Healthcare is constantly evolving and nursing schools in Tennessee are responding to meet the need of nursing students. They are offering new ways for nurses to expand their education and professional reach. Up until recently, hospitals were designed as the focus of bedside care to patients that experience health disruption. The guidelines in the Affordable Care Act require registered nurses to be health leaders and provide health prevention to the masses. Registered nurses are encouraged to pursue higher education to meet the challenges of the complex and evolving healthcare system. The new responsibilities of nurses are challenging but can present wonderful opportunities and rewards.
In our Tennessee RN program guide, find rankings for both ADN and BSN Degree programs, tuition costs, NCLEX passing rates, and more. Research key Tennessee RN Program information to help you compare program metrics and to apply to best RN program for your career in nursing.
In the State of Tennessee, nurses are helping to change the face of healthcare. To ensure that they have the best education and preparation for future health care challenges, registered nurses need to graduate from a state-approved associate's degree in nursing program or a BSN degree program.
Nurses who graduate from an RN program can obtain certification in over 100 nursing specialties, go on to earn an RN to BSN or RN to MSN degree.
BSN degree holders have options to earn an Advance Practice Register Nursing (APRN) degree and become a Nurse Practitioner (NP), or earn an advanced degree for a career in any number of nursing leadership roles such Nurse Educator or Clinical Nurse Specialist.
Tennessee RN Program Comparisons: ADN vs BSN
Compare RN Programs | ADN | BSN |
---|---|---|
Number of Nursing Programs | 16 | 29 |
Average NCLEX Passing Rate | 89.63% | 88.77% |
NCLEX Passing Rate Range | 75.63% to 96.50% | 69.86% to 100.00% |
Average Net Price | $9,722.56 | $15,625.39 |
Average Net Price Range | $4,575.00 to $26,647.00 | $7,531.00 to $30,357.00 |
Average Student Loan | $9,290.93 | $17,663.68 |
Average Student Loan Range | $2,500.00 to $21,565.00 | $11,128.00 to $27,000.00 |
See Additional Detail | ADN Rankings for Tennessee State | BSN Rankings for Tennessee State |
Best Ranked RN Programs in Tennessee
To help nursing students in their search for a top RN program, the education experts at RNCareers.org publish their annual findings of the best nursing schools for both Tennessee and the country. Schools ranked on our list have proven their ability to educate highly competent nurses.
To create our rankings, we evaluated 15 ADN degree programs and 25 BSN degree programs in Tennessee. We obtained each institution’s first-time NCLEX-RN passing rates, the number of students taking the test, the program nursing accreditation and more. We then compared the results against other nursing programs in Tennessee to provide our state rankings. View our methodology.
Grade | Degree | University | TN Rank | US Rank | City | Type: | Offered As: | Accreditor(s): | More: | ||
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99.30 | ADN | Jackson State Community College | 1 | 5 | Jackson | Jackson State Community College is located in Jackson, Tennessee. The average RN program requires 60 credits and their RN program requires 65 for degree completion. They offer an RN program and an LPN Mobility option, allowing the LPN advanced placement into the program. | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | |
98.22 | ADN | Chattanooga State Community College | 2 | 31 | Chattanooga | Chattanooga State Community College is located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Baroness Erlanger Nursing Program offers an AAS in nursing; this program is subdivided into day and night programs. They also offer an AAS Transition track, which is available to LPNs and paramedics. Paramedics are accepted into the night program, and are accepted on even-numbered years. | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | |
98.22 | ADN | Nashville State Community College | 2 | 31 | Nashville | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | ||
96.78 | ADN | Pellissippi State Community College | 3 | 78 | Knoxville | Pellissippi State Community College is located in Knoxville, Tennessee. They offer an RN degree with a traditional pathway and a bridge pathway; the bridge pathway allows LPNs and EMT-P students to enter the program during the summer semester. This program is offered at three of Pellissippi’s campuses: Blount County, Magnolia Avenue, and Strawberry Plains campuses. | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | |
96.63 | ADN | Columbia State Community College | 4 | 83 | Columbia | Columbia State Community College is located in Columbia College. They offer both an RN program and an LPN to RN Bridge Program. They also offer a 3+1 partnership with Middle Tennessee State University, which allows RN to complete general education requirements at Columbia State, with the final year being completed at MTSU. | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | |
93.96 | ADN | Lincoln Memorial University | 5 | 197 | Harrogate | Lincoln Memorial University is located in Harrogate, Tennessee. They offer a variety of undergraduate options for their nursing students – an ASN program, a BSN program, and an RN to BSN program. The RN to BSN program is offered completely online. | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Online | ACEN | See School Details | |
93.48 | ADN | Dyersburg State Community College | 6 | 221 | Dyersburg | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | ||
93.26 | ADN | Motlow State Community College | 7 | 230 | Tullahoma | Motlow State Community College is located in Tullahoma, Tennessee. They offer an AAS – Two-Year Path to RN ad AAS – One-Year Path, LPN to RN. They also have articulation programs in place so that students may elect to transfer to a four-year university after graduation. | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | |
91.67 | ADN | Walters State Community College | 8 | 296 | Morristown | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | ||
91.56 | ADN | Cleveland State Community College | 9 | 299 | Cleveland | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | ||
91.44 | ADN | Roane State Community College | 10 | 306 | Harriman | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | ||
90.81 | ADN | Southern Adventist University | 11 | 332 | Collegedale | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Online | ACEN | See School Details | ||
89.96 | ADN | Northeast State Community College | 12 | 364 | Blountville | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | ||
86.81 | ADN | Southwest Tennessee Community College | 13 | 482 | Memphis | Southwest Tennessee Community College is located in Memphis, Tennessee. STCC offers an AAS in Nursing: Generic Track and LPN Mobility Track. STCC has nationally ranked for their degree programs for minorities and African Americans, such as “number one in the top 100 Associate Degree producers for total minorities in business operations support and assistant services – Diverse: Issues in Higher Education, 2014” and “number two in the top 100 Associate Degree producers for African-Americans in business operations support and assistant services – Diverse: Issues in High Education, 2014.” | Public | Campus | ACEN | See School Details | |
78.15 | ADN | Tennessee State University | 14 | 649 | Nashville | Public | Campus, Online | ACEN | See School Details | ||
98.89 | BSN | The University of Tennessee-Martin | 1 | 15 | Martin | The University of Tennessee – Martin is located in Martin, Tennessee. UTM offers a traditional BSN program and an online BSN program. UTM also recognizes nursing student excellent with Sigma Theta Tau (Pi Tau Chapter), which is an international honor society for nursing. | Public | Campus, Online | ACME, COA | See School Details | |
98.78 | BSN | The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga | 2 | 17 | Chattanooga | Public | Online | See School Details | |||
98.52 | BSN | Carson-Newman University | 3 | 22 | Jefferson City | Carson-Newman University is located in Jefferson City, Tennessee. They offer two avenues towards a nursing degree – the traditional BSN degree, which is 8 semesters over 4 years, or the accelerated BSN degree, which is 8 continuous semesters. | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Hybrid, Online | ACEN, ACME, CCNE, COA | See School Details | |
98.33 | BSN | Lincoln Memorial University | 4 | 29 | Harrogate | Lincoln Memorial University is located in Harrogate, Tennessee. They offer a variety of undergraduate options for their nursing students – an ASN program, a BSN program, and an RN to BSN program. The RN to BSN program is offered completely online. | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Online | ACEN | See School Details | |
97.52 | BSN | Austin Peay State University | 5 | 54 | Clarksville | Austin Peay State University is located in Clarksville, Tennessee. They offer a traditional BSN program and an online RN to BSN program. The traditional program is for pre-licensure students and students with a prior bachelor’s degree. The online program can be completed on a full-time or part-time basis. | Public | Campus, Online | ACEN, ACME, CCNE, COA | See School Details | |
96.78 | BSN | Lipscomb University | 6 | 77 | Nashville | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus | ACME, COA | See School Details | ||
96.70 | BSN | Tennessee Technological University | 7 | 80 | Cookeville | Tennessee Technological University is located in Cookeville, Tennessee. The Whitson-Hester School of Nursing offer a BSN program, an accelerated BSN (ABSN) and an RN to BSN program. Their RN to BSN program is an online program and is one of the most affordable options available, at $365 per credit hour for in-state tuition and $661 per credit hour for non-resident students. | Public | Campus, Online | ACEN, ACME, CCNE, COA | See School Details | |
96.52 | BSN | The University of Tennessee-Knoxville | 8 | 85 | Knoxville | Public | Campus, Hybrid | ACEN, ACME, CCNE, COA | See School Details | ||
96.44 | BSN | Bethel University | 9 | 88 | McKenzie | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Online | CCNE | See School Details | ||
95.15 | BSN | Tennessee Wesleyan College | 10 | 137 | Athens | Tennessee Wesleyan College is located in Athens, Tennessee. They boast that their student to faculty ratio is 12:1. 92% of their classes have 30 or fewer students. The Fort Sanders Nursing Department has a partnership with Covenant Health and Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center, providing extensive resources for clinical experience. They offer a BSN degree. | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Online | ACME, COA | See School Details | |
94.37 | BSN | Union University | 11 | 174 | Jackson | Union University is located in Jackson, Tennessee, with 2 other campuses in Germantown and Hendersonville. They are proud to boas that their student to faculty ratio is 10:1 and 85% of their faculty have the highest degree possible in their field. Their nursing program offers state-of-the-art equipment to practice skills and the opportunity to take ministry trips internationally. They offer a traditional BSN program, an LPN to BSN program, which takes two years to complete, an RN to BSN program, which is completed online in 8 months, and a First Step to BSN program, which is designed for adult learners with little college experience, readying them for the accelerated BSN program. The ABSN program is designed for students of the First Step program and students with prior bachelor’s degree. | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Hybrid | ACEN, ACME, CCNE, COA | See School Details | |
93.74 | BSN | Middle Tennessee State University | 12 | 203 | Murfreesboro | Middle Tennessee State University is located in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. They offer a traditional BSN program and an RN to BSN program. MTSU has multiple simulation labs where students may practice their nursing skills; the labs have low-, medium- and high-fidelity simulators that mimic real-life situations. | Public | Campus, Online | ACEN, ACME, CCNE, COA | See School Details | |
92.89 | BSN | Milligan College | 13 | 241 | Milligan College | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus | CCNE | See School Details | ||
92.52 | BSN | Freed-Hardeman University | 14 | 250 | Henderson | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus | CCNE | See School Details | ||
91.74 | BSN | Belmont University | 15 | 276 | Nashville | Belmont University is located in Nashville, Tennessee. Belmont was named as the “Most Innovative” university by US News & World Report. It is a Christian university that “…brings together the best of liberal arts and professional education in a Christian community of learning and service.” They offer a BSN program, an accelerated BSN program, and an RN to BSN program. | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Hybrid | ACEN, ACME, CCNE, COA | See School Details | |
91.56 | BSN | King University | 16 | 283 | Bristol | Private Not-For-Profit | Online | See School Details | |||
88.89 | BSN | University of Memphis | 17 | 353 | Memphis | University of Memphis is located in Memphis, Tennessee. The Loewenberg College of Nursing. They offer a traditional BSN program, an accelerated option for students with a prior bachelor’s degree, and an online RN to BSN program. They also offer a freshman pre-admission to the BSN program option – students must apply in their senior year of high school. This allows entrance into the program during the second semester of sophomore year, or earlier if the student has AP or dual enrollment credits. | Public | Campus, Hybrid, Online | ACEN, ACME, CCNE, COA | See School Details | |
87.78 | BSN | Trevecca Nazarene University | 18 | 385 | Nashville | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus | ACME, COA | See School Details | ||
87.56 | BSN | Cumberland University | 19 | 396 | Lebanon | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Online | CCNE | See School Details | ||
87.04 | BSN | East Tennessee State University | 20 | 407 | Johnson City | Public | Campus, Hybrid, Online | ACEN, ACME, CCNE, COA | See School Details | ||
85.63 | BSN | Baptist Memorial College of Health Sciences | 21 | 432 | Memphis | Baptist Memorial College of Health Sciences is located in Memphis, Tennessee. The college seeks to educate healthcare professionals, from nurses to respiratory therapists. They offer a traditional BSN program, which utilizes plenty of hands on experience in simulation labs to practice nursing skills, or an RN to BSN program, where the learner can choose an online program or a blended program – a mixture between online and hands-on learning. | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Online | CCNE | See School Details | |
82.89 | BSN | South College | 22 | 464 | Knoxville | South College is located in Knoxville, although they do have several other campuses. They offer an ADN degree at an outlying campus. At their Knoxville campus, they offer a BSN program. Online, they offer the RN to BSN program. Students that are out-of-state are eligible for the RN to BSN program, although clinical experiences must meet certain requirements so not all facilities may be eligible. | Private For-Profit | Campus | ACME, COA | See School Details | |
79.00 | BSN | Martin Methodist College | 23 | 497 | Pulaski | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus, Online | CCNE | See School Details | ||
77.07 | BSN | Tusculum College | 24 | 504 | Greeneville | Private Not-For-Profit | Campus | CCNE | See School Details | ||
70.93 | BSN | Tennessee State University | 25 | 522 | Nashville | Public | Campus, Online | ACEN | See School Details |
Become an Advance Practice Registered Nurse (APRN) in Tennessee
RNs who wish to become advanced practice registered nurses will want to pursue any number of avenues to earn Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) degree. Earning a Master of Science in Nursing consists of graduate-level coursework and clinical practice for those nurses who wish to direct patient roles such as a nurse practitioner. You can also pursue indirect patient roles such as teaching or leadership roles, or become involved in policy, state-wide health initiatives or community engagement. There are many clinical and non-clinical avenues that an RN with MSN can pursue.Become a Nurse Practitioner (NP) in Tennessee
Learn how to become a Nurse Practitioner (NP) and research schools in Tennessee offering the following high paying nurse practitioner specialties:- Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
- Family Nurse Practitioner
- Pediatric Primary Care Nurse Practitioner
- Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner
Tennessee RN Licensing Requirements
Tennessee State Board of Nursing 710 James Robertson Parkway Nashville, TN 37243 (615) 741-3111 Fees: Initial licensing fee, RN: $100 License renewal (every two years): RN: $100 Continuing Education Requirements: No continuing education hours are required, though license renewal requires proof of continued competence.RN Licensure by Exams
Candidates who completed an approved nursing program will be automatically presented to the Board for exam eligibility. Fingerprinting will be required in the process and candidates must use the company Identogo. Then, the candidate will register for the NCLEX through Pearson VUE and pay the $200 fee. When the candidate has received authorization to test (ATT), he/she will be able to schedule the exam.RN License by Endorsement
Applicants who completed a program in one of the other 50 states will be able to apply for endorsement. The candidate must list all positions held in the previous five years and submit a transcript, copy of diploma, and verification of official licensure. There is a $115 fee for license by endorsement and the candidate must include a passport-type photo. The application is to be notarized before submission.RN License for Nurses Educated Abroad
Candidates who have been trained outside of the United States are encouraged to email the Board for instructions.RN Salaries in Tennessee
Nurses who are looking to advance their careers can gain positive results from higher education. Baccalaureate-prepared nurses may take advantage of worthwhile areas such as:- Nurses in the armed forces with a bachelor’s may receive officer status and receive special benefits and advanced education opportunities
- Opportunities in physician specialty areas and private practice like cosmetic surgery
Tennessee Registered Nursing Salaries
Chattanooga has the highest amount of registered nurses employed across the state. In addition, Chattanooga also has the highest hourly mean wage and annual median wage.Area name | Employment | Hourly mean wage | Annual median wage |
---|---|---|---|
Chattanooga, TN-GA | 5,850 | $27.72 | $57,670 |
Clarksville, TN-KY | 1,490 | $27.70 | $57,600 |
Cleveland, TN | 570 | $24.95 | $52,420 |
Jackson, TN | 2,000 | $24.86 | $49,570 |
Johnson City, TN | 2,700 | $26.63 | $54,980 |
Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol, TN-VA | 2,600 | $24.80 | $49,900 |
Knoxville, TN | 6,970 | $25.93 | $54,310 |
Memphis, TN-MS-AR | 12,200 | $28.80 | $58,900 |
Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN | 15,850 | $28.51 | $58,870 |
Western Tennessee nonmetropolitan area | 1,680 | $25.63 | $52,190 |
South Central Tennessee nonmetropolitan area | 2,140 | $25.79 | $52,670 |
North Central Tennessee nonmetropolitan area | 2,120 | $27.20 | $56,300 |
Eastern Tennessee nonmetropolitan area | 1,910 | $25.04 | $51,240 |