The University of Tennessee-Chattanooga

Admission to the University of Tennessee--Chattanooga is fairly accessible, with an overall admit rate of 81.1% in 2025. That figure is higher than 53% of peer public national universities, indicating that a solid majority of applicants receive offers. The institution's yield rate stood at 29.2% that same year, showing that less than a third of admitted students choose to enroll, though this draw is still higher than 83% of peer schools. In the US News national university rankings, the school held rank 293 in 2020 and placed at rank 329 in 2026. These trends suggest that while gaining admission remains straightforward for qualified candidates, the university maintains a dependable regional appeal relative to its peer group. Prospective students can approach the application process knowing the bar for acceptance is not excessively restrictive.

Applicants to the University of Tennessee--Chattanooga generally present mid-range academic credentials. For the class entering in 2025, the median composite SAT score was 1100, which is higher than 27% of peer public national universities. The middle 50% of enrolled students scored between 20 and 26 on the ACT composite, showing a clear baseline for competitive consideration. Standardized testing patterns reveal that the applicant pool is heavily oriented toward the ACT, with 94% of freshmen submitting ACT scores compared to a small fraction submitting the SAT. Scoring in the mid-twenties on the ACT or around 1100 on the SAT places candidates comfortably within the typical profile of admitted students. Prospective applicants should target test results within or above these ranges to secure their standing in the admission process.

Undergraduate degrees at the University of Tennessee--Chattanooga are somewhat concentrated, with the top three bachelor programs accounting for 24.5% of all bachelor graduates in 2025. The single largest undergraduate program is General Psychology, producing 200 graduates that year, followed closely by Exercise Science and Registered Nursing. The university's highest-ranked offerings do not overlap with its largest undergraduate majors; instead, its recognized strengths appear in graduate healthcare, where US News ranked Physical Therapy at 72 and Nurse Anesthesia at 99 in 2026. Nevertheless, undergraduate professional tracks yield strong financial returns. According to 2023 earnings data, graduates in Electrical, Electronics, and Communications Engineering achieved median first-year earnings of $82,767, followed by Registered Nursing graduates at $75,897. International student representation across the largest undergraduate fields remains negligible. For prospective students, the institution offers established preparation in health sciences and technical fields where regional career outcomes are strong.

The student body at the University of Tennessee--Chattanooga numbered 11,775 students in 2025, with continuing undergraduates forming the bulk of the population. White students constitute the majority across all levels, while Asian and international representations remain relatively low. Asian students accounted for 232 continuing undergraduates, or 3.4% of that cohort, with minor shares among freshmen and transfer students. Meanwhile, international students are most visible in graduate studies, where they numbered 69, representing 4.4% of the graduate cohort. At the undergraduate level, international students make up less than one percent of freshmen and continuing students. These figures highlight an institution that primarily serves domestic students from the surrounding area, offering prospective applicants a campus community deeply grounded in its local state and regional environment.

Undergraduate enrollment at the University of Tennessee--Chattanooga is concentrated among traditional college-age students, while its graduate programs serve early-career adults. In 2025, students aged 18 to 19 comprised 40.3% of the undergraduate body, and those aged 20 to 21 accounted for 34.6%. In contrast, the graduate division leans older, with 32.5% of graduate students between ages 22 and 24 and 26.1% aged 25 to 29. For prospective applicants, this distribution means undergraduate student life revolves primarily around peers who entered college directly after high school, whereas graduate cohorts bring together recent college graduates and students in their mid-to-late twenties.

International student enrollment at the University of Tennessee--Chattanooga remains low across both levels, though with distinct differences by degree. In 2025, undergraduate international students accounted for just 0.7% of the undergraduate student body, a rate higher than only 5% of peer public national universities. At the graduate level, international representation is higher, standing at 4.4% in 2025, though this proportion has also trended downward over time. International students are sparsely represented in large undergraduate majors like Psychology and Business, but they show clear concentration in graduate technology programs. For example, international scholars accounted for 47.4% of master degree recipients in Computer Science in 2025. For prospective international applicants, these patterns indicate an undergraduate experience immersed almost entirely among domestic students, with modest international cohorts clustered in select graduate STEM disciplines.

Families looking at colleges in the surrounding region have several distinct public and private alternatives within driving distance. Located 36.7 kilometers away, The University of the South is a private liberal arts college ranked 49th on the 2027 US News Liberal Arts College ranking list. To the north, Tennessee Technological University sits 78.7 kilometers away as a public national university ranked 299th. Across the state border, University of Alabama in Huntsville is located 79.2 kilometers away with a 2027 national university rank of 262. Another public option in the state system is The University of Tennessee-Knoxville, located 99.4 kilometers away and ranked 109th among national universities.

Campus safety figures at the University of Tennessee--Chattanooga reflect steady improvement over the long term. The crime rate per 1,000 students dropped to 12.1 in 2025, down from 13.6 in 2016. The vast majority of reported incidents on campus involve internal disciplinary matters rather than violent crimes. Over the three-year period from 2023 to 2025, alcohol-related disciplinary referrals formed the largest category by a wide margin, totaling 791 incidents, followed by 158 drug-related disciplinary referrals. Other incidents across those three years occurred at much lower frequencies, including stalking, drug arrests, and thefts. For prospective students and families assessing security, these statistics show that safety concerns at the university are primarily driven by substance policy enforcement rather than serious threats to personal safety.