Federal data
Highest earning registered nursing programs in Tennessee
Tennessee registered nursing programs, ranked by median earnings one year after completion, from the College Scorecard field-of-study file (September 18, 2026). Only programs with at least 30 counted graduates in the earnings sample are shown, and at least 5 programs must qualify for this list to exist.
| Rank | School | City | Sector | Median earnings, 1 year after | Graduates counted |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Strayer University | Memphis | For-profit, 4-year | $81,061 | 39 |
| 2 | Galen Health Institutes | Nashville | For-profit, 4-year | $76,234 | 607 |
| 3 | Herzing University | Nashville | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $75,774 | 543 |
| 4 | Baptist Health Sciences University | Memphis | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $74,962 | 243 |
| 5 | University of Memphis | Memphis | Public, 4-year | $73,680 | 439 |
| 6 | The University of Tennessee-Martin | Martin | Public, 4-year | $71,727 | 84 |
| 7 | Bethel University | McKenzie | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $71,315 | 35 |
| 8 | The University of Tennessee Health Science Center | Memphis | Public, 4-year | $70,619 | 139 |
| 9 | Milligan University | Milligan | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $70,523 | 30 |
| 10 | Union University | Jackson | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $68,399 | 284 |
| 11 | Austin Peay State University | Clarksville | Public, 4-year | $68,235 | 178 |
| 12 | King University | Bristol | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $68,012 | 105 |
| 13 | Lee University | Cleveland | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $67,930 | 64 |
| 14 | Cumberland University | Lebanon | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $67,094 | 138 |
| 15 | Belmont University | Nashville | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $67,072 | 137 |
| 16 | Southern Adventist University | Collegedale | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $66,005 | 103 |
| 17 | Middle Tennessee State University | Murfreesboro | Public, 4-year | $65,839 | 124 |
| 18 | The University of Tennessee | Knoxville | Public, 4-year | $65,298 | 265 |
| 19 | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | Chattanooga | Public, 4-year | $65,273 | 128 |
| 20 | South College | Knoxville | For-profit, 4-year | $65,109 | 221 |
| 21 | Lipscomb University | Nashville | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $64,954 | 57 |
| 22 | Freed-Hardeman University | Henderson | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $64,784 | 72 |
| 23 | East Tennessee State University | Johnson City | Public, 4-year | $64,459 | 557 |
| 24 | Tennessee Technological University | Cookeville | Public, 4-year | $61,379 | 170 |
| 25 | Lincoln Memorial University | Harrogate | Private nonprofit, 4-year | $59,588 | 225 |
Earnings cover federally aided graduates only, as published by College Scorecard.
How to read this. A smaller program can show a high or low figure from just a few graduates, and this earnings figure only ever covers students who received federal aid, so it does not describe every graduate.
Keep going