Student Resources
CollegeforTN.org is the State of Tennessee’s online, one-stop shop for career, high school, college, and financial aid exploration and planning. By creating a free account on CollegeforTN.org, students can create academic plans, take career assessments, explore Tennessee postsecondary institutions, and research financial aid opportunities.
FAFSA: Free Application for Federal Student Aid
The official website of the FAFSA and the site where you file your FAFSA or your student's FAFSA.
Federal Student Aid is the official financial aid website of the U.S. Department of Education. The site is full of information for educators and students about filing the FAFSA and using federal aid to pay for college.
CollegePaysTN is the financial aid website for the State of Tennessee. Administered by the Tennessee Student Assistance Corporation, CollegePaysTN has all of the information you need about Tennessee student aid, including state-based scholarships and grants, such as the Tennessee Education Lottery Scholarship (TELS) and the Tennessee Student Assistance Award (TSAA). You can also find the Tennessee Student Financial Aid Portal through College Pays; the Portal is where you can find personalized information about your or your student's financial aid status for state-based funds, such as the Dual Enrollment Grant, the HOPE scholarship, and Tennessee Promise.
Tennessee Promise is a financial aid program offering Tennessee high school graduates two years of tuition-free community or technical college beginning with the Class of 2015. The program provides eligible students a last-dollar scholarship. While removing students’ financial burden is key, a critical component of Tennessee Promise is the individual guidance each participant will receive from a mentor as the student enters higher education. Local partnering organizations will ensure that all Tennessee Promise students have a mentor.
Tennessee Reconnect is the initiative to help adults enter higher education so that they may gain new skills, advance in the workplace, and fulfill lifelong dreams of completing a degree or credential. Through the Tennessee Reconnect grant, adults may attend a Tennessee College of Applied Technology (TCAT) free of tuition and mandatory fees.
Tennessee Transfer Pathways (TTPs) are advising tools designed to help community college students plan for transferring to a Tennessee public university or select regionally accredited, non-profit, Tennessee private colleges and universities to complete their baccalaureate degree. The TTPs also constitute an agreement between community colleges and four-year colleges/universities confirming that community college courses meet major preparation requirements.
The University of Tennessee is one of Tennessee's two statewide systems of public higher education. The University of Tennessee has five campuses across the state, including the University of Tennessee- Knoxville, University of Tennessee- Chattanooga, and the University of Tennessee- Martin.
The Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) is one of Tennessee's two statewide systems of public higher education. TBR governs 6 four-year universities, 13 community colleges, and 27 colleges of applied technology. TBR also has an online course system, the Regents Online Degree Program (RODP).
Tennessee's Community Colleges are public institutions that offer associate degree programs, which typically take two years to complete. Many also offer certificate programs. There are 13 community colleges across the state with over 480 academic programs. Students can participate in the Tennessee Transfer Pathways program, which will allow students to transfer the credits from an associate degree to a public four-year college and have those credits count toward a bachelor's degree.
Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology
The Tennessee Colleges of Applied Technology (TCATs) offer training to help you develop skills that are in demand in the workforce. Students often can complete these programs within four months to two years. Graduates of these programs can receive either a certificate that documents their knowledge or skills in a particular area or they can receive a diploma from the institution. The TCATs offer both full-time day enrollment or evening enrollment and the TCATs offer 60 occupational programs statewide.
Tennessee Independent Colleges and Universities
The Tennessee Independent Colleges and Universities Association (TICUA) works collaboratively with Tennessee's private colleges and universities in areas of public policy, cost containment, and professional development to better serve the state and its citizens. TICUA's 34 member colleges and universities educate nearly 80,000 students from across the state, country, and throughout the world and confer nearly 19,000 degrees a year.