COLLEGES · 30-YEAR ROI · KNOXVILLE, TN
Is The University of Tennessee-Knoxville worth the money?
Yes — at resident pricing. A The University of Tennessee-Knoxville degree clears +$1.34M in 30-year projected net value over skipping college and investing the difference.
A public four-year school in Knoxville, Tennessee, priced as a Tennessee resident — earnings rolled up from 59 FREOPP-reported programs.
IPEDS 2023 cost · FREOPP 2021 earnings · BEA 2023 cost-of-living · same model as /worth-it · this school clears positive net value.
- 30-year net value · resident pricing
- +$1.34M
- Median earnings · 10 yrs after entry
- $54,851
- Breaks even by age
- 46
- FREOPP program coverage
- 59 programs
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville tuition & cost
- Annual tuition · Tennessee resident
- $13,484
- Annual tuition · out-of-state
- $31,974
- Total cost of attendance (4 years, sticker)
- $103,936
Sticker tuition, before aid. Priced as a Tennessee resident; the out-of-state line is the non-resident rate. Total cost of attendance adds fees, housing, and living costs over 4 years (IPEDS 2023).
Coming from out of state?
Still worth it — at non-resident tuition, The University of Tennessee-Knoxville clears +$710K over the same 30-year horizon, on a total sticker cost of $177,896. The residency line is worth $629K to you here — same school, same degree (the out-of-state tax in Tennessee, ranked).
How this is computed (and what it isn’t)
The University of Tennessee-Knoxville runs through the /worth-it model at its resident tuition rate, with the standard loan assumptions, a 30-year horizon, and Tennessee’s own cost-of-living on the skip-college path. The “30-year net value” is the projected accumulated value of going vs. skipping and investing the difference, in real dollars.
What it isn’t: a verdict on every major. The school-level number averages across 59 FREOPP-reported programs — the field you pick swings it by over a million dollars on its own. We only publish school pages that clear positive net value at resident pricing; earnings roll up from at least three FREOPP programs (ADR-0032), so a single high-earning major can’t fake the number.
Questions
- Is The University of Tennessee-Knoxville worth the money?
- At resident pricing, yes: The University of Tennessee-Knoxville clears +$1.34M in 30-year projected net value versus skipping college and investing the difference. That is computed from a total cost of attendance of $103,936 and median earnings of $54,851 ten years after entry (IPEDS 2023 cost, FREOPP 2021 earnings, BEA 2023 cost-of-living — the same model as the LE TEEN calculator).
- How much is tuition at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville?
- The University of Tennessee-Knoxville's annual sticker tuition is $13,484 for Tennessee residents and $31,974 for out-of-state students, before financial aid. Total cost of attendance over 4 years — tuition plus fees, housing, and living costs — is $103,936 (IPEDS 2023).
- What is the total cost of The University of Tennessee-Knoxville?
- Over 4 years, The University of Tennessee-Knoxville's sticker cost of attendance is $103,936 at resident pricing, or $177,896 out-of-state — tuition, fees, housing, and living costs at Tennessee prices, before financial aid. Median earnings ten years after entry are $54,851.
- What is out-of-state tuition at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville?
- Non-resident annual sticker tuition at The University of Tennessee-Knoxville is $31,974, versus $13,484 for Tennessee residents — a premium of $18,490 a year. Even at the non-resident rate, The University of Tennessee-Knoxville clears positive 30-year net value.
- How long until a The University of Tennessee-Knoxville degree pays for itself?
- The degree path overtakes the skip-college path around age 46 under our defaults — from there the gap only widens, ending +$1.34M ahead at the 30-year horizon.
- What could change the number for The University of Tennessee-Knoxville?
- Two levers dominate. Residency: this page prices The University of Tennessee-Knoxville as a Tennessee resident; at non-resident tuition it still clears +$710K, but the gap is real money (see the out-of-state tax in Tennessee). And the major: the field you pick swings lifetime ROI by over a million dollars on its own (see the majors pages).
Keep going
Cite this:
LE TEEN (2026). “Is The University of Tennessee-Knoxville worth the money? 30-year ROI.” Data: IPEDS 2023 · FREOPP 2021 · BEA 2023. https://le-teen.com/colleges/the-university-of-tennessee-knoxville