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2023 Best Value Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Tennessee

Identifying Quality Schools at More Affordable Prices

12 Colleges
$18,861 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$115,233 Avg Salary

Finding the Best Nursing Doctor's Degree School for You

Out of the majors we analyze each year, nursing was the most popular one in Tennessee. In total, 6,004 people earned a degree or certificate in the field from a school in Tennessee.

There are so many nursing programs in today's world that it can tough to figure out which one is the right one for you. As online education oppotunities continue to grow, you're not restricted to just schools in your local area anymore. Even some of the 'big name' schools are offering online courses. Also, there are a number of trade schools with offerings that you might find attractive.

To help you arm yourself with the information you need to make your decision, Nursing Degree Search has developed this Best Value Nursing Doctor's Degree Schools in Tennessee ranking. This report analyzed 12 schools in Tennessee to see which ones offered the best value doctor's 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 Doctor's Degree Schools

Our 2023 rankings named The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga the best value school in Tennessee for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the city of Chattanooga, UT Chattanooga is a public college with a large student population.

UT Chattanooga graduate students pay an average of $10,474 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, UT Chattanooga is ranked #2 for overall quality for nursing in Tennessee.

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You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend The University of Tennessee - Health Science Center. The school came in at #2 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Tennessee list. UTHSC is a small public school located in the large city of Memphis.

UTHSC graduate students pay an average of $15,529 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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#3

Union University

Jackson, TN

A rank of #3 on this year’s list means Union University is a great value for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the small city of Jackson, Union is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at Union are $11,666 per year.

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You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend The University of Tennessee - Knoxville. It ranked #4 on our 2023 Best Value Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Tennessee list. Located in the medium-sized city of Knoxville, UT Knoxville is a public college with a fairly large student population.

In-state tuition fees for graduate students at UT Knoxville are $13,380 per year.

UT Knoxville also made our Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Tennessee list, coming in at #4.

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Out of the 12 schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, Tennessee Technological University landed the # 5 spot on the list. Located in the town of Cookeville, Tennessee Tech University is a public school with a moderately-sized student population.

Tennessee Tech University graduate students pay an average of $11,762 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

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#6

Southern Adventist University

Collegedale, TN

Southern Adventist University did quite well in this year’s ranking of the best places for nursing students to get a doctor’s degree. It came in at #6 on the list. Located in the suburb of Collegedale, Southern Adventist is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at Southern Adventist are $11,880 a year.

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#7

King University

Bristol, TN

With a ranking of #7, King University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. Located in the small city of Bristol, King is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at King are $14,207 a year.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, King is ranked #5 for overall quality for nursing in Tennessee.

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With a ranking of #8, East Tennessee State University did quite well on this year’s best value schools for nursing students working on their doctor’s degree. ETSU is a large public school located in the small city of Johnson City.

The average tuition and fees for an in-state graduate student at ETSU are $10,736 a year.

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#9

Belmont University

Nashville, TN

Belmont University came in at #9 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Tennessee ranking. Located in the large city of Nashville, Belmont is a private not-for-profit college with a moderately-sized student population.

Belmont graduate students pay an average of $25,180 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Belmont did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #3 on our Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Tennessee list.

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#10

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN

Vanderbilt University landed the #10 spot in the 2023 rankings for the best value doctor’s degree nursing programs. Located in the large city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit college with a fairly large student population.

Vanderbilt graduate students pay an average of $52,162 in in-state tuition and fees each year.

Vanderbilt not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #1 on our Best Nursing Doctor’s Degree Schools in Tennessee list.

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Best 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
Alabama 7,364
Kentucky 6,395
Louisiana 3,502
Mississippi 2,838
Florida 21,209
Arkansas 2,882
North Carolina 7,425
West Virginia 1,771
Georgia 7,112
South Carolina 3,296
Virginia 6,775

Nursing Focus Areas

Major Annual Graduates
Registered Nursing 266,651
Family Practice Nurse/Nursing 16,104
Nursing Administration 9,838
Nursing Practice 7,992
Other Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing 5,092
Nursing Science 4,600
Psychiatric/Mental Health Nurse/Nursing 2,287
Adult Health Nurse/Nursing 2,021
Nurse Anesthetist 1,936
Public Health/Community Nurse/Nursing 1,883
Critical Care Nursing 773
Geriatric Nurse/Nursing 563
School Nursing 553
Nurse Midwife/Nursing Midwifery 509
Clinical Nurse Leader 444
Clinical Nurse Specialist 419
Perioperative/Operating Room and Surgical Nurse/Nursing 331
Maternal/Child Health and Neonatal Nurse/Nursing 181
Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing 57
Emergency Room/Trauma Nursing 53
Palliative Care Nursing 14
Forensic Nursing 14

Related Major Annual Graduates
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants 84,274

Notes and References

*These averages are for the top 12 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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