South College
For-profit College in Knoxville, TN. Six-year graduation rate 71%. Median 10-year earnings $36,642.
Ten-year median earnings of $36,642 are on the low side, which raises the bar for what this degree needs to cost. Completion is a strength: 71% of students finish within six years. Graduates carry a median of $18,668 in debt — in line with the national norm.
Earnings: College Scorecard, median ten years after entry across students who received federal aid — completers and non-completers alike.
- ✓ 3-year loan default 0.0% — below national benchmark
Academics
A 71% six-year graduation rate is the strongest academic signal on this page. Retention is weak: only 52% of full-time first-years return, so roughly one in two leave after one year. A 25:1 ratio means students need to be deliberate about getting faculty time. As a for-profit four-year institution, outcomes here deserve a harder look than the sector average suggests: for-profit institutions vary enormously, and the sector's aggregate numbers hide both strong and very weak performers. The undergraduate population is 6,406 — big enough for a real range of programs, small enough to navigate.
Financial Aid
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · grant and loan rates against 6,323 degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates
Average net price after grant aid is $17,588 a year — mid-range for a four-year institution. The gap between the $0–30k and $110k+ bands is narrow ($16,820 versus $23,053), meaning aid is not strongly need-weighted. About 66% get grants averaging $8,803, so plan on the possibility of paying closer to full price. 63% of students borrow federally, so debt is the norm rather than the exception.
Entering first-year students
A different, smaller group than the rates above: full-time students in their first year of college anywhere. The grant series here also excludes the "other sources" counted in the all-undergraduate figure, so the two are not comparable.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24 · 632 students
Net price by family income
The same students as the headline above, limited to those who received Title IV federal aid — a narrower group, with a lower overall average. IPEDS publishes no combined figure across these bands, so they should not be averaged into one.
| Family income band | Average net price |
|---|---|
| $0–30k | $16,820 |
| $30–48k | $17,983 |
| $48–75k | $18,964 |
| $75–110k | $22,710 |
| $110k+ | $23,053 |
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Federal student loans went to 4,002 of these 6,323 students, totalling $36,682,332 — an average of $9,166 each.
IPEDS Student Financial Aid · 2023-24
Local housing costs
Typical rents near campus (Knox County) — budget these against any cost-of-attendance housing estimate.
HUD Fair Market Rents (40th-percentile gross rent incl. utilities) · FY2026
Veterans & GI Bill
VA GI Bill Comparison Tool (Veterans Affairs GIDS)