Hardest Colleges to Get Into in Tennessee

Tennessee has 33 colleges in the CollegeCalcAI database, and this page ranks every one of them by acceptance rate. The most selective are Vanderbilt University (6%), Fisk University (37%), and University of Tennessee (42%). 1 school admits a quarter of applicants or fewer, the median Tennessee college admits 69%, and 10 are public against 23 private. At the other end, King University admits 100%. Open any school for its full admissions profile, or check your own odds free.

Schools

Median acceptance

69%

Most selective

Vanderbilt University

6% acceptance

Download as CSV

Get your real chances

CollegeCalcAI computes a personalized acceptance estimate from your GPA, scores, and activities. Free, no account to start.

Open the calculator

33 schools

Sort by

Your chances at these colleges

Estimated chance of admission for three typical students, from the same model as the calculator. Unweighted GPA; 2, 4 and 7 AP courses respectively; Regular Decision; no legacy, athletic or first-generation hook.

Which of the Hardest Colleges in Tennessee can I get into with a 3.7 GPA and a 1300 SAT?

By CollegeCalcAI's model, a student with a 3.7 unweighted GPA and a 1300 SAT has a Likely or Safety estimate (45% or higher) at 32 of the 33 colleges here, including Fisk University, University of Tennessee and Bryan College. The other 1 is a Reach. Estimates assume Regular Decision and no hook; courses, activities and essays move them.

Estimated admission chance for three student profiles at each college: 3.3 GPA, 1150 SAT; 3.7 GPA, 1300 SAT; 4.0 GPA, 1500 SAT
College	3.3 GPA1150 SAT	3.7 GPA1300 SAT	4.0 GPA1500 SAT
Vanderbilt Universityadmits 6%	6%Reach	8%Reach	12%Reach
Fisk Universityadmits 37%	56%Likely	74%Safety	85%Safety
University of Tennesseeadmits 42%	35%Target	72%Safety	90%Safety
Bryan Collegeadmits 48%	59%Likely	90%Safety	95%Safety
Rhodes Collegeadmits 50%	42%Target	82%Safety	96%Safety
Lane Collegeadmits 55%	85%Safety	95%Safety	98%Safety
Sewanee - University of the Southadmits 57%	73%Safety	96%Safety	98%Safety
Union University (TN)admits 60%	86%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Freed-Hardeman Universityadmits 60%	86%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Bethel University (TN)admits 60%	88%Safety	97%Safety	98%Safety
Lincoln Memorial Universityadmits 63%	90%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Johnson Universityadmits 65%	94%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Cumberland Universityadmits 67%	94%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Lipscomb Universityadmits 68%	86%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Middle Tennessee State Universityadmits 69%	95%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Trevecca Nazarene Universityadmits 69%	94%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Tennessee Wesleyan Universityadmits 69%	96%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Tennessee State Universityadmits 70%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Lee Universityadmits 71%	96%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
University of Memphisadmits 72%	95%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Tusculum Universityadmits 72%	96%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Milligan Universityadmits 72%	97%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Tennessee Tech Universityadmits 76%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
University of Tennessee at Chattanoogaadmits 81%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
East Tennessee State Universityadmits 86%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety

Show all 33 colleges

Estimated admission chance for three student profiles at each college: 3.3 GPA, 1150 SAT; 3.7 GPA, 1300 SAT; 4.0 GPA, 1500 SAT (continued)
Christian Brothers Universityadmits 87%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
UT Southernadmits 87%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
UT Martinadmits 88%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Carson-Newman Universityadmits 90%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Belmont Universityadmits 95%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
Austin Peay State Universityadmits 96%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
LeMoyne-Owen Collegeadmits 99%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety
King Universityadmits 100%	98%Safety	98%Safety	98%Safety

Estimates, not guarantees. Get yours with your real courses and activities or compare your own list with the free admissions API.

Cite or embed this list

Free to quote with attribution. The stat card links back to this list.

Cite this page

CollegeCalcAI. "Hardest Colleges to Get Into in Tennessee." 2026. https://collegecalcai.com/data/hardest-colleges-in-tennessee

Free to cite and reuse with attribution and a link.

Embed this stat

69%median acceptance rate, hardest colleges to get into in tennessee (33 schools)Source: CollegeCalcAI

<a href="https://collegecalcai.com/data/hardest-colleges-in-tennessee?utm_source=embed&utm_medium=statcard" style="display:inline-block;padding:16px 20px;border:1px solid #E5E9F0;border-radius:14px;text-decoration:none;font-family:system-ui,sans-serif;background:#fff">69%median acceptance rate, hardest colleges to get into in tennessee (33 schools)Source: CollegeCalcAI</a>

Keep exploring

More ways to cut the data.

Tennessee publics All Tennessee schools South Top Public Universities All collections

Acceptance rates and admitted test ranges reflect publicly reported data (U.S. Department of Education / NCES IPEDS / Common Data Sets) and are rounded. Estimates from CollegeCalcAI are a planning tool computed by a fixed, transparent model, not a guarantee of any admission decision.