Tennessee has a well-developed nursing education system spanning major research universities, regional colleges, and community colleges, with strong program concentrations in Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville, and Chattanooga. The state’s large healthcare sector – anchored by Vanderbilt University Medical Center, HCA Healthcare’s national headquarters, and a network of major regional health systems – generates consistent demand for nursing graduates at every level. Tennessee is a long-standing member of the Nursing Licensure Compact (NLC), meaning a Tennessee RN license functions as a multi-state license for nurses who reside in Tennessee and meet eligibility requirements.
Program options run from LPN certificates and ADN degrees through BSN, accelerated BSN, and graduate-level MSN and DNP programs. Workforce demand is particularly strong in the Nashville metro, which has grown into one of the largest healthcare industry hubs in the United States.
NLC compact membership
Tennessee is a full member of the Nursing Licensure Compact. The state joined the original NLC in 2003 and transitioned to the enhanced NLC (eNLC) on January 19, 2018, when the enhanced compact launched nationwide.
The NLC allows nurses whose primary state of residence is a compact member state to hold a single multi-state license valid for practice in every state where the compact is implemented. That distinction matters: 40 states have implemented the compact and operate as compact states, while 43 jurisdictions have enacted it. Massachusetts, Guam, and the US Virgin Islands have enacted the compact without setting an implementation date, so they do not yet grant or recognize multistate practice privileges. If you are a Tennessee resident and meet the uniform licensure requirements – including a federal and state fingerprint-based criminal background check – your Tennessee RN license is your multi-state license.
Tennessee is well positioned geographically for compact practice. It borders eight states, and Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, Arkansas, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Missouri have all implemented the compact, so a Tennessee multistate license carries across every one of its borders. Few states can say that. Practically, this simplifies travel nursing assignments, per diem shifts in neighboring markets such as the Bristol-Kingsport corridor into Virginia or the Memphis metro spilling into Arkansas and Mississippi, and temporary relocation without filing separate licensing applications. If you move your primary residence to another compact state, you would apply for licensure in your new home state.
Verify current NLC membership and eligibility requirements at nursecompact.com.
Types of nursing programs available
Tennessee’s nursing education system covers every preparation level, from entry-level certificates through graduate practice.
LPN programs (12–18 months) Licensed Practical Nurse programs are available at community colleges, career centers, and vocational schools statewide. LPNs can later advance through LPN-to-ADN or LPN-to-BSN bridge pathways.
ADN programs (2 years post-prerequisites) Associate Degree in Nursing programs are widely available at Tennessee’s community college system and regional colleges. ADN graduates sit for the NCLEX-RN and enter practice as registered nurses. Many Tennessee ADN programs are ACEN-accredited.
BSN programs (4 years) Four-year bachelor’s programs are available at major universities across the state. BSN graduates are preferred by Magnet-designated hospitals and large health systems in the Nashville and Memphis metros.
Accelerated BSN (12–18 months) Designed for candidates with a bachelor’s degree in another field, accelerated BSN programs compress nursing coursework into intensive full-time study.
RN-to-BSN bridge programs Online RN-to-BSN completion programs serve Tennessee’s large ADN-educated nursing workforce. Most are available fully online with flexible scheduling for working RNs.
MSN and DNP programs Graduate nursing programs are available at Vanderbilt University, University of Tennessee Knoxville, Belmont University, and others, covering nurse practitioner, nurse anesthesia, and nursing leadership tracks.
| Program type | Length | Entry requirement |
|---|---|---|
| LPN | 12–18 months | High school diploma or GED |
| ADN | ~2 years | Prerequisites completed |
| BSN | 4 years | High school diploma |
| Accelerated BSN | 12–18 months | Bachelor’s degree (any field) |
| RN-to-BSN | 12–24 months online | Active RN license |
| MSN/DNP | 2–4 years | BSN + RN license |
Admission requirements
Admission requirements vary across Tennessee’s nursing programs, but core expectations are consistent across most ADN and BSN tracks.
Academic prerequisites: Most programs require Anatomy & Physiology I and II (with lab), Microbiology (with lab), General Chemistry or Biology, English Composition, Psychology, and Mathematics or Statistics. Science prerequisites must typically be completed within the past 5–7 years with a grade of C or higher.
GPA: Minimum cumulative GPA requirements generally run 2.5–3.0. Competitive BSN applicants at University of Tennessee and Belmont University typically present science GPAs of 3.2 and above. Programs with limited seat availability are competitive even among qualified applicants. If your GPA falls below the typical threshold, see our guide on nursing schools that accept lower GPAs.
Entrance exams: The ATI TEAS is the most widely required entrance exam for Tennessee nursing programs. Some programs accept or prefer the HESI A2. Competitive scores for community college ADN programs typically run at or above the 60th percentile; BSN programs at major universities often seek scores at the 70th percentile and above. See ATI TEAS vs. HESI for a detailed comparison.
Healthcare experience: Many Tennessee BSN programs recommend or require documented direct patient care experience – CNA work, emergency medical technician hours, or medical volunteering. Requirements vary by institution.
Background check and drug screening: Required by virtually all Tennessee programs and clinical placement sites. Certain criminal history may affect clinical placement eligibility and licensure. Contact the Tennessee Board of Nursing for specific guidance.
For a full prerequisites breakdown by program type, see nursing school prerequisites.
Top nursing programs in Tennessee
University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Nursing – Memphis UTHSC’s College of Nursing is the state’s primary public research nursing school and holds CCNE accreditation. It offers BSN, accelerated BSN, RN-to-BSN, MSN, and DNP programs. UTHSC is embedded in Memphis’s large academic medical center environment – including Regional One Health and Methodist Le Bonheur – giving students access to high-acuity and diverse clinical settings. The BSN is competitive and highly regarded across the state’s hospital hiring network.
Vanderbilt University School of Nursing – Nashville Vanderbilt’s School of Nursing is CCNE-accredited and one of the most recognized nursing programs in the South. The school focuses on graduate nursing education – offering entry-to-practice MSN, DNP, and PhD programs – making it the primary destination for advanced practice nursing in Tennessee. Its location adjacent to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, one of the region’s top academic medical centers, provides exceptional clinical depth.
Belmont University School of Nursing – Nashville Belmont’s School of Nursing is CCNE-accredited and located in Nashville’s growing healthcare corridor. It offers BSN, accelerated BSN, RN-to-BSN, and MSN programs. The school’s simulation facilities and clinical partnerships with Nashville-area health systems support strong outcomes. Belmont’s ABSN program is a well-regarded option for career changers in the region.
Middle Tennessee State University School of Nursing – Murfreesboro MTSU’s BSN program is CCNE-accredited and serves the rapidly growing Nashville metro corridor. The program reported NCLEX first-attempt pass rates near 98% in 2024, among the highest in the state. MTSU’s in-state tuition and proximity to the Nashville healthcare job market make it a strong value option.
University of Tennessee Knoxville College of Nursing – Knoxville UTK’s College of Nursing is CCNE-accredited and offers BSN, RN-to-BSN, MSN, and DNP programs. Its location in Knoxville provides clinical partnerships with UT Medical Center and regional health systems serving eastern Tennessee.
Chattanooga State Community College – Chattanooga Chattanooga State’s ADN program is ACEN-accredited and representative of Tennessee’s strong community college nursing pipeline. Affordable in-state tuition and accessible scheduling make community college ADN programs a practical entry point, particularly in the southeastern Tennessee region.
NCLEX pass rates and program quality
Tennessee outperforms the national NCLEX figure, and by a wider margin than most states. In 2025, first-time US-educated candidates from Tennessee programs passed the NCLEX-RN at 90.9% (3,972 of 4,369 candidates), against a national first-time US-educated rate of 86.7% – a 4.2-point advantage. On the NCLEX-PN, Tennessee candidates passed at 87.9% (1,182 of 1,345).
Two details in that data are worth more than the headline. First, Tennessee’s associate-degree cohort passed at 90.6% and its baccalaureate cohort at 91.1% – a half-point gap. The common assumption that BSN programs produce substantially better exam outcomes does not hold in Tennessee’s numbers, which is useful if you are weighing an ADN at a community college against a four-year BSN on exam performance alone. Second, the national rate fell 4.5 points between 2024 and 2025, the first national decline since the Next Generation NCLEX launched. Tennessee’s relative position held up well through that drop, but the absolute numbers moved for everyone, so treat any pass rate quoted without a year attached as unreliable.
The Tennessee Board of Nursing sets a hard floor for programs. Under Tennessee administrative rule 1000-01-.14, continuing approval of a school of nursing requires an NCLEX first-time pass rate of at minimum 80% for a calendar year, along with trend data and action planning tied to NCLEX performance. That 80% figure is the number to benchmark a program against, and it comes from the regulator rather than from a ranking site. Programs sustaining rates in the low 80s are meeting the standard but sitting close to it; MTSU, which reported first-attempt rates around 98% in 2024, sits at the other end of the range.
You can look up program-specific NCLEX pass rate data through the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) or the Tennessee Board of Nursing directly. See NCLEX pass rates by nursing school for a guide to comparing programs.
Nursing salary expectations in Tennessee
Tennessee RN salaries fall below the national figure, reflecting the state’s lower overall cost of living and the wage structure of its regional healthcare market.
Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS data for May 2025 places Tennessee’s median annual RN wage at $81,500, against a national RN median of $97,550. The full Tennessee percentile spread gives a more honest picture of the career than any single number:
| Percentile | Tennessee RN annual wage | National RN annual wage |
|---|---|---|
| 10th | $63,970 | $68,940 |
| 25th | $75,460 | $80,330 |
| Median | $81,500 | $97,550 |
| 75th | $95,250 | $112,350 |
| 90th | $104,920 | $137,470 |
Read the gap across the distribution rather than at the midpoint. At the 10th percentile, where most new graduates start, Tennessee trails the nation by about $5,000 – a real but manageable difference. At the 90th percentile the gap widens to roughly $32,500. Tennessee pays entry-level nurses close to the national rate and senior specialty nurses considerably less, which is the wage structure of a state with a large volume of general acute-care work and a smaller concentration of the high-acuity, high-cost markets that pull top-end pay upward.
Translating those percentiles into career stages gives approximate expectations:
| Role and stage | Approximate annual salary | Percentile basis |
|---|---|---|
| New-graduate RN | $64,000–$75,000 | 10th–25th |
| Experienced staff RN | $81,000–$95,000 | Median–75th |
| ICU, ED, and specialty RN | $95,000–$105,000 | 75th–90th |
| Nurse practitioner | $117,590 (median) | TN NP median, SOC 29-1171 |
| LPN | $58,870 (median) | TN LPN median, SOC 29-2061 |
Tennessee LPNs earn a median of $58,870 against a national LPN median of $64,400, and Tennessee nurse practitioners earn a median of $117,590 against a national NP median of $132,300. The NP premium over staff RN pay within Tennessee is substantial – roughly $36,000 at the median – which is the strongest financial argument for graduate study that the state’s own wage data supports.
Nashville’s position as the headquarters of major health systems including HCA Healthcare and Ardent Health Services creates concentrated demand for experienced nurses and some of the state’s highest RN salaries. Rural areas and critical access hospitals often supplement salaries with loan repayment or sign-on incentives to attract nurses to underserved regions.
On job growth, Tennessee is projected to add registered nursing positions at about 5% over its projection decade, with roughly 3,600 annual openings statewide. Nationally the BLS projects 5% RN growth from 2024 to 2034 and about 189,100 openings per year. Most of that national opening volume is replacement demand rather than net new positions, which is why hiring feels brisk even when the percentage growth reads as modest.
For a full cost-benefit analysis, see is nursing school worth the debt?.
Frequently asked questions
Is Tennessee a compact nursing state? Yes. Tennessee is a full member of the Nursing Licensure Compact, having joined the original compact in 2003 and transitioned to the enhanced NLC (eNLC) on January 19, 2018. A Tennessee RN license issued to a Tennessee resident serves as a multi-state license, valid for practice in the 40 states where the compact is implemented. All eight states bordering Tennessee are implemented compact states.
How long does nursing school take in Tennessee? It depends on the program. ADN programs take approximately two years of full-time clinical coursework after prerequisites are completed. BSN programs are four years. Accelerated BSN programs for career changers run 12–18 months of intensive full-time study. LPN programs are 12–18 months. RN-to-BSN bridge programs for working RNs typically take 12–24 months online.
What GPA do I need for nursing school in Tennessee? Most Tennessee nursing programs require a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5–3.0. Competitive programs at University of Tennessee and Belmont University typically see admitted applicants with science GPAs of 3.2 and above. Community college ADN programs may have lower GPA minimums but accept limited cohorts, making competition high relative to seats. See nursing school GPA requirements for a detailed breakdown.
How much do RNs make in Tennessee? Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS data for May 2025 places Tennessee’s median annual RN wage at $81,500, against a national RN median of $97,550. Tennessee’s 10th percentile sits at $63,970 and its 90th at $104,920, so the range a nurse can expect over a career is wide. Nashville metro nurses earn at the higher end; rural areas tend toward the lower end. Travel nursing from a Tennessee base can increase earnings substantially. For help evaluating the full cost-benefit picture, see how to choose a nursing school and nursing license by state.
References
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, “Registered Nurses (SOC 29-1141), Tennessee state estimates,” May 2025 (released 2026); state percentile data accessed via O*NET OnLine local wages.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, “Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses (SOC 29-2061), Tennessee state estimates,” May 2025.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, “Nurse Practitioners (SOC 29-1171), Tennessee state estimates,” May 2025.
- US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Registered Nurses, 2024–2034 employment projections (5% growth; approximately 189,100 annual openings).
- National Council of State Boards of Nursing, “2025 NCLEX Examination Statistics,” NCSBN Research Brief, Vol. 96, June 2026, Table 8 (first-time, US-educated NCLEX-RN candidates by jurisdiction and degree type) and Table 14 (NCLEX-PN by jurisdiction).
- Tennessee Board of Nursing, Rules of the Tennessee Board of Nursing, Chapter 1000-01, Rule 1000-01-.14, “Continuing Approval of a School of Nursing,” Tennessee Secretary of State, revised April 2026.
- Tennessee Department of Health, Board of Nursing, “Multistate Licensure and the Nurse Licensure Compact,” tn.gov, accessed July 2026.
- National Council of State Boards of Nursing, “Nurse Licensure Compact: implementation status by jurisdiction,” nursecompact.com, accessed July 2026.
- Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE) and Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing (ACEN), accredited program directories, accessed July 2026.