2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee
Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices
Finding the Best Nursing Associate Degree School for You
In 2020-2021, nursing students earned 6,004 degrees and certificates from a Tennessee school, making the subject the 3rd in the state.
When it comes to higher education, there are a lot of options for students. With more and more schools offering online options, you could even register for a great program on the other side of the country. On top of that, there are a considerable number of trade schools that offer fast-track entry to many fields.
To assist you in seeing some of the education options that are available to you, Course Advisor has created its Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee ranking. This report analyzed 17 schools in Tennessee to see which ones offered the best value associate degree programs for nursing students. The goal was to highlight schools with more affordable prices than others offering similar quality experiences.
This ranking is not just a list of inexpensive schools. We also consider each school's quality, since we believe a low-quality school may not be a 'bargain' at any price. 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.
For nationwide and regional rankings, we use out-of-state tuition and fees in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.
Top 10 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools
Our analysis found Southwest Tennessee Community College to be the best value school for nursing students who want to pursue a associate degree in Tennessee. Located in the large city of Memphis, Southwest is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Southwest are $4,430 per year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Southwest take out while working on their Associate Degree is $21,348.
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Out of the 17 schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, Jackson State Community College landed the # 2 spot on the list. JSCC is a small public school located in the city of Jackson.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at JSCC are $4,618 per year. While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at JSCC accumulate an average of around $12,975 in student debt.
JSCC not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #4 on our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee list.
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Out of the 17 schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, Dyersburg State Community College landed the # 3 spot on the list. Located in the distant town of Dyersburg, DSCC is a public college with a small student population.
DSCC undergraduate students pay an average of $4,410 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, nursing graduates from DSCC take out $14,708 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Motlow State Community College. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee list. Located in the rural area of Tullahoma, Motlow is a public school with a medium-sized student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Motlow are $4,416 per year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Motlow take out while working on their Associate Degree is $10,802.
Motlow did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee list.
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A rank of #5 on this year’s list means Northeast State Community College is a great value for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the rural area of Blountville, Northeast State Technical Community College is a public college with a medium-sized student population.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Northeast State Technical Community College are $4,422 per year. On average, nursing graduates from Northeast State Technical Community College take out $10,274 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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Chattanooga State Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a associate degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Chattanooga State Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Chattanooga.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Chattanooga State Community College are $4,430 per year. After completing their Associate Degree, nursing graduates from Chattanooga State Community College carry an average student debtload of $20,491.
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Walters State Community College landed the #7 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree nursing programs. Located in the city of Morristown, WSCC is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.
The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at WSCC are $4,399 a year. Nursing majors at WSCC take out an average of $11,916 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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Columbia State Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a associate degree. It came in at #8 on the list. Columbia State Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the distant town of Columbia.
Columbia State Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,666 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that nursing majors at Columbia State Community College take out while working on their Associate Degree is $20,585.
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With a ranking of #9, Pellissippi State Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Pellissippi State Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the large suburb of Knoxville.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Pellissippi State Community College are $4,456 per year. While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Pellissippi State Community College accumulate an average of around $20,369 in student debt.
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With a ranking of #10, Nashville State Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Nashville State Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the city of Nashville.
In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Nashville State Community College are $4,372 per year. Nursing majors at Nashville State Community College take out an average of $29,824 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.
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Request InformationBest Value Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Region
Explore all the Best Value Nursing Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.
| State | Degrees Awarded |
|---|---|
| Georgia | 7,112 |
| Virginia | 6,775 |
| North Carolina | 7,425 |
| Florida | 21,209 |
| Kentucky | 6,395 |
| South Carolina | 3,296 |
| Louisiana | 3,502 |
| Arkansas | 2,882 |
| Alabama | 7,364 |
| Mississippi | 2,838 |
| West Virginia | 1,771 |
More Nursing Rankings in Tennessee
Majors Related to Nursing
Nursing is one of 30 different types of programs to choose from.
Most Popular Majors Related to Nursing
| Related Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Health & Medical Administrative Services | 89,359 |
| Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services | 84,492 |
| Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants | 84,274 |
| Allied Health Professions | 82,308 |
| Public Health | 40,596 |
Notes and References
*These averages are for the top 17 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 Aleksahgabrielle.
More about our data sources and methodologies.