Public · Community college
Southwest Tennessee Community College
Memphis, Tennessee · Large city
- 16%
- Transfer rate
- $4,754
- Avg net price
- 19%
- Grad / completion
- $34,071
- Median earnings
Southwest Tennessee Community College is a public associate-granting institution in Memphis, Tennessee (large city setting), enrolling 5,047 undergraduates. Admission is open to all applicants.
About Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Occupying a substantial bluff rising from the Mississippi River, the site of Memphis has been a natural location for human settlement by varying indigenous cultures over thousands of years. One of the largest celebrations of the city is Memphis in May. The month-long series of events promotes Memphis's heritage and outreach of its people far beyond the city's borders. (Wikipedia)
- Setting
- Large city
- Highest degree offered
- Associate
- Nearest big city
- 10 miles to Memphis, TN
- To the ocean
- 324 miles
- Nearest airport
- 10 miles to Memphis (MEM) · major hub
How Southwest Tennessee Community College compares
Higher than 4% · #79 of 81 in Tennessee
Higher than 8%
Higher than 46% · #38 of 70 in Tennessee
Cheaper than 92% · #6 cheapest of 82 in Tennessee
Lower than 29%
Larger than 91%
Percentiles compare Southwest Tennessee Community College with the nation's 3,519 two-year and certificate schools, among schools reporting each statistic. State ranks count two-year and certificate schools in Tennessee.
Student body
Undergraduates by gender
- Women3,14762%
- Men1,90038%
Undergraduates by race / ethnicity
- White20%
- Black63%
- Hispanic9.7%
- Asian2.0%
- Other or multiracial5.0%
Graduate gender splits aren't published in this data, so the gender chart covers undergraduates only.
By the numbers
- Undergraduate enrollment
- 5,047
- Student–faculty ratio
- 20 : 1
- Pell Grant recipients
- 41%
- First-generation students
- 46%
- Students over 25
- 29%
- Median family income
- $17,120
- Avg faculty salary (academic year)
- $61,866
- Endowment
- $2,151,678
Colleges don't publish true class-size data; student–faculty ratio (IPEDS) is the closest public measure of it.
Where students come from
Home state of the 1,303 first-year students who entered in fall 2023.
- From Tennessee96%
- Other U.S. states4.3%
Most first-years stay in state — Southwest Tennessee Community College draws overwhelmingly from Tennessee.
Out-of-state students usually pay a higher tuition rate at public schools — check the cost card above for your bracket. Source: IPEDS residence & migration, fall 2023 entering class.
Cost
- In-state tuition
- $4,778
- Out-of-state tuition
- $17,750
- Room & board
- —
- Books & supplies
- $1,545
- Total cost of attendance
- $12,999
- Average net price
- $4,754
Net price is the total cost minus grants and scholarships — what students actually pay. It varies sharply by family income; see the breakdown below.
Outcomes
- Graduated
- 19%
- First-year retention
- 46%
- Transferred to another college
- 16%
- Median earnings, 6 years after entry
- $30,317
- Median earnings, 10 years after entry
- $34,071
- Median debt at graduation
- —
- Students with federal loans
- 0%
Graduating on time
By student background (4 years)
When these bars run close together, students from every background tend to finish at similar rates — a sign the school supports the ~30% who are first-gen or low-income.
Campus life & athletics
- On-campus housing
- No
- Application fee
- Free
- Athletics
- NJCAA Division I
- Varsity athletes
- 87 (46 men · 41 women)
Housing and fees: IPEDS 2023–24. Athletics rosters: Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25. Dorm capacity can include graduate and family housing, so the share of undergrads can top 100%.
Varsity sports (4)
Athlete counts per sport, Equity in Athletics data, 2024–25.
Campus safety
- Safety grade
- A
- Reported offenses per 1,000 students
- 0.4 / year
- Violent offenses (2022–2024)
- 2
- Property offenses (2022–2024)
- 7
On-campus criminal offenses reported under the Clery Act, 2022–2024, across 6 campuses (7,004 students). Counts reflect reports, not convictions — schools with strong reporting cultures often show more, so a higher count doesn't simply mean a more dangerous campus.
Reported offenses in an average year
The same 2022–2024 Clery Act reports, divided down to one year.
By offense type, per year
Averages, not a forecast — a single year can run well above or below this. Bars are scaled against this campus's most-reported offense, so they compare types here rather than against other schools.
What you'll actually pay, by family income
Average net price (total cost minus grants and scholarships) paid by aided students in each family-income band.
College Scorecard / IPEDS, most recent year. Family income is total household income; net price covers tuition, fees, room, board and supplies after grant aid, for students receiving federal aid.
Does the school pay you to attend?
Grant aid from the school's own funds — the discount off sticker, on top of any federal or state help.
Modest institutional aid: 5% of freshmen get a grant from the school, averaging $7,532. Most of what lowers the price here is federal or state money, not the school's own funds.
Blends need-based and merit aid — IPEDS doesn't split the two, so a high number can mean generous merit scholarships, deep need-based aid, or both. Figures cover 1,012 full-time first-year undergraduates, 2022–23. Source: IPEDS Student Financial Aid.
Is it worth it?
A rough return-on-investment read from what graduates earn versus what they borrow.
- Median earnings (10 years)
- $34,071
- Typical debt at graduation
- —
- Debt vs. one year's pay
- —
- Out-earn a HS grad
- 33%
The payoff is less clear-cut here — weigh the debt against the earnings and your intended field before borrowing heavily.
Earnings are the College Scorecard median for former students (working, not enrolled) 10 years after entry — not a guarantee, and they vary a lot by major. Debt is the median federal loan balance at graduation.
The pay gap here
Median earnings 10 years after entry, split by gender.
Men out-earn women by $4,735 (14%) a decade out.
Federal figures for former students working and not enrolled, 10 years after they first entered. A gap this wide usually reflects which majors men and women here tend to choose — not different pay for the same job.
Campus climate
- Summer high
- 91°F
- Winter low
- 30°F
- Annual rain
- 57.2″
- Annual snow
- 2.8″
Average temperature
HighLowAverage precipitation (inches)
NOAA 1991–2020 climate normals, Memphis Wfo, TN US station (4.2 mi from campus).
What Southwest Tennessee Community College graduates study — and earn
Median earnings of this school's own graduates 1 and 5 years after finishing each program, and median federal-loan debt at completion (College Scorecard). Small programs are privacy-suppressed (—). Click a major to compare colleges nationally.
Colleges similar to Southwest Tennessee Community College
Schools with a comparable profile — size, selectivity, cost, and graduate outcomes. Compare Southwest Tennessee Community College side by side →
Chattanooga State Community College
Chattanooga, Tennessee · Midsize city · 6 mi to Chattanooga
- Students
- 5,284
- Tuition
- $5k
- Transfer
- 14%
- Earnings
- $38k
Walters State Community College
Morristown, Tennessee · Small city · 41 mi to Knoxville
- Students
- 3,591
- Tuition
- $5k
- Transfer
- 11%
- Earnings
- $37k
Northeast State Community College
Blountville, Tennessee · Fringe rural · 62 mi to Asheville
- Students
- 4,404
- Tuition
- $5k
- Transfer
- 9%
- Earnings
- $35k
Pellissippi State Community College
Knoxville, Tennessee · Large suburb · 14 mi to Knoxville
- Students
- 6,715
- Tuition
- $5k
- Transfer
- 22%
- Earnings
- $38k
Jackson State Community College
Jackson, Tennessee · Small city · 79 mi to Memphis
- Students
- 2,511
- Tuition
- $5k
- Transfer
- 13%
- Earnings
- $35k
Nashville State Community College
Nashville, Tennessee · Large city · 5 mi to Nashville
- Students
- 5,653
- Tuition
- $5k
- Transfer
- 15%
- Earnings
- $39k
Colleges near Southwest Tennessee Community College
Concorde Career College-Memphis
Memphis, TN · Private for-profit · Certificate · 517 students
Empire Beauty School-E Memphis
Memphis, TN · Private for-profit · Certificate · 156 students
Gould's Academy
Memphis, TN · Private for-profit · Certificate · 148 students
University of Memphis
Memphis, TN · Public · Bachelor's · 12,701 students
Gould's Academy
Bartlett, TN · Private for-profit · Certificate · 135 students
Paul Mitchell the School-Memphis
Memphis, TN · Private for-profit · Certificate · 216 students
Strayer University-Tennessee
Nashville, TN · Private for-profit · Bachelor's · 1,784 students
Memphis Theological Seminary
Memphis, TN · Private nonprofit · Graduate
Source: US Department of Education College Scorecard (most recent cohorts), IPEDS institutional characteristics, Equity in Athletics (EADA) data, Clery Act Campus Safety and Security data, and NOAA US Climate Normals. Distances are straight-line from campus coordinates. Percentiles compare schools of the same level (four-year vs. two-year) that report each statistic.












