1.  [College research](/)
2.  /
3.  [University of South Carolina-Columbia](/school/university-of-south-carolina-columbia/)
4.  /
5.  Career outcomes brief

Career outcomes brief

Copy linkPrint brief

# University of South Carolina-Columbia Career Outcomes & Earnings

Updated October 1, 2026

[Overview](/school/university-of-south-carolina-columbia/)[Cost & aid](/school/university-of-south-carolina-columbia/cost/)Outcomes[Admissions](/school/university-of-south-carolina-columbia/admissions/)[Majors](/school/university-of-south-carolina-columbia/majors/)[Similar schools](/school/university-of-south-carolina-columbia/similar/)

**On this page**+

## How much do University of South Carolina-Columbia graduates earn?

The reported median is $67,741 four years after completion. The peer comparison uses $65,610 as its benchmark; the difference is $2,131 per year.

Four years after completing a degree at University of South Carolina-Columbia, graduates earn a median of $67,741. That is above the peer median of $65,610 for comparable institutions (same type and size) by $2,131.

That median places the university in the 72nd percentile nationally, while the return pillar overall sits in the 57th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The return picture is mixed because graduates earn about $10,288 less than the model expects for similar students, a result in the 18th percentile.

The part the model attributes to the factors it measures (field of study, enrollment and the local labor market) adds $13,443. The part it attributes to a remainder it does not explain subtracts $23,731.

Within the measured factors, the STEM component adds $2,125. The median earnings sit above the peer benchmark.

Yet the model finds graduates earning less than expected for similar students. The program mix and institutional factors pull in opposite directions.

The earnings scenarios span from $49,255 on the downside to $94,779 on the upside. These are scenarios estimated from the program mix, not observed groups of graduates.

At the upper end, Computer Engineering graduates earn $109,116 four years after completion, and International Business graduates earn $107,205. The largest program, Finance, reports $92,578 from 608 degrees awarded a year.

An estimated 28.8% of graduates continue to graduate study, a figure derived from the university's program mix rather than observed enrollment. Because four-year earnings figures capture only those working and not enrolled, the median earnings understate the eventual earnings of the sizable share of completers who pursue advanced degrees.

**Median earnings · four years after completion**
$67,741

**Rank for difference from expectations**
18th percentile

Four-year median earnings against two benchmarks

**University of South Carolina-Columbia reported median**
$67,741

**Peer schools comparable schools · $2,131 below University of South Carolina-Columbia**
$65,610

**Model expectation what similar students would be expected to earn · $10,288 above University of South Carolina-Columbia**
$78,029

School and program earnings use pooled 2017–18 and 2018–19 completion cohorts, measured in 2022 and 2023 and expressed in 2024 dollars. [How the model works](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

## How many University of South Carolina-Columbia students return and finish their degrees?

First-time, full-time bachelor’s cohorts · CDS 2025-26

**Returned the following fall**
92.0%

**Completed within six years**
79.0%

**Pell recipients completed within six years**
69.0%

Source: University of South Carolina-Columbia Common Data Set 2025-26, B22 retention; B4–B11 six-year completion. Retention and completion follow different entering cohorts.

## How could earnings differ from the median?

The planning scenarios range from $49,255 to $94,779, around the reported median of $67,741. Compare the lower scenario with [University of South Carolina-Columbia borrowing and monthly payments](/school/university-of-south-carolina-columbia/cost/) to see how a smaller income could change your plan.

Modeled from the school’s program mix; not salary percentiles or a forecast for one graduate.

Earnings four years after completion

Planning rangeReported median

**Lower estimate**
$49,255

**Median · reported**
$67,741

**Higher estimate**
$94,779

Downside shows a lower-earning scenario based on the college’s mix of programs; upside shows a higher-earning scenario. Typical is the school’s reported median four years after completion. These are planning scenarios, not a forecast of your salary or percentiles of individual graduates.

[Why the downside matters](/analysis/median-roi-hides-a-harsh-reality/) explores the risk hidden by medians, using older ten-year entrant data. [Read about the move to four-year earnings](/analysis/college-scorecard-2026-4-year-vs-10-year-earnings-2-2/).

## Do University of South Carolina-Columbia graduates earn more than expected?

Azimuth models what we would expect graduates to earn based on who the college enrolls, how selective it is and its local economy. The difference between that expectation and reported earnings is what Azimuth calls [value added](/methodology/#value-added).

University of South Carolina-Columbia graduates’ reported earnings are $10,288 below that expectation, the 18th percentile for this measure. Unlike a peer comparison, it adjusts for who enrolls.

The breakdown separates the contribution attributed to observed factors from the remaining difference. Neither component establishes how much attending University of South Carolina-Columbia caused a student to earn. [Read how expected earnings are estimated](/analysis/a-value-added-approach-to-college-outcomes/).

What explains value-added earnings?

**Program & institutional factors The part attributed to observed institutional characteristics.**
+$13,443

**Unexplained remainder What remains after the model’s observed factors.**
\-$23,731

**Total modeled value added The modeled difference from expected earnings.**
\-$10,288

These are statistical model components, not proven causal effects; the remainder is not a direct measure of teaching quality.

## Which fields at University of South Carolina-Columbia report the highest earnings?

The University of South Carolina-Columbia awards bachelor's degrees across 52 fields with published four-year earnings, and [Azimuth ranks](/analysis/college-program-rankings-how-to-actually-evaluate-programs/) 48 of them nationally among nonprofit four-year institutions. The highest-earning program, Computer Engineering, shows a median of $109,116 four years after completion, though it awarded only 40 degrees.

International Business follows at $107,205 with 172 degrees awarded. Finance, the biggest with 608 degrees awarded, reaches a median of $92,578 and an Azimuth national rank of #41.

Public Health and Biology, with 438 and 369 degrees awarded respectively, sit at $58,715 (ranked #41) and $58,669 (ranked #145). The contrast between a high-earning business program and more moderate-earning health and science fields is typical of the spread at this university.

University of South Carolina-Columbia publishes earnings data for 52 bachelor's programs, and 48 of those hold an Azimuth national rank. The five largest programs by degrees awarded span business, health, and the sciences, and their earnings outcomes vary widely four years after completion.

Finance awarded 608 degrees and ranks #41 nationally and #1 in South Carolina. Its completers earn a median of $92,578.

Public Health follows with 438 degrees awarded, a national rank of #41, and a median of $58,715. Biology awarded 369 degrees, ranks #145 nationally, and shows a median of $58,669.

Research and Experimental Psychology awarded 342 degrees, ranks #35 nationally, and its completers earn a median of $51,090. Marketing rounds out the largest five with 335 degrees awarded, a national rank of #35, and a median of $81,945.

The highest-earning large program is Finance, while Research and Experimental Psychology sits below the national field median.

Highest reported four-year program earnings

**Computer Engineering**
$109,116

**International Business**
$107,205

**Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering**
$100,042

**Chemical Engineering**
$98,244

**Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods**
$98,020

**Biomedical/Medical Engineering**
$97,927

**Insurance**
$96,539

**Business/Managerial Economics**
$94,547

[Explore University of South Carolina-Columbia program cohorts and field ranks](/school/university-of-south-carolina-columbia/majors/#largest-cohorts) for more context.

## Further analysis

Earnings vary sharply by field, a pattern captured in earnings scenarios grounded in the university's program mix: the downside scenario sits at $49,255, the typical at $67,741, and the upside reaches $94,779. Anchoring that range in named programs, the highest-earning program, Computer Engineering, reaches $109,116 four years after completion, while among the largest programs Research and Experimental Psychology lands at $51,090.

Four years after completing a degree, federally aided graduates of University of South Carolina-Columbia who are working and not enrolled earn a median of $67,741. That median falls in the 72nd percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions.

It is $2,131 above the $65,610 figure for comparable institutions (same type and size). They earn about $10,288 less than the model expects for similar students.

That gap is in the 18th percentile among nonprofit four-year institutions. The earnings cohort includes 7,185 federally aided completers working and not enrolled.

Earnings scenarios estimated from the program mix run from $49,255 on the downside to $94,779 on the upside, with $67,741 as the typical outcome. An estimated 28.8% of graduates continue to graduate study, based on the program mix, so the four-year measure does not cover every completer.

## Data & methodology

Sources and reporting periods: [methodology](/methodology/).

Analysis and methodology by [Daniel Rogers](/about/#founder), founder of College Azimuth.

Explanatory text is AI-assisted drafting checked against those figures; it is not an additional data source.

Figure notes link to sources and limitations. [About College Azimuth](/about/).