| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Type | Public land-grant research university; campus and online (Vols Online) |
| Location | Knoxville, Tennessee; flagship of the University of Tennessee System |
| Students | 41,287 in fall 2026, including 33,001 undergraduates |
| Career credentials on this page | BSN (three routes), online RN to BSN, online Applied Cybersecurity BS, non-degree UT Culinary Certificate |
| Typical length | Bachelor’s degrees four years; Accelerated BSN 12 months; RN to BSN 12 to 36 months; culinary certificate 8 weeks |
| Accreditation | The Commission on Colleges and Universities (formerly SACSCOC), reaffirmed 2025; nursing CCNE through 31 Dec 2035 |
| Federal aid | Yes for degree programs; the culinary certificate is not eligible |
| 2026-27 tuition and fees | $14,024 in-state; $34,478 out-of-state (full-time undergraduate) |
| Facts checked | October 2026 |
Tennessee’s flagship university, and the parts of it that train for a trade
The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UT Knoxville) is the flagship of the University of Tennessee System and the state’s public land-grant research university. It enrolled a record 41,287 students in fall 2026 and lists more than 900 programs of study, almost all of them bachelor’s and graduate degrees. This page covers the few that train for a specific job: the nursing degrees, an online cybersecurity bachelor’s and a short culinary certificate. A September 2026 UT news headline said it had climbed in the U.S. News Best Value rankings and was the “No. 1 Public in Tennessee”. In-state tuition was held flat for 2026-27, the second year in a row.
Nursing, cybersecurity and culinary programs
| Program | Credential | Length | Delivery | Prepares for | Published cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nursing, four-year | BSN | 4 years | Knoxville campus | NCLEX-RN | Undergraduate tuition and fees (below) |
| BSN Scholars | BSN | 4 years; early clinical entry | Knoxville campus and UT Medical Center | NCLEX-RN | Tuition help from UT Medical Center for a work commitment |
| Accelerated BSN | BSN (second degree) | 12 months, full time | On campus | NCLEX-RN | Undergraduate tuition and fees |
| RN to BSN | BSN (post-licensure) | 34 credits; 12 to 36 months | Online, asynchronous | Already licensed RNs | $740 / $815 per credit (in-state / out-of-state) |
| Applied Cybersecurity | BS | 120 credits | Online, asynchronous | Not stated by UT | $490 / $565 per credit (in-state / out-of-state) |
| UT Culinary Certificate | Non-degree certificate | 8 weeks, 200 hours | UT Conference Center, downtown Knoxville | ACF Education Foundation approved | $6,249 with books and materials |
Per-credit online rates are as Vols Online listed them in October 2026. This page tags only the credentials above, but several other UT Knoxville bachelor’s degrees also lead toward a particular career. The Medical Laboratory Science BS spends three years on campus and a 50-week clinical year at UT Medical Center, with up to 12 students a year, after which graduates are eligible for the ASCP certification exam. Construction Science and Management is a bachelor’s with internships or co-ops. The university also offers a Graphic Design BFA, a Hospitality and Tourism Management BS and a Deaf Studies degree with an educational interpreting concentration.
What the main programs cover
Four-year BSN and BSN Scholars
Students enter either as freshmen (Early Action deadline 1 November, regular 15 December, fall start) or after completing 44 general-education credits, applying through NursingCAS by 1 October to start in late January. Upper-division applicants need a 3.2 GPA and a C+ or better in anatomy and physiology, microbiology and human development. BSN Scholars follow the same coursework but begin clinical work early in a pathway built with UT Medical Center, which helps with tuition in return for a commitment to work there after graduation. It is open only to US citizens and permanent residents.
Accelerated BSN
The accelerated route is for people who already hold a bachelor’s degree in another field. It runs 12 months full time and is taught on campus, not online, starting in late May each year. Applicants need a 3.0 GPA; the priority deadline is 1 November and the final deadline 1 December. Because the pace is full time for a whole year, applicants should plan their finances for 12 months of study. It leads to the same CCNE-accredited BSN as the four-year route, and graduates take the NCLEX-RN.
RN to BSN (online)
This degree-completion program needs an associate degree in nursing, an RN licence (new graduates can be admitted conditionally), a 2.0 GPA and 60 transferable credits. The 34 nursing credits are taught online and asynchronously, with no required campus visits, and students take 12 to 36 months depending on their pace. Clinical requirements are completed where the student lives, with virtual options. There are fall starts (final deadline 1 July) and spring starts (final deadline 1 December).
Applied Cybersecurity (online)
The Applied Cybersecurity BS is a full 120-credit bachelor’s, taught online and asynchronously by the College of Emerging and Collaborative Studies, with starts in fall, spring and summer. It is one of 21 online bachelor’s programs Vols Online lists, and a cybersecurity minor and an undergraduate certificate are also offered. The program page does not say which industry certifications the courses map to, so students who need a specific one should ask before enrolling.
UT Culinary Certificate
Run by UT Knoxville’s Center for Professional Education and Lifelong Learning rather than an academic college, the certificate packs 200 hours into 8 full-time weeks in the UT Conference Center’s commercial kitchen in downtown Knoxville. There are two sessions a year, and students in the February session are offered internships. The American Culinary Federation Education Foundation approves the program. The $6,249 price covers books and materials, and students pay it without federal aid.
2026-27 costs and how students pay
| 2026-27, full-time undergraduate | Tennessee resident | Out-of-state |
|---|---|---|
| Tuition | $11,560 | $31,672 |
| Mandatory fees | $2,464 | $2,806 |
| Tuition and fees | $14,024 | $34,478 |
| On-campus housing | $9,572 | $9,572 |
| Food | $5,166 | $5,166 |
| Books and supplies | $1,598 | $1,598 |
| Transportation | $3,500 | $3,500 |
| Estimated cost of attendance | $36,994 | $57,448 |
Figures are from UT Knoxville’s 2026-27 undergraduate cost of attendance (updated July 2026). In-state tuition is unchanged from 2025-26; out-of-state tuition rose about 5.1%, and mandatory fees rose $148 for residents and $174 for non-residents.
UT Knoxville takes part in the federal student aid programs, and the UT System’s June 2026 tuition notice says 93% of entering first-year students receive financial aid or scholarships. BSN Scholars receive tuition help from UT Medical Center in exchange for working there after graduation. Niche, using federal data, puts the average net price at $21,648 a year.
The culinary certificate is priced separately at $6,249 and cannot be paid with federal aid. The program page lists private loans (Sallie Mae), partial scholarships from the American Culinary Federation’s Smoky Mountain chapter, up to $5,250 for Blackberry Farm employees, and possibly VA education benefits through UT’s Office of Veteran Benefits Administration.
Admissions, nursing deadlines and online limits
Niche puts UT Knoxville’s overall acceptance rate at 42%. Nursing admission is separate and more selective: freshman direct admission, upper-division and BSN Scholars entry, and the Accelerated BSN each have their own deadlines (see above), and the RN to BSN admits in fall and spring. The College of Nursing’s undergraduate admissions page lists the current requirements.
The culinary certificate runs two 8-week, full-time sessions a year. Vols Online programs, including the RN to BSN and Applied Cybersecurity, are asynchronous with no required campus visits. UT Knoxville is a SARA member, but its state-authorization page closes online teacher-education programs to students outside Tennessee unless they plan to work there, and it does not mention the RN to BSN, so nurses outside Tennessee should confirm eligibility before applying.
Accreditation and results
UT Knoxville is accredited for bachelor’s, master’s, educational specialist and doctoral degrees by the body now called The Commission on Colleges and Universities, the name the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) took in September 2026. Its accreditation was last reaffirmed in 2025, and it has been approved for distance education since 1998. CCNE accredits the BSN through 31 December 2035, after a review in February 2025. The Medical Laboratory Science program, run with UT Medical Center, is accredited by NAACLS through October 2027, according to UT’s programmatic accreditation list.
| Measure | Result | Group and source |
|---|---|---|
| NCLEX-RN first-time pass rate | 100% (52 of 52) | December 2025 BSN graduates; College of Nursing, March 2026 |
| Six-year graduation rate | About 75% | UT Knoxville release, September 2025; cohort year not stated |
| Four-year graduation rate | 67% | Same release |
| First-year retention | 92.4% | Same release |
| Median earnings 5 years after graduation | $61,635 | Niche, using federal data, checked October 2026 |
We found no published job-placement rates for the cybersecurity degree or the culinary certificate, and the Medical Laboratory Science pages we read give no certification-exam, graduation or placement figures.
Before you enroll
- Getting into UT is not getting into nursing. Admission to the university does not guarantee a BSN seat, and upper-division applicants need a 3.2 GPA and minimum grades in three science and development courses.
- The culinary certificate sits outside the degree system. It is a non-degree program of UT Knoxville’s continuing-education center, priced at $6,249 and not eligible for federal aid, so students pay directly or use private loans, partial scholarships or, where eligible, VA benefits.
- Some “University of Tennessee” training is not UT Knoxville’s, or is not trade training. Veterinary technology degrees are at UT Martin, a separate university; UT Knoxville teaches only the doctor of veterinary medicine. Police and forensic courses from the Law Enforcement Innovation Center belong to the UT System’s Institute for Public Service, not UT Knoxville, and Fire Protection Engineering is a UT Knoxville graduate engineering certificate, not firefighter training.
- Out-of-state online students should check eligibility. Online teacher-education programs are closed to students outside Tennessee unless they plan to work there, and the state-authorization page does not cover the RN to BSN.
- The cybersecurity degree is a full bachelor’s. It is a 120-credit bachelor’s, not a short certification course, and the program does not name the certifications it prepares for.
Housing and career links
On-campus housing is budgeted at $9,572 for 2026-27, but Niche reviewers often say housing is hard to find after the first year. The career links we could confirm are built into programs: BSN Scholars train at and are committed to UT Medical Center, Medical Laboratory Science students spend their final year there with rotations at CSL Plasma and a molecular pathology laboratory in Maryville, Construction Science and Management includes internships or co-ops, and culinary students in the February session are offered internships.
What students say
On Niche, UT Knoxville averages 3.75 out of 5 from 4,271 reviews, with an overall grade of A (checked 8 October 2026). Reviewers most often praise the campus community and school spirit, supportive faculty, and academic and career resources. The most common complaints are a shortage of housing after freshman year, high tuition and overall cost, and limited parking. The reviews cover the whole university rather than the nursing, cybersecurity or culinary programs, and we could not tell whether many were invited by the school or posted in bursts.
Sources
Checked October 2026: Cost of attendance 2026-27 · University accreditation · Programmatic accreditation · Quick Facts · College of Nursing undergraduate admissions · Vols Online RN to BSN · UT Culinary Certificate · Niche reviews
Programs & Courses
Nursing
- BSN, four-year (freshman direct admit or upper-division entry)
- BSN Scholars (with UT Medical Center)
- Accelerated BSN (12 months, on campus)
- RN to BSN (online)
Computer and Information Technology
- Applied Cybersecurity (BS, online)
Culinary Arts
- UT Culinary Certificate (8 weeks, 200 hours; non-degree)
Campus Locations
Knoxville, TN 1331 Circle Park, Knoxville, TN 37996