2022 Best Value Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k

When pursuing a degree in today’s world, students have many different options to choose from. 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 Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking is part of that endeavor.

In 2019-2020, 6,199 people earned their degree in public policy, making the major the 116th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, public policy graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $52,077 and had an average of $35,743 in loans still to pay off.

Across Tennessee, there were 92 public policy graduates with average earnings and debt of $56,300 and $37,495 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking analyzed 4 colleges that offered a degree in public policy. This ranking identifies schools with high-quality public policy 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 public policy program at the school. For more information, check out our ranking methodology.

One Size Does Not Fit All

Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we’ve developed the “Best Value Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

In addition to College Factual’s rankings, you may want to take a look at College Combat, our unique tool that lets you pit your favorite schools head-to-head and compare how they rate on factors that most interest you. 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.

Best Value Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k

The following schools top our list of the Best Best Value Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k.

Top 4 Best Value Colleges for Public Policy (Income $30-$48k) in Tennessee

#1

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, Tennessee

#1 in overall quality

$6,017 Average Net Price

$67,244 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Vanderbilt University landed the #1 spot on the list. This fairly large school is located in Nashville, Tennessee, and it awarded 62 ’s public policy degrees in 2019-2020.

Vanderbilt also made our “Best Public Policy Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #1. It costs about $6,017 for tennessee public policy students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Vanderbilt University.

The student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 is a sign that students will have more opportunities to engage with their professors one-on-one. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 1.0%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 96%.

Full Vanderbilt University Public Policy Report

#2

University of Memphis

Memphis, Tennessee

#4 in overall quality

$12,264 Average Net Price

$38,610 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend University of Memphis. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k. Memphis, Tennessee is the setting for this large institution of higher learning. The public school handed out ’s public policy degrees to 1 students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our tennessee public policy students whose families make $30-$48k list, UofM has also earned the #4 rank in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Tennessee” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Memphis is $12,264 for tennessee public policy students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read more about Public Policy at University of Memphis

#3

The University of Tennessee - Knoxville

Knoxville, Tennessee

#3 in overall quality

$13,745 Average Net Price

$43,722 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, The University of Tennessee - Knoxville landed the #3 spot on the list. This large school is located in Knoxville, Tennessee, and it awarded 11 ’s public policy degrees in 2019-2020.

UT Knoxville also took the #3 spot in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Tennessee” ranking. The yearly cost to attend The University of Tennessee - Knoxville is $13,745 for Tennessee Public Policy students whose families make $30-$48k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 4.3%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year.

Read full report on Public Policy at UT Knoxville

#4

Trevecca Nazarene University

Nashville, Tennessee

#2 in overall quality

$15,172 Average Net Price

$55,950 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Public Policy Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k that were part of this year’s ranking, Trevecca Nazarene University landed the #4 spot on the list. Trevecca Nazarene University is a small private not-for-profit school situated in Nashville, Tennessee. It awarded 2 ’s public policy degrees in 2019-2020.

TNU also took the #2 spot in our “Best Public Policy Schools in Tennessee” ranking. The yearly cost to attend TNU is $15,172 for tennessee public policy students whose families make $30-$48k.

Full Trevecca Nazarene University Public Policy Report

• Best Value Colleges for Public Policy (Income $30-$48k) in the Southeast Region
• Best Value Colleges for Public Policy (Income $30-$48k)

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

Footnotes

• *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.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to The Official CTBTO Photostream.

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