“Tennessee's only state-funded HBCU, an R2 land-grant research university in Nashville.”
Tennessee State University (TSU) is a public, land-grant historically Black university and the only state-funded HBCU in Tennessee. Founded in 1912 and located on a 500-acre main campus along the Cumberland River in north Nashville, TSU enrolls roughly 9,000 students across ten colleges and schools, including the colleges of Agriculture; Business; Education; Engineering; Health Sciences; Liberal Arts; Life & Physical Sciences; Public Service & Urban Affairs; Nursing; and the Graduate School. As a Carnegie R2 research institution, TSU offers 41 bachelor's, 23 master's, and eight doctoral degrees, with particular strengths in biological sciences, agricultural and environmental sciences, computer science, civil and mechanical engineering, criminal justice, speech-language pathology, and nursing. The TSU student experience is defined by Nashville itself — Music City's music, healthcare, and business industries provide internship, performance, and networking opportunities that most regional publics cannot match. Campus culture centers around the nationally famous Aristocrat of Bands marching ensemble, Division I Big South–OVC athletics (the TSU Tigers), the Sophisticated Ladies dance line, and a dense calendar of homecoming, probate, and step-show traditions central to HBCU life. TSU is also one of the original 1890 land-grant institutions, which funds its College of Agriculture research farms and extension programs across Tennessee. For international students, TSU is positioned as a high-value, high-access U.S. public option. The Office of International Affairs, led by Director Mark Gunter, issues I-20s, runs SEVIS reporting, authorizes CPT and OPT (including STEM OPT), and operates the TSU Intensive English Center (IEC) as a bridge for students who do not meet direct-entry English thresholds. TSU's Renaissance and Tiger scholarships extend to first-time international freshmen, and the university has been repeatedly named among the best-value U.S. schools for international students by outlets such as Edumilestones and College Factual, reflecting its combination of low tuition, HBCU community, and metropolitan Nashville location.
Visa, OPT, H-1B alumni outcomes, and acceptance rates by country — sourced from FOIA, USCIS H-1B Hub, and DHS SEVIS.
Research Activity
Carnegie Classifications (2021)
Research classification
Carnegie Classification
Test Required — All applicants must submit SAT or ACT scores.
Official SourceFall (Overseas)
Supplemental documents due by July 1
Fall (In US)
Supplemental documents due by August 1
Spring (Overseas)
Documents due by December 1
Summer (Transfer, Overseas)
Transfer students only; documents due by May 1
The deep admissions playbook beyond the headline acceptance rate — round-by-round breakdowns, nationality data, requirements, and contact paths.
Domestic
$8,616
/yr
Out-of-State / Intl
$22,416
/yr
Beyond the sticker price — every named scholarship, the financial aid policy, need-aware notes, and a personalized net-cost estimate.
How life on campus actually feels — clubs, sports, traditions, housing realities, and how the school integrates with its city.
ABET-accredited programs in architectural, civil, computer, electrical, and mechanical engineering, plus computer science. Houses the Center of Excellence in Information Systems and Engineering Management.
TSU's 1890 land-grant college; offers agricultural sciences, food & animal sciences, and environmental sciences with research farms across Tennessee.
Houses Nursing, Speech Pathology & Audiology, Dental Hygiene, Cardio-Respiratory Care, and Health Information Management. Strong clinical placements with Nashville hospital systems.
AACSB-accredited business college offering accounting, finance, management, marketing, supply chain, and an MBA.
Humanities, social sciences, communications, music, languages and Africana Studies. Home to the Aristocrat of Bands and Sophisticated Ladies.
4 years
CCNE-accredited pre-licensure BSN with clinical rotations across Nashville's major hospital systems; pipeline to TSU's MSN and DNP.
4 years
ABET-accredited program housed within the College of Engineering; STEM-OPT eligible, strong pipeline into Nashville tech and federal cyber internships.
4 years
Accredited civil engineering degree leveraging TSU's Center of Excellence and TDOT partnerships; STEM-OPT designated.
Where alumni go after graduation — top industries, grad-school continuation, and the qualitative outcomes story.
Sticker price (annual, out-of-state): $22,416
Net-cost estimate is US-resident-only — international applicants are typically excluded from need-based aid at most schools and should treat the sticker price as the planning baseline.
