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College of Charleston: Rankings, Admissions, Cost & Majors

81 awards Ranking Badges
Fair Price Value for Your Money
60% Acceptance Rate

College of Charleston is a public institution in Charleston, South Carolina enrolling 10,558 undergraduates. It accepts 60% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 66%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #620 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 12%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.

Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.

How Is College of Charleston Ranked?

College of Charleston ranks #620 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 12%.

#620 Best Colleges in Nation
#7 Best Colleges in SC
College of Charleston ranking badge

2027 Rankings

In its yearly rankings, College Factual analyzes over 2,000 colleges and universities to determine which ones are the best in a variety of categories, such as overall value, quality, diversity, which schools are the best for each major, and much more.

College of Charleston was awarded 81 badges in the 2027 rankings.

Overall Quality

College Factual ranked C of C as #620 out of 5,159 colleges and universities in the country on its 2027 Best Colleges list. This puts it in the top 20% of all schools in the nation.

C of C is also ranked #7 on the Best Colleges in South Carolina list.

See all of the rankings for College of Charleston.

Is It Hard to Get Into College of Charleston?

60% Acceptance Rate
62% Of Accepted Are Women
18% Submit SAT Scores

Acceptance Rate

The acceptance rate at College of Charleston is a competitive 60%, so make sure you take your application seriously when putting it together. Even leaving out a minor detail could be a reason to move you to the rejection pile.

Average Test Scores

About 18% of students accepted to C of C submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 590 and 670. Math scores were between 550 and 640.

SAT Reading and Writing Scores for College of Charleston  ( 590 to 670 )
200
800
SAT Math Scores for College of Charleston  ( 550 to 640 )
200
800

C of C received ACT scores from 11% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT Composite scores ranged between 25 and 30.

ACT Composite Scores for College of Charleston  ( 25 to 30 )
1
36

Learn more about College of Charleston admissions.

What Is the Student-to-Faculty Ratio at College of Charleston?

16 to 1 Student to Faculty
65% Full Time Teachers

Student to Faculty Ratio

The student to faculty ratio at College of Charleston is about average at 16 to 1. This ratio is often used to gauge how many students might be in an average class and how much time professors will have to spend with their students on an individual level. The national average for this metric is 15 to 1.

Percent of Full-Time Faculty

When estimating how much access students will have to their teachers, some people like to look at what percentage of faculty members are full time. This is because part-time teachers may not have as much time to spend on campus as their full-time counterparts.

The full-time faculty percentage at College of Charleston is 65%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.

Full-Time Faculty Percent  65 out of 100
0
100

What Are the Graduation and Retention Rates at College of Charleston?

82% Freshmen Retention
66% On-Time Graduation Rate

Freshmen Retention Rate

College of Charleston has a freshmen retention rate of 82%. That’s a good sign that full-time students like the school and their professors enough to want to stick around for another year. It’s also a sign that the admissions team did a good job in choosing applicants who were a good fit for the school.

Freshmen Retention Rate  82 out of 100
0
100

Graduation Rate

The on-time graduation rate for someone pursuing a bachelor’s degree is typically four years. This rate at C of C for first-time, full-time students is 66%, which is better than the national average of 33.3%.

On-Time Graduation Rate  66 out of 100
0
100

Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at College of Charleston.

How Diverse Is College of Charleston?

10,558 Undergraduate Students
19.1% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
67.0% Percent Women

In the current academic year, there are 10,558 undergraduates at C of C.

Get more detailed information on the diversity at College of Charleston.

How Much Does College of Charleston Cost?

$17,140 Net Price
38% Take Out Loans
$25,332 Total Student Loans

The average net price of C of C is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.

Net Price by Income Group for C of C

$0-30 K $30K-48K $48-75 $75-110K $110K +
$12,133 $13,406 $16,797 $20,089 $24,996

The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid. Note that the net price is typically less than the published price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of C of C, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.

Student Loan Debt

It’s not uncommon for college students to take out loans to pay for school. In fact, almost 66% of students nationwide depend at least partially on loans. At C of C, approximately 38% of students took out student loans averaging $6,333 a year. That adds up to $25,332 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 6.2%. Although this is lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, you’ll still want to keep this in mind when taking out student loans. Get more details about paying for College of Charleston.

How Much Do College of Charleston Graduates Earn?

$56,416 Avg Salary of Grads
High Earnings Boost

Although some majors pay more than others, students who graduate from College of Charleston with a bachelor’s degree go on to jobs where they make an average salary of $56,416 in their early years. That’s great news for College of Charleston students since it is 15% more than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year. Average Salary for College of Charleston Graduates

See which majors at College of Charleston make the most money.

Where Is College of Charleston Located?

South Carolina State
10,558 Undergraduate Students
Midsize City Campus Setting

College of Charleston is an public institution found in Charleston, South Carolina. Charleston is a great location for students who prefer city over country life. Get more details about the location of College of Charleston.

Location of College of Charleston

Contact details for College of Charleston can be found below.

Contact Details
Address: 66 George St, Charleston, SC 29424-0001
Phone: 8439535500
Website: www.cofc.edu
Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/College_of_Charleston
Facebook: www.facebook.com/collegeofcharleston
Twitter: twitter.com/CofC

What Majors Does College of Charleston Offer?

23 Majors With Completions
5,566 Undergraduate Degrees

In the most recent reporting year, students from 23 majors graduated from College of Charleston. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.

Most Popular Majors Completions Average Salary of Graduates
Multi-Disciplinary Studies 2,783 NA
Business Administration & Management 334 $42,139
Communication & Media Studies 221 $36,857
General Psychology 216 $26,569
General Biology 149 $27,218
Marketing 120 $41,619
Public Health 119 $27,973
Finance & Financial Management 116 $47,506
Teacher Education Grade Specific 116 $36,695
Political Science & Government 91 $30,605

Learn more about the majors offered at College of Charleston along with which ones have the highest average starting salaries.

Does C of C Offer Online Classes?

48% Take At Least One Class Online
1% Take All Classes Online

5,117 students took at least one online class at College of Charleston.

Online learning options are becoming more and more popular at American colleges and universities. Online classes are great for students who have busy schedules or for those who just want to study on their own time.

Learn more about online learning at College of Charleston.

Curious how schools stack up against C of C? Compare them side by side using College Combat, our free interactive tool that lets you compare colleges on the features that matter most to you.

Notes and References

Footnotes

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

References

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