Enrollment: 1867
Average LSAT: ###,###,##0
Pass Rate for First Time Bar Exam: 89%
Average Undergrad GPA: 0.00
Regular Application Deadline: 04/01
School Type: Public
Student Faculty Ratio: 21:1

Part Time Program: 0%
Evening Program: No

Average Starting Salary: $63,000.00

Out-of-State Tuition: $31,476.00
In-State Tuition: $15,584.00
Financial Aid Deadline: 04/15
Average Loan Received: $8,300.00

Student Says - Academics
Deeply enmeshed and dearly loved in the local legal community, the University of South Carolina boasts a prestigious faculty, a well-connected alumni network, and an ultra-friendly staff and student body. At USC, the classroom experience is top of the line, spearheaded by talented professors who are "very accessible and willing to interact with students formally and informally." A student raves, "The faculty really care about teaching and are always available to help explain or give you further enrichment. They are very encouraging, which is very important when you've had a hard day under the Socratic Method!" In addition to the impressive roster of tenured faculty, "The administration has done a great job of recruiting new, more dynamic professors in recent years." The resulting atmosphere is a "welcome mixture of the stuffy old law professors with the young, cutting-edge, recent academics." Even so, the program takes a fairly traditional approach to legal education, and some students say the school should "work on addressing more diverse needs than just the typical needs of the corporate lawyer-to-be."
Students adore the "the collegial, friendly, and open attitude" at USC, assuring us that "the faculty and administration will move mountains to help you make it through to graduation." Fellow students also form an important support network at USC. A 1L elaborates: "We are placed with a group of 12 students that comprise our legal writing class; you are with these students in almost every class your first year. They become like your law school family; everyone watches out for each other." Another adds, favorite part about the law school is the collegiality of the students; although there is healthy competition, we truly look out for one another's best interest."
There's no doubt about it: "If you want to be an attorney in South Carolina, this is the best place to be." Smack dab in the middle of the capital, USC is "just blocks away from the state legislature and the state supreme court, as well as to administrative agencies and local government," which offers students "a great opportunity to see the law in action while still in school." When looking for a job or internship, USC students enjoy "a wonderful reputation in the Southeast"; not to mention a corner on the regional market. "Because over 70 percent of the South Carolina Bar attended this law school," the alumni network is beyond compare. If that weren't enough, Career Services does "an excellent job informing us with local and regional opportunities and equipping us with skills to 'land the job' (i.e., interview workshops, resume workshops, and individual evaluations)."
Amidst glowing reviews, students give the school's aging facilities a decisive thumbs-down. Thinking like a future prosecutor, a 2L informs us, "The walls are filled with asbestos. The pipes are filled with lead. Not the smartest place to house a bunch of aspiring lawyers." Another student comments, "Apparently [they] have been planning on building a new one for decades but instead have used duct tape to keep it together. Literally, the window next to me is held up with duct tape." Fortunately, administrators are aware of the duct tape problem, and "The Law School is in the process of fund-raising for its new, top-of-the-line building."

Students Say - Campus Life
At USC, students enjoy the incomparable combination of an excellent academic program and a stellar social life. Attracting a fun-loving and outgoing student body, "There are very few law students you wouldn't invite to have a beer with after a rough week of classes." When they aren't hitting the books, "There is no shortage of social events at USC." For example, "Students put together tailgates during football season, and SBA puts on great theme parties and a formal [get-together] in the spring." Students also hang out casually, and "It's easy to find law students out every night of the week."
Besides drinking and studying, many students spend their free time participating in clubs, intramural sports, and extracurricular activities. Demonstrating a community- oriented and philanthropic spirit, students organize "massive food-drive competitions with each class donating tens of thousands of pounds of canned goods, and most students donate their study guides and commercial outlines to the Public Interest Law Society's outline bank, which then sells them back to other students at highly discounted rates." Since they end up spending so much time together, students admit that law school is something like "High School II, complete with lockers and gossip, but at least we are old enough to legally drink."
A great mix of cosmopolitan and cozy, hometown Columbia is "small enough to be comfortable but large enough to have opportunities in private and corporate law." Thanks to USC's sizable undergrad and graduate programs, "The area has a 'happenin'' bar scene." More liberal thinkers beware: this Southern school has "a feeling of staunch South Carolina Republicans."

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