Denmark Technical College
Public Community College in Denmark, SC. Six-year graduation rate 13%. Median 10-year earnings $25,351.
Median earnings ten years after entry come to $25,351, below what most undergraduate institutions return — the central fact to weigh against cost here. Only 13% finish within six years, so roughly nine in ten students leave without the credential they enrolled for. Borrowing stays contained, with median debt at graduation of $15,250.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
- ! Debt-to-income ratio 0.60 — elevated (above 0.60)
- ! Graduation rate 13% — below national average
Academics
Only 13% finish within six years, so roughly nine in ten students leave without the credential. Retention is weak: only 47% of full-time first-years return, so roughly one in two leave after one year. Retention runs well ahead of completion, which means students are not leaving immediately; they are leaving somewhere between the second year and the finish line. 23% transfer out. IPEDS does not follow them, so whether they finished elsewhere is not recorded either way. A 15:1 ratio points to small classes and accessible faculty.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 497 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Net price lands at $18,722 a year on average, neither cheap nor punishing. The gap between the $0–30k and $75–110k bands is narrow ($18,698 versus $23,662), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. Grant aid is widespread — 88% of students receive it, averaging $2,800. Federal borrowing is uncommon here at 14% of students.
Entering first-year students
A different, smaller group than the rates above: full-time students in their first year of college anywhere. The grant series here also excludes the "other sources" counted in the all-undergraduate figure, so the two are not comparable.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 148 students
Net price by family income
The same students as the headline above, limited to those who received Title IV federal aid — a narrower group, with a lower overall average. IPEDS publishes no combined figure across these bands, so they should not be averaged into one.
| Family income band | Average net price |
|---|---|
| $0–30k | $18,698 |
| $30–48k | $17,597 |
| $48–75k | $21,300 |
| $75–110k | $23,662 |
| $110k+ | — |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 70 of these 497 students, totalling $196,100 — an average of $2,801 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Bamberg County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.
HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026
Veterans & GI Bill
Heightened Cash Monitoring (Compliance Audit Late or Missing); School placed on Heightened Cash Monitoring
VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)