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Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Tennessee

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2023 Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Tennessee

13 Colleges
$19,907 Avg Salary
$23,062 Avg Student Debt

Finding the Best Drama & Theater Arts School for You

With 203 degrees and certificates handed out in 2020-2021, drama and theater arts is the #69 most popular major in Tennessee.

There are lots of options to pick from today when trying to decide which program is right for you. You can choose a traditional brick and mortar school, or with the growth of online education, you can attend a school half-way across the country without even leaving your house. Also there are many trade schools that offer short-term programs that open up more career options.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Course Advisor has developed this Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Tennessee ranking. This report analyzed 13 schools in Tennessee to see which ones offered the best programs for students.

View our full ranking methodology.

2023 Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Tennessee

The following schools top our list of the Best Drama & Theater Arts Colleges.

Top 10 Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools

#1

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

Our analysis found Vanderbilt University to be the best school for drama and theater arts students who want to pursue a degree in Tennessee. Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit school with a large student population.

Full Drama & Theater Arts at Vanderbilt University Report

#2

Belmont University

Nashville, TN

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Belmont University. It ranked #2 on our 2023 Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Tennessee list. Located in the large city of Nashville, Belmont is a private not-for-profit school with a medium-sized student population.

Full Drama & Theater Arts at Belmont University Report

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga. It ranked #3 on our 2023 Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Tennessee list. Located in the midsize city of Chattanooga, UT Chattanooga is a public school with a large student population.

Full Drama & Theater Arts at The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga Report

The excellent programs at The University of Tennessee - Knoxville helped the school earn the #4 place on this year’s ranking of the best drama and theater arts schools in Tennessee. Located in the medium-sized city of Knoxville, UT Knoxville is a public school with a fairly large student population.

While working on their degree, theater majors at UT Knoxville accumulate an average of around $22,500 in student debt.

Read More…

#5

Freed-Hardeman University

Henderson, TN

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Freed-Hardeman University. The school came in at #5 on this year’s Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Tennessee list. Located in the town of Henderson, FHU is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

Full Drama & Theater Arts at Freed-Hardeman University Report

With a ranking of #6, Trevecca Nazarene University did quite well on this year’s best schools for drama and theater arts students. TNU is a small private not-for-profit school located in the city of Nashville.

Full Drama & Theater Arts at Trevecca Nazarene University Report

#7

Lipscomb University

Nashville, TN

With a ranking of #7, Lipscomb University did quite well on this year’s best schools for drama and theater arts students. Located in the city of Nashville, Lipscomb is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

Read More…

#8

Lee University

Cleveland, TN

Lee University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Tennessee ranking. Lee University is a small private not-for-profit school located in the small city of Cleveland.

Read full report on Drama & Theater Arts at Lee University

Chattanooga State Community College came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Drama & Theater Arts Schools in Tennessee ranking. Chattanooga State Community College is a moderately-sized public school located in the city of Chattanooga.

Full Drama & Theater Arts at Chattanooga State Community College Report

#10

East Tennessee State University

Johnson City, TN

With a ranking of #10, East Tennessee State University did quite well on this year’s best schools for drama and theater arts students. ETSU is a fairly large public school located in the city of Johnson City.

Read full report on Drama & Theater Arts at East Tennessee State University

Best Drama & Theater Arts Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Drama & Theater Arts Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State Degrees Awarded
Georgia 453
Virginia 455
North Carolina 498
Florida 656
Kentucky 181
South Carolina 175
Louisiana 168
Arkansas 97
Alabama 147
Mississippi 64
West Virginia 49

Drama & Theater Arts is one of 10 different types of programs to choose from.

Majors Similar to Theater

Related Major Annual Graduates
Fine & Studio Arts 37,413
Design & Applied Arts 36,301
Music 25,910
Film, Video & Photographic Arts 16,778
General Visual & Performing Arts 6,355

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 13 schools only.

  • Read more about our ranking methodology.
  • 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 Donald Judge.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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