Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration, Nursing Research and Clinical Nursing at Lee University

Lee University's nursing program sits in an unusual position: it underperforms the national average for nursing BSN programs by about $7,000 annually, yet beats Tennessee's median by roughly $800. That 60th percentile state ranking suggests Lee is doing respectably within a state where nursing salaries generally run below the national norm.

The debt picture requires nuance. At $25,300, graduates borrow slightly less than both state and national medians, yielding a manageable 0.37 debt-to-earnings ratio. That means a typical graduate owes about 4.5 months of first-year salary—well within the range where nursing income can comfortably handle loan payments. However, Lee's graduates are trailing higher-performing Tennessee programs by $6,000-$14,000 annually, which compounds over a career despite the modest debt advantage.

For families prioritizing staying in Tennessee, Lee delivers adequate preparation at a reasonable cost. But if your student can access programs like Baptist Health Sciences or University of Memphis—both offering $7,000+ higher starting salaries with similar debt levels—those represent stronger returns. The moderate sample size suggests this data is reasonably reliable, making this a solid fallback option rather than a destination program for nursing in Tennessee.