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Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee

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2023 Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee

Identifying High-Quality Schools With More Affordable Pricing

9 Schools Ranked
$24,028 Avg Tuition & Fees*
$16,032 Avg Student Debt*

It's not easy to decide which nursing program to enroll in when you have so many options available. You're no longer limited to schools in your local area, either, since online programs are becoming more prevalent. Or you may find the programs at a trade school or bootcamp to be a better alternative for you.

Along with in-depth profiles of schools and the programs they offer, Nursing Degree Search has created the Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee to help you in your search for the best school for you. Our analysis looked at 9 schools in Tennessee to see which graduate certificate programs offered the best value experiences for nursing students with the aim of identifying those quality schools that are more affordable than some of their counterparts.

Our ranking of value is based on the quality of a program as defined in our per sticker price dollar. 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.

In our regional and nationwide rankings, out-of-state tution and fees are used in our calculations. Average in-state tuition and fees are used for our statewide rankings.

Top Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee

Learn more about these excellent schools below:

3 Total Awards
$18,538 Average Tuition & Fees

Our 2023 rankings named The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga the best value school in Tennessee for nursing students working on their graduate certificate. The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga is a fairly large public school located in Chattanooga, Tennessee that handed out 3 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at UT Chattanooga are $18,538 a year.

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at UT Chattanooga. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 60% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

In addition to its best value ranking, and one of the reasons why the school is on the list, UT Chattanooga is ranked #3 for overall quality in Tennessee.

Full The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga Report

23 Total Awards
$31,798 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent graduate certificate programs at The University of Tennessee - Knoxville helped the school earn the #2 place on this year’s ranking of the best value nursing schools in Tennessee. UT Knoxville is a large public school situated in Knoxville, Tennessee. It awarded 23 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

UT Knoxville graduate students pay an average of $31,798 in tuition and fees each year.

Online graduate courses are available at UT Knoxville, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. To give an idea of how popular online courses are at the school, 36% of graduates took at least one course online in 2019-2020.

UT Knoxville did well in our overall quality rankings, too. It placed #2 on our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee list.

Full The University of Tennessee - Knoxville Report

#3

Union University

Jackson, Tennessee
3 Total Awards
$11,666 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend Union University. The school came in at #3 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee list. Jackson, Tennessee is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out graduate certificates to 3 students in 2020-2021.

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

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at Union. In fact, around 70% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Union also made our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee list, coming in at #4.

Full Union University Report

#4

University of Memphis

Memphis, Tennessee
2 Total Awards
$14,544 Average Tuition & Fees

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around you if you attend University of Memphis. The school came in at #4 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee list. UofM is a public institution located in Memphis, Tennessee. The school has a large population, and it awarded 2 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at UofM are $14,544 a year.

Online graduate courses are available at UofM, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. Of all the graduate students enrolled at the school during the 2019-2020 academic year, around 58% took at least some of their classes online.

UofM also made our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee list, coming in at #5.

Full University of Memphis Report

#5

Austin Peay State University

Clarksville, Tennessee
2 Total Awards
$14,827 Average Tuition & Fees

The excellent graduate certificate programs at Austin Peay State University helped the school earn the #5 place on this year’s ranking of the best value nursing schools in Tennessee. Clarksville, Tennessee is the setting for this medium-sized institution of higher learning. The public school handed out graduate certificates to 2 students in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Austin Peay State University are $14,827 a year.

Austin Peay State University does offer online graduate classes for certain degree levels. During the 2019-2020 year, about 85% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Full Austin Peay State University Report

#6

Southern Adventist University

Collegedale, Tennessee
7 Total Awards
$11,880 Average Tuition & Fees

Southern Adventist University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee ranking. Southern Adventist is located in Collegedale, Tennessee and has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 7 graduate certificates to qualified students.

Southern Adventist graduate students pay an average of $11,880 in tuition and fees each year.

Depending on your major, you may be able to take online graduate classes at Southern Adventist. In 2019-2020 about 71% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Full Southern Adventist University Report

#7

East Tennessee State University

Johnson City, Tennessee
22 Total Awards
$25,856 Average Tuition & Fees

East Tennessee State University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee ranking. ETSU is a fairly large public school situated in Johnson City, Tennessee. It awarded 22 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at ETSU are $25,856 a year.

Online graduate courses are available at ETSU, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. During the 2019-2020 year, about 49% of the graduate students at the school took at least one online course.

Full East Tennessee State University Report

#8

Tennessee State University

Nashville, Tennessee
1 Total Awards
$22,836 Average Tuition & Fees

Tennessee State University came in at #8 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee ranking. Tennessee State University is located in Nashville, Tennessee and has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 1 graduate certificates to qualified students.

The average tuition and fees for an out-of-state graduate students at Tennessee State University are $22,836 a year.

If you are interested in distance education, be sure to check with the school since Tennessee State University does offer online graduate classes for certain majors. In 2019-2020 about 41% of the graduate students at the school chose to take one or more online courses.

Full Tennessee State University Report

#9

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, Tennessee
28 Total Awards
$52,162 Average Tuition & Fees

Vanderbilt University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee list. Vanderbilt University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school located in Nashville, Tennessee that handed out 28 graduate certificates in 2020-2021.

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

Online graduate courses are available at Vanderbilt, but you will need to check with the school to see if they are available for your field of interest. In fact, around 67% of the graduate population registered for at least one online class in 2019-2020.

Vanderbilt not only placed well in our value ranking, but it is also #1 on our Best Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools in Tennessee list.

Read full report on Vanderbilt University

View Best Value Nursing Graduate Certificate Schools Nationwide >

Notes and References

Footnotes

*These averages are for the top 9 schools only.

References

  • 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 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).
  • Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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