Best Private Colleges in Tennessee 2023

Best Private Colleges in Tennessee 2023

By James Barham

Published: May 5, 2021
Updated: May 22, 2023

Private colleges, unlike large public institutions, can be a great option for students wanting a more intimate campus experience, more personal attention from excellent professors, and more immediate access to support services. Here is our list of the best private colleges in Tennessee.

10 Best Private Colleges in Tennessee

Vanderbilt University

64%

Fisk University

48%

39%

Cumberland University

36%

Sewanee: The University of the South

35%

Lipscomb University

32%

Belmont University

31%

Lincoln Memorial University

28%

Union University

26%

26%

LeMoyne–Owen College

98%

Christian Brothers University

97%

University of Tennessee Southern

92%

Belmont University

88%

Freed–Hardeman University

88%

83%

Carson–Newman University

79%

Trevecca Nazarene University

78%

Tusculum University

77%

Lipscomb University

74%

Tusculum University

18 to 1

Cumberland University

17 to 1

17 to 1

15 to 1

Bethel University

15 to 1

Lipscomb University

14 to 1

Fisk University

14 to 1

Belmont University

14 to 1

Carson–Newman University

14 to 1

University of Tennessee Southern

13 to 1

Vanderbilt University

$56,966

$50,910

Sewanee: The University of the South

$49,418

Belmont University

$38,430

Maryville College

$37,016

Lipscomb University

$35,752

Union University

$35,510

Christian Brothers University

$34,820

King University

$32,838

Carson–Newman University

$31,320

Vanderbilt University

$51,600

$50,600

Belmont University

$24,300

Fisk University

$21,238

Tennessee Wesleyan University

$20,870

Lincoln Memorial University

$19,654

Sewanee: The University of the South

$17,963

Lipscomb University

$17,100

$14,850

King University

$14,207

Daymar Institute

11%

Bethel University

13%

Freed–Hardeman University

15%

15%

Tusculum University

15%

LeMoyne–Owen College

17%

20%

Southern Adventist University

20%

Carson–Newman University

20%

Trevecca Nazarene University

22%

Vanderbilt University

7%

Bethel University

50%

Union University

53%

57%

Cumberland University

58%

Tennessee Wesleyan University

60%

Sewanee: The University of the South

60%

Fisk University

61%

King University

66%

Maryville College

68%

Vanderbilt University

8 to 1

9 to 1

9 to 1

Sewanee: The University of the South

10 to 1

Daymar Institute

10 to 1

Union University

10 to 1

Christian Brothers University

11 to 1

King University

11 to 1

LeMoyne–Owen College

11 to 1

Tennessee Wesleyan University

11 to 1

University of Tennessee Southern

$10,200

$11,790

LeMoyne–Owen College

$12,076

$17,360

Bethel University

$17,482

$19,582

$20,500

Daymar Institute

$22,348

Fisk University

$22,906

Southern Adventist University

$23,210

Tusculum University

$7,200

Cumberland University

$7,500

$8,100

University of Tennessee Southern

$8,910

Carson–Newman University

$9,432

$9,630

Freed–Hardeman University

$10,980

Trevecca Nazarene University

$11,235

Union University

$11,618

Bethel University

$11,723

Table of Contents

Colleges and Universities in Tennessee

About one third of the higher learning institutes in Tennessee are public schools. Students who attend these schools can expect to pay anywhere between $4,000 to $13,000 in tuition and have the option to pursue degrees in fields such as economics, history, nursing, literature, education, and criminal justice. Tennessee’s largest public school, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, boasts some impressive alumni, including Oprah Winfrey, Kurt Vonnegut, and Cormac McCarthy. The private school alumni are equally as notable. For example, author James Patterson and Nobel Peace Prize recipient Muhammad Yunus both attended Vanderbilt University in Nashville.

Find college admissions consultants in your state.

Tennessee also offers nearly 30 religiously affiliated schools, the largest being Belmont University in Nashville, located just blocks from the famous Music Row. Here, students can study a wide range of fields including Christian leadership, audio engineering technology, and biophysics. Additionally, Tennessee offers students several loan forgiveness programs. Math and science teachers, minority teachers, and registered nurses interested in becoming teachers or administrators who meet certain requirements may be eligible.

Tennessee is home to mouthwatering barbecues, electrified blues, and the sweeping majesty of the Smoky Mountains National Park. And with access to countless historic sites, unique museums, and lush green spaces, students attending one of the more than 60 colleges and universities in The Volunteer State will have plenty to do and see in their downtime.

Discover more about the top programs and higher education learning opportunities available in Tennessee.

What are Tennessee’s Colleges & Universities?

Tennessee’s Best Overall

What is the difference between public and private colleges?

Public and private colleges and universities operate under different business models. Public colleges and universities are owned by the state and receive both state and federal funding to operate. Private colleges and universities are private companies with private funding. If you’re looking at the pros and cons of private vs. public colleges, consider that many public colleges provide diverse course offerings, influential professors, and an excellent return on your investment.

Public colleges are schools that receive most of their funding from tax revenues. As a result, the cost of a bachelor’s degree at a public university is often lower than the equivalent cost at a private college — especially for students attending a public school in their home state. Attending a college in-state is usually the cheapest option. Private universities and colleges can be very competitive with their funding opportunities, so do not simply believe that private colleges are always going to be more expensive. According to National Center for Educational Statistics, the average annual cost (tuition, fees, room and board for full-time students) at a public university was slightly over $20,000. In contrast, private universities cost, on average, nearly $43,000 annually. But in the end, the cost of college comes down to each student’s academic and financial situation.

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How do we determine Tennessee's best private colleges and universities?

The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great! If you are serious about finding the best colleges and universities for a bachelor’s degree, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching and whether their graduates are themselves advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence in their fields of study.

Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Concentrated Influence provides a ranking that is freer from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.

To rank the influence of schools, we first determine the influence of scholars and professionals based on the number of citations and publications they have had over the past 10 years. In addition to publications and citations, we consider the web links to and from these sources, and the page views of those sources. We then match the influential people to their alma maters and institutions of employment, so that their influence is attributed to those schools. Our machine-learning Influence Ranking algorithm produces a numerical score of academic achievements, merits, and citations across Wikipedia, wikidata, Crossref, Semantic Scholar and an ever-growing body of data. If you are interested in exploring how and why we rank by influence, explore our methodology in more depth.

This list is composed entirely of private colleges and universities that offer bachelor’s degrees. We’ve identified 26 private universities in Tennessee. To be included in the list below of the best private universities in Tennessee, schools must be fully accredited, private, non-profit institution, and must offer a broad range of bachelor’s degrees.

Best Private Colleges in Tennessee

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Tennessee’s Best Private Colleges in Your Area Interest

2021 Ranking Archive

Many of our 2022 undergraduate focused rankings look considerably different than 2021. That’s because we took a fundamentally different apporach. For 2021 we utilized our Concentrated Influence algorithm, designed to take away the size advantage larger schools have when we rank their faculty and alumni’s academic influence. Concentrated influence highlights smaller schools that are proportionally as successful as larger universities at cultivating influential alumni and faculty.

Check out our directory of private colleges throughout the U.S. for a look at the top private schools in every state.