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Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee

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2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

17 Colleges
$7,826 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$57,601 Avg Salary

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.

2023 Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee

The following schools top our list of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Colleges.

Top 10 Best Nursing Associate Degree Schools

Our 2023 rankings named Southwest Tennessee Community College the best value school in Tennessee for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the 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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The excellent associate degree programs at Jackson State Community College helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best value nursing schools in Tennessee. JSCC is a small public school located in the small city of Jackson.

JSCC undergraduate students pay an average of $4,618 in in-state tuition and fees each 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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A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Dyersburg State Community College is a great value for nursing students working on their associate degree. Located in the town of Dyersburg, DSCC is a public school with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at DSCC are $4,410 per year. On average, nursing graduates from DSCC take out $14,708 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Full Nursing at Dyersburg State Community College Report

Out of the 17 schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, Motlow State Community College landed the # 4 spot on the list. Located in the rural area of Tullahoma, Motlow is a public school with a moderately-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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The excellent associate degree programs at Northeast State Community College helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best value nursing schools in Tennessee. Located in the rural area of Blountville, Northeast State Technical Community College is a public school with a medium-sized student population.

Northeast State Technical Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,422 in in-state tuition and fees each 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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With a ranking of #6, Chattanooga State Community College did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their associate degree. Chattanooga State Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the medium-sized city of Chattanooga.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Chattanooga State Community College are $4,430 a 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 ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee list. Located in the small city of Morristown, WSCC is a public college with a medium-sized student population.

WSCC undergraduate students pay an average of $4,399 in in-state tuition and fees each year. Nursing majors at WSCC take out an average of $11,916 in student loans while working on their Associate Degree.

Read full report on Nursing at Walters State Community College

Columbia State Community College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee ranking. Columbia State Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the town of Columbia.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Columbia State Community College are $4,666 a 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.

Full Nursing at Columbia State Community College Report

Pellissippi State Community College landed the #9 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value associate degree nursing programs. Pellissippi State Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the large suburb of Knoxville.

Pellissippi State Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,456 in in-state tuition and fees each year. While working on their Associate Degree, nursing majors at Pellissippi State Community College accumulate an average of around $20,369 in student debt.

Read full report on Nursing at Pellissippi State Community College

Nashville State Community College came in at #10 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee ranking. Nashville State Community College is a moderately-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.

Full Nursing at Nashville State Community College Report

Best Value Nursing Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value Nursing Colleges 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

Nursing is one of 30 different types of programs to choose from.

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.

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