2024 Best Value Colleges for Elementary Education in Tennessee
19
Ranked Colleges
456
Degrees Awarded
$17,900
Avg Net Price*
It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. College Factual has developed its “Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee” ranking as one item you can use to help make this decision.
Elementary Education is the 17th most popular major in the country with 43,003 degrees awarded in 2020-2021.
Across Tennessee, there were 456 elementary education graduates with average earnings and debt of $0 and $0 respectively.
This year’s “Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee” ranking analyzed 19 colleges that offered a degree in elementary education. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent elementary education programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.
Some of the factors we look at when determining these rankings are overall quality of the elementary education program at the school and the cost of the school after aid is awarded among other things. See our ranking methodology to learn more.
One Size Does Not Fit All
The elementary teaching school you choose to invest your time and money in matters. To help you make the decision that is right for you, we’ve developed a number of major-specific rankings, including this list of “Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee”.
To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. If you’re torn between two schools, you can use it to help you see how they stack up against one another. Bookmark it so you can compare any new schools that might interest you.
Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee
The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee.
Top 19 Best Value Colleges for Elementary Education in Tennessee
You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Tennessee Technological University. The school came in at #1 for the Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee. Tennessee Technological University is located in Cookeville, Tennessee and, has a medium-sized student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 116 ’s elementary teaching degrees to qualified students.
Tennessee Tech University also made our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #2. The yearly cost to attend Tennessee Tech University is $15,932 for tennessee elementary teaching students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.1%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Full Tennessee Technological University Elementary Education Report
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Middle Tennessee State University. It ranked #2 on our 2024 Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee list. Located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, this large public school awarded 68 diplomas to qualified ’s elementary teaching students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Middle Tennessee State University, the school also landed the #3 spot in our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” ranking. The yearly cost to attend Middle Tennessee State University is $12,752 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students.
Read full report on Elementary Education at Middle Tennessee State University
Out of the 19 schools in the Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga landed the #3 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and it awarded 4 ’s elementary teaching degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at UT Chattanooga, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $14,040 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students per year to attend The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga.
Read more about Elementary Education at UT Chattanooga
Out of the 19 schools in the Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee that were part of this year’s ranking, East Tennessee State University landed the #4 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Johnson City, Tennessee, and it awarded 16 ’s elementary teaching degrees in 2020-2021.
ETSU also made our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #11. The estimated yearly cost for East Tennessee State University is $12,894 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students.
Read more about Elementary Education at ETSU
You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Lee University. It ranked #5 on our 2024 Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee list. Lee University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Cleveland, Tennessee. The school has a small population, and it awarded 39 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
Lee University also made our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #8. It costs about $18,219 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students per year to attend Lee University.
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%.
Full Lee University Elementary Education Report
Southern Adventist University came in at #6 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee ranking. Southern Adventist University is a private not-for-profit institution located in Collegedale, Tennessee. The school has a small population, and it awarded 11 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our tennessee elementary teaching students list, Southern Adventist has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $23,733 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students per year to attend Southern Adventist University.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 4.5% 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%.
Full Southern Adventist University Elementary Education Report
Freed-Hardeman University landed the #7 spot on the 2024 Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee ranking. Freed-Hardeman University is a small school located in Henderson, Tennessee that handed out 10 ’s elementary teaching degrees in 2020-2021.
FHU did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #7 on our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list. It costs about $17,152 for tennessee elementary teaching students per year to attend Freed-Hardeman University.
The low undergrad student loan default rate of 3.1% 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%. With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students.
Read more about Elementary Education at Freed-Hardeman University
Union University ranked #8 on this year’s Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee list. Located in Jackson, Tennessee, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 14 diplomas to qualified ’s elementary teaching students in 2020-2021.
Union not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #13 on our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list. The yearly cost to attend Union University is $29,990 for tennessee elementary teaching students.
The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. With a freshman retention rate of 87%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The impressive undergraduate student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools.
Full Union Elementary Education Report
Tennessee State University did quite well in the 2024 Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee ranking, coming in at #9. Tennessee State University is a medium-sized public school situated in Nashville, Tennessee. It awarded 5 ’s elementary teaching degrees in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at Tennessee State University, the school also landed the #17 spot in our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $11,867 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students per year to attend Tennessee State University.
Full Tennessee State University Elementary Education Report
With a ranking of #10, Christian Brothers University did quite well on the 2024 Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee list. Located in Memphis, Tennessee, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 4 degrees to qualified ’s elementary teaching students in 2020-2021.
Christian Brothers also took the #9 spot in our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Christian Brothers is $11,484 for tennessee elementary teaching students.
Full Christian Brothers Elementary Education Report
Trevecca Nazarene University landed the #11 spot on the 2024 Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee ranking. TNU is located in Nashville, Tennessee and, has a small student population. In 2020-2021, this school awarded 20 ’s elementary teaching degrees to qualified students.
TNU also made our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #12. The yearly cost to attend TNU is $16,258 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students.
Full TNU Elementary Education Report
Carson - Newman University came in at #12 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee ranking. Jefferson City, Tennessee is the setting for this small institution of higher learning. The private not-for-profit school handed out ’s elementary teaching degrees to 10 students in 2020-2021.
Carson - Newman also took the #6 spot in our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Carson - Newman is $17,982 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read full report on Elementary Education at Carson - Newman
With a ranking of #13, Lincoln Memorial University did quite well on the 2024 Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee list. This medium-sized school is located in Harrogate, Tennessee, and it awarded 13 ’s elementary teaching degrees in 2020-2021.
In addition to being on our tennessee elementary teaching students list, LMU has also earned the #14 rank in our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $14,866 for tennessee elementary teaching students per year to attend Lincoln Memorial University.
With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 10 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 3.7%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Elementary Education at LMU
Cumberland University ranked #14 on this year’s Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee list. Located in Lebanon, Tennessee, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 11 degrees to qualified ’s elementary teaching students in 2020-2021.
As a testament to the quality of education offered at CU, the school also landed the #15 spot in our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $24,706 for tennessee elementary teaching students per year to attend CU.
Read full report on Elementary Education at CU
Bethel University came in at #15 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee ranking. Bethel University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in McKenzie, Tennessee. It awarded 9 ’s elementary teaching degrees in 2020-2021.
Bethel also made our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #18. The yearly cost to attend Bethel University is $15,717 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students.
Full Bethel Elementary Education Report
Lipscomb University did quite well in the 2024 Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee ranking, coming in at #16. Located in Nashville, Tennessee, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 17 diplomas to qualified ’s elementary teaching students in 2020-2021.
Lipscomb also made our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #5. The yearly cost to attend Lipscomb University is $25,704 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students.
With a freshman retention rate of 85%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The school has an impressive undergrad student loan default rate. It’s only 2.9%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Elementary Education at Lipscomb University
With a ranking of #17, King University did quite well on the 2024 Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee list. King is a private not-for-profit institution located in Bristol, Tennessee. The school has a small population, and it awarded 26 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
King not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #16 on our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list. It costs about $22,535 for tennessee elementary teaching students per year to attend King.
The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 4.7%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.
Read more about Elementary Education at King
South College came in at #18 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee ranking. South College is a private for-profit institution located in Knoxville, Tennessee. The school has a medium-sized population, and it awarded 4 ’s degrees in 2020-2021.
South College not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #19 on our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list. The yearly cost to attend South College is $15,176 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students.
Full South College Elementary Education Report
Vanderbilt University ranked #19 on this year’s Best Value Elementary Teaching Schools in Tennessee list. Vanderbilt University is a fairly large private not-for-profit school situated in Nashville, Tennessee. It awarded 17 ’s elementary teaching degrees in 2020-2021.
Vanderbilt did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #1 on our “Best Elementary Education Schools in Tennessee” list. The estimated yearly cost for Vanderbilt is $19,970 for Tennessee Elementary Teaching students.
With a freshman retention rate of 97%, the school does an excellent job of retaining its undergraduate students. The undergrad student loan default rate at the school is 0.9%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a undergrad student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.
Full Vanderbilt Elementary Education Report
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Notes and References
References
- The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
- Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
- Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.
Read more about our data sources and methodologies
- *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
- Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.
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