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HCS Scholars Academy High

Public Grades 9-12

1^st

SchoolDigger Rank ?

of 248 South Carolina High Schools

Better than 100% of South Carolina high schools

Summary

HCS Scholars Academy High is a small, specialized public high school in Conway, SC, serving just 209 students in grades 9-12 within the highly-rated Horry 01 school district.

This school is an academic powerhouse, ranked the #1 high school in all of South Carolina for the 2025-2026 school year and holding a top-2 position for four consecutive years. The numbers are truly remarkable: a 100% proficiency rate on all End-of-Course exams (English 1, English 2, and U.S. History) for three straight years, a 100% graduation rate, a 0% dropout rate, and a chronic absenteeism rate of just 1.6%—compared to the district's 19.4% and the state's 22.3%. This trifecta of perfect outcomes points to a student body that is deeply engaged and invested in its education. The school also excels across all student subgroups, ranking #1 in the state for both male and female students and in the top 3 for students from low socio-economic backgrounds.

What makes this achievement even more striking is the contrast with nearby schools. Just 1.88 miles away, Carolina Forest High serves over 3,000 students and is a solid 4-star school, yet its proficiency rates range from 70% to 90%—a 10 to 30 percentage point gap behind HCS Scholars Academy. Even its "sister school," HCS Early College High, which ranks #5 in the state, falls slightly behind in U.S. History proficiency (90.74% vs. 100%). With a student-to-teacher ratio of 16.7:1 and per-student spending of $14,110, HCS Scholars Academy demonstrates that a focused, small-scale academic environment with high expectations can produce results that are simply unmatched across the state.

209

Students ?

16.7

Student/teacher ratio ?

$14,110

Per pupil spending ?

1.6%

Free/discounted lunch ?

642 Century Circle
Conway, SC 29526

(843) 349-4117

District: Horry 01

Racial breakdown:

White:

75.6%

Asian:

10.0%

Two or more races:

6.2%

See top rated South Carolina high schools

Compare HCS Scholars Academy High to nearby high schools!

At a glance

▬ Ranking trend: Holding steady — 99th percentile in 2023 → 100th in 2026

Strengths

✓Test scores above the South Carolina average (100% vs 69% meeting standards)

✓Ranks in the top 1% of South Carolina high schools

✓100% graduate in 4 years — above the South Carolina average (87%)

Students meeting standards (2025-2026) ?

This school100%

District avg77%

South Carolina avg69%

1^st of 248

South Carolina public high schools ?

Top 1%▬ steady since 2023

See the entire ranking list of South Carolina High Schools →

★★★★★

SchoolDigger rating ?

1^st of 12High Schools in the Horry 01

9^th of 75Horry 01 among South Carolina districts

Statewide rank percentile over time (100 = the top-ranked school in the state; click a legend item to add a student group)

Show full rank history (all student groups)

All Students

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	98.1	1 of 248	99.6%	★★★★★
2025	97.7	1 of 240	99.6%	★★★★★
2024	97.7	2 of 243	99.2%	★★★★★
2023	98.1	2 of 237	99.2%	★★★★★

Female

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	97.4	1 of 229	99.6%	★★★★★
2025	97.1	3 of 229	98.7%	★★★★★
2024	96.5	3 of 231	98.7%	★★★★★
2023	97.1	2 of 223	99.1%	★★★★★
2022	97.4	2 of 220	99.1%	★★★★★
2021	96.0	3 of 213	98.6%	★★★★★

Gifted and Talented

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	76.2	4 of 155	97.4%	★★★★★
2025	73.7	2 of 154	98.7%	★★★★★
2024	75.1	4 of 158	97.5%	★★★★★
2023	76.9	6 of 156	96.2%	★★★★★

Low Socio Economic Status

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	99.2	3 of 241	98.8%	★★★★★

Male

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	98.1	1 of 233	99.6%	★★★★★
2025	97.8	1 of 228	99.6%	★★★★★
2024	98.0	1 of 234	99.6%	★★★★★
2023	98.2	2 of 229	99.1%	★★★★★
2022	97.9	4 of 224	98.2%	★★★★★
2021	97.6	2 of 215	99.1%	★★★★★

White

Year	Avg score	Statewide rank	South Carolina percentile	Rating
2026	94.6	1 of 203	99.5%	★★★★★
2025	94.1	1 of 200	99.5%	★★★★★
2024	94.8	2 of 202	99.0%	★★★★★
2023	95.4	3 of 197	98.5%	★★★★★
2022	95.7	2 of 192	99.0%	★★★★★
2021	95.4	3 of 189	98.4%	★★★★★

How student groups rank statewide ? (each group's percentile vs the same group at other schools — higher is better; the +/- beside each compares the group with this school's overall percentile)

Male (2026)100th percentile~ school

Female (2026)100th percentile~ school

White (2026)100th percentile~ school

Low Socio Economic Status (2026)99th percentile~ school

Gifted and Talented (2026)97th percentile~ school

By subject vs South Carolina (2025-2026) ?

Biology 1/Applied Biology 2100%+39 vs state

U.S. History and the Constitution100%+37 vs state

English 2100%+16 vs state

★

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Schools Near HCS Scholars Academy High

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Ranking:

E Elementary M Middle H High A Alternative P Private

Choose columns to see: Summary School Students/Teachers Ranking Test Scores Finance All

School													Students/Teachers											Ranking (2026)				Ranking (2025)				EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 (2026)	EOCEP Biology 1/Applied Biology 2 (2026)	EOCEP U.S. History and the Constitution (2026)	EOCEP English 2 (2026)	Per Pupil Expenditures (2025)
Name	Type	Grades	Address	City	Zip	County	District	Is Charter	Is Magnet	Is Virtual	Is Title I	Phone	Enrollment	Full-time Teachers	Student/ Teacher Ratio	Free/Discounted Lunch Recipients (2024)	White	Black	Hispanic	Asian	American Indian	Pacific Islander	Two or More Races	Average Standard Score (2026)	Statewide Rank (2026)	State Percentile (2026)	SchoolDigger Rating (2026)	Average Standard Score (2025)	Statewide Rank (2025)	State Percentile (2025)	Rank Change from Previous Year	EOCEP Algebra 1/Mathematics for the Technologies 2 End of Course	EOCEP Biology 1/Applied Biology 2 End of Course	EOCEP U.S. History and the Constitution End of Course	EOCEP English 2 End of Course	Per Pupil Expenditures: Total	Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Non-Personnel Spending from Federal Funds	Sub-total from Federal Funds	Personnel Spending from State and Local Funds	Non-Personnel from State and Local Funds	Sub-total Spending from State and Local Funds
HCS Scholars Academy High	Public	9-12	642 Century Circle	Conway	29526	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 349-4117	209	13	16.7	1.6%	158 (75.6%)	9 (4.3%)	8 (3.8%)	21 (10.0%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	13 (6.2%)	98.1	1^st of 248 public high schools	99.6%		97.7	1^st of 240 public high schools	99.6%			100.0	100.0	100.0	$14,110	$154	$122	$276	$12,432	$1,402	$13,834
HCS Early College High	Public, Magnet	9-12	2050 Highway 501 East HGTC	Conway	29528	Horry County	Horry 01	No	Yes	No	Yes	(843) 349-3131	360	23	15.6	57.6%	151 (41.9%)	101 (28.1%)	81 (22.5%)	5 (1.4%)	1 (0.3%)	0 (0.0%)	21 (5.8%)	96.8	5^th of 248 public high schools	98.0%		93.2	6^th of 240 public high schools	97.5%	1		96.1	90.7	100.0	$14,777	$1,137	$665	$1,802	$11,289	$1,686	$12,975
Carolina Forest High	Public	9-12	700 Gardner Lacy Road	Myrtle Beach	29579	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 236-7997	3,176	165	19.3	44.7%	1,788 (56.3%)	437 (13.8%)	639 (20.1%)	72 (2.3%)	13 (0.4%)	3 (0.1%)	224 (7.1%)	78.2	46^th of 248 public high schools	81.5%		72.9	44^th of 240 public high schools	81.7%	2	80.9	70.3	73.4	90.4	$12,194	$659	$390	$1,049	$9,682	$1,464	$11,146
Palmetto Academy of Learning Motorsports (PALM)	Public, Charter	9-12	826 West Cox Ferry Road	Conway	29526	Horry County	Horry 01	Yes	No	No	Yes	(843) 903-6600	195	13	15.0	40.5%	167 (85.6%)	5 (2.6%)	14 (7.2%)	1 (0.5%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	7 (3.6%)	35.7	160^th of 248 public high schools	35.5%		62.2	72^nd of 240 public high schools	70.0%	88		44.2	56.4	80.0	$17,355	$1,001	$161	$1,162	$10,296	$5,897	$16,193
Conway High	Public	9-12	2301 Church Street	Conway	29526	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 488-0662	1,724	97	17.7	65.1%	847 (49.1%)	489 (28.4%)	270 (15.7%)	8 (0.5%)	4 (0.2%)	4 (0.2%)	102 (5.9%)	56.4	111^th of 248 public high schools	55.2%		58.4	83^rd of 240 public high schools	65.4%	28		56.9	68.5	83.4	$13,969	$746	$440	$1,185	$10,926	$1,857	$12,784
Atlantic Collegiate Academy	Public, Charter	9-12	5086 Bear Bluff Road	Conway	29526	Horry County	Limestone Charters Association	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(843) 286-5990	502	16	31.3	7.5%	370 (73.7%)	42 (8.4%)	49 (9.8%)	3 (0.6%)	1 (0.2%)	1 (0.2%)	36 (7.2%)	83.4	36^th of 248 public high schools	85.5%		83.2	21^st of 240 public high schools	91.3%	15		74.6	69.7	98.7	$9,591	$204	$559	$763	$3,695	$5,133	$8,828
Academy For Arts/Science/Technology	Public, Magnet	9-12	895 International Drive	Myrtle Beach	29579	Horry County	Horry 01	No	Yes	No	No	(843) 903-8460	0	43	.0		0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()	0 ()								(n/a)
Socastee High	Public	9-12	4900 Socastee Boulevard	Myrtle Beach	29588	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 293-2513	1,720	95	18.1	45.3%	1,051 (61.1%)	135 (7.8%)	373 (21.7%)	34 (2.0%)	4 (0.2%)	7 (0.4%)	116 (6.7%)	73.6	56^th of 248 public high schools	77.4%		69	52^nd of 240 public high schools	78.3%	4	55.2	72.0	75.5	86.8	$14,081	$686	$426	$1,111	$11,278	$1,691	$12,969
Coastal High School	Public, Charter	9-12	2100 River Oaks Drive	Myrtle Beach	29579	Horry County	Limestone Charters Association	Yes	(n/a)	No	(n/a)	(843) 788-9898	198	21	9.6	52.1%	139 (70.2%)	24 (12.1%)	19 (9.6%)	1 (0.5%)	0 (0.0%)	0 (0.0%)	15 (7.6%)	64.5	83^rd of 248 public high schools	66.5%		53.4	98^th of 240 public high schools	59.2%	15		63.9	61.4	88.2	$14,745	$831	$69	$899	$7,316	$6,530	$13,846
Myrtle Beach High	Public	9-12	3302 Robert Grissom Parkway	Myrtle Beach	29577	Horry County	Horry 01	No	No	No	No	(843) 839-7148	1,510	84	18.0	58.6%	539 (35.7%)	331 (21.9%)	481 (31.9%)	32 (2.1%)	4 (0.3%)	5 (0.3%)	118 (7.8%)	41.7	152^nd of 248 public high schools	38.7%		40.9	139^th of 240 public high schools	42.1%	13		59.2	60.5	73.5	$13,613	$778	$398	$1,176	$10,701	$1,736	$12,437

Frequently Asked Questions about HCS Scholars Academy High

How many students attend HCS Scholars Academy High?

In the 2024-25 school year, 209 students attended HCS Scholars Academy High.

Is HCS Scholars Academy High a good school?

Yes! HCS Scholars Academy High is one of the best high schools in the state. It ranks 1^st of 248 South Carolina high schools.

What is the racial makeup of HCS Scholars Academy High?

Students at HCS Scholars Academy High are 76% White, 10% Asian, 6% Two or more races, 4% African American, 4% Hispanic.

What district is HCS Scholars Academy High in?

Horry 01

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Latest South Carolina data All new data »

2025–26 EOCEP & SC READY test scoresAug 10, 2026

2024–25 school spending dataNov 3, 2025

2024–25 attendance data, dropout rates & graduation ratesNov 3, 2025

2024–25 EOCEP & SC READY test scoresSep 2, 2025

SchoolDigger data sources: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau and the South Carolina Department of Education.

IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS: Not all boundaries are included. We make every effort to ensure that boundaries are up-to-date. But it's important to note that these are approximations and are for general informational purposes only. To verify legal descriptions of boundaries or school locations, contact your local tax assessor's office and/or school district.