| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Public community college in the Tennessee Board of Regents system; day, evening, online and hybrid credit classes |
| Locations | Two campuses and two centers, all in Memphis, Tennessee |
| Credentials | Associate of Applied Science degrees, technical certificates, and A.A./A.S. transfer pathways |
| Typical length | Two semesters (machining and pharmacy technology certificates); AAS degrees are 60 to 70 credits |
| Tuition 2026-27 | $197 per credit hour for Tennessee residents, $342 out of state |
| Accreditation | The Commission on Colleges and Universities (formerly SACSCOC), reaffirmed June 2025 with no sanctions |
| Federal aid | Yes (Title IV) |
| Admission | Open admission; nursing, allied health and professional pilot have extra entry requirements |
| Students | About 7,000 (6,980 in fall 2023) |
| Founded | 1 July 2000, by merging Shelby State Community College and State Technical Institute at Memphis |
| Facts checked | October 2026 |
Memphis’s public community college, formed from two older schools
Southwest Tennessee Community College, usually called Southwest, opened on 1 July 2000 when Shelby State Community College merged with State Technical Institute at Memphis. It is part of the Tennessee Board of Regents system and teaches at four sites in Memphis. The college’s program list filed with the Tennessee Higher Education Commission in September 2024 counts 66 active degree and certificate programs.
For career students the main draws are the health programs at the Union Avenue Campus, led by an ACEN-accredited nursing degree and a paramedic program whose graduates passed the National Registry exam at 100% in 2023 to 2025, and the technical programs at Macon Cove. The aviation degree gained FAA Part 141 provisional certification in June 2025. Two health programs lost their accreditation in 2023 and 2024; see below.
Career programs and where they are taught
Credit counts come from the college’s program pages and its September 2024 program list; results are as each program page reports them. Business and legal programs are run from the Macon Cove Campus, but the college does not say on its department pages which site teaches each course.
| Program | Credential | Length and schedule | Where | Prepares for / accreditation | Published results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nursing (RN) | AAS, 67 credits | Day (fall start), evening/weekend (spring start); LPN and paramedic mobility (summer) | Union Avenue | NCLEX-RN (ACEN) | 86% NCLEX-RN pass (2024) |
| Medical Laboratory Technician | AAS, 62 credits | – | Union Avenue | National MLT certification (NAACLS, per the college) | 90% certification pass (2024-25) |
| Laboratory Phlebotomy Technician | Technical certificate, 18 credits | – | Union Avenue | Phlebotomy certification | 100% certification pass (2023-24) |
| Pharmacy Technology | Technical certificate, 32 credits | 2 semesters, fall or spring start | Union Avenue | Pharmacy technician certification (ASHP, Advanced Level) | – |
| EMT / AEMT | Technical certificates, 16 credits each | – | Union Avenue; EMT also at Smith Center | National Registry EMT / AEMT | – |
| Paramedic | Technical certificate, 43 credits; EMS-Paramedic AAS, 60 | – | Union Avenue | National Registry paramedic (CAAHEP) | 100% NREMT cognitive pass (2023, 2024, 2025) |
| Radiologic Technology | AAS, 69 credits | – | Union Avenue | JRCERT withdrew accreditation in July 2023; no current accreditation claimed | 33% ARRT first-attempt pass (class of 2021, latest posted) |
| Physical Therapist Assistant | AAS, 70 credits | First class fall 2026, graduating May 2028 | Union Avenue | CAPTE candidate for accreditation (not yet accredited) | None yet |
| Funeral Service Education | AAS, 63 credits | – | Whitehaven | Funeral service (ABFSE) | – |
| Aviation Operations Technology | AAS, 60 credits | Professional Pilot, Flight Dispatch, Aviation Administration | Macon Cove (department), Smith Center | FAA pilot certificates (Part 141, provisional) | – |
| Machining / CNC Operator | Technical certificates, 16 to 19 credits | As little as 2 semesters each | Macon Cove | Machinist work to NIMS standards | – |
| Mechatronics Technology | AAS, 60 credits; certificate, 18 | – | Macon Cove | Automation and PLC technician work | – |
| Computer Information Technology | AAS, 60 credits; certificates, 18 to 24 | – | Macon Cove; Cyber Defense also at Smith Center | IT support, networking, programming, cyber defense | – |
| Hospitality Management / Culinary Arts / Baking | AAS, 60 credits; technical certificates | – | Macon Cove (Culinary Institute) | Culinary and hospitality work (not ACF-accredited) | 0% ACF certification (2022 to 2024) |
| Accounting, Logistics, Paralegal, Criminal Justice | AAS degrees and technical certificates | – | Macon Cove (department) | Office, legal and justice careers | – |
The college’s four engineering technology degrees (Electrical, Computer, Mechanical and Architectural) are ABET-accredited and train engineering technicians; the Electrical Engineering Technology AAS covers PLCs, microcontrollers, robotics and three-phase power, but it is not electrician training. Other career programs include Automotive Service Technology, Administrative Professional Technology, Early Childhood Education, Graphic Arts Technology and Biotechnology. The Business AAS has concentrations in management, entrepreneurship, finance, human resources and logistics, and the department page still links the finance, human resources and logistics ones to the 2025-26 catalog. Information Systems is offered only as a transfer pathway.
What the main programs cover
Nursing AAS (RN)
The 67-credit nursing degree has three ways in. The generic track admits in fall for a day schedule or in spring for an evening and weekend schedule, the only weekend schedule we could confirm. Licensed practical nurses and paramedics use mobility tracks that admit in summer and run by day. Admission uses prerequisite grades, GPA and the NLN entrance exam. Students should know that the program’s graduation rate has been low: 48% for 2024, after 39% for 2023, against an 86% NCLEX-RN pass rate for 2024.
EMT, AEMT and paramedic
Emergency medical services training is built as a ladder. The EMT and Advanced EMT certificates are 16 credits each; the paramedic certificate is 43 credits, and the 60-credit EMS-Paramedic AAS embeds it in a degree. The paramedic program is accredited by CAAHEP on the recommendation of CoAEMSP. The college reports that every paramedic candidate passed the National Registry cognitive and psychomotor exams in 2023, 2024 and 2025, but that only 72% to 81% of students stayed in the program.
Aviation Operations Technology
The aviation AAS launched in 2022 and splits into three concentrations: Professional Pilot, Flight Dispatch and Aviation Administration. Professional Pilot students fly as part of the degree and must be admitted full-time to the degree and arrive with a private pilot license and an FAA medical certificate. Under the program’s Part 141 provisional certification, granted in June 2025, the college says graduates can qualify for an airline transport pilot certificate at 1,250 hours instead of 1,500. Flight fees are not on the tuition page; ask the department for them.
Machining and CNC certificates
Machining is taught in the Fulton Building at Macon Cove as three short certificates that can each be finished in as little as two semesters. Machining Fundamentals covers manual machining with an introduction to CNC; Advanced Machining moves to advanced CNC and CAD/CAM; CNC Operator is a 16-credit route focused on running CNC machines. Instruction follows OSHA safety rules and the National Institute for Metalworking Skills (NIMS) standards. The CNC Operator and mechatronics certificates are also taught to high school students at Arlington High School.
Pharmacy Technology
The pharmacy technology certificate takes two semesters, 15 credits and then 17, and students can start in fall or spring but must finish within 12 months. The program holds ASHP accreditation at the Advanced Level, and a 200-hour clinical rotation is part of the course, so students should plan for placement hours on top of class time. Classes are in the Allied Health Building at the Union Avenue Campus, and the college links a pass-rate report for its 2023-24 students from the program page.
Cost and paying for it
Credit tuition for Fall 2026 to Spring 2027, from the college’s tuition page:
| Per credit hour | Full-time semester (12 credits), with fees | |
|---|---|---|
| Tennessee resident | $197 | $2,542 |
| Out of state | $342 | $4,294 |
Tennessee has no separate in-district rate. Above 12 credits, residents pay $44 and out-of-state students $68 for each extra credit hour. Nursing and allied-health courses add a program fee of $25 per credit hour, and online courses taken through TN eCampus have their own rates. Professional Pilot students also pay flight fees, which the tuition page does not list; the Southwest Foundation may help with them.
Southwest takes part in federal student aid, and Niche (using federal data, checked October 2026) reports that 91% of students receive aid and that the average net price is $5,396 a year. Tennessee Promise and Tennessee Reconnect are standard at Tennessee Board of Regents community colleges; check the college’s financial aid office for how they apply at Southwest and for deadlines.
Admission and schedules
Southwest has open admission, so applicants who meet the general requirements are admitted. Several programs choose students separately: nursing uses the NLN exam, GPA and prerequisite grades; radiologic technology uses the TEAS; and Professional Pilot requires a private pilot license and an FAA medical. Allied-health application deadlines are in the catalog. Credit classes run by day, in the evening, online and in hybrid formats; nursing has an evening and weekend track, and pharmacy technology starts in fall or spring. High school students can take courses through dual enrollment, including at the Smith Center.
Accreditation and results
Southwest is accredited to award associate degrees by The Commission on Colleges and Universities, the agency known until September 2026 as the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). The college’s accreditation was reaffirmed in June 2025 with no sanctions and no further reporting requirements. Programs with their own accreditation include nursing (ACEN), medical laboratory technician (NAACLS, as the college states), paramedic (CAAHEP), pharmacy technology (ASHP), the engineering technology degrees (ABET) and funeral service (ABFSE). The aviation program has held FAA Part 141 provisional certification for its flight training since June 2025.
Two programs have lost accreditation. JRCERT involuntarily withdrew accreditation from the Radiologic Technology AAS on 27 July 2023, after a period of probation; the program page now describes it only as an affiliate of the ARRT. CAPTE withdrew accreditation from the old Physical Therapist Assistant program in 2024, final on 30 May 2024. A new PTA program was granted CAPTE Candidate for Accreditation status on 29 April 2026 and takes its first class in fall 2026; candidacy does not guarantee accreditation.
Published results, as each program page gives them:
| Program | Measure | Result | Cohort | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nursing AAS (RN) | NCLEX-RN pass | 86% (78% in 2023, 67% in 2022) | 2024 | Nursing program page |
| Nursing AAS (RN) | Graduation | 48% | 2024 | Nursing program page |
| Medical Laboratory Technician | National certification within 1 year | 90% (81% in 2023-24) | 2024-25 | MLT outcomes page |
| Laboratory Phlebotomy | Certification | 100% | 2023-24 | MLT outcomes page |
| Paramedic | NREMT cognitive exam | 100% each year | 2023, 2024, 2025 | EMS program page |
| Radiologic Technology | ARRT first-attempt pass | 33% (5-year average 56.8%) | Class of 2021 | Program outcomes page |
| Culinary Arts | ACF certification | 0% | 2022 to 2024 | Culinary program page |
Pharmacy technology links a 2023-24 pass-rate report from its program page; we found no published rates for funeral service, automotive or aviation. College-wide, Niche (using federal data, checked October 2026) shows a 23% graduation rate and median earnings of $42,293 five years after graduation.
Before you enroll
- Radiologic technology lost its accreditation. JRCERT withdrew the program’s accreditation in July 2023, and the latest pass rate the program posts is 33% on the ARRT exam for the class of 2021. Ask in writing whether current graduates can sit for the ARRT radiography exam before you apply.
- The physical therapist assistant program is starting over. The old program lost CAPTE accreditation in 2024. The new one is a candidate for accreditation, with a first class in fall 2026 and first graduates in May 2028, and candidacy does not guarantee it will be accredited.
- Electrical Engineering Technology does not train electricians. It is an ABET-accredited engineering technician degree (PLCs, instrumentation, industrial controls), not wiring or licensing preparation.
- The culinary program is not ACF-accredited, and the college reports that none of its students earned ACF certification in 2022, 2023 or 2024.
- Many students do not finish. Niche’s federal data show a 23% graduation rate college-wide, and the nursing program’s graduation rate was 48% for 2024.
Four places to study in Memphis
- Macon Cove Campus, 5983 Macon Cove, Memphis 38134: the main campus, with the technical, engineering technology, machining, mechatronics, computer, culinary and business programs.
- Union Avenue Campus, 737 Union Avenue, Memphis 38103: nursing and all allied-health and EMS programs.
- Maxine A. Smith Center, 8800 East Shelby Drive, Memphis 38125: aviation, cyber defense, EMT, entrepreneurial studies and the Tennessee Small Business Development Center.
- Whitehaven Center, 1234 Finley Road, Memphis 38116: funeral service education and general courses.
The Gill Center in Frayser was sold to Libertas School of Memphis in June 2024 because of low enrollment and poor transit access; classes continued in shared space through Spring 2025. An older college web page for a Millington center is still online, but Millington is not on the college’s current list of locations.
Child care, apprenticeships and small-business help
The Macon Cove, Union Avenue and Smith Center sites each have a child care center. Computer students can join an IT Apprenticeship that the college runs with the Greater Memphis IT Council and the University of Memphis. The Tennessee Small Business Development Center is based at the Smith Center. Pharmacy technology includes a 200-hour clinical rotation, and the paramedic program reports 100% positive placement for 2023 to 2025.
What students say
On Niche, Southwest has a 3.69 out of 5 average from 890 reviews (checked 9 October 2026) and an overall Niche grade of B-minus, and Niche ranks it 13th among community colleges in Tennessee. Reviewers most often praise supportive faculty and advisors, the low cost and small classes. The most common complaints are uneven teaching and grading, coursework some found less demanding than expected, and poor communication from administrative and financial aid offices; some mention the lack of activities outside class.
We could not see review dates, so we could not check whether reviews arrived in bursts, and we did not use Google reviews, which we cannot read or count directly. Because slow answers from offices are a common complaint, students who rely on financial aid may want to start the paperwork early.
Sources
Checked October 2026: Locations · Tuition, Fall 2026 · Accreditation reaffirmed, June 2025 · Nursing AAS · JRCERT decision, July 2023 · Physical Therapist Assistant program · FAA Part 141 certification, June 2025 · Niche
Programs & Courses
Nursing
- Nursing AAS (RN): generic track, day (fall start) or evening/weekend (spring start)
- Nursing AAS, LPN Mobility track (summer start)
- Nursing AAS, Paramedic Mobility track (summer start)
Allied health
- Medical Laboratory Technician AAS
- Laboratory Phlebotomy Technician technical certificate
- Pharmacy Technology technical certificate
- Radiologic Technology AAS (JRCERT accreditation withdrawn July 2023)
- Physical Therapist Assistant AAS (new program; CAPTE candidate for accreditation since April 2026; first class fall 2026)
- Allied Health Sciences AAS (general health degree; embeds the EMT and AEMT certificates)
Emergency medical services
- Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) technical certificate
- Advanced EMT (AEMT) technical certificate
- Paramedic technical certificate
- EMS-Paramedic AAS
Funeral service
- Funeral Service Education AAS (Whitehaven Center)
Aviation
- Aviation Operations Technology AAS: Professional Pilot, Flight Dispatch, Aviation Administration
Machining, mechatronics and engineering technology
- Machining Fundamentals technical certificate
- Advanced Machining technical certificate
- CNC Operator technical certificate
- Mechatronics Technology AAS and technical certificate
- Engineering Technology AAS: Electrical, Computer, Mechanical, Architectural (ABET-accredited)
- Electrical/Electronic Fundamentals technical certificate
- CAD, Quality Assurance and Process Control technical certificates
- Automotive Service Technology AAS
Computer information technology
- Computer Information Technology AAS: Cyber Defense, Networking, Programming, Systems Administration and Management
- CIT certificates: Cyber Defense, Network Specialist, Programming, Systems Administration, Technical Specialist
- PC and Network Technician technical certificate
- Computer Software Specialist certificate
Business
- Accounting AAS
- Accounting, Tax Preparer and Forensic Accounting technical certificates
- Business AAS: Management, Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management, Quality and Productivity, Business Office (Finance, Human Resources and Logistics concentrations linked to the 2025-26 catalog)
- Logistics/Transportation Management technical certificate
- Entrepreneurship and Small Business Management, Retail Management, Quality Assurance Supervision and Real Estate technical certificates
- Administrative Professional Technology AAS, including Medical Office Technology
Hospitality and culinary
- Hospitality Management AAS: Culinary Arts, Hotel Management, Food and Beverage Management
- Culinary Arts technical certificate
- Baking/Pastry technical certificate
Legal and public safety
- Paralegal Studies AAS and technical certificate
- Criminal Justice AAS
- Correctional Officer technical certificate
- Public Safety technical certificate
Education, arts and science
- Early Childhood Education AAS and certificate
- Graphic Arts Technology AAS
- Digital Photography, Film and Video Production and Commercial Music certificates
- Biotechnology AAS: Biotechnology Technician, Forensic Science Technician
Campus Locations
Memphis, TN 5983 Macon Cove, Memphis, TN 38134
Memphis, TN 737 Union Avenue, Memphis, TN 38103
Memphis, TN 8800 East Shelby Drive, Memphis, TN 38125
Memphis, TN 1234 Finley Road, Memphis, TN 38116