Private Nonprofit Graduate Good 66/100

Claflin University

See admissions data, costs, student outcomes, and academic programs, all verified from official US government sources.

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Orangeburg, South Carolina

About Claflin University

Thinking about Claflin University, a college in South Carolina where more students graduate in Business than anything else? The four things worth knowing are what it actually costs after aid, whether you would get in, whether students finish, and what they earn after they do.

Claflin University is a private nonprofit institution offering graduate degrees based in Orangeburg, South Carolina. It enrolls 1,706 students (a mid-sized student body), according to IPEDS 2023-24 data. Every figure on this page is reported by the federal government, not supplied by the college, so it can be compared like for like against anywhere else you are looking.

Acceptance
64.9%
Graduation
49.3%
Net Price
$17,800
Median Earnings (10yr)
$40,304
Enrollment
1,706
Student : Faculty
13:1

Accreditor Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges
Academic Calendar Semester

How It Measures Up

These four scores answer one question: compared with similar colleges, is this one worth the money? Each runs 0 to 100 and is judged only against its peer group (4-Year Selective), so a community college is never marked down for not being Harvard. Everything is computed from federal data. Nobody can pay to move a score, and a pillar with missing data is left unscored rather than guessed.

Good
66/100
UCD Score · 4-Year Selective
Outcomes 44
Value 31
Affordability 80
Selectivity 69

Admissions & Acceptance Rate

Claflin University admits 64.9% of applicants, which makes it moderately selective, and realistic if you meet the academic profile.

Acceptance Rate
64.9%
Moderate
SAT Range (25th–75th)
—
Not reported
ACT Range (25th–75th)
—
Not reported
Test Policy Test Optional Applicants choose whether to submit SAT or ACT scores.

5-Year Admission Trend

Acceptance rate over the last five admission cycles. The trend tells you whether Claflin University is getting harder, easier, or staying about the same.

Becoming less selective ↑ 17.4 pts since 2019
55.2%201965.1%202062.5%202178%202272.6%2023

Cost & Financial Aid

Ignore the sticker price. What matters is the net price, which is what a typical family pays here after grants and scholarships come off. At $17,800 a year on average, it sits below what private nonprofit colleges charge nationally. That still leaves most families a gap to cover, but a manageable one. Figures are College Scorecard 2023-24.

The average hides a wide spread by household income, so it is worth estimating what a family at your income would actually pay before treating this as the price.

Average Net Price
$17,800
Per year, after typical aid
Receive Pell Grants
73%
Need-based federal aid
Receive Federal Loans
74%
Borrowing to attend

Full Cost Breakdown

Published cost of attendance, the sticker price before grants and scholarships. Most students underestimate room & board and other expenses.

Tuition & Fees
$18,282
Room & Board (on-campus)
$9,480
Room & Board (off-campus)
$11,500
Books & Supplies
$950
Other Expenses (on-campus)
$5,250
Other Expenses (off-campus)
$9,000
Total Cost of Attendance
$33,530

Application fee: $30 (one-time, due at submission)


Net Price by Family Income

Aid is need-based, so net price varies by family income. Here's what each bracket typically pays after grants and scholarships.

  • Under $30,000
    $16,354
  • $30,001 – $48,000
    $21,118
  • $48,001 – $75,000
    $22,279
  • $75,001 – $110,000
    $23,502
  • Over $110,000
    $25,071

Debt at Graduation

Cumulative federal-loan debt across the full borrowing distribution. The 10th and 90th percentiles bracket the typical range; the median sits in the middle.

$5,500
10% percentile
$9,500
25% percentile
$29,000
Median percentile
$36,750
75% percentile
$45,000
90% percentile

Median Debt by Student Type

Median federal-loan debt at graduation broken down by demographic. Each slice's size is proportional to the dollar amount that group typically borrows.

GroupDebtvs Median
Pell recipients $23,511 ↓ $5,489
No Pell $12,500 ↓ $16,500
Dependent students $23,725 ↓ $5,275
Independent students $18,305 ↓ $10,695
Female students $23,000 ↓ $6,000
Male students $20,000 ↓ $9,000
Pell recipients: 19.4% (5,633 students)No Pell: 10.3% (2,995 students)Dependent students: 19.6% (5,684 students)Independent students: 15.1% (4,386 students)Female students: 19.0% (5,511 students)Male students: 16.5% (4,792 students)Overall Median$29,000
Worth knowing: Students who don't finish leave with a median debt of $11,750, less than completers ($29,000), but still a meaningful obligation without a degree in hand.

Graduation Rate & Retention

49% of students who start here finish within six years, and 77% come back after first year. Fewer than half finish in six years. Ask what support exists for students who fall behind. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.

Completion and earnings carry the most weight in this college's score, and how the UCD Score weighs each measure sets out exactly how they are combined.

6-Year Graduation Rate
49%
Of students who graduate within six years
First-Year Retention
77%
Returning for their second year

After Graduation: Earnings & Outcomes

Ten years after starting here, the median student earns $40,304 a year, close to the national median. Typical for most colleges, so what you study will matter more than where. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.

Median Earnings (10 yrs)
$40,304
Earning > $25K
69%
10 yrs after entry

Earnings Growth After Graduation

Median annual earnings 6, 8, and 10 years after students first enrolled.

$28,000$31,000$35,000$38,000$42,0006 yrs8 yrs10 yrs

Earnings by Demographic

Mean annual earnings 10 years after entry, segmented by demographic. Reveals gaps the headline median can't show.

By Gender

Female graduates
$28,000

Median earnings for female grads ten years after first enrolling here.

Male graduates
$35,200

Median earnings for male grads ten years after first enrolling here.


By Family Income at Entry

Family income (lowest third)
$28,100

Earnings of grads from the bottom-third of family incomes at entry.

Family income (middle third)
$32,200

Earnings of grads from the middle-third of family incomes at entry.

Family income (highest third)
$36,400

Earnings of grads from the top-third of family incomes at entry.

The gender gap: Male graduates earn $7,200, about 20% more than female graduates ten years out. The gap reflects industry mix, role choice, and structural pay differences that exist across most US colleges.

Loan Repayment Progression

Share of completer-cohort borrowers paying down at least $1 of principal at the 1-, 3-, 5-, and 7-year mark. Climbing rates show graduates settling into careers and managing debt; flat or declining rates are a warning.

Climbing: graduates increasingly paying down debt ↑ 14.7 pts across 6 years
28.2%1yr37%3yr45.1%5yr42.9%7yr
What this signals: Concerning. Only 43% of graduates are actively reducing principal even seven years out.

Who Studies Here

Who you would actually be sitting next to: 1,706 students, a mid-sized community. Worth knowing: 32% are the first in their family to go to college.

Total Enrolled
1,706
Part-Time
7%
First-Generation
32%

Race & Ethnicity Breakdown

Undergraduate student body composition reported to the US Department of Education.

GroupShareStudents
Black 89.2% 1,521
White 2.4% 41
International 2.3% 39
Hispanic 0.8% 13
Other 0.3% 5
Asian 0.1% 2
Black: 89.2% (1,521 students)White: 2.4% (41 students)International: 2.3% (39 students)Hispanic: 0.8% (13 students)Other: 0.3% (5 students)Asian: 0.1% (2 students)Total1,706

Student Life & Campus Culture

Where students live, learn, and connect at Claflin University. The campus setting, housing profile, and signals that shape day-to-day life here.

Setting
Town: Distant Orangeburg, South Carolina
Housing
Mostly residential 1,171 beds on campus
Adult Learners
10% of students are 25 or older
Athletics
NCAA athletic-conference member
Academic Calendar
Semester scheduling structure
Designation
Historically Black College / University (HBCU)
Designation
Religiously affiliated

What You Can Study

After that comes the national picture for Psychology graduates, which shows what the field pays across every college rather than just this one.

Claflin University offers a varied set of programs: 33 distinct programs across 18 majors. Below are its strongest majors, each with flagship programs and typical earnings. Open a major to explore it in depth, or browse the full program catalog.

7 Programs
2 Programs
4 Programs
1 Program
1 Program
1 Program

Faculty & Resources

There are 13 students for every instructor here: about average, so expect a mix of small seminars and big lectures.

Student : Faculty
13:1
Students per instructional faculty member
Endowment
$152M
Solid financial position
Avg Faculty Salary
$68,210
9-month equivalent across all ranks

Faculty by Rank

116 instructional faculty across 6 ranks. The rank mix shows how many senior faculty are teaching versus contingent or junior staff, with average salary equated to a 9-month contract.

Rank Faculty Count Share Avg Salary
Full Professors 24 21% $84,873
Associate Professors 36 31% $65,151
Assistant Professors 39 34% $66,068
Instructors 14 12% $57,560
Lecturers 2 2% $46,442
No Rank 1 1% $54,575

Pros & Cons of Claflin University

No college is right for everyone. Here is where Claflin University is likely to suit you and where it may not, based on the same figures shown above.

Read against a single profile these cut both ways, which is why it helps to put two colleges side by side on the same measures rather than judging one in isolation.

PROS
  • Below-average net price
  • Reasonable class sizes
  • Wide reach of need-based federal aid
CONS
  • Below-average completion rate
  • Modest first-year retention
  • Earnings outcomes are on the lower side
  • Higher than typical student debt at graduation
  • Most students take on federal loans

Frequently Asked Questions about Claflin University

The questions families ask most about Claflin University, answered straight from the federal data rather than from the college's own marketing.

Is Claflin University hard to get into?
Admissions at Claflin University are moderately competitive. The acceptance rate is 64.9%, so most applicants who meet the academic minimums are admitted.
What is the acceptance rate at Claflin University?
64.9% of applicants are admitted. Most applicants who meet the basic requirements are admitted. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
How much does Claflin University cost?
Budget around $17,800 a year. That is the net price, what families typically pay once grants and scholarships come off, not the sticker price. Your own figure depends on household income, so treat this as a midpoint rather than a quote. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Is Claflin University worth it?
On the numbers, yes: moderate return on investment. Ten years in, the median graduate earns $40,304 a year against a net price of $17,800, about 2.3 dollars of earnings for every dollar of annual cost. That ratio ignores whether you finish and what you study, which matter just as much. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
What is Claflin University known for?
Mostly Psychology, Nursing, Kinesiology. Those are the fields where it awards the most degrees, which is a better guide to where the teaching strength sits than any reputation ranking. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
What do Claflin University graduates earn?
About $40,304 a year, measured ten years after students first enrolled. Half earn more and half earn less, and what you study moves that figure far more than where you study. Source: College Scorecard 2023-24.
Is Claflin University accredited?
Yes. Claflin University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
How many students attend Claflin University?
1,706 students. Small enough that you will recognize faces across campus, and small enough that course choice can be limited. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
What is the graduation rate at Claflin University?
49% finish within six years. That means most students do not finish in six years. Ask the school directly what support exists for students who fall behind. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.
Is Claflin University a public or private college?
It is Private Nonprofit. Private nonprofit, so the sticker price is higher but institutional aid is often larger too.
Where is Claflin University located?
Claflin University is located in Orangeburg, South Carolina.
What programs does Claflin University offer?
33 different programs, most commonly Psychology, Nursing, Kinesiology. If the subject you want is not among them, check the full list before applying rather than assuming it is offered.
What is the student-to-faculty ratio at Claflin University?
13 students per instructor. About average, so a mix of seminars and larger lectures. Source: IPEDS 2023-24.

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