The 10 Best College Towns In South Carolina For 2022
By Nick Johnson & Chris Kolmar | 04/07/2022
Believe it or not, America has the best colleges in the world. It's been proven by data (and surveys) that the U.S. educational system is of the highest quality
It's actually not even close and South Carolina is home to a handful of them.
While we could debate which colleges within the are the 'best,' that's not the goal of this post.
Instead, ride along with us as we determine which college towns in South Carolina are the best.
You know, the type of places where there's energy and stimulation, but the type of place you can walk around at night. The happiest, chillest, most downright fun places where you can send your kids off to college where you won't break the bank, or worry about their well being.
Without further ado, here are the best college towns in South Carolina for 2022.
While some of these may not seem like a 'real' college town per se, when you look at the numbers, it's hard to argue against.
And for those who live in Clemson, Aiken and Rock Hill - we tip our hats to you and we'll schedule a tour for next week. You can see where Clemson ranks in terms of the best college town in America.
Read on to find out more or for more on South Carolina check out:
Population: 16,917
% Undergrad Pop.: 83.1% (best)
Median Rent: $950 (11th best)
Unemployment Rate: 421.3% (4th best)
Crime Rank: 3rd best
More on Clemson: Real Estate | Cost Of Living
Colleges: Clemson University
Population: 31,428
% Undergrad Pop.: 10.0% (11th best)
Median Rent: $971 (13th best)
Unemployment Rate: 418.9% (3rd best)
Crime Rank: 12th best
More on Aiken: Real Estate | Cost Of Living
Colleges: University of South Carolina-Aiken, Aiken School of Cosmetology and Barbering
Population: 74,410
% Undergrad Pop.: 6.2% (13th best)
Median Rent: $1,017 (14th best)
Unemployment Rate: 614.4% (7th best)
Crime Rank: 8th best
More on Rock Hill: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Colleges: Winthrop University, York Technical College, Kenneth Shuler School of Cosmetology-Rock Hill
Population: 12,733
% Undergrad Pop.: 15.4% (5th best)
Median Rent: $711 (5th best)
Unemployment Rate: 953.4% (13th best)
Crime Rank: 8th best
More on Gaffney: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Colleges: Limestone College
Population: 5,342
% Undergrad Pop.: 32.3% (3rd best)
Median Rent: $693 (3rd best)
Unemployment Rate: 1072.3% (15th best)
Crime Rank: 2nd best
More on Central: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Colleges: Southern Wesleyan University
Population: 137,041
% Undergrad Pop.: 10.6% (9th best)
Median Rent: $1,318 (16th best)
Unemployment Rate: 341.4% (2nd best)
Crime Rank: 4th best
More on Charleston: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Colleges: Trident Technical College, College of Charleston, Charleston Southern University
Population: 7,559
% Undergrad Pop.: 13.3% (8th best)
Median Rent: $672 (best)
Unemployment Rate: 719.0% (9th best)
Crime Rank: 15th best
More on Hartsville: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Colleges: Coker College
Population: 23,176
% Undergrad Pop.: 5.1% (15th best)
Median Rent: $1,761 (17th best)
Unemployment Rate: 230.7% (best)
Crime Rank: best
More on Bluffton: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Colleges: University of South Carolina-Beaufort
Population: 24,747
% Undergrad Pop.: 17.8% (4th best)
Median Rent: $787 (8th best)
Unemployment Rate: 1183.2% (16th best)
Crime Rank: 5th best
More on Conway: Real Estate | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Colleges: Coastal Carolina University, Horry-Georgetown Technical College, Miller-Motte Technical College-Conway
Population: 27,387
% Undergrad Pop.: 5.1% (14th best)
Median Rent: $743 (7th best)
Unemployment Rate: 763.0% (11th best)
Crime Rank: 8th best
More on Anderson: Real Estate | Cost Of Living
Colleges: Anderson University, Forrest College
To crunch our data on South Carolina's best college towns, we had to first decide which qualities (or rankings) make sense to use in the data, and then crunch the numbers for our rankings.
First off, we firmly decided that only cities with a 4 year college should make the cut -- so there has to be at least one college granting bachelors degrees in town.
You might be surprised to hear that there are only 15 places in South Carolina with an institution of higher learning with that criteria.
Source of data include OpenStreetMaps, the College Scorecard, the U.S. Census, and FBI reporting data to include the following factors:
We ranked each city across each of the criteria, with one being the best.
We rolled up the individual scores into the category and ranked them again based on the category.
Finally, we took the average rank across each category, with the city posting the lowest overall score being crowned the winner of the title "Best College Town In South Carolina For 2022".
And it looks like Clemson placed Summa Cum Laude.
If you're looking for the best college towns in South Carolina, you came to the right place.
These places all have great college sports programs, tons of stuff to do, and are great places to raise a family.
For more reading, check out:
| Rank | City | Population |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Clemson, SC | 16917 |
| 2 | Aiken, SC | 31428 |
| 3 | Rock Hill, SC | 74410 |
| 4 | Gaffney, SC | 12733 |
| 5 | Central, SC | 5342 |
| 6 | Charleston, SC | 137041 |
| 7 | Hartsville, SC | 7559 |
| 8 | Bluffton, SC | 23176 |
| 9 | Conway, SC | 24747 |
| 10 | Anderson, SC | 27387 |
| 11 | Orangeburg, SC | 12713 |
| 12 | Clinton, SC | 8347 |
| 13 | Columbia, SC | 134057 |
| 14 | Greenwood, SC | 23351 |
| 15 | Newberry, SC | 10219 |
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