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Best Value Education Schools in Tennessee

2023 Best Value Education Schools in Tennessee

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

22 Colleges
$20,075 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$44,170 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Education School for You

In 2020-2021, education students earned 5,194 degrees and certificates from a Tennessee school, making the subject the 4th in the state.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. Along with traditional schools that require in-person attendence, you can attend one of many reputable online schools. Some programs even offer a hybrid experience. Alternatively, you may choose a trade school that prepares you to enter the workforce with knowledge in a specific field.

To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Education Schools in Tennessee ranking. This report analyzed 22 schools in Tennessee to see which ones offered the best value programs for education students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.

When determining this ranking, we place a high emphasis on the school's quality as well as its sticker price. Even though a college may be affordable, it may not offer value. More specifically, we discount our quality score by the published tuition and fees charged by a school. This gives the cost per unit of quality for each college. The value is determined by how much quality your dollar buys.

Our calculations use out-of-state tuition and fees in our nationwide and regional rankings. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

Top 10 Best Education Schools

$9,802 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named Tennessee Technological University the best value school in Tennessee for education students. Located in the town of Cookeville, Tennessee Tech University is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Tennessee Tech University undergraduate students pay an average of $9,802 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that education majors at Tennessee Tech University take out is $15,500. The average monthly payment of a loan this size is about $102, assuming that the borrower is on a 10-year repayment plan.

As a testament to the quality of education it offers, Tennessee Tech University also is in the top 20% of our Best Education Schools in Tennessee ranking.

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$9,848 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga the best value school in Tennessee for education students. Located in the midsize city of Chattanooga, UT Chattanooga is a public school with a large student population.

UT Chattanooga undergraduate students pay an average of $9,848 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, education graduates from UT Chattanooga carry an average student debtload of $24,962. This translates to an average monthly loan payment of $180, based on a 10-year repayment plan.

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$9,232 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent programs at Middle Tennessee State University helped the school earn the #3 place on this year’s ranking of the best education schools in Tennessee. Located in the city of Murfreesboro, Middle Tennessee State University is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Middle Tennessee State University are $9,232 per year. The average amount in student loans that education majors at Middle Tennessee State University take out is $22,249.

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$9,912 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend The University of Tennessee - Martin. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Education Schools in Tennessee list. UT Martin is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Martin.

UT Martin undergraduate students pay an average of $9,912 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that education majors at UT Martin take out is $23,500.

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#5

Carson - Newman University

Jefferson City, TN
$31,320 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Carson - Newman University. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Education Schools in Tennessee list. Located in the small suburb of Jefferson City, Carson - Newman is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Carson - Newman are $31,320 per year. After completing their degree, education graduates from Carson - Newman carry an average student debtload of $25,431.

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#6

Tennessee State University

Nashville, TN
$8,336 Average Tuition & Fees

Tennessee State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Education Schools in Tennessee ranking. Located in the city of Nashville, Tennessee State University is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Tennessee State University are $8,336 a year. On average, education graduates from Tennessee State University take out $31,000 in student loans while working on their degree.

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#7

Cumberland University

Lebanon, TN
$25,412 Average Tuition & Fees

With a ranking of #7, Cumberland University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for education students. Located in the fringe town of Lebanon, CU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at CU are $25,412 a year. The average amount in student loans that education majors at CU take out is $26,250.

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#8

University of Memphis

Memphis, TN
$10,056 Average Tuition & Fees

University of Memphis did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for education students. It came in at #8 on the list. UofM is a fairly large public school located in the large city of Memphis.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at UofM are $10,056 per year. Education majors at UofM take out an average of $24,160 in student loans while working on their egree.

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#9

Freed-Hardeman University

Henderson, TN
$23,300 Average Tuition & Fees

Freed-Hardeman University landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value education programs. Located in the town of Henderson, FHU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

FHU undergraduate students pay an average of $23,300 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their degree, education majors at FHU accumulate an average of around $25,815 in student debt.

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#10

Southern Adventist University

Collegedale, TN
$23,210 Average Tuition & Fees

Southern Adventist University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Education Schools in Tennessee list. Located in the large suburb of Collegedale, Southern Adventist is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Southern Adventist undergraduate students pay an average of $23,210 in in-state tuition and fees each year. After completing their degree, education graduates from Southern Adventist carry an average student debtload of $26,500.

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Best Value Education Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value Education Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
North Carolina 7,730
West Virginia 1,515
Mississippi 4,219
South Carolina 3,980
Florida 10,069
Virginia 9,522
Arkansas 4,954
Alabama 5,059
Kentucky 5,329
Georgia 9,722
Louisiana 2,977

Education Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Teacher Education Grade Specific 110,226
Educational Administration 46,469
Teacher Education Subject Specific 43,297
Special Education 36,792
General Education 29,810
Curriculum & Instruction 19,832
Student Counseling 13,858
Instructional Media Design 8,695
Teaching English or French 5,791
Other Education 4,858
Teaching Assistants 2,751
Educational Assessment 2,552
Multilingual Education 1,910
Education Philosophy 737
International Education 293

Related Major Annual Graduates
Social Sciences 205,984
Psychology 195,678
Communication & Journalism 120,571
Family, Consumer & Human Sciences 55,820
History 32,731

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 22 schools only.

  • The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of the rest of our data about colleges.
  • Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
  • Credit for the banner image above goes to Horadrim.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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