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2024 Best Communication & Media Studies Schools in Tennessee

12 Colleges in Tennessee
1,000 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 1,000 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
49 Communications Degrees Awarded
20.4% Growth in Graduates

It is difficult 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 city of Nashville. A Best Colleges rank of #206 out of 2,217 colleges nationwide means Belmont is a great university overall.

There were approximately 49 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Belmont in the most recent data year. Communication & Media Studies degree recipients from Belmont University earn a boost of about $4,897 above the average income of communication & media studies graduates.

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

2
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
186 Communications Degrees Awarded
12.4% Growth in Graduates

Any student pursuing a degree in communication & media studies needs to look into The University of Tennessee - Knoxville. Located in the 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 colleges nationwide means UT Knoxville is a great university overall.

There were roughly 186 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UT Knoxville in the most recent data year. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from The University of Tennessee - Knoxville earn $5,955 more than the typical communications student.

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

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

Every student pursuing a degree in communication & media studies has to look into Middle Tennessee State University. Middle Tennessee State University is a very large public university located in the medium-sized 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 approximately 134 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Middle Tennessee State University in the most recent year we have data available. After graduation, communications degree recipients typically earn around $27,742 in the first five years of their career.

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

4
Doctor's Degree Highest Degree Type
79 Communications Degrees Awarded
$24,664 Median Starting Salary

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

There were roughly 79 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UofM in the most recent data year. Students who receive their degree from the communications program make around $24,664 for their early career.

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

5
Bachelor's Degree Highest Degree Type
102 Communications Degrees Awarded
$30,562 Median Starting Salary

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 schools for overall quality in the state of Tennessee.

There were roughly 102 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at UT Chattanooga in the most recent data year. Graduates 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
$27,227 Median Starting Salary
$21,000 Median Student Debt

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

There were about 9 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Carson - Newman in the most recent data year. Soon after graduation, communications degree recipients usually make around $27,227 at the beginning of their careers.

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

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

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

There were roughly 118 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 state that they receive average early career earnings 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
$28,750 Median Student Debt

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

There were approximately 18 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at Lee University in the most recent data year.

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

9
King crest
King University
Bristol, TN

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

There were roughly 15 communication & media studies students who graduated with this degree at King in the most recent year we have data available. Those communication & media studies students who get their degree from King University receive $7,043 more than the average communications graduate.

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

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

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

There were approximately 102 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 receive $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.

State Colleges Degrees Awarded
Georgia 287 795
Florida 282 2,964
North Carolina 279 2,968
Virginia 274 2,053
South Carolina 248 796
Kentucky 244 785
Louisiana 242 815
Mississippi 234 307
Arkansas 234 457
Alabama 233 967
West Virginia 207 214

View All Rankings >

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

Communications Concentrations

Major Annual Graduates
Communication & Media Studies 421
Speech Communication 300
Communications 224
Other Communication & Media Studies 55

View All Communications Focus Areas >

Majors Similar to Communications

Related Major Annual Graduates
Journalism 301
Public Relations & Advertising 281
Radio, Television & Digital Communication 48
Communication & Journalism (Other) 31
Publishing 13

View All Communications Related Majors >

Notes and References

More about our data sources and methodologies.

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