13 Best 2 Year Nursing Programs In Columbia, SC (2022 Updated)

CIU is a con. You realize it after a year or two as a student there. CIU is an embarrassment to higher education. The degrees and programs offered provide little to no value in the actual world. You may think you will go into full-time Christian ministry, but most graduates of CIU do not. As a former Student President and graduate of CIU, I am ashamed of Columbia International University and I hope prospective students and their parents think twice before making the decision to go. Fast forward 4 years, you will have collected over 100K in tuition fees, you will have two useless degrees, and those 'degrees' will be from a nonreputable, unheard of university. You won't care about any of this at 17 or 18 years old. You will think student loans are fine and a degree won't affect my life much. It took me almost 15 years to pay off my loans with family help and scholarships. My 2 degrees have not helped me since the day I graduated. I say again, CIU is a con. The institution and faculty know it. It is an illusion – what you think will be, will not be. Every year new students arrive with desire and ideas for their lives – so many leave empty-handed and jaded by the experience.Brian Wimberley

We had the most AHHHMAZING tour experience guided by the Dean of ICU, Scott R. Adams J.D. himself. I am so impressed with every aspect of this beautiful, immaculate campus. It is such a phenomenal learning environment for the students surrounded with walking trails, lakes, meditation locations, State of the Art Sports Fields, a beautiful Seminary, incredible Business School, IT School, Nursing School, etc.. Mr. Adams was so full of knowledge about everything we enquired about, so much so, he made me want to go back to school tjere!!!Karen McNally

Avoid at all costs. The spiritual damage this has caused me has taken almost 10 years to get me back to being okay with entering a church without having an anxiety attack. It takes about a semester to see this place for what it really is. Yeah, the tours are nice and it feels like a place where God is at work… But it's really just a den of Pharisees. Trust the negative reviews. Don't let your kids come here!Krista Dietrich

If I could give 0 stars I would because this school is not even worth one half of a star. From the first day I even considered attending this school to the last day I will attend I have told myself this was a HUGE mistake. I am an out of state student, on my first day of class no one told me where to go I didn’t even know who my instructor was. I was in the financial aid office in tears because I was so lost and no one cared at all. I was never given a tour of the campus and no one replied to my emails when I would ask questions in regards to the issues I was experiencing. On the student orientation day I was told I would receive a packet of information about the school along with a few other items they were giving out to the new students. I walked into the room it was being held in and not one person said anything to me. I sat through a 1-2 hour presentation having no clue what was going on. And this isn’t even the worst part. When I spoke with my financial aid advisor about getting loans for my classes, initially I was told I would be spending around 350 per class. Then when it came time for my refund to come back I was told that I owed over 1000 dollars in fees. Obviously being confused as to where that came from I called asking what was going on. I spoke with one of the only men in the financial aid department and he was the most rude person I have ever dealt with. I told him how frustrated I was and how confused I was about the situation and why I was being charged for that amount when I pulled out a 1500 dollar loan, and was told that amount would be plenty to cover my 2 classes. When I told him I was going to transfer to a school that actually cares about their students and not their money his response was (with a snotty chuckle) “that’s perfectly fine” he also suggested that if I want to save money then I should “get married faster to help cover the costs of your classes”. After swallowing my pride, paying the balance and continuing to take classes the same thing happened yet again except this time, I have been dropped from two classes for “not paying the balance in full” even though I have a payment plan set up and have paid my dues each month. I have been told that I am not allowed to transfer and that they will not give me my transcripts to do so. I have been told by the head person of the financial aid department that they don’t believe they are doing anything wrong because “we are just trying to get the money from you that you owe us” when describing to her how frustrated I was and how terribly I had been treated all she said was “I am only going to address the issue in regards to you owing us money” this school has a lot of work to do and I would never recommend anyone ever attend here because they truly only care about leaching off of the students and sucking them dry. To say the least, I more than hate this school.Tianna Christensen

I graduated from high school in 2012. The statics were stacked against me; African American girl, from a single parent home, childless, no criminal record and first to attend college in my immediate family. I'm a "mama's girl", so I wasn't ready to leave home. First, I enrolled at another local college. The institutions polices & procedures were extensive. This caused me to withdraw from the school in question. Central Carolina Technical College was the next school on my list. My transition into Tech was easy. The staff and faculty were welcoming, patience and encouraging. The course work assignment were realistic and allowed multiple chances to answer the questions correctly. Central Carolina likes to hire in house. I've been blessed to work 3 positions while enrolled in classes. After graduation I worked 2 more jobs as a customer service representative and a tutor at the college. My visit to Central gave me freedom to grow as a person. Life is what you make it. Get involved. Step by step.Crystal Rd

Called financial aid between the summer and fall courses multiple times a week to get an update on my Financial Aid (dead-end job at the time) and they never answered. I put in for financial aid Mid-Summer semester and would call multiple times a week leading up to the beginning of the fall semester with my name, Student ID, and number to call back… They never responded. I was unable to get any of the books and by the time I was able to get them it was halfway through the semester? Guess what comes in? The financial aid I applied for 4 months ago and never got a call for an update that I requested easily 10 total times. I had to withdraw from all of my courses to prevent shattering any hopes of a GPA. Then they try to bill me for the money that FAFSA took back? They couldn't update me on when my money was coming in but they don't mind sending a letter, huh? This place is an absolute joke. I'd recommend Florence-Darlington or essentially any other tech school.Henry Miles, Jr.

First coming to Benedict College I honestly didn't know what to expect on this journey. I was hesitant, nervous and felt like "this isn't what college's look like on TV." It also didn't help that I started second semester so as I was coming in, people already had their set of friends and I was trying to figure out where I fit in at. I then realized that I couldn't just stay to myself so I got involved with activities on campus such as BC Underground and community life becoming an RHA. As I opened up to my fellow peers, formed lifelong bonds with people, and learned how much love and support I had from my professors, I can say my experience at Benedict has been a good one. Now with graduation approaching, I'm taking all my knowledge and applying it towards my future and of course grad school. I'm proud to call this my Alma mater and be a Tiger!LaBria Grant

I had the worst experience as a parent to a child who use to go there. I was trying to get his transcript so he would be able to attend another college. The young lady at the transcript office was really polite but once I went to the financial aid office it turn to like I was dumb and didn't know the reason why I came there. I mean it don't take a scientist to realize you can't get a transcript if you owe a debt so that's why I was sent there. The guy at the front desk was rude and not professional at all, he said to much that wasn't call for and I really do advise parents to check this college out before letting your child enter there. Just remember where ever you work always be polite and represent your job or company with the up most dignity.patricia davis

As an Alumnus of Benedict College I would say Benedict is a dynamic institution and an even better choice! The reality is that its not the perfect school for everyone, but if you're looking to take advantage of a great opportunity and have some defining experiences BC is a great choice! It is not a school you should come to just because mom wants you out of the house. If that's your largest aspiration then you'll FAIL and you wont enjoy the experience very much. I've met some of the most accomplished and talented professors at this institution. Not to mention, the family felt environment nurtures you but prepares you for the world! I'm super proud of my HBCU. I cant wait to see what else is in store for BC!Benjamin

I went to midlands tech for many years. I struggled through the nursing program (and associates in arts and associated in science programs) for years as a single mother of a child with disabilities who was also exiting a decade long abusive relationship. I walked on a broken foot for four months through Clinicals in order to make it, had a foot surgery, totaled cars, and 20+ hours a week of therapies for my son with disabilities. And still I made it to my LPN semester only to end up in the hospital the last week before finals. I was told that I could not have a medical drop as I had received one for my foot surgery and was forced to take test 3,4, and the final in the week following my visit to the hospital. My grade dropped from a 90 to a 79.4 and I was told that I’d have to repeat everything all over again. The ombudsman and the VP went to Mrs. Bannister and begged her to allow an exception based off of the healthcare related nature of my situation and she refused. This place ruined my life and left me with no way to support my child and no nursing career after I already had a job waiting for me on the surgical trauma floor at Richland. After everything I lived through and survived. I am still traumatized. This place will ruin your life. DO NOT ATTEND THIS COLLEGE! Edit: In addition to my previous post this school is taking it a step further and denying me the right to participate in graduation after everything I have been through due to me being locked out of my MTC email (PS who only sends email info on a school email? nothing in the mail?) and was unable to receive the notification in time and they are now refusing my participation in graduation. I wish I could let anyone at that school know what they've done to me, my family, and my life. I HATE THIS SCHOOL and I've never hated anyone or anything!Danielle D Jacobs

I am in the Computer Technology program and am supposed to be completing my last semester, however we are at midterm and I am now finding out I have 1 more class to take . This is particularly infuriating because not only did my advisor tell me how many courses i needed to take to graduate, but Financial aid department told me that the aid for the semester was awarded based on how many credit hours i needed to graduate (I am taking the classes that I was told and showed I needed). Overall, in my 2 years as a student, my opinion has always been that's it is very much a subpar school-regarding the staff as well as education quality. My first semester (my education foundation) I had 2 that didn’t care and literally booted you out of the classroom before class was over as they had other things to do. The computer advisors are extremely ill prepared to help anyone. They continuously have no idea what each class will teach you, do not know which classes you should take for any career path, and are usually new personnel each semester. I, like many other students here, have a family outside of school and do not have the means to be a student and unemployed for another semester. Also, they don't have ANY tutors for the computer department! This makes things VERY difficult. The teachers do what they can in their office hours, and I can name 3 or 4 that are worth calling a teacher/professor and actually care about the subject and students. They claim to help you find a job after, and boast they have company’s asking them for their graduates… however this is not easily accessed, nor are there plentiful opportunities once graduated. The level of education and subjects taught seem not to be in line at all with what is desired by companies.srnclb

Horrible, Horrible, Horrible experiences! I have attended multiple semesters here and each one is more of a dumpster fire than the last. I have never had such difficulty with anything in my life or dealt with such rude, spiteful, or plan MEAN faculty members. I have been told countless times to quit my job and focus only on school, please tell me how being the sole provider for my family that would work? Followed by the staffs refusal to talk with me about options when I refuse to quit my job and have to look for odd times to attend classes. This school has been a GIGANTIC regret and I have only ever dealt with about two people that actually cared and WANTED to help like a decent educator would. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME, MONEY, ENERGY or LIFE here.Dani

This is THE WORST school ever. I don’t even know where to begin. They lost my transcripts three times, certain advisors have NO idea what they’re talking about, if a class gets canceled for the semester they’ll wait a week before classes start to let you know. My boyfriend had a worse experience than I have. They put him in the wrong major for a whole year. But just a semester, A WHOLE year. He should’ve gotten his nursing degree back in February, but now he has 4 more semesters because these idiots don’t know what they’re doing. We both transferred to a college an hour away to get away from this place. Don’t waste your time and money in this school, it’s a joke. Their 9% graduation rate should tell you enough.Aubrey Evans

I love the advisers and have enjoyed my classes but the waiting period to get into programs is absolutely ridiculous. They claim to have done away with waiting list this past year, but it still takes 2-3 years to get into the “2 year” programs because they only accept like 20 people each year. The waiting list for Dental Hygiene is almost 8 years!!!! If I hadn’t of wasted 4 years here and taken so many classes. I would not be waiting to get into their program and deff would go somewhere else. Most LPN programs are around 16 months long to graduate, it takes 2 years just to GET IN to their LPN program.Stephanie

Before you attend this school make sure the career that you plan on pursuing has this school listed on their application because if it doesn't and you have to select Other your application will probably get overlooked for a hire. (Don't wait until you graduate to find this out) Also make sure that the career that your pursuing will hire you. The worst thing would be getting a degree and you can't get a job because companies wouldn't hire you because they want a more corporate look 😑and you basically have a degree you can't use and end up working at Amazon or UPS.XL

My name is Andina Lee and I am a former student of Southeastern Institute. I wanted to give my honest opinion about the program and my experience working as a therapist after my program ended. From the beginning I was taught a very extensive and in-depth curriculum that will prepare a person getting out of school with the knowledge and responsibilities it takes to be a success clinical massage therapist. Compared to other schools in the area, in my opinion, Southeastern students have a more advanced understanding of anatomy and physiology and multiple modalities which adds more value to the field of massage therapy and more demand for our students. I have never had an issue finding a job when I went out to search for one and the 900 hour curriculum is a good stepping stone for any therapist that wants to take a continuing Ed class for more advanced modalities or bodywork techniques. All and I all I am happy with the experience and would recommend this school to anyone wanting to get into the field. Thanks Ms. Michelin and Ms. Jones and all the staff at Southeastern for helping me get closer to my dreams.D lii

Southeastern Institute/College is the best thing that happened to me. The class that I’m taking is Medical Assistant with the best teacher Ms. Campbell hands down. She’s an absolutely beautiful person inside and out and if they had an RN program and she was the teacher I’ll definitely be enrolling back at Southeastern, moreover the staff is awesome and I just love Cora and my advisor Ms. Sherry and I can’t name them all but I love my school family and sometimes people just don’t put enough effort into school but it’s a five for me because I love it.!!!Nisha Glover

Southeastern has been excellent to me. I'm a student of the massage therapy program. As a combat veteran I was initially nervous about attending an in class program, but from admissions to financial aid to my in class instructors Mrs. Michelin, Ms. Shelton and Miss Demas everyone has been super helpful and enrollment was fast and impressively efficient. I called and two weeks later i was enrolled. I would highly recommend Southeastern to anyone interested in a career in massage therapy.Richard Dyson

Honestly I wish I could give a 0. I used to be proud to say I went to this HBCU. Especially since my grandfather was on the board and is the reason the two main dorms are there to house the current attending students.DO NOT COME TO THIS SCHOOL. After I graduated I tried calling and emailing for a year to obtain my transcripts and degree and when I finally reached somebody they said they couldn’t give me them because I have a $34,000 balance that I owe. I asked for my itemized statement and there were multiple discrepancies as well as a sum of about $8,000 that was taken from me for a semester that I didn’t attend. When I confronted them they stopped taking my calls and emails. I contacted FASFA they returned the money and continued to ignore my calls and emails. There are 167 other alumni that are also in this situation. Allen allows you to register doesn’t notify you of a balance and then tells you after they’ve accepted your money for senior dues and right before graduation. They have stolen financial aid funds and scholarships from multiple students and I have the receipts to back up this claim. AVOID THIS SCHOOL at all cost unless you want your money stolen and your transcripts wrongfully withheld and to be screwed right before graduation. I’m in the process of taking legal action.Brianna McCoy

This is school is by far one of the worst HBCU. It’s sad because it wasn’t like this when I was in college. The Administration is very unprofessional and rude. It’s sad that when Dr Spearin left and a few other good professors this schools went down. The shootings and robbery they keep quiet about. The professors who call themselves Dr are not any guidance it’s as if they’re there for a check not the betterment of the kids. Oh and why do they take forever and a day to disperse those kids refund checks like It’s theirs. Just utter lack of taste. Trash…Junerous Singleton

My godfather, DR. Brian Newsome took me to a gray collegiate basketball game on President's day weekend so I can get time away from home, but getting a wonderful GCA fan experience so I can break my personal addiction of carrying my car brochures around everywhere I go. Overall, the bathrooms were pristinely cleaned and sanitized and it was awesome. Gray defeated Whale Branch by a good margin. #WAREAGLEKevron Harris

This has been the worst experience ever. One star is to good. When I say we literally worked for two weeks trying to finalize all paperwork ahead of arrival and receive confirmation that everything was done. Only to arrive the following Monday and my daughter need $2000 more to start school. If you want my advice force your daughter to go elsewhere. The previous post about the view is correct but then that's not what your there for. From financial aid to finance there is absolutely know decent customer service not communication going on. You feel like a ping pong ball going back and forth. I will be pushing my daughter to complete elsewhere. Absolutely HORRIBLE.Corinne Whitmire

I feel like I truly missed out on the college experience going here. I never saw guys, there is no way to really access town without using the buses, and half the teachers write their own textbooks. The view out the dorm Windows tends to be a tree or a parking lot. Preference is given to sports people as usual, and the science department was so underfunded that half the equipment was outdated. Textbook costs were routinely over 700 a semester, for compsci. And I was downloading half my books for free!! Not to mention that tuition has only gone up drastically. You can get a better education for cheaper elsewhere. Like USC.Tabitha Johnson

Super excited to start in the fall! Edit: Have been here 3 years now, and I graduate in Dec 2019. Still in love with the school 🙂 It has exceeded my expectations. CC has amazing science programs, great professors, and truly caring staff. This is a place where you can get a rigorous education amongst people that want you to succeed and give you support and help along the way. I reccomend this school to those that want a good foundation in the liberal arts as well as a top notch education in their major. I love this place. I know you will, too!Preston “P. Siegler” Siegler

Just passed through whilst visiting Columbia, and I was quite impressed. The trees were outstanding and tall, the buildings were old but still looked good, and there was a fairly distinctive campus feel despite being in a rather large city. The palmettos make the campus much nicer and southern-feeling, and the various live oaks around campus give a very “Old South” feel. Cannot attest to the academics, though I did see a lot of “frat boy-types” and wondered if this school has that type of culture. The few people I chatted with were very nice and welcoming, and I would recommend visit the McKissick Museum or other places around here to get a sense of the culture and history of the school. G(oh) Cocks! Cheers.Kyle Hartmann

I never really heard of this place until we moved to the South. Then I saw a bunch of shirts with these roosters on them. Then one day I wandered down the road to Columbia just to see what the place was like. Then I found myself on this campus. It really seems like it has a party scene to it and it kind of reminds me of Arizona State University in some ways. It seems to be a fun place to go to school. The library was AMAZING! It even had an exhibit with some civil rights history items on display. I loved every bit of it. All and I think this is a great school. Nice and hilly too.noneya business

I did my PhD here as an international student and the experience was somewhat jarring at first and there seems to be a great deal of tension at the university over perceived inequality in the grading metrics and greater politicization of the faculty. Nevertheless, there are some fantastic people present who take time out of their day to see to your requests unlike some universities where the process is conducted from a financial perspective than a human one.Narcissus

This is nothing but a greedy FOR PROFIT school. I am still paying off a student loan for this place and they did not give quality education. Thank god I only have $7,000 left to pay off. I had to drop out because i didn't want to be $30,000 in debt. This school is a joke. They try to hide the fact that they are giving out APPLIED ASSOCIATES degrees meaning you cannot take this degree and transfer to a 4yr college. They barely even had books in there library until someone reported them to SACS and they scrambled around last minute to buy books and new furniture for the empty library in fear that it would be discovered that they were not really an accredited school after all. Professors would come and go and we would be stuck on a particular chapter for weeks. Mind you each class was only 4 weeks long because it is an accelerated learning school so you would basically have learned nothing from that class but still have to pay for it. It has been some years since I've seen this place but i would definitely warn others to stay away. I cannot believe this campus is still open. PLEASE STAY AWAY!! They make it easier for you to sign up and promise you job placement but many of my fellow colleagues could not pass the exam for medical assisting and sadly now they are 20-30,000 in debt and working at McDonald's. If you are reading this try your luck at a different technical college. Find one that is actually accredited or just go to Midlands Tech or other 4yr colleges nearby. Good luck.Lila W

I am a current student at Ecpi Columbia campus and I have all the best things to say about them. Staff is absolutely awesome and helpful. They have answered all the questions I had and were very upfront with everything. Classes are accelerated, 2 classes for 5 weeks and for the most part no unnecessary classes which means I will have my bachelor degree in 2.5 years. I am taking night classes which is great since I work full time job during the day. This cannot be more perfect for me. Instructors are very knowledgeable about the subjects they are teaching and are very helpful in every step of the way. I love that they care so much that if you are not in class or a falling behind they will call you and offer assistance and are willing to meet on a very flexible schedule. Working full time and being a full time student, on top of taking care of my children is a lot of time and effort and it can be hard. This school understands that and as long as I communicate with my instructors they have helped me so far in every step of the way.Danijela Sabljak

I regret coming to this school! The teachers didn’t care. We basically had to teach ourselves! Some of the teachers have nasty attitudes! They don’t care about their students and are more worried about the money and the politics. More worried about their “success” numbers than getting their students to success. I believe the way students do succeed is my taking the education in themselves without help with the teachers but some of us don’t learn like that. Hardly had any labs and when we did, they didn’t have the appropriate supplies. For example, when to learn about EKGs and we couldn’t because they didn’t have any leads to show us where to place. And the teacher said oh well, read your book. Like seriously? I was taught at my work how to do EKGs. This place is a joke! And don’t even try to ask for help because you won’t get it.Megan Shon Stanton

I worked here for a year and was penalized for things I couldn’t control. I was put out for 2 weeks unpaid because I refused to work with a consumer who was extremely violent. They made me go to the doctor on my own dime for a doctors note saying I couldn’t handle it. I got pregnant after working there 8 months and they put me on unpaid leave till I went to the doctor and got a list of limitations. I lost a week of pay because the doctor was hard to reach. Then I made a few mistakes and got fired at 30 weeks pregnant and their explanations weren’t real things that actually happened. I loved the clients I worked with but the punitive management tactics are too much. Feeling like you could lose your job for being human isn’t okAmanda Salyer

Loved the clients I worked with. However the manager and employees are terrible depending on what location you’ll be at. They weren’t honest about the work schedule. The manager I worked with was very unprofessional favors certain clients when it came to food activities etc. Didn’t do paperwork when it needed to be done and try to get the employees to cover them and will accuse you of things you didn’t do and threaten your job .Their is no strong security no cameras at the home of these clients. With that being said do not risk working with people who don’t do their job and are willing to throw you under the bus to protect their freedom and I highly recommend you don’t put your loved ones in this home/center.Chasity Hill

I’ve been apart of the Babcock family for now more than 2 years. The way the company ensures that having a disability does not mean living with out every opportunity is beyond amazing. The employment and vocational assistance offered to its program participants are top-notch. A fire is reignited in me each time i see a smile on someone’s face because they e been able to achieve something that society has told them they couldn’t.Ruben Freeman