In Tennessee, there are a total of 355,417 students enrolled in higher education institutions. Of these, 247,698 attend public colleges and universities, while 107,719 are enrolled in private institutions. This comprehensive overview highlights the scale and diversity of college enrollment in Tennessee, helping prospective students and families understand their options among the largest educational institutions.
Explore Largest Tennessee Public Colleges with the Most Students, where 38,728 students are enrolled at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville, making it the largest institution in terms of enrollment.
Following closely, Middle Tennessee State University ranks second with 20,488 students, while University of Memphis holds the third spot at 20,276. These institutions set the benchmark for large-scale education.
The average undergraduate tuition & fees of the schools is $20,745 and graduate tuition & fees is $21,996 for the academic year 2024-2025.
At these High Enrollment Tennessee Public Colleges, the average acceptance rate is 75.65%, and the average SAT score is 1,098, making them not only cost-effective but also accessible options for a wide range of students.
Our analysis includes colleges with at least 1,000 total enrollments and excludes online universities to provide a balanced overview. For a comprehensive list of online universities, visit the largest Tennessee public online colleges.
| School Name | Total Population | Undergraduate | Graduate | Men | Women | Online Enrollment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 - | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville Knoxville, TNPublic, 4-year | 38,728 2,424 | 30,564 (78.92%) | 8,164 (21.08%) | 17,837 (46.06%) | 20,891 (53.94%) | 3,176 (8.20%) |
| 2 1 | Middle Tennessee State University Murfreesboro, TNPublic, 4-year | 20,488 305 | 18,042 (88.06%) | 2,446 (11.94%) | 9,412 (45.94%) | 11,076 (54.06%) | 3,076 (15.01%) |
| 3 1 | University of Memphis Memphis, TNPublic, 4-year | 20,276 1,460 | 15,770 (77.78%) | 4,506 (22.22%) | 8,223 (40.56%) | 12,053 (59.44%) | 5,051 (24.91%) |
| 4 - | East Tennessee State University Johnson City, TNPublic, 4-year | 13,728 142 | 10,829 (78.88%) | 2,899 (21.12%) | 5,310 (38.68%) | 8,418 (61.32%) | 2,762 (20.12%) |
| 5 - | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga Chattanooga, TNPublic, 4-year | 11,775 395 | 10,202 (86.64%) | 1,573 (13.36%) | 4,832 (41.04%) | 6,943 (58.96%) | 1,264 (10.73%) |
| 6 - | Tennessee Technological University Cookeville, TNPublic, 4-year | 10,511 394 | 9,187 (87.40%) | 1,324 (12.60%) | 5,549 (52.79%) | 4,962 (47.21%) | 1,033 (9.83%) |
| 7 - | Austin Peay State University Clarksville, TNPublic, 4-year | 10,439 494 | 8,926 (85.51%) | 1,513 (14.49%) | 4,151 (39.76%) | 6,288 (60.24%) | 2,718 (26.04%) |
| 8 1 | The University of Tennessee-Martin Martin, TNPublic, 4-year | 7,499 558 | 6,809 (90.80%) | 690 (9.20%) | 2,756 (36.75%) | 4,743 (63.25%) | 1,945 (25.94%) |
| 9 1 | Tennessee State University Nashville, TNPublic, 4-year | 6,310 1,888 | 5,057 (80.14%) | 1,253 (19.86%) | 2,183 (34.60%) | 4,127 (65.40%) | 490 (7.77%) |
| 10 - | The University of Tennessee Health Science Center Memphis, TNPublic, 4-year | 3,101 20 | 394 (12.71%) | 2,707 (87.29%) | 1,039 (33.51%) | 2,062 (66.49%) | 251 (8.09%) |
| Average | 14,286 | 11,578 (81.05%) | 2,708 (18.95%) | 6,129 (42.91%) | 8,156 (57.09%) | 2,177 (15.24%) |