2027 Best Value Culinary Arts Schools in Tennessee
[Culinary Arts](/majors/personal-and-culinary-services/culinary-arts/) degree programs vary widely in price and payoff across the country. The best values balance affordable tuition against strong post-graduation earnings.
To produce this 2027 ranking, College Factual evaluated 5 schools on the balance of cost and outcomes for culinary arts students.
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2027 Best Value Culinary Arts Schools in Tennessee
If you want to know which schools deliver the best value for the culinary arts degrees they offer, see the list below.
Best Value Culinary Arts Schools
For return on investment in culinary arts, no school beat Pellissippi State Community College this year. Set in the suburb of Knoxville, Pellissippi State Community College is a large public institution. The average in-state cost of tuition and fees is $4,786, compared with $17,770 for out-of-state students. Students borrow a median of $8,951 to complete the culinary arts program here. Culinary Arts graduates of Pellissippi State Community College earn a median of $43,816 early in their careers. Set against $8,951 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff.
The strong cost-to-outcome balance at Walters State Community College earned it the #2 place for culinary arts. Set in the city of Morristown, Walters State Community College is a moderately-sized public institution. In-state tuition and fees average $4,752, while out-of-state students pay about $17,736. Students borrow a median of $10,210 to complete the culinary arts program here. Early-career culinary arts graduates make about $35,866. Set against $10,210 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff.
Students looking for strong value in culinary arts will find it at Nashville State Community College, which ranked #3. Located in the city of Nashville, Nashville State Community College is a large public university. In-state tuition and fees average $4,730, with out-of-state students paying around $17,714. Culinary Arts graduates carry a median of $16,745 in student loans. Early-career culinary arts graduates make about $41,456. Set against $16,745 in median debt, that is a healthy payoff.
Students looking for strong value in culinary arts will find it at Nossi College Of Art, which ranked #4. Nossi College Of Art is a small private for-profit school located in the city of Nashville. The average in-state cost of tuition and fees is $20,350. Typical student debt for culinary arts graduates is $46,500. Early-career culinary arts graduates make about $24,497. That is a strong return on a $46,500 median debt. Roughly 46% of applicants are accepted.
The strong cost-to-outcome balance at Remington College Memphis Campus earned it the #5 place for culinary arts. Located in the city of Memphis, Remington College Memphis Campus is a small private not-for-profit university. Students from in state pay about $17,083 in tuition and fees. Typical student debt for culinary arts graduates is $9,500. Soon after graduation, culinary arts degree recipients from Remington College Memphis Campus generally make around $25,389. That is a strong return on a $9,500 median debt.
More Culinary Arts Rankings
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Notes and References
This ranking is produced by College Factual (MF_RANKING_2025), 2027 edition. Schools are scored on the balance of cost (tuition and student debt) against student outcomes (post-graduation earnings) — a measure of return on investment, drawn primarily from the U.S. Department of Education (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ranking method: College Major Best Value · 5 schools evaluated.
*Averages shown above reflect the top 5 ranked schools only.
- 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).
More about our data sources and methodologies.
