2025 Best Visual & Performing Arts Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee

an associate degree in visual & performing arts is more popular than many other degrees. In fact, it ranks #9 out of 38 on popularity of all such degrees in the nation. So, you have a fair amount of options to choose from when looking for a school.

In 2025, College Factual analyzed 2 schools in order to identify the top ones for its Best Visual & Performing Arts Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee ranking. Combined, these schools handed out 218 associate degrees in visual & performing arts to qualified students.

Jump to one of the following sections: * Our Methodology

• Best Associate Degree Schools List

Average Early-Career Salaries

To determine the overall quality of a graduate school, one factor we look at is the average early-career salary of those receiving their associate degree from the school. After all, your associate degree won't mean much if it doesn't help you find a job that will help you earn a living.

Other Factors We Consider

In addition to the above, you should consider some of the following factors:

• Major Focus - How much a school focuses on visual & performing arts students vs. other majors.
• Major Demand - The number of visual & performing arts students who choose to seek a associate degree at the school.
• Educational Resources - The amount of money and other resources allocated to students while they are pursuing their degree. These resources include such things as number of students per instructor and education expenditures per student.
• Student Debt - How easy is it for visual & performing arts to pay back their student loans after receiving their associate degree.
• Accreditation - Whether a school is regionally accredited and/or accredited by a recognized visual & performing arts related body.

Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for visual & performing arts students working on their associate degree.

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 Visual & Performing Arts Associate Degree Schools in Tennessee ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.

Best Schools for Associate Students to Study Visual & Performing Arts in Tennessee

The following list ranks the best colleges and universities for pursuing an associate degree in visual & performing arts.

Top Tennessee Schools for an Associate in Visual & Performing Arts

1

Chattanooga State Community College
Chattanooga, TN

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

40 Annual Graduates

Every student who is interested in an associate degree in visual & performing arts has to check out Chattanooga State Community College. Chattanooga State Community College is a moderately-sized public college located in the medium-sized city of Chattanooga.More information about a associate in visual & performing arts from Chattanooga State Community College

2

SAE Institute - Nashville
Nashville, TN

Associate Degree Highest Degree Type

40 Annual Graduates

Every student who is interested in an associate degree in visual & performing arts needs to check out SAE Institute - Nashville. SAE Institute - Nashville is a small private for-profit school located in the large city of Nashville.More information about a associate in visual & performing arts from SAE Institute - Nashville

Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges in the Southeast Region

Explore all the Best Visual & Performing Arts Colleges in the Southeast Area or other specific states within that region.

State	Colleges	Degrees Awarded
Mississippi	37	176
Georgia	34	292
Virginia	34	379
Arkansas	33	27
Florida	32	1,000
North Carolina	30	419
Kentucky	30	46
West Virginia	29	8
Louisiana	26	56
South Carolina	26	87
Alabama	24	37

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Visual & Performing Arts Majors to Study

Major	Annual Graduates
General Visual & Performing Arts	78
Design & Applied Arts	77
Arts & Media Management	26
Music	23
Film, Video & Photographic Arts	14

Notes and References

• The bars on the spread charts above show the distribution of the schools on this list +/- one standard deviation from the mean.
• 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 the rest 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).
• Credit for the banner image above goes to Bonnielou2013. More about our data sources and methodologies.