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2024 Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee

11 Ranked Colleges
1,000 Degrees Awarded
$16,500 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. College Factual was founded, in part, to help students make the decision as to what would be the best school for them. Our “Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee” ranking is part of that endeavor.

Communication & Media Studies is one of the most popular majors in the nation, ranking 10th of all the majors we analyze. In 2020-2021, 66,787 degrees were awarded to students with this major. In 2019-2020, communication & media studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2017-2019, earned an average of $34,115 and had an average of $25,414 in loans still to pay off.

Across Tennessee, there were 1,000 communication & media studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $29,183 and $27,074 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee” ranking analyzed 11 colleges that offered a degree in communication & media studies. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality communication & media studies programs that also have a lower cost than schools of similar quality.

To come up with these rankings, we looked at factors such as the cost to attend the school after aid is awarded and overall quality of the communication & media studies program at the school. See our ranking methodology to learn more.

More Ways to Rank Communication & Media Studies Schools

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When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee” list to help you make the college decision.

You can create your own custom comparison that focuses on the factors most important to you using our tool, College Combat. Test it out by comparing your favorite schools against others you are considering, or bookmark the tool so you can experiment with it later.

Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee.

Top 11 Best Value Colleges for Communication & Media Studies in Tennessee

1

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend The University of Tennessee - Knoxville. It ranked #1 on our 2024 Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee list. Knoxville, Tennessee is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s communications degrees to 186 students in 2020-2021.

UT Knoxville not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #1 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” list. The estimated yearly cost for The University of Tennessee - Knoxville is $18,579 for tennessee communications students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.1%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 88%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.

Read more about Communication & Media Studies at The University of Tennessee - Knoxville

2
Middle Tennessee State University crest
Middle Tennessee State University
Murfreesboro, Tennessee

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, Middle Tennessee State University landed the #2 spot on the list. Located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, this large public school handed out 134 diplomas to qualified ’s communications students in 2020-2021.

Middle Tennessee State University not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #3 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” list. It costs about $12,752 for tennessee communications students per year to attend Middle Tennessee State University.

Full Middle Tennessee State University Communication & Media Studies Report

3
UofM crest
University of Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Memphis landed the #3 spot on the list. UofM is a public institution located in Memphis, Tennessee. The school has a large population, and it awarded 79 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UofM, the school also landed the #4 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $13,904 for Tennessee Communications students per year to attend UofM.

Read more about Communication & Media Studies at University of Memphis

4
ETSU crest
East Tennessee State University
Johnson City, Tennessee

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend East Tennessee State University. The school came in at #4 for the Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee. East Tennessee State University is located in Johnson City, Tennessee and, has a fairly large student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 118 ’s communications degrees to qualified students.

ETSU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #5 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” list. The yearly cost to attend ETSU is $12,894 for tennessee communications students.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at East Tennessee State University

5

Out of the 11 schools in the Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga landed the #5 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and it awarded 102 ’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UT Chattanooga, the school also landed the #6 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $14,040 for Tennessee Communications students per year to attend The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga.

Full The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga Communication & Media Studies Report

6
Austin Peay State University crest
Austin Peay State University
Clarksville, Tennessee

Austin Peay State University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee ranking. Austin Peay State University is a medium-sized school located in Clarksville, Tennessee that handed out 102 ’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Austin Peay State University, the school also landed the #9 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $14,845 for tennessee communications students per year to attend Austin Peay State University.

Full Austin Peay State University Communication & Media Studies Report

7
Tennessee State University crest
Tennessee State University
Nashville, Tennessee

Tennessee State University came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee ranking. Tennessee State University is a public institution located in Nashville, Tennessee. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 65 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

Tennessee State University also made our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #10. The yearly cost to attend Tennessee State University is $11,867 for Tennessee Communications students.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Tennessee State University

8

The University of Tennessee - Martin ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee list. UT Martin is a public institution located in Martin, Tennessee. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 26 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

UT Martin also took the #11 spot in our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $11,320 for tennessee communications students per year to attend UT Martin.

Read more about Communication & Media Studies at The University of Tennessee - Martin

9
Lee University crest
Lee University
Cleveland, Tennessee

Lee University landed the #9 spot on the 2024 Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee ranking. Lee University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Cleveland, Tennessee. It awarded 18 ’s communications degrees in 2020-2021.

Lee University also made our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #7. The estimated yearly cost for Lee University is $18,219 for tennessee communications students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Lee University

10
Belmont crest
Belmont University
Nashville, Tennessee

Belmont University ranked #10 on this year’s Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee list. Belmont is located in Nashville, Tennessee and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 49 ’s communications degrees to qualified students.

Belmont not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” list. The yearly cost to attend Belmont University is $30,489 for Tennessee Communications students.

The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.5%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at Belmont University

11
King crest
King University
Bristol, Tennessee

King University landed the #11 spot on the 2024 Best Value Communications Schools in Tennessee ranking. King University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Bristol, Tennessee. The school has a small population, and it awarded 15 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.

King not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #8 on our “Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee” list. The yearly cost to attend King University is $22,535 for tennessee communications students.

The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.7% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%.

Read full report on Communication & Media Studies at King

Notes and References

References

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

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