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2024 Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee

12 Colleges in Tennessee
899 Communications Degrees Awarded
$29,183 Avg Early-Career Salary
Ranked #10 in popularity, communication & media studies is one of the most sought-after degree programs in the nation. This means there are lots of options to choose from when you decide to get your degree.

College Factual reviewed 12 schools in Tennessee to determine which ones were the best for degree seekers in the field of communication & media studies. Combined, these schools handed out 899 degrees in communication & media studies to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Degree-Level Rankings

Choosing a Great Communication & Media Studies School

Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee The communications program you select can have a big impact on your future. That's why we developed our collection of Best Schools for Communication & Media Studies rankings. In order to come up with a best overall ranking for communication & media studies schools, we combine our degree-level rankings, weighting them by the number of degrees awarded at each level.

You may want to choose one of the degree levels below to find the schools of most interest to you.

Communication & Media Studies Rankings by Degree Level

Bachelor's Degrees in Communications
Master's Degrees in Communications
Doctor's Degrees in Communications

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision. If you'd like to restrict your choices to just one part of the country, you can filter this list by location.

In addition to our rankings, you can take two colleges and compare them based on the criteria that matters most to you in our unique tool, College Combat. Test it out when you get a chance! You may also want to bookmark the link and share it with others who are trying to make the college decision.

If you want to learn more about how we derive our rankings, see College Factual's Methodology.

Best Schools for Communication & Media Studies in Tennessee

The schools below may not offer all types of communications degrees so you may want to filter by degree level first. However, they are great for the degree levels they do offer.

10 Top Tennessee Schools in Communications

1
Belmont crest
Belmont University
Nashville, TN
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
48 Communications Degrees Awarded
$34,080 Median Starting Salary

It's hard to beat Belmont University if you wish to pursue a degree in communication & media studies. Belmont is a moderately-sized private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Nashville. A Best Colleges rank of #206 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Belmont is a great university overall.

There were about 48 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Belmont in the most recent year we have data available. Communication & Media Studies degree recipients from Belmont University get an earnings boost of approximately $4,897 over the typical income of communication & media studies majors.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Belmont University

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
175 Communications Degrees Awarded
$35,138 Median Starting Salary

Any student who is interested in communication & media studies has to take a look at The University of Tennessee - Knoxville. Located in the midsize city of Knoxville, UT Knoxville is a public university with a very large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #173 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means UT Knoxville is a great university overall.

There were roughly 175 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UT Knoxville in the most recent year we have data available. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from The University of Tennessee - Knoxville earn $5,955 more than the standard communications grad.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from The University of Tennessee - Knoxville

3
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
113 Communications Degrees Awarded
$27,742 Median Starting Salary

Every student who is interested in communication & media studies has to take a look at Middle Tennessee State University. Middle Tennessee State University is a very large public university located in the city of Murfreesboro. A Best Colleges rank of #866 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Middle Tennessee State University is a great university overall.

There were roughly 113 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Middle Tennessee State University in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, communications degree recipients generally make around $27,742 in their early careers.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Middle Tennessee State University

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
83 Communications Degrees Awarded
4.8% Growth in Graduates

University of Memphis is one of the best schools in the country for getting a degree in communication & media studies. UofM is a fairly large public university located in the city of Memphis. A Best Colleges rank of #748 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means UofM is a great university overall.

There were approximately 83 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UofM in the most recent data year. Graduates who receive their degree from the communications program earn around $24,664 in the first couple years of working.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from University of Memphis

5
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
107 Communications Degrees Awarded
4.7% Growth in Graduates

Located in the medium-sized city of Chattanooga, UT Chattanooga is a public university with a large student population. This university ranks 16th out of 45 colleges for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were about 107 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UT Chattanooga in the most recent year we have data available. Students who receive their degree from the communications program make about $30,562 in their early career salary.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga

6
Carson - Newman crest
Carson - Newman University
Jefferson City, TN
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
18.2% Growth in Graduates
$27,227 Median Starting Salary

Carson - Newman is a small private not-for-profit university located in the suburb of Jefferson City. A Best Colleges rank of #795 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Carson - Newman is a great university overall.

There were about 11 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Carson - Newman in the most recent year we have data available. After graduating, communications degree recipients usually earn around $27,227 in the first five years of their career.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Carson - Newman University

7
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
91 Communications Degrees Awarded
$25,159 Median Starting Salary

Located in the small city of Johnson City, ETSU is a public university with a large student population. A Best Colleges rank of #851 out of 2,217 schools nationwide means ETSU is a great university overall.

There were about 91 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at ETSU in the most recent year we have data available. Students who graduate with their degree from the communications program report average early career wages of $25,159.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from East Tennessee State University

8
Lee University crest
Lee University
Cleveland, TN
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
11th Most Popular In TN
5.3% Growth in Graduates

Located in the small city of Cleveland, Lee University is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population. This university ranks 15th out of 45 schools for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were roughly 19 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Lee University in the most recent year we have data available.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Lee University

9
King crest
King University
Bristol, TN
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
6.3% Growth in Graduates
$36,226 Median Starting Salary

King is a small private not-for-profit university located in the small city of Bristol. This university ranks 22nd out of 45 colleges for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were roughly 16 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at King in the most recent data year. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from King University receive $7,043 more than the standard communications graduate.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from King University

10
Master's Degree Highest Degree Type
77 Communications Degrees Awarded
$34,182 Median Starting Salary

Austin Peay State University is a medium-sized public university located in the midsize city of Clarksville. This university ranks 29th out of 45 colleges for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were approximately 77 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Austin Peay State University in the most recent year we have data available. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from Austin Peay State University earn $4,998 more than the standard communications grad.

More information about a degree in communication & media studies from Austin Peay State University

Best Communication & Media Studies Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

StateCollegesDegrees Awarded
Georgia287795
Florida2822,964
North Carolina2792,968
Virginia2742,053
South Carolina248796
Kentucky244785
Louisiana242815
Mississippi234307
Arkansas234457
Alabama233967
West Virginia207214

View All Rankings >

Communication & Media Studies is one of 5 different types of Communication & Journalism programs to choose from.

Communications Concentrations

MajorAnnual Graduates
Communication & Media Studies383
Speech Communication272
Communications190
Other Communication & Media Studies54

View All Communications Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Communications

Related MajorAnnual Graduates
Public Relations & Advertising289
Journalism264
Radio, Television & Digital Communication37
Communication & Journalism (Other)35
Publishing12

View All Communications Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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