Largest Tennessee Colleges

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 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 $26,943 and graduate tuition & fees is $25,606 for the academic year 2024-2025.

At these High Enrollment Tennessee Colleges, the average acceptance rate is 71.19%, and the average SAT score is 1,172, 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 online colleges.

Comparison between Largest Tennessee Colleges With The Most Students

Table. Largest Tennessee Colleges With The Most Students Comparison
School NameTotal PopulationUndergraduateGraduateMenWomenOnline 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
-
Vanderbilt University Nashville, TNPrivate, 4-year 13,575
119
7,221
(53.19%)
6,354
(46.81%)
5,934
(43.71%)
7,641
(56.29%)
652
(4.80%)
6
-
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%)
7
-
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%)
8
-
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%)
9
-
Belmont University Nashville, TNPrivate, 4-year 8,803
59
7,175
(81.51%)
1,628
(18.49%)
2,999
(34.07%)
5,804
(65.93%)
141
(1.60%)
10
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%)
Average15,58212,473
(80.04%)
3,110
(19.96%)
6,700
(43.00%)
8,882
(57.00%)
2,182
(14.00%)