Best Fine Artist programs in South Carolina, ranked by enrollment
Create original artwork using any of a wide variety of media and.
25 schools in South Carolina run programs that feed this job, graduating 321 people a year. The job pays a median of — in South Carolina across about 160 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in South Carolina that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
5 programs in South Carolina that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in South Carolina (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own South Carolina page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fine/Studio Arts, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0702In South Carolina → | 193 | 60.1% | 15 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 2 | Art/Art Studies, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0701In South Carolina → | 98 | 30.5% | 9 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 3 | CIP 50.0101In South Carolina → | 27 | 8.4% | 4 | $24,752 | $25,963 |
| 4 | Drawingmain feeder CIP 50.0705In South Carolina → | 2 | 0.6% | 1 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 5 | Paintingmain feeder CIP 50.0708In South Carolina → | 1 | 0.3% | 1 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
Top 25 schools in South Carolina
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 7 of the 25 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of South Carolina - Columbia Columbia, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 59 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $27,467 | 79% | — | 60% |
| 2 | College of Charleston Charleston, SC Public · 2 feeder programs | 35 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $24,070 | 66% | — | 60% |
| 3 | Francis Marion University Florence, SC Public · 2 feeder programs | 24 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 43% | — | 86% |
| 4 | Clemson University Clemson, SC Public · 2 feeder programs | 23 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 87% | — | 38% |
| 5 | University of South Carolina - Upstate Spartanburg, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 23 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $35,203 | 43% | — | 67% |
| 6 | Bob Jones University Greenville, SC Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 17 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 65% | $18,053 | — |
| 7 | Winthrop University Rock Hill, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 16 | Art/Art Studies, General | $16,817 | 57% | — | 79% |
| 8 | Coastal Carolina University Conway, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 13 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $23,121 | 48% | — | 75% |
| 9 | Lander University Greenwood, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 13 | Art/Art Studies, General | $21,605 | 50% | — | 81% |
| 10 | University of South Carolina Aiken Aiken, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 12 | Art/Art Studies, General | $19,963 | 40% | — | 79% |
| 11 | Converse University Spartanburg, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 62% | $19,465 | 68% |
| 12 | University of South Carolina Beaufort Bluffton, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 34% | — | 73% |
| 13 | Spartanburg Methodist College Spartanburg, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 43% | $16,728 | 78% |
| 14 | Anderson University Anderson, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 66% | $24,812 | 55% |
| 15 | South Carolina State University Orangeburg, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 37% | — | 83% |
| 16 | Furman University Greenville, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 79% | $24,932 | 43% |
| 17 | Claflin University Orangeburg, SC Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 6 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 52% | $23,698 | 65% |
| 18 | Benedict College Columbia, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 24% | $19,589 | 96% |
| 19 | North Greenville University Tigerville, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 55% | $20,327 | 67% |
| 20 | Coker University Hartsville, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 40% | $17,749 | 94% |
| 21 | Columbia College Columbia, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 37% | $23,986 | 94% |
| 22 | Newberry College Newberry, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 45% | $20,306 | 90% |
| 23 | Trident Technical College Charleston, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Drawing | — | 30% | — | — |
| 24 | Wofford College Spartanburg, SC Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 2 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 84% | $24,459 | 52% |
| 25 | Technical College of the Lowcountry Beaufort, SC Public · 1 feeder programs | 1 | Painting | — | 18% | — | — |
All 25 schools in South Carolina
Every school in South Carolina with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of South Carolina - Columbia | Columbia | Public | 59 | 1 |
| College of Charleston | Charleston | Public | 35 | 2 |
| Francis Marion University | Florence | Public | 24 | 2 |
| Clemson University | Clemson | Public | 23 | 2 |
| University of South Carolina - Upstate | Spartanburg | Public | 23 | 1 |
| Bob Jones University | Greenville | Private not-for-profit | 17 | 2 |
| Winthrop University | Rock Hill | Public | 16 | 1 |
| Coastal Carolina University | Conway | Public | 13 | 1 |
| Lander University | Greenwood | Public | 13 | 1 |
| University of South Carolina Aiken | Aiken | Public | 12 | 1 |
| Converse University | Spartanburg | Private not-for-profit | 11 | 1 |
| University of South Carolina Beaufort | Bluffton | Public | 11 | 1 |
| Spartanburg Methodist College | Spartanburg | Private not-for-profit | 9 | 1 |
| Anderson University | Anderson | Private not-for-profit | 8 | 1 |
| South Carolina State University | Orangeburg | Public | 8 | 1 |
What fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators earn in South Carolina
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Metro areas in South Carolina
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators page.
How to become a Fine Artist
Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
- On-the-job training
- Long-term on-the-job training
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in South Carolina
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 12 majors mapped to Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators12 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 50.0101Visual and Performing Arts, General
- 50.0701Art/Art Studies, General
- 50.0702Fine/Studio Arts, General
- 50.0705Drawing
- 50.0706Intermedia/Multimedia
- 50.0708Painting
- 50.0709Sculpture
- 50.0710Printmaking
- 50.0711Ceramic Arts and Ceramics
- 50.0799Fine Arts and Art Studies, Other
- 50.1101Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art
- 51.2703Medical Illustration/Medical Illustrator
Common questions
Answers for people weighing fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators programs in South Carolina.
What degree do you need to become a Fine Artist?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Fine/Studio Arts, General, which awarded 193 degrees in South Carolina in 2024-25, 60.1% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Fine Artist?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 5 programs to this occupation. The largest are Fine and Studio Arts, Visual and Performing Arts. Together they graduate about 321 people a year in South Carolina.
Is demand for fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators growing?+
BLS projects a -1.2% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 2,200 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in South Carolina?+
25 institutions in South Carolina reported graduates from at least one of the 5 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Artist, Painter, Sculptor, Fine Artist among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-1013.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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