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2022 Best Value Colleges for Design & Applied Arts (Income $30-$48k) in Tennessee

13 Ranked Colleges
385 Degrees Awarded
$14,700 Avg Net Price*
Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k

With all of the options students have for higher education today, it can be tough to choose which direction to take. One of our goals at College Factual is to give you as much information as we can - such as our “Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking - to help you make that decision.

In 2019-2020, 36,854 people earned their degree in design and applied arts, making the major the 34th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, design and applied arts graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $29,542 and had an average of $27,114 in loans still to pay off.

Across Tennessee, there were 385 design and applied arts graduates with average earnings and debt of $24,367 and $28,499 respectively.

This year’s “Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k” ranking looked at 13 colleges that offer degrees in a bachelor’s in design and applied arts. Not only do the schools that top this list have excellent design and applied arts programs, but they also cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the design and applied arts program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Design & Applied Arts Schools

When choosing the right school for you, it’s important to arm yourself with all the facts you can. To that end, we’ve created a number of major-specific rankings, including this “Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k” list to help you make the college 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. 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 Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k

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

Top 13 Best Value Colleges for Design & Applied Arts (Income $30-$48k) in Tennessee

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga. It ranked #1 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k list. The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga is a fairly large school located in Chattanooga, Tennessee that handed out 13 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k list, UT Chattanooga has also earned the #3 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for UT Chattanooga is $10,515 for tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k.

Full The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga Design & Applied Arts Report

#2

Nashville State Community College

Nashville, Tennessee

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Nashville State Community College. The school came in at #2 for the Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k. Located in Nashville, Tennessee, this medium-sized public school awarded 20 diplomas to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at Nashville State Community College, the school also landed the #10 spot in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Nashville State Community College is $7,460 for tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Nashville State Community College

#3

Middle Tennessee State University

Murfreesboro, Tennessee

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend Middle Tennessee State University. The school came in at #3 for the Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k. Middle Tennessee State University is a large school located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee that handed out 19 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Middle Tennessee State University did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” list. It costs about $10,637 for tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Middle Tennessee State University.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Middle Tennessee State University

#4

Chattanooga State Community College

Chattanooga, Tennessee

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend Chattanooga State Community College. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k list. Located in Chattanooga, Tennessee, this medium-sized public school awarded 26 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k list, Chattanooga State Community College has also earned the #11 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for Chattanooga State Community College is $6,704 for Tennessee Design students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Chattanooga State Community College

You’ll join some of the best and brightest minds around if you attend The University of Tennessee - Knoxville. The school came in at #5 for the Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k. The University of Tennessee - Knoxville is a public institution located in Knoxville, Tennessee. The school has a large population, and it awarded 18 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

UT Knoxville not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #2 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” list. It costs about $13,745 for tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend UT Knoxville.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 89%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. 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%.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at The University of Tennessee - Knoxville

#6

East Tennessee State University

Johnson City, Tennessee

East Tennessee State University landed the #6 spot on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. This fairly large school is located in Johnson City, Tennessee, and it awarded 36 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

ETSU also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #7. It costs about $12,703 for Tennessee Design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend East Tennessee State University.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at ETSU

#7

University of Memphis

Memphis, Tennessee

University of Memphis came in at #7 in this year’s edition of the Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. University of Memphis is a public institution located in Memphis, Tennessee. The school has a large population, and it awarded 9 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k list, UofM has also earned the #8 rank in our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” ranking. It costs about $12,264 for tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend University of Memphis.

Full University of Memphis Design & Applied Arts Report

#8

Freed-Hardeman University

Henderson, Tennessee

With a ranking of #8, Freed-Hardeman University did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k list. Freed-Hardeman University is a small school located in Henderson, Tennessee that handed out 3 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

FHU not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #6 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” list. The yearly cost to attend FHU is $13,318 for tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read more about Design & Applied Arts at Freed-Hardeman University

#9

Belmont University

Nashville, Tennessee

Belmont University ranked #9 on this year’s Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k list. This medium-sized school is located in Nashville, Tennessee, and it awarded 60 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Belmont also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #1. The yearly cost to attend Belmont University is $26,275 for Tennessee Design students whose families make $30-$48k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.0%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%.

Full Belmont University Design & Applied Arts Report

#10

Milligan University

Milligan College, Tennessee

Milligan University landed the #10 spot on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k ranking. This small school is located in Milligan College, Tennessee, and it awarded 3 ’s design degrees in 2019-2020.

Milligan also made our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” list, coming in at #9. The yearly cost to attend Milligan is $15,411 for Tennessee Design students whose families make $30-$48k.

The student loan default rate at the school is 3.6%, which is quite low when compared to the national default rate of 10.1%. With a student-to-faculty ratio of 9 to 1, it’s easy to see that the school is committed to helping their undergraduates succeed.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Milligan University

#11

Lipscomb University

Nashville, Tennessee

Lipscomb University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #11. Located in Nashville, Tennessee, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 14 diplomas to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

Lipscomb not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #5 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” list. The estimated yearly cost for Lipscomb University is $20,503 for tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k.

The school has an excellent freshman retention rate of 86%, which means students like the school well enough to return for a second year. The low student loan default rate of 3.9% 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%.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Lipscomb

#12

Southern Adventist University

Collegedale, Tennessee

Southern Adventist University did quite well in the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k ranking, coming in at #12. Located in Collegedale, Tennessee, this small private not-for-profit school awarded 6 degrees to qualified ’s design students in 2019-2020.

Southern Adventist not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #12 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” list. The yearly cost to attend Southern Adventist University is $19,618 for tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Southern Adventist University

#13

Nossi College of Art

Madison, Tennessee
#13 in overall quality

With a ranking of #13, Nossi College of Art did quite well on the 2022 Best Value Design Schools in Tennessee For Those Making $30-$48k list. Nossi College of Art is a private for-profit institution located in Madison, Tennessee. The school has a small population, and it awarded 50 ’s degrees in 2019-2020.

Nossi College of Art not only placed well in this ranking. It is also #13 on our “Best Design & Applied Arts Schools in Tennessee” list. It costs about $21,548 for tennessee design students whose families make $30-$48k per year to attend Nossi College of Art.

The impressive student-to-faculty ratio of 8 to 1 means that students may have more opportunities to work more closely with their professors than they would at other schools. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.

Read full report on Design & Applied Arts at Nossi College of Art

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.

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