The University of Tennessee Knoxville

UT Knoxville, which includes the UT Space Institute and the UT Institute of Agriculture, serves the state by educating its citizens, enhancing its culture, and making a difference in people’s lives through research and service.

We embody excellence in teaching, research, scholarship, creative activity, outreach, and engagement.

Mission

The primary mission of the University of Tennessee is to move forward the frontiers of human knowledge and enrich and elevate the citizens of the state of Tennessee, the nation, and the world. As the preeminent research-based land-grant university in the state, UT embodies the spirit of excellence in teaching, research, scholarship, creative activity, outreach, and engagement attained by the nation’s finest public research institutions.

UT’s Carnegie Classification is a very high research activity (Doctoral Universities R1 category). Most undergraduates are full-time, and admission is selective with a fairly low transfer-in rate. Admission to graduate and professional programs is also competitive. Graduate offerings include master’s, doctoral, and professional programs that focus both on research and practice. Nationally ranked programs, as well as our partnerships with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, are among UT’s unique characteristics.

Vision

We seek to establish the University of Tennessee as a top-tier public research university. Inherent in this vision is an acknowledgment that UT is currently a premier institution. Our vision reflects a desire to contribute to the legacy of the university and its longstanding tradition of excellence. Our journey embraces our Volunteer identity and builds on the strengths that differentiate us from our peers. Our success will depend on a sustained commitment to improvement as part of our culture.

Create Your Own Path

Study what you love while working alongside expert faculty in a supportive atmosphere emphasizing hands-on research and service-learning.

• Explore 360+ majors and programs of study
• Discover graduate degrees and programs
• Dig deeper with research opportunities
• Challenge yourself with honors programs

Become a part of the Volunteer family with a global network of 260,000+ alumni ready to make connections and open doors for students and new graduates.

Invest In Your Future

Guided by our mission of making sure education is within reach, we are committed to investing in your future too.

92% of first-year students receive financial aid and scholarships

$73M in institutional scholarships awarded annually

• Get a Personalized Cost Estimate
• Explore Financial Aid and Scholarships

Accreditation

Since 1897, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, has been continuously accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral degrees.

First-Year Students

Application Checklist

You will need the following items in order to complete your application:

Required

• Go Vols application or the Common Application
• Completed Self-Reported Academic Record
• $50 application fee. If you would like to request a waiver, please submit the fee waiver request form
• One required essay—choose one of seven prompts

Optional

• Standardized test scores
• Recommendation letters (academic, professional, or personal)
• Supporting statement
• Additional Application Requirements for Certain Programs

Additional requirements are needed to review your application if you are interested in the following programs:

• College of Architecture and Design
• College of Nursing
• Pre-Pharmacy Direct Admit Program
• School of Music
• Tickle College of Engineering

Core GPA

UT calculates a weighted core GPA based on your grades in the courses listed below. Completion of all sixteen core courses is not required for admission but is strongly encouraged.

In the core academic subjects, your GPA will be weighted by UT to reflect honors courses (0.5 quality points added), Advanced Placement (AP), Cambridge AS and A Level, International Baccalaureate (IB), and dual enrollment courses (1.0 quality points added). UT calculates your GPA on a 4-point scale. UT will use unweighted high school course grades as the basis for adding these weightings for the UT core GPA calculation. If you attend a high school that does not weigh courses, UT will also not weigh them. However, the academic rigor of your curriculum is important and will be valued by our admissions review team.

Core Academic Subjects

• 4 English
• 4 Math (algebra, geometry, trigonometry, calculus, statistics, or other advanced math)
• 3 Science (biology, chemistry, physics, or other science)
• 1 American history
• 1 European history, world history, or world geography
• 2 Single foreign language (or ASL)
• 1 Visual or performing arts

Final High School Transcripts

Have your high school or college send us final transcripts after confirming your enrollment electronically (Slate.org) or by mail to:

The University of Tennessee

Office of Undergraduate Admissions

320 Student Services Building

Knoxville, TN 37996-0230

If you have completed any high school or college academic work outside the United States, it may be necessary to have a third-party company evaluate your transcript.

International Students

Application Checklist

An international student is someone who will attend college in the United States on a visa (including F-1, H-4, L-2). You will need the following items in order to complete your application:

Note: If you are an international student coming to UT on an exchange program (J-1 visa), your application process is different from the steps below. Please visit the Programs Abroad website for your requirements.

Required

• Go Vols application or the Common Application
• $50 application fee (Fee waivers are not available to international applicants.)
• Official transcript(s)
• English proficiency
• Self-Reported Academic Record (SRAR) if you attend a high school in the United States

Optional

• Recommendation letters (academic, professional, or personal)
• Supporting statement

Additional Application Requirements for Certain Programs

Additional requirements are necessary in order to review your application if you are interested in the following programs:

• College of Architecture and Design
• College of Nursing
• Pre-Pharmacy Direct Admit Program
• School of Music
• Tickle College of Engineering

Official Transcripts

Request your high school or college to send us official transcripts electronically (PDF) or by mail to:

The University of Tennessee

Office of Undergraduate Admissions

320 Student Services Building

Knoxville, TN 37996-0230

USA

If you have completed any high school academic work outside the United States, we will calculate an academic core grade point average based on years 9, 10, 11, and any part of year 12 that you have completed. Your submitted transcript of academic work must also have a certified literal translation into English for any documents submitted in other languages.

If you have completed any college coursework outside the United States, you must have a course-by-course evaluation of your transcript by one of these companies. UT will only be able to process an application after receiving the necessary report from the evaluation company.

Companies offering evaluation services include:

• Academic Evaluation Services
• Educational Credential Evaluators
• International Education Research Foundation
• Josef Silny & Associates Inc.
• SpanTran: The Evaluation Company
• Scholaro
• World Education Services Inc. (WES)

Demonstrate English Proficiency

Unless you are a US citizen, permanent resident, or a graduate of a high school, college, or university in the United States, applicants must demonstrate English proficiency by:

• Providing proof of citizenship of a country from the approved list of official English language nations.
• Providing an official high school, college, or university transcript validating English was the language of instruction.
• Receiving a TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) score of 523 on the paper-based test or 70 on the Internet-based (iBT). UT’s code is 1843.
• Receiving an IELTS (International English Language Testing System) minimum score of 6.5.
• Taking the ACT (English score of 21 is required) or SAT (evidence-based reading and writing score of 540 is required). Scores must be received from the ACT or the Educational Testing Service. Copies are not acceptable. UT’s ACT code is 4026 and SAT code is 1843.
• Completing the ELS 112 intensive program.
• Completing the UT English Language Institute’s (ELI) core intensive curriculum with a recommendation from the ELI faculty.

Visa Application

Before entering the United States, an international student or scholar must have a passport issued by their government. The person must also apply for a US entry visa at a US embassy or consulate to enter the United States. Canadian citizens are not required to have US visas inside their passports (see below). The visa application will require, among other things, a visa document (Form I-20 or DS-2019) issued by ISSS and documents showing financial support while at the University of Tennessee.

We recommend that students and scholars apply for a visa at the US consulate or embassy in their home country. Most consulates require a personal interview with a consular officer, as well as a collection of biometric identifiers (fingerprints and digital photographs). Visa applicants are advised to check with the consulate or embassy where they are applying to determine the current application and documentation requirements, as well as processing times.

After receiving the visa stamp, the student or scholar should check to make sure that all the information printed on the visa is correct. Visas with incorrect information or visas that do not match the information in the passport are invalid. In this case, the student or scholar should immediately contact the issuing US embassy or consulate to amend the information.

Canadian citizens do not need US visas and may obtain the appropriate visa status at the port of entry when they enter the United States by showing a Canadian passport, the visa document (Form I-20 or DS-2019), proof of financial support, and the receipt of SEVIS fee payment. An I-94 card upon entry to the US is still required for holding F or J status.

Background and security checks

Consulates and embassies are required to conduct background checks on individuals, resulting in possible delays in visa issuance. Background/security checks can be triggered by, but are not limited to, the field of study, certain courses that appear on academic transcripts, or prior arrests in the United States. Background/security checks normally take several weeks and sometimes take up to several months or possibly even longer.

Applying for a visa in a third country

Those who apply for a visa stamp in a country other than their own, including Canada and Mexico, will not be allowed to re-enter the US on an expired visa stamp if the new visa is not approved by that US consulate. If a visa application is denied, the person must depart directly to their home country and apply for a new visa to re-enter the US.

Returning students and scholars are strongly advised to talk to an advisor at CGE before making the decision to apply for a visa in a country other than their own.