Tech grads have lowest debt of any school in Tennessee, says U.S. News
COOKEVILLE – According to U.S. News & World Report, Tennessee Tech students graduate with the least average amount of student debt of any school in Tennessee, public or private.
The magazine said that 47 percent of Tech graduates leave school with no debt in its 2018 rankings.
Tech is in the “Best National Universities” listings for the second straight year, being placed in the second tier.
In comparison to other Tennessee public universities, Tech has:
- The second-highest graduation rate
- The second-highest first-year student retention rate
- The second-highest ACT score range
“While rankings are not our primary goal – which is to prepare students to excel as they face real-world challenges – they are a recognition of our faculty and staff’s work, and the quality of our students,” said Phil Oldham, Tech’s president.
“Tech is in a good position for future rankings,” Oldham continued. “We have seen significant growth in our most recent first-year retention rate, our largest freshman class in three years, and the highest average ACT score in school history.”
Tech’s College of Engineering was ranked #162 in the publication’s “Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs Rankings (Doctorate)” listing.
The university is no stranger to top rankings, also receiving high marks from the Brookings Institute, the Princeton Review, Washington Monthly, and Payscale.com. This year, MONEY magazine ranked Tech as the top public college in Tennessee in its 2017 “Best Colleges for Your Money” listing.
Tennessee Tech offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees across nine schools and colleges: Agriculture and Human Ecology, Arts and Sciences, Business, Education, Engineering, Fine Arts, Graduate Studies, Interdisciplinary Studies, and Nursing.