Tennessee: the complete school report for parents

What does Tennessee actually weigh in admissions?

Tennessee rates 5 of the 18 factors "Very Important": course rigor, GPA, test scores, the essay, state residency. It does not consider 6 of them at all. Every college reports these weights in section C7 of its Common Data Set; below is Tennessee's 2025-2026 answer, read from the grid in its own file.

What GPA do admitted students actually have?

80% of enrolled students had a 4.0 GPA or above. The average was 4.25 on a 4 scale. This is the school’s own distribution, not an estimate from its admit rate.

What is the Tennessee waitlist really like?

Tennessee offered a place on its waiting list to 11,980 applicants and 3,516 accepted one. 134 were ultimately admitted. That is 3.8% of those who waited.

Is transferring in easier than applying as a freshman?

Tennessee admitted 88.1% of 3,597 transfer applicants, against 43.6% of first-year applicants. For a student who does not get in at eighteen, the transfer route is a genuinely wider door and worth planning for deliberately. The minimum college GPA considered is 2.

When do we apply, and does timing change the odds?

Tennessee reports its early rounds below.

What does my child need to take in high school?

Tennessee sets no fixed course requirements, but recommends 16 academic units. A college-preparatory program is recommended. A GED is accepted.

What will Tennessee actually cost us?

Families pay an average of $18,976 a year at Tennessee after grants and scholarships, against a published in-state tuition of $11,560. The published price is not what most families pay. The university reports meeting 58.8% of demonstrated need on average. It also gave 3,749 merit awards averaging $6,872 to first-years with no demonstrated need.

What families at each income level actually paid:

40% of Tennessee graduates borrow, leaving with an average of $34,133 in debt, which the federal data puts at about $217 a month in repayment. Tennessee’s net price calculator gives your own figure.

Does a degree from Tennessee pay off?

Graduates earn a median $60,249 ten years after entering, and $47,782 at six years. 81% out-earn a typical high school graduate within six years. 68% are actively paying down their loans three years in.

Four-year net cost against that earnings premium:

A scale, not a forecast: it assumes aid and earnings hold steady.

$101,926 to $35,606, depending on the major. Median earnings five years out at Tennessee:

College Scorecard, by field of study; highest and lowest shown.

Will my child actually graduate?

92% of first-years return for a second year. 58% graduate within four years and 74% within six (2019 cohort). The rate holds up across income: 63.1% of Pell-grant recipients graduate within six years against 80.1% of everyone else, a gap of 17.0 points.

How big are the classes?

27% of class sections have fewer than 20 students, while 7% have 100 or more. The student-faculty ratio is 18:1, and 83% of faculty are full-time. Accredited by Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

What is life at Tennessee like?

32,041 undergraduates, 39% of first-years from out of state. 90% of freshmen live in university housing, falling to 27% across all undergraduates. Greek life is small: 19% of men join a fraternity and 36% of women a sorority. 25% of students are the first in their family to attend college, and the median family income is $60,752.

How is Tennessee ranked?

Tennessee is ranked #109 (tie) in National Universities by U.S. News & World Report (Best Colleges 2027). That is down from #102 a year earlier.

Source: U.S. News & World Report, Best Colleges 2027. Only lists that rank Tennessee are shown; a program missing here may simply not be ranked by U.S. News, which says nothing about its quality.

What this means for your student

• Course rigor is rated Very Important here, so the senior-year schedule should hold its AP, IB or honors depth rather than lighten. Tennessee recommends 16 academic units.
• 80% of enrolled students are at a 4.0 GPA or above, averaging 4.25. Below that line the rest of the application has to carry real weight.
• Tennessee rates test scores Very Important, so a score at or above its middle-50 range is close to expected rather than optional.
• Skip demonstrated-interest tactics here. Visits and emails are not tracked, so save that effort for schools where they count.
• The waitlist is live but thin: 134 of 3,516 who waited were admitted, about 4%.
• If the first-year answer is no, the transfer route is genuinely wider here and worth planning for from the first semester of college.
• Its highest-earning major returns $101,926 five years out against $35,606 at the other end, a gap wider than the one between most schools.
• See where your student actually stands: calculate their GPA and compare it against the distribution above.

Common questions about Tennessee

Other schools families compare with Tennessee

• NC State
  Admissions report · 39.5% admit rate
• Virginia Tech
  Admissions report · 54.6% admit rate
• Ole Miss
  Admissions report · 97.4% admit rate
• Oklahoma State
  Admissions report · 73.7% admit rate
• Iowa
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• Iowa State
  Admissions report · 87.9% admit rate