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The University of Tennessee-Knoxville: Rankings, Cost & Majors

421 awards Ranking Badges
Fair Price Value for Your Money
42% Acceptance Rate

The University of Tennessee-Knoxville is a public institution in Knoxville, Tennessee enrolling 30,418 undergraduates. It accepts 42% of applicants and has an on-time graduation rate of 74%, above the national average of 33%. College Factual ranks it #243 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in its 2027 Best Colleges ranking (top 5%), and its Value for Your Money analysis rates it a Fair Price.

Source: IPEDS 2025; College Scorecard July 2026; College Factual rankings 2027. Data as of: July 2026.

How Is The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Ranked?

The University of Tennessee-Knoxville ranks #243 of 5,159 colleges nationwide in College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges ranking, placing it in the top 5%.

#243 Best Colleges in Nation
#4 Best Colleges in TN
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville ranking badge

2027 Rankings

College Factual analyzes over 2,000 colleges and universities in its annual rankings and ranks them in a variety of ways, including most diverse, best overall quality, best for non-traditional students, and much more.

The University of Tennessee-Knoxville was awarded 421 badges in the 2027 rankings.

Overall Quality

UT Knoxville is ranked #243 out of 5,159 schools in the nation for overall quality on College Factual’s 2027 Best Colleges list. This puts it in the top 5% of all schools in the nation.

Within the state, UT Knoxville holds the #4 spot on the Best Colleges in Tennessee ranking.

See all of the rankings for The University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

Is It Hard to Get Into The University of Tennessee-Knoxville?

42% Acceptance Rate
39% Of Accepted Are Women
24% Submit SAT Scores

Acceptance Rate

The University of Tennessee-Knoxville has an acceptance rate of 42%, which means the school is serious about who it admits. Take your time in putting together a strong application that highlights why you are a good fit for UT Knoxville.

Average Test Scores

About 24% of students accepted to UT Knoxville submitted their SAT scores. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing scores ranged between 600 and 680. Math scores were between 600 and 690.

SAT Reading and Writing Scores for The University of Tennessee-Knoxville  ( 600 to 680 )
200
800
SAT Math Scores for The University of Tennessee-Knoxville  ( 600 to 690 )
200
800

UT Knoxville received ACT scores from 81% of accepted students. When looking at the 25th through the 75th percentile, ACT Composite scores ranged between 25 and 31.

ACT Composite Scores for The University of Tennessee-Knoxville  ( 25 to 31 )
1
36

Learn more about The University of Tennessee-Knoxville admissions.

What Is the Student-to-Faculty Ratio at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville?

18 to 1 Student to Faculty
83% Full Time Teachers

Student to Faculty Ratio

The student to faculty ratio at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville is about average at 18 to 1. This ratio is often used to gauge how many students might be in an average class and how much time professors will have to spend with their students on an individual level. The national average for this metric is 15 to 1.

Percent of Full-Time Faculty

When estimating how much access students will have to their teachers, some people like to look at what percentage of faculty members are full time. This is because part-time teachers may not have as much time to spend on campus as their full-time counterparts.

The full-time faculty percentage at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville is 83%. This is higher than the national average of 47%.

Full-Time Faculty Percent  83 out of 100
0
100

What Are the Graduation and Retention Rates at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville?

92% Freshmen Retention
74% On-Time Graduation Rate

Freshmen Retention Rate

The University of Tennessee-Knoxville has a freshmen retention rate of 92%. That’s a good sign that full-time students like the school and their professors enough to want to stick around for another year. It’s also a sign that the admissions team did a good job in choosing applicants who were a good fit for the school.

Freshmen Retention Rate  92 out of 100
0
100

Graduation Rate

Students are considered to have graduated on time if they finish their studies within four years. At UT Knoxville the on-time graduation rate of first-time, full-time students is 74%. That is great when compared to the national average of 33.3%.

On-Time Graduation Rate  74 out of 100
0
100

Find out more about the retention and graduation rates at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

How Diverse Is The University of Tennessee-Knoxville?

30,418 Undergraduate Students
19.8% Racial-Ethnic Minorities*
53.4% Percent Women

The current enrollment includes 30,418 undergraduates at UT Knoxville.

Get more detailed information on the diversity at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

How Much Does The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Cost?

$17,140 Net Price
29% Take Out Loans
$25,428 Total Student Loans

The average net price of UT Knoxville is $17,140. The affordability of the school largely depends on your financial need since net price varies by income group. See the table below for the net price for different income groups.

Net Price by Income Group for UT Knoxville

$0-30 K $30K-48K $48-75 $75-110K $110K +
$10,029 $12,162 $18,206 $23,627 $25,688

The net price is calculated by adding tuition, room, board and other costs and subtracting financial aid. Note that the net price is typically less than the published price for a school. For more information on the sticker price of UT Knoxville, see our tuition and fees and room and board pages.

Student Loan Debt

While almost two-thirds of students nationwide take out loans to pay for college, the percentage may be quite different for the school you plan on attending. At UT Knoxville, approximately 29% of students took out student loans averaging $6,357 a year. That adds up to $25,428 over four years for those students. The student loan default rate is 4.0%. This is significantly lower than the national default rate of 10.1%, which is a good sign that you’ll be able to pay back your student loans. Get more details about paying for The University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

How Much Do The U of Tennessee-Knoxville Graduates Earn?

$60,249 Avg Salary of Grads
High Earnings Boost

Although some majors pay more than others, students who graduate from The University of Tennessee-Knoxville with a bachelor’s degree go on to jobs where they make an average salary of $60,249 in their early years. This is good news for future The University of Tennessee-Knoxville graduates since it is 22% more than the average college graduate’s salary of $49,219 per year. Average Salary for The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Graduates

See which majors at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville make the most money.

Where Is The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Located?

Tennessee State
30,418 Undergraduate Students
Midsize City Campus Setting

The University of Tennessee-Knoxville is an public institution found in Knoxville, Tennessee. The surrounding area of the school is a good match for students who enjoy city life. Get more details about the location of The University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

Location of The University of Tennessee-Knoxville

Get in touch with The University of Tennessee-Knoxville can be found below.

Contact Details
Address: 800 Andy Holt Tower, Knoxville, TN 37996
Phone: 8659741000
Website: www.utk.edu
Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Tennessee
Facebook: www.facebook.com/UTKnoxville
Twitter: twitter.com/UTKnoxville

What Majors Does The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Offer?

29 Majors With Completions
20,222 Undergraduate Degrees

In the latest year of available data, students from 29 majors graduated from The University of Tennessee-Knoxville. The following table lists the most popular undergraduate majors along with the average salary graduates from those majors make.

Most Popular Majors Completions Average Salary of Graduates
Multi-Disciplinary Studies 10,111 NA
Business Administration & Management 681 $54,030
Social Work 563 $37,671
Health & Physical Education 553 $27,669
Marketing 518 $41,633
Management Sciences & Methods 501 $72,510
Child Development & Psychology 427 NA
Nursing 395 $51,956
Finance & Financial Management 361 $47,575
Accounting 268 $53,911

Learn more about the majors offered at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville along with which ones have the highest average starting salaries.

Does UT Knoxville Offer Online Classes?

40% Take At Least One Class Online
1% Take All Classes Online

12,054 students took at least one online class at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

Online learning is becoming popular at even the oldest colleges and universities in the United States. Not only are online classes great for returning adults with busy schedules, they are also frequented by a growing number of traditional students.

Learn more about online learning at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville.

Curious how schools stack up against UT Knoxville? Pit them head to head with College Combat, a free interactive tool for comparing colleges on the features you care about.

Notes and References

Footnotes

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

References

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