Practical Nursing (Certificate) Programs in South Carolina, Ranked by Graduate Pay and Debt
- 7 programs report first-year pay
- 6 also report federal debt
- Certificate in Practical Nursing, Vocational Nursing and Nursing Assistants
College Scorecard June 2026 release · BLS wages May 2025
The short answer
The median South Carolina practical nursing certificate program pays its graduates $47,544 in their first year, $3,566 more than the national median. York Technical College reports the highest first-year pay ($54,238), and York Technical College the lowest median debt ($12,434).
All 7 programs, ranked
Each figure is the median for the program's graduates. Programs that don't report a figure are listed last when you sort by it.
Northeastern Technical College reports pay but not debt, so it is ranked only by pay. One more program reports debt but not pay, so it isn't listed.
Debt and first-year pay at every South Carolina practical nursing program
Programs in the upper left give graduates higher pay for less debt. Dashed lines mark the South Carolina medians.
Hover over or tap a dot to see the school. Only the 6 programs that report both earnings and debt are shown.
Quick picks
Highest first-year pay
- York Technical College$54,238
- Orangeburg Calhoun Technical College$51,754
- Tri-County Technical College$49,100
- Northeastern Technical College$47,544
- Midlands Technical College$46,823
Lowest median debt
- York Technical College$12,434
- Orangeburg Calhoun Technical College$17,525
- Midlands Technical College$17,875
- Piedmont Technical College$22,500
- Tri-County Technical College$25,506
Lowest debt for the pay
"Debt for the pay" is median debt divided by first-year pay. Only programs that report both figures are included.
What licensed practical and vocational nurses earn in South Carolina
Pay for licensed practical and vocational nurses in South Carolina, across all experience levels, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses
$61,820Median pay in South Carolina. 9,400 people work in this job in South Carolina. Nationally, jobs are projected to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035, with about 51,800 openings a year. Typical education to start: postsecondary nondegree award.
Common questions
York Technical College in Rock Hill reports the highest median first-year pay, $54,238. Its median federal debt is $12,434.
York Technical College reports the lowest median federal debt, $12,434, with first-year pay of $54,238.
The median across 7 South Carolina practical nursing certificate programs is $47,544 in the first year after graduating and $45,390 five years after. Licensed practical and vocational nurses in South Carolina earn a median of $61,820 across all experience levels.
7 South Carolina programs report first-year pay for their graduates, and 6 of them also report federal debt.
Related pages
About this data
- Earnings and debt only include students who received federal financial aid, and earnings only count graduates who were working and not enrolled in more school.
- Debt only includes federal loans. Private loans and credit cards are not counted.
- Some schools with several campuses report one combined figure for all of them. We count each of those schools once, and leave them out of South Carolina rankings when their main campus is in another state.
- Medians are across the practical nursing certificate programs that report each figure, so the counts differ by figure. Scorecard figures describe graduating classes from several years ago. BLS wages are from May 2025.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Education, College Scorecard, field of study and institution files, June 2026 release
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025
- Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
- NCES, CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk, and IPEDS institution directory, 2024