April 17, 2025 | Erin Bluvas, bluvase@sc.edu
Already known as a top-ranked school of public health nationally, the University of South Carolina Arnold School of Public Health has once again been ranked the best school of public health in South Carolina – continuing to claim the state’s No. 1 spot according to the 2025 U.S. News & World Report Best Graduate School Rankings. As the only accredited school of public health in the state, the school was recently reaccredited for another seven years.
“The Arnold School is home to some of the best graduate programs in the Southeast and certainly the top public health programs in South Carolina,” says Dean Tara Sabo-Attwood. “These rankings reflect the real-world impact of our graduates – through cutting-edge research, meaningful community partnerships, and a deep commitment to improving health outcomes.”
Ranking No. 28 nationwide, the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders’ (COMD) M.S. in Speech-Language Pathology program offers traditional and distance education formats with extensive clinical experiences (including the department’s Montgomery Speech-Hearing-Language Clinic), and opportunities to contribute to and implement the most recent evidence-based research. Accredited for more than three decades, the program was recently reaccredited for another eight years.
These rankings reflect the real-world impact of our graduates – through cutting-edge research, meaningful community partnerships, and a deep commitment to improving health outcomes.
“Our speech-language pathology program is a highly-tuned graduate program that incorporates innovative research while assuring that students acquire the knowledge and skills to practice in a variety of clinical settings,” says COMD chair Jean Neils-Strunjas.
In the Department of Exercise Science, the Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) program climbed to the 37th spot (up from No. 44 last year). Accredited for more than 20 years, this boutique-style program offers small class sizes that allow more hands-on clinical experience, individualized instruction and a rich mentorship environment.
"I am incredibly proud that our DPT program ranks in the top 12 percent of accredited programs nationwide," says program director Shana Harrington. “This achievement speaks volumes about the quality of education we provide, thanks to our wonderful faculty, dedicated students, and supportive staff.”
The latest rankings also identified the Arnold School’s Department of Health Promotion, Education, and Behavior as having one of the Top 25 Social and Behavioral Sciences Programs – claiming the No. 22 spot. Among top-ranked healthcare management programs, our Department of Health Services Policy and Management’s master’s programs in healthcare management jumped up the list – moving to No. 33 (from 41).
A widely recognized way for students and parents to compare and evaluate higher education programs, U.S. News and World Report considers a variety of factors in determining their rankings. The Arnold School’s inclusion and growth in many areas of the nation’s best programs offers further evidence and credibility to the value of the education and opportunities offered by the best public health graduate school in South Carolina.
