Best Online Liberal Arts Programs in Nashville, TN (2026)

Nashville, Tennessee has 4 accredited schools offering liberal arts programs. Nashville has a population of about 1,065,078. In the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN metro area, the top-earning liberal arts-related role is Management Analyst at a median $102,640 annually (BLS OEWS, May 2025).


Closest Liberal Arts Schools to Nashville

The accredited institutions listed below are the closest in our directory that offer liberal arts programs near Nashville, ranked by BOC Score and straight-line distance from Nashville city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS data on every site update.

How We Rank Schools

Every school list on this site is ordered by the BOC Score, computed from the most recent school-level data published by the U.S. Department of Education (College Scorecard and IPEDS). To qualify, a school must be currently operating and accredited by an agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Each eligible school is then scored on five measures, percentile-ranked against schools at the same credential level:

  • Graduation rate 30%
  • Median earnings, 10 years after entry 25%
  • Average net price (lower is better) 20%
  • Retention rate 15%
  • Fully online availability 10%

Schools without enough outcome data appear after ranked schools, without a score. On this page, schools are ordered by distance from Nashville. Advertising never affects these rankings. Read the full methodology.

#1

Vanderbilt University

Nashville, TN 1.8 miles from Nashville BOC Score 91.4
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 93%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $91,565
Avg net price $15,846/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 96%
  • Programs offered: 49

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

#2

Trevecca Nazarene University

Nashville, TN 8.1 miles from Nashville BOC Score 52.3
  • 4 year
  • Campus + Online
Graduation rate 57%
Median earnings, 10 yrs after entry $49,378
Avg net price $16,813/yr
TuitionContact school for pricing
Contact
Key stats
  • Retention rate: 74%
  • Programs offered: 40

Source:IPEDSCollege Scorecard

Source: IPEDS / College Scorecard (2023 cohort). Browse all Tennessee schools on the Tennessee liberal arts page.


Liberal Arts Wages Near Nashville

Nashville is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN metro area (BLS area code 34980). Where MSA-level wages are published, the table below shows MSA medians; otherwise it falls back to Tennessee statewide.

OccupationMedian WageSourceCOL-Adjusted (US=100)
Public Relations Specialist$62,870Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN$65,286
Management Analyst$102,640Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN$106,584
Technical Writer$79,550Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN$82,606
News Analyst, Reporter, or Journalist$62,770Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN$65,182
Editor$64,250Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN$66,719
Training and Development Specialist$66,130Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN$68,671
Human Resources Specialist$67,380Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN$69,969

Source: BLS, May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes wage data at the metro (MSA) and state level – not by individual city.


Nashville at a Glance

MetricValueSource
Regional Price Parity (US=100)96.3 (below U.S. average)BEA RPP 2024
Liberal Arts-related employment in Davidson County9,478 workers, 1,070 establishmentsBLS QCEW 2024 annual

Other Nashville-Area Cities With Liberal Arts Programs


Frequently Asked Questions

How many accredited liberal arts schools are near Nashville, TN?

Accredited schools offering liberal arts programs near Nashville are listed on this page, ranked by BOC Score and distance from the city center. The list is rebuilt from federal IPEDS and College Scorecard data on every site update, so it stays current as programs open and close.

What are the highest-paying liberal arts roles near Nashville?

Based on BLS OEWS May 2025 wage data, the top-paying liberal arts-related roles near Nashville are: Management Analyst ($102,640), Technical Writer ($79,550), Human Resources Specialist ($67,380). These reflect MSA-level medians where published, with Tennessee statewide fallback for occupations not reported at the metro level.

Should I look at programs in Brentwood instead of Nashville?

Brentwood, TN is 12.4 miles from Nashville and has its own set of local liberal arts programs – see the city’s page. For online programs, distance matters less; for hybrid or in-person formats, comparing both can help.

How do I verify a program is accredited?

Confirm institutional accreditation via the U.S. Department of Education database (U.S. Dept. of Education database), and check for any program-specific accreditation listed by the school.


Learn More About Liberal Arts Programs

Other Programs Available in Nashville

Compare every accredited online degree program with city-level data for Nashville:

Data verified: July 23, 2026. Salary, employment, and tuition figures on this page are sourced from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OEWS May 2025; Employment Projections 2024โ€“2034) and the U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard (2023 cohort). The source agency and data year are cited inline with every statistic.