Best Fine Artist programs in Tennessee, ranked by enrollment
Create original artwork using any of a wide variety of media and.
33 schools in Tennessee run programs that feed this job, graduating 562 people a year. The job pays a median of $30,720 in Tennessee across about 100 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).
Fields of study in Tennessee that lead to this job
Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.
4 programs in Tennessee that lead to this job
Ranked by graduates per year in Tennessee (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Tennessee page.
| # | Program | Graduates / yr | Share of pipeline | Schools | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Median debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Art/Art Studies, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0701In Tennessee → | 319 | 56.8% | 12 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 2 | Fine/Studio Arts, Generalmain feeder CIP 50.0702In Tennessee → | 136 | 24.2% | 11 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
| 3 | CIP 50.0101In Tennessee → | 106 | 18.9% | 10 | $24,752 | $25,963 |
| 4 | Paintingmain feeder CIP 50.0708In Tennessee → | 1 | 0.2% | 1 | $24,447 | $25,294 |
Top 25 schools in Tennessee
Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 9 of the 33 schools in this state.
| # | School | Graduates / yr | Top feeder program | Grad earnings (1 yr) | Grad rate | Net price | Acceptance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | University of Memphis Memphis, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 84 | Art/Art Studies, General | $26,451 | 51% | — | 72% |
| 2 | The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga Chattanooga, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 74 | Art/Art Studies, General | $21,766 | 50% | — | 81% |
| 3 | Middle Tennessee State University Murfreesboro, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 60 | Art/Art Studies, General | $29,084 | 54% | — | 69% |
| 4 | Austin Peay State University Clarksville, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 49 | Art/Art Studies, General | $19,157 | 40% | — | 96% |
| 5 | The University of Tennessee - Knoxville Knoxville, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 44 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $23,661 | 74% | — | 42% |
| 6 | Pellissippi State Community College Knoxville, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 29 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 31% | — | — |
| 7 | Tennessee Technological University Cookeville, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 29 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $19,231 | 58% | — | 76% |
| 8 | The University of Tennessee - Martin Martin, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 23 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | $25,660 | 53% | — | 88% |
| 9 | Chattanooga State Community College Chattanooga, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 18 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 26% | — | — |
| 10 | East Tennessee State University Johnson City, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 18 | Art/Art Studies, General | $16,696 | 53% | — | 86% |
| 11 | Volunteer State Community College Gallatin, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 16 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 28% | — | — |
| 12 | Lee University Cleveland, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 13 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | $26,598 | 63% | $18,918 | 71% |
| 13 | Belmont University Nashville, TN Private not-for-profit · 2 feeder programs | 12 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 71% | $29,246 | 95% |
| 14 | Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 11 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 94% | $14,854 | 6% |
| 15 | Tennessee State University Nashville, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 9 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 34% | — | 70% |
| 16 | Christian Brothers University Memphis, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 55% | $11,063 | 87% |
| 17 | Freed - Hardeman University Henderson, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 8 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 71% | $19,418 | 60% |
| 18 | The University of the South Sewanee, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 7 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 80% | $21,573 | 57% |
| 19 | Union University Jackson, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 6 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 66% | $25,882 | 60% |
| 20 | Walters State Community College Morristown, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 6 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 33% | — | — |
| 21 | Lipscomb University Nashville, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 72% | $24,309 | 68% |
| 22 | Motlow State Community College Tullahoma, TN Public · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Visual and Performing Arts, General | — | 34% | — | — |
| 23 | Rhodes College Memphis, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 5 | Art/Art Studies, General | — | 85% | $19,854 | 50% |
| 24 | Cumberland University Lebanon, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 4 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 46% | $19,206 | 67% |
| 25 | Maryville College Maryville, TN Private not-for-profit · 1 feeder programs | 3 | Fine/Studio Arts, General | — | 50% | $20,489 | 61% |
All 33 schools in Tennessee
Every school in Tennessee with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.
| School | City | Control | Graduates / yr | Feeder programs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Memphis | Memphis | Public | 84 | 1 |
| The University of Tennessee - Chattanooga | Chattanooga | Public | 74 | 1 |
| Middle Tennessee State University | Murfreesboro | Public | 60 | 1 |
| Austin Peay State University | Clarksville | Public | 49 | 1 |
| The University of Tennessee - Knoxville | Knoxville | Public | 44 | 1 |
| Pellissippi State Community College | Knoxville | Public | 29 | 1 |
| Tennessee Technological University | Cookeville | Public | 29 | 1 |
| The University of Tennessee - Martin | Martin | Public | 23 | 1 |
| Chattanooga State Community College | Chattanooga | Public | 18 | 1 |
| East Tennessee State University | Johnson City | Public | 18 | 1 |
| Volunteer State Community College | Gallatin | Public | 16 | 1 |
| Lee University | Cleveland | Private not-for-profit | 13 | 1 |
| Belmont University | Nashville | Private not-for-profit | 12 | 2 |
| Vanderbilt University | Nashville | Private not-for-profit | 11 | 1 |
| Tennessee State University | Nashville | Public | 9 | 1 |
What fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators earn in Tennessee
What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.
U.S. median $55,490. Tennessee pays below the national figure.
1.00× means the state has its expected share of these jobs.
Job outlook
Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.
Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.
How to get in
The full skills, tools, and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators page.
How to become a Fine Artist
Job zone 3 of 5 · SVP 6.0 to < 7.0- Typical entry education
- Bachelor's degree
- On-the-job training
- Long-term on-the-job training
Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree.
Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.
Top skills
The same job in other states
Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.
Related careers in Tennessee
Every major mapped to this job
The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.
All 12 majors mapped to Fine Artists, Including Painters, Sculptors, and Illustrators12 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
- 50.0101Visual and Performing Arts, General
- 50.0701Art/Art Studies, General
- 50.0702Fine/Studio Arts, General
- 50.0705Drawing
- 50.0706Intermedia/Multimedia
- 50.0708Painting
- 50.0709Sculpture
- 50.0710Printmaking
- 50.0711Ceramic Arts and Ceramics
- 50.0799Fine Arts and Art Studies, Other
- 50.1101Community/Environmental/Socially-Engaged Art
- 51.2703Medical Illustration/Medical Illustrator
Common questions
Answers for people weighing fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators programs in Tennessee.
What degree do you need to become a Fine Artist?+
Bachelor's degree is the typical entry-level education BLS reports for this occupation. The most common program people actually graduate from is Art/Art Studies, General, which awarded 319 degrees in Tennessee in 2024-25, 56.8% of everyone graduating from a program that feeds this career.
Which college majors lead to becoming a Fine Artist?+
The NCES CIP-to-SOC crosswalk maps 4 programs to this occupation. The largest are Fine and Studio Arts, Visual and Performing Arts. Together they graduate about 562 people a year in Tennessee.
How much do fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators earn in Tennessee?+
The median is $30,720 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 44.6% below the U.S. median of $55,490. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.
Is demand for fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators growing?+
BLS projects a -1.2% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, decline, with roughly 2,200 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.
How many schools offer programs for this career in Tennessee?+
33 institutions in Tennessee reported graduates from at least one of the 4 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.
What other job titles do fine artists, including painters, sculptors, and illustrators work under?+
Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Artist, Painter, Sculptor, Fine Artist among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 27-1013.
About the data on this page
Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).
BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics
May 2025Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.
BLS Employment Projections
2024–34Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.
IPEDS Completions
2024-25 (provisional)Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.
College Scorecard, Field of Study
2020-21 cohortsMedian graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.
Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes
latest availableGraduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.
NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk
CIP 2020 / SOC 2018Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.
O*NET Database 30.3
30.3Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.
Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA
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