The primary mission of the University of South Carolina is the education of the state's diverse citizens through teaching, research, creative activity, and service. Founded in 1801, the University of South Carolina system is the largest university in the state, serving more than 41,000 students from its flagship Columbia campus, three senior campuses (Aiken, Beaufort, and Upstate), and four regional campuses (Lancaster, Salkehatchie, Sumter, and Union).
The University of South Carolina is a public institution offering degree programs at the associate’s, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral levels. Through the primary method of classroom and laboratory instruction and through a secondary method of distance education delivered via the Internet, teleconference and electronic media, degree programs are offered in the following areas: arts and sciences; education; engineering and computing; hospitality, retail, and sport management; mass communications and information studies; music; public health; and social work, and in professional programs such as business, law, medicine, nursing, and pharmacy.
With a flagship campus recognized by the Carnegie Foundation as a top research and service institution and nationally ranked in start-up businesses, and an eight-campus system that confers nearly 40% of all bachelor’s and graduate degrees awarded at public institutions in South Carolina, the University has a profound relevance, reach, and impact on the people of the state. The University of South Carolina provides all students with the highest-quality education, including the knowledge, skills, and values necessary for success and responsible citizenship in a complex and changing world through engagement in nationally and internationally ranked research, scholarship, service, and artistic creation.