A public R1 land-grant flagship in Knoxville, TN, admitting 41.60% of applicants with proximity to Oak Ridge National Laboratory and strong engineering, business, and sciences programs.
Knoxville, Tennessee
The University of Tennessee Knoxville is a public R1 land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, founded in 1794 as one of the oldest public universities in the South. It enrolls 30,418 undergraduates and 8,164 graduate students across eleven colleges, including the Tickle College of Engineering, the Haslam College of Business, the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, the College of Law, and the College of Veterinary Medicine.
Business, engineering, social sciences, biological sciences, and communications account for the largest shares of bachelor's degrees. The University of Tennessee is accredited through the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). SAT or ACT scores are required for admission; the University of Tennessee requires standardized testing. UTK has a formal affiliation with Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), the nation's largest science and energy research facility, approximately 25 miles west of campus, providing research and internship access to the university's engineering and science students.
Official website: utk.edu
UCD scores every college on four pillars: Outcomes, Value, Affordability, and Selectivity. Within peer group A (four-year selective institutions), the University of Tennessee scores 78.64 overall, rated Good. Outcomes (86.21) reflects a 73.92% six-year graduation rate and 91.48% first-year retention. Value scores 65.16, driven by ten-year earnings of $60,249 relative to an average net price of $18,976. Selectivity scores 84.05, reflecting a 41.60% admit rate. All scores use verified federal data only.
The University of Tennessee admits 41.60% of applicants. SAT or ACT scores are required; standardized testing is required for admission. The priority deadline is November 1 for scholarship and housing consideration; the final deadline is December 15 for regular decision. Applicants apply to specific colleges within UTK; the Tickle College of Engineering and the Haslam College of Business are more competitive than the overall admit rate. Tennessee residents who are considering Tennessee Promise (which covers community college tuition) or the Tennessee HOPE Scholarship (merit-based for UT students) should review the academic eligibility requirements.
Acceptance rate over the last five admission cycles. The trend tells you whether The University of Tennessee-Knoxville is getting harder, easier, or staying about the same.
The University of Tennessee charges $13,812 in in-state tuition and $33,256 in out-of-state tuition, plus $13,356 in room and board, bringing the estimated in-state total cost of attendance to approximately $33,678 before aid. The average net price after all grants and scholarships is $18,976. For families earning under $30,000, the average net price is $10,029. For families earning between $30,001 and $48,000, the net price averages $12,162.
For families earning between $75,001 and $110,000, the net price averages $23,627. For families earning above $110,000, it averages $25,688. Tennessee residents may be eligible for the Tennessee HOPE Scholarship, which provides merit-based awards based on GPA and ACT scores. The federal loan rate of 28.89% and median debt of $20,500 are in the moderate range for a public flagship.
Published cost of attendance, the sticker price before grants and scholarships. Most students underestimate room & board and other expenses.
Application fee: $50 (one-time, due at submission)
Aid is need-based, so net price varies by family income. Here's what each bracket typically pays after grants and scholarships.
Cumulative federal-loan debt across the full borrowing distribution. The 10th and 90th percentiles bracket the typical range; the median sits in the middle.
Median federal-loan debt at graduation broken down by demographic. Each slice's size is proportional to the dollar amount that group typically borrows.
The University of Tennessee completes a majority of students it enrolls. The six-year graduation rate is 73.92% for full-time, first-time bachelor's-seeking students, below the average for selective public flagships in this peer group. First-year retention stands at 91.48%. The federal loan rate of 28.89% and median debt of $20,500 are moderate; the below-average graduation rate reflects some attrition in the engineering and sciences programs.
University of Tennessee graduates enter careers in business, engineering, healthcare, and the sciences across Tennessee and the Southeast. Median earnings are $47,782 six years after first enrolling and $60,249 at ten years. At the ten-year mark, 83.60% of former students earn more than a typical high school graduate. The ten-year earnings reflect UTK's program mix in business, social sciences, and engineering, with graduates placing primarily in Tennessee's healthcare, manufacturing, automotive, and financial services sectors.
The Oak Ridge National Laboratory affiliation creates direct internship and employment pipelines for physics, chemistry, nuclear engineering, and computer science graduates into one of the country's most active federal research installations. Knoxville, the Tennessee Valley Authority, and major East Tennessee employers in healthcare and manufacturing provide accessible employment markets.
Median annual earnings 6, 8, and 10 years after students first enrolled.
Mean annual earnings 10 years after entry, segmented by demographic. Reveals gaps the headline median can't show.
Median earnings for female grads ten years after first enrolling here.
Median earnings for male grads ten years after first enrolling here.
Earnings of grads from the bottom-third of family incomes at entry.
Earnings of grads from the middle-third of family incomes at entry.
Earnings of grads from the top-third of family incomes at entry.
Share of completer-cohort borrowers paying down at least $1 of principal at the 1-, 3-, 5-, and 7-year mark. Climbing rates show graduates settling into careers and managing debt; flat or declining rates are a warning.
The University of Tennessee enrolls 30,418 undergraduates on its main campus in Knoxville, Tennessee, a mid-size city of approximately 190,000 along the Tennessee River and bordered by the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. White students account for 78.09% of undergraduates; Hispanic 6.72%, Black 3.78%, and Asian 3.77%, with relatively limited racial diversity compared to other large public flagships. Approximately 18.89% of undergraduates receive Pell grants, and 24.54% are first-generation college students.
Knoxville offers access to outdoor recreation in the Great Smoky Mountains, which receive more visitors annually than any other national park; hiking, camping, and scenic access are exceptional. UTK athletics compete in the Southeastern Conference (SEC); Tennessee Volunteers football in Neyland Stadium, with 102,000 seats, is among the most attended college football venues in the country.
Undergraduate student body composition reported to the US Department of Education.
Where students live, learn, and connect at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville. The campus setting, housing profile, and signals that shape day-to-day life here.
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville offers an extensive catalog of programs: 216 distinct programs across 28 majors. Below are its strongest majors, each with flagship programs and typical earnings. Open a major to explore it in depth, or browse the full program catalog.
The University of Tennessee operates at a student-to-faculty ratio consistent with large public research universities. 83.41% of instruction is delivered by full-time faculty. Instructional spending per full-time equivalent student is $13,098 per year, below the peer group average for a flagship. The endowment stands at approximately $1.19 billion.
The UTK-ORNL partnership is one of the most significant university-national laboratory affiliations in the country; faculty hold joint appointments, and students participate in research at Oak Ridge's facilities in nuclear science, advanced materials, and high-performance computing. The Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs conducts policy research with direct connections to Tennessee's government and the broader Southeast.
1,834 instructional faculty across 6 ranks. The rank mix shows how many senior faculty are teaching versus contingent or junior staff, with average salary equated to a 9-month contract.
| Rank | Faculty Count | Share | Avg Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full Professors | 542 | 30% | $164,499 |
| Associate Professors | 394 | 21% | $117,146 |
| Assistant Professors | 433 | 24% | $94,320 |
| Instructors | 40 | 2% | $71,684 |
| Lecturers | 420 | 23% | $71,082 |
| No Rank | 5 | 0% | $61,603 |
The University of Tennessee's defining strengths are its UCD 78.64 Good score, moderate net price ($18,976 average, $10,029 for lowest-income families), a formal Oak Ridge National Laboratory research affiliation unique among public flagships, and access to the Knoxville/Great Smoky Mountains outdoor corridor. UCD 78.64 Good.
The considerations: the six-year graduation rate of 73.92% is below the peer average; SAT or ACT scores are required; the ten-year earnings of $60,249 are the lowest in this public flagship batch; the racial diversity of the student body is below most peer flagships; and the instructional spending of $13,098 is relatively low. Best fit for Tennessee residents who want a flagship SEC research university with engineering and natural sciences programs connected to Oak Ridge's federal research installations, and who can leverage Tennessee HOPE Scholarship support to reduce net cost.
The questions below address what students and families most commonly search about UTK: how the Oak Ridge connection works, what the SEC campus culture is like, how the Tennessee HOPE Scholarship works, and how the Great Smoky Mountains affect the student experience.
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