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Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee

2023 Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

23 Colleges
$8,636 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$29,220 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities School for You

In 2020-2021, liberal arts / sciences and humanities students earned 10,186 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 help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee ranking. This report analyzed 23 schools in Tennessee to see which ones offered the best value programs for liberal arts / sciences and humanities 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 Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Schools

$4,384 Average Tuition & Fees

Our analysis found Volunteer State Community College to be the best value school for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students who want to pursue a degree in Tennessee. Located in the suburb of Gallatin, VSCC is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at VSCC are $4,384 a year. On average, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from VSCC take out $8,750 in student loans while working on their degree.

In addition to its great value ranking, VSCC is in the top 20% of all schools on our Best Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee list.

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$4,416 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Motlow State Community College. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee list. Located in the rural area of Tullahoma, Motlow is a public college with a moderately-sized student population.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Motlow are $4,416 per year. On average, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Motlow take out $5,500 in student loans while working on their degree.

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$4,618 Average Tuition & Fees

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Jackson State Community College is a great value for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. JSCC is a small public school located in the small city of Jackson.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at JSCC are $4,618 per year. While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at JSCC accumulate an average of around $5,500 in student debt.

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$4,430 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Chattanooga State Community College. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee list. Chattanooga State Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the midsize city of Chattanooga.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Chattanooga State Community College are $4,430 per year. While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Chattanooga State Community College accumulate an average of around $12,000 in student debt.

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$4,456 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Pellissippi State Community College. It ranked #5 on our 2023 Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee list. Pellissippi State Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the suburb of Knoxville.

Pellissippi State Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,456 in in-state tuition and fees each year. The average amount in student loans that liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Pellissippi State Community College take out is $8,617.

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$4,430 Average Tuition & Fees

Southwest Tennessee Community College came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee ranking. 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. After completing their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Southwest carry an average student debtload of $8,250.

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$4,399 Average Tuition & Fees

Walters State Community College ranked #7 on this year’s Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee list. 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. While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at WSCC accumulate an average of around $5,500 in student debt.

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$4,372 Average Tuition & Fees

Nashville State Community College came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Liberal Arts & Humanities Schools in Tennessee ranking. Nashville State Community College is a medium-sized public school located in the large city of Nashville.

Nashville State Community College undergraduate students pay an average of $4,372 in in-state tuition and fees each year. On average, liberal arts / sciences and humanities graduates from Nashville State Community College take out $13,824 in student loans while working on their degree.

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$4,666 Average Tuition & Fees

Columbia State Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. It came in at #9 on the list. Columbia State Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the distant town of Columbia.

In-state tuition fees for undergraduate students at Columbia State Community College are $4,666 per year. While working on their degree, liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Columbia State Community College accumulate an average of around $8,807 in student debt.

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$4,400 Average Tuition & Fees

Cleveland State Community College did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best value schools for liberal arts / sciences and humanities students. It came in at #10 on the list. Located in the small city of Cleveland, Cleveland State Community College is a public college with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state undergraduate at Cleveland State Community College are $4,400 a year. The average amount in student loans that liberal arts / sciences and humanities majors at Cleveland State Community College take out is $11,708.

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Best Value Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Value Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
North Carolina 18,234
West Virginia 3,558
Mississippi 5,696
South Carolina 4,243
Florida 64,444
Virginia 9,302
Arkansas 5,205
Alabama 5,890
Kentucky 6,493
Georgia 7,724
Louisiana 2,864

Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities Majors to Study

Major Annual Graduates
Liberal Arts General Studies 556,813

Majors Similar to Liberal Arts / Sciences & Humanities

Related Major Annual Graduates
Visual & Performing Arts 149,215
English Language & Literature 54,635
Foreign Languages & Linguistics 33,333
Theology & Religious Vocations 27,459
Philosophy & Religious Studies 19,993

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 23 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 Jacques Sablet (Switzerland, Morges, 1749-1803).

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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