates
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 85,339

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 25 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Aleksahgabrielle.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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