2027 Most Popular Counseling Degree Programs Ranking in South Carolina

Pay varies by occupation, employer, experience, and geography. The table gives national occupational benchmarks, not starting salaries or South Carolina graduate outcomes. Use it to compare career directions, then assess local job postings for the roles you would actually seek (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025 wages).

These are medians for workers in each occupation, not evidence that one degree produces a particular salary. A prospective student should also account for time spent gaining supervised experience before qualifying for a desired role.

The programs below differ most meaningfully in career focus, educational setting, and training environment. Treat each distinction as a reason to investigate a program further - not as proof of licensure eligibility or superior outcomes.

• Clemson University - counselor education: Its clinical mental health and school counseling paths let applicants compare two distinct professional destinations within one counselor-education program. It is a useful starting point if you have not yet decided between clinical and school-based work (Clemson University).
• Columbia International University - clinical counseling: The program's integration of counseling education with a Christian perspective is a substantive curriculum distinction. Students who want that approach should review how it is taught alongside clinical skills and supervised practice (Columbia International University).
• Winthrop University - clinical mental health counseling: Its dedicated clinical mental health focus makes it more directly relevant to aspiring therapists than a school-counseling route. Ask about placement locations and how the curriculum maps to the license you intend to pursue (Winthrop University).
• South Carolina State University - rehabilitation counseling: This route centers rehabilitation rather than general mental health practice. It deserves particular attention from students interested in disability services, vocational goals, and access to work (South Carolina State University).
• South University-Columbia - clinical mental health counseling: The Columbia location offers another locally based clinical-program option. Compare its full program price and placement arrangements with other clinical tracks before choosing on location alone (South University).
• South Carolina State University - M. Ed. in counselor education: An education-focused counseling degree warrants comparison with clinical tracks by intended job and credential. Applicants seeking school work should confirm the specific certification pathway with both the program and the state education department (South Carolina State University; South Carolina Department of Education).
• University of South Carolina School of Medicine - rehabilitation counseling: Its location within a school of medicine distinguishes the academic setting from education-school and general clinical programs. Students drawn to disability and health-related rehabilitation should examine its fieldwork and career focus (University of South Carolina).

For a wider comparison of outcomes and accreditation measures, consult the best counseling programs alongside each program's current handbook and admissions information.

A counseling bachelor's degree commonly takes about four years of full-time study. A master's commonly takes about two to three years full-time; part-time enrollment or limited placement availability can extend that timeline. CACREP's entry-level standards specify at least 60 semester credits and include supervised practicum and internship requirements, so a short advertised classroom schedule is not the whole completion plan (CACREP).

Ask for a term-by-term schedule showing when fieldwork begins, whether required courses run every term, and how many hours you can realistically spend at a placement while employed. For a working adult, a longer part-time route may reduce immediate income loss even if it delays entry into the intended role.

Online delivery changes where you attend classes, not whether you need supervised counseling practice. Campus study may simplify access to faculty and nearby placement networks; online study may make coursework feasible while you remain employed or live farther from a university. Either format can be a poor fit if its placement schedule conflicts with your work or travel limits.

Before enrolling in an online program, get written confirmation that it accepts students in South Carolina, supports placements where you live, and has reviewed its curriculum against the credential you want. If you might practice in another state, check that state's rules separately; a South Carolina pathway should not be assumed to transfer automatically (South Carolina Board of Examiners; CACREP).

There is no single dependable price for a counseling degree across degree levels, institutions, and residency categories. Public universities may charge different resident and nonresident rates; private institutions set their own prices. Published tuition also leaves out fees, books, travel to placements, and income forgone while completing fieldwork (institutional tuition schedules; NCES/IPEDS).

Compare each school's current total-program estimate using your residency status and expected pace, rather than multiplying a headline per-credit price without checking fees. The most affordable counseling programs can help form a shortlist, but a lower tuition bill is not necessarily a lower overall cost if completion takes longer or placements require extensive travel.

Students may be able to combine institutional scholarships, assistantships, employer support, and eligible federal student aid. Availability depends on the school, program, enrollment status, and the student's circumstances; undergraduate and graduate aid rules differ (Federal Student Aid). Ask each financial aid office for a written package that separates grants from loans and shows the cost of the full degree, not just the first term.

Check South Carolina aid programs against your degree level and residency before counting them in a budget. Also ask whether an assistantship's work hours are compatible with practicum and internship: funding that delays graduation may change its value.

Master's applicants generally need a bachelor's degree and the materials specified by the institution, which may include transcripts, recommendations, a statement of purpose, and an interview. Individual programs may require prerequisite coursework or set their own academic thresholds, so verify requirements on the current admissions page rather than assuming that a psychology major is mandatory (institutional admissions offices).

Transfer or prior graduate credits deserve an early conversation. Ask which credits can satisfy this program's requirements, whether prior fieldwork can count, and whether accepting credits would affect your intended credential. Admission, degree completion, and licensure are separate decisions made by different authorities.

Master's study typically covers counseling theories, assessment, ethics, human development, research, and supervised practice. Clinical tracks emphasize mental-health assessment and treatment; school tracks address students' academic, career, and social-emotional needs; rehabilitation tracks focus more directly on disability and vocational concerns (CACREP).

Compare course sequences as well as titles. A program whose required classes or placements are offered infrequently may be harder to finish on your preferred schedule, even when its credit total looks comparable.

Options represented among South Carolina programs include clinical mental health, school, and rehabilitation counseling. Addiction counseling may appear as a focused course of study or career interest within a broader clinical route, but applicants should check the exact program and credential requirements rather than infer a specialization from an elective (institutional program descriptions; South Carolina Board of Examiners).

Choose the specialization by the work you want to do. Someone seeking school employment should prioritize a clear school-certification route; someone seeking clinical practice should prioritize a curriculum and supervised training plan aligned with the relevant counseling license. Rehabilitation counseling is a better comparison for a student whose primary interest is disability and employment services.

Start with the job and credential you want, then compare programs against that target. Popularity can signal student interest, but it cannot tell you whether a program fits your schedule, budget, or licensure plan. A practical shortlist should answer these questions:

1. Which South Carolina license or educator certification is the program intended to support, and how does the school document that alignment?
2. Is the specific program CACREP-accredited, if that recognition matters for your goal, and is the institution appropriately accredited?
3. Where do students complete placements, who arranges supervision, and can the schedule work with your job?
4. What is the estimated full cost after aid, including fees, travel, and time away from paid work?
5. What current program-level completion and employment information can the school share?

For an investment decision, consider completion probability, debt, foregone earnings, your current pay, plausible post-degree pay, and how long you expect to work in the new role. The most valuable counseling programs offer another comparison point, but no ranking can calculate your personal return without those assumptions. A common mistake is selecting the cheapest or shortest option before checking credential fit.

A clinical master's can be a route toward professional counseling roles after the applicable state requirements are met; a school counseling route points toward positions requiring South Carolina educator certification; rehabilitation training can support work in disability and vocational services (South Carolina Board of Examiners; South Carolina Department of Education; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics).

Graduation does not itself grant independent-practice authority. South Carolina's counseling board sets requirements that can include qualifying education, examination, and supervised experience. If you mainly want to provide brief support in a nonclinical role, compare that goal with jobs that do not require a counseling license before committing to a clinical master's.

National employment for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors is projected to grow 18% from 2025 to 2035 (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections). That points to a growing occupational field, but it is not a South Carolina hiring forecast or a promise of openings near a particular campus.

For a local search, compare openings by credential, setting, and commute area before choosing a placement location. A school-focused applicant should look at district requirements, while a clinical applicant should distinguish roles open to graduates under supervision from those requiring an independently licensed counselor. That distinction can materially affect the first job available after graduation.

Investing in a degree is a consequential decision. Research.com evaluates counseling programs using graduate outcomes, accreditation, licensure-exam performance where applicable, and cost; the team reviews its data and methods to make the rankings more credible and useful for comparison.

The Best ranking combines program completion, employment or doctoral admission, applicable licensure-exam pass rates, CACREP programmatic accreditation, and institutional Title IV eligibility. Cost contributes a smaller share of its final score. Other rankings order programs by the dimension named in their title, so readers should use each ranking for its stated purpose rather than assume it measures every aspect of fit. The same scoring approach applies to online and on-campus programs.

The following databases were used to create the rankings:

• IPEDS database - institutional enrollment, completion, and cost information.
• Peterson's database - program and institutional information.
• College Scorecard database - federal institutional data, including student outcomes.
• National Center for Education Statistics - federal education data and context.

These measures can narrow a shortlist, but they cannot establish whether a particular curriculum satisfies a student's intended license or whether field placements are accessible from home. See Research.com's methodology for more about how the rankings are created.

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• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics - Counselors
  Used to verify salary, employment outlook, and typical education requirements.
  https://www.bls.gov/ooh/community-and-social-service/
• CACREP - Directory of Accredited Programs
  Used to verify CACREP accreditation status of specific programs.
  https://www.cacrep.org/directory/
• NBCC - NCE / NCMHCE
  Verified professional/licensure/career reference.
  https://www.nbcc.org/exams
• Clemson University - Master of Education - Clinical Mental Health Counseling Specialization
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.clemson.edu/education/academics/masters/counselor-education.html
• Columbia International University - Master of Arts in Clinical Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://ciu.edu/program/ma-clinical-counseling/
• Clemson University - M. Ed. in Counselor Education
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.clemson.edu/education/academics/masters/counselor-education.html
• Winthrop University - Master of Education in Counseling and Development - Clinical Mental Health Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://www.winthrop.edu/ceshs/csdv/clinical-mental-health-counseling.aspx
• South Carolina State University - Master of Arts in Rehabilitation Counseling
  Official program page (curriculum, tuition, admissions).
  https://scsu.edu/academics/programs/rehabilitation-counseling.php