UT Southern acceptance rate and your odds of getting in
UT Southern, a public university in Tennessee, reports a 87% acceptance rate and sits in the accessible band. In practice that means it admits most qualified applicants, so a strong application is judged against an applicant pool that is already self-selected.
Use this page to see what UT Southern weighs, where it ranks among Tennessee schools, and how a profile like yours is likely to land. Admitted students post a 75th-percentile SAT around 1100, a useful checkpoint for where your scores sit, though it is a reference range and not a cutoff.
What do students study at UT Southern?
Bachelor's degrees awarded by field in 2023 (IPEDS completions). Each field has its own page with the school's numbers, the model's major adjustment, and peers offering it.
Will I get into UT Southern?
Direct answers to what applicants ask about getting into UT Southern, plus a free way to calculate your own odds.
What are my chances of getting into UT Southern?
Your odds at UT Southern are not the same as its 87% acceptance rate. Your real odds depend on how your GPA, course rigor, test scores, and activities compare to its admitted students. Run your profile through the free CollegeCalcAI calculator to get a personalized acceptance percentage for UT Southern in about three minutes, with no account needed to start.
Is UT Southern hard to get into?
UT Southern is accessible: it admits most qualified applicants, with about a 87% acceptance rate. Meeting the academic basics gives most qualified applicants a realistic shot.
What GPA do you need to get into UT Southern?
There is no hard GPA cutoff at UT Southern, but admitted students span a wide GPA range, with many in the 2.8 to 3.5 band. UT Southern reads your GPA alongside the rigor of your courses, so a challenging schedule matters as much as the number itself.
Your chances at UT Southern by GPA and SAT
Estimated chance of admission at UT Southern for plain profiles, from the same model as the calculator. Unweighted GPA, 3 AP courses, Regular Decision, no legacy, athletic or first-generation hook. The last column is test-optional (no score sent).
What are my chances at UT Southern with a 3.1 GPA and a 1010 SAT?
About 98% (Safety), by CollegeCalcAI's deterministic model, for an applicant with a 3.1 unweighted GPA and a 1010 SAT, the middle of UT Southern's admitted range, applying Regular Decision without a hook. A 3.4 GPA with a 1110 SAT comes out near 98%. Courses, activities, essays and the application round move the number; the free calculator includes them.
Estimates, not guarantees. Get yours with your real courses and activities. Assistants and developers can fetch this table from the free API: /api/v1/colleges/ut-southern.
How to get into UT Southern
Built from UT Southern's admitted class and what it reports weighing. The typical-admit GPA and SAT are CollegeCalcAI's modeled figures, not published cutoffs.
There is no formula that guarantees a spot at UT Southern, but the applicants who get in tend to do the same four things. Here is what the numbers say each one looks like.
CollegeCalcAI's modeled typical admit at UT Southern carries about a 3.04 core GPA and a 1060 SAT, in the most rigorous schedule available. Meeting it puts you in the admitted range for most applicants.
The admitted middle 50% is 905 to 1110 SAT (18 to 24 ACT). Scores are required, so schedule a retake if you are below the midpoint.
UT Southern rates rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and standardized test scores highest in its own Common Data Set. Put your depth there: and a transcript whose rigor rises through junior year.
Most public universities read early applicants first without a binding commitment. Apply by UT Southern's early or priority deadline (confirm dates at www.utsouthern.edu), and if you are out of state, know that residency changes both the bar and the price.
How many students apply to UT Southern, and how many get in?
UT Southern admitted 507 of the 613 students who applied for fall 2023, which works out to 82.7%. 185 enrolled. Roughly 36% of admitted students enrolled, a typical yield for a school in this range. UT Southern enrolls about 864 undergraduates in total, 61% of them women, with a student-to-faculty ratio of 14 to 1.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS 2023 admissions and enrollment.
What SAT and ACT scores do you need for UT Southern?
Admitted students at UT Southern post SAT scores of 905 to 1110 in the middle 50%, with an average of 1083. On the ACT the middle 50% runs from 18 to 24. A score above 1110 puts you in the top quarter of admits and turns the test into an asset; a score below 905 puts you in the bottom quarter, where the rest of the application has to carry more weight. UT Southern requires test scores, so plan a test date that leaves time for one retake.
Source: College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), release 2026-06-10.
What UT Southern looks for
What UT Southern weighs most heavily in its admissions review, informed by its reported Common Data Set.
The factors that carry the most weight at UT Southern are rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and standardized test scores. Solid grades in a challenging schedule do most of the work here, with the rest of the application providing context. These ratings come from UT Southern's reported Common Data Set, so the full chart below reflects what the school itself says it values, not a generic guess.
SAT score positioning at UT Southern
How common SAT scores sit relative to the admitted middle. This is context, not a probability. Your full profile determines the real estimate.
How much does UT Southern cost after financial aid?
The full sticker price at UT Southern (tuition, fees, housing, food, books) is about $24,750 a year. Tuition and fees alone are $10,924. What families actually pay is different: the average net price after grants and scholarships is $12,798 a year, and it ranges from $9,335 for families earning under $30,000 to $17,135 for families earning over $110,000. 36% of undergraduates receive a federal Pell Grant.
Source: College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), release 2026-06-10. Net price is what students receiving aid paid after grants, by family income.
What do UT Southern graduates earn, and how many graduate?
Median earnings for UT Southern students ten years after entry are $38,924 ($36,151 at the six-year mark). 37% of first-time, full-time students graduate within six years, and 77% return for a second year. Among graduates who borrowed, median federal debt at graduation is $21,500; 27% of undergraduates take federal loans.
Source: College Scorecard (U.S. Department of Education), release 2026-06-10. Earnings cover students who received federal aid.
How UT Southern compares in Tennessee
UT Southern ranks #27 most selective of 33 schools in Tennessee in our database.
Among the 33 Tennessee schools we track, UT Southern ranks #27 most selective by acceptance rate. Schools like Vanderbilt University (6%) and Fisk University (37%) sit nearby, which makes Tennessee a useful frame for calibrating a balanced list. As a public university, residency matters: in-state applicants generally see meaningfully better odds than the headline rate suggests.
Similar to UT Southern
Schools with a similar selectivity profile, worth comparing as you build a balanced list.
Applicants targeting UT Southern often weigh Boise State University, George Mason University, and North Carolina Central University, which sit at a similar level. Running the same profile against each one in the free calculator is the fastest way to see where you are a reach, a match, or a likely.
Frequently asked questions
What is UT Southern's acceptance rate?
UT Southern admitted 507 of 613 applicants for the fall 2023 entering class, an acceptance rate of 82.7% (U.S. Department of Education, IPEDS). 36% of admitted students enrolled.
What SAT score do you need for UT Southern?
The middle 50% of admitted students scored 905 to 1110 on the SAT and 18 to 24 on the ACT. A score above 1110 is in the top quarter of admits.
Is UT Southern test-optional?
No. UT Southern reports that test scores are required for admission.
How much does UT Southern cost after financial aid?
The average net price at UT Southern, what students receiving aid paid after grants and scholarships, is $12,798 a year against a sticker price of about $24,750. Families earning under $30,000 paid about $9,335 on average.
What do UT Southern graduates earn?
Median earnings ten years after entering UT Southern are $38,924 a year among students who received federal aid, and 37% of students graduate within six years (College Scorecard).
What does UT Southern value most in applicants?
Based on its admissions profile, UT Southern weighs rigor of secondary school record, academic GPA, and standardized test scores most heavily. The full factor breakdown is on this page.
Does UT Southern favor in-state applicants?
As a public university, UT Southern generally admits in-state applicants at a higher rate than out-of-state applicants, so your home state affects your odds. CollegeCalcAI applies an in-state residency boost when you select your state.
How can I improve my chances at UT Southern?
Focus on the highest-leverage parts of your application: course rigor and GPA trajectory first, then test scores, then a focused leadership or activity spike. CollegeCalcAI's Power-Ups quantify how much each change would move your odds at UT Southern specifically.
What are the admission requirements for UT Southern?
UT Southern reviews GPA, course rigor, test scores (where submitted), activities, and essays. With a more accessible acceptance rate, meeting the academic basics gives most qualified applicants a realistic shot.
Acceptance rate, application counts, admitted test ranges, cost, and outcomes reflect publicly reported federal data (U.S. Department of Education: IPEDS 2023 and the College Scorecard) and each school's Common Data Set; figures are rounded and lag the current cycle by one to two years, so confirm deadlines and policies on the school's own site. The typical-admit GPA and SAT are CollegeCalcAI's modeled estimates. Estimates from CollegeCalcAI are a planning tool computed by a fixed, transparent model, not a guarantee of any admission decision.