Best Electrical Engineering Degree Programs in Tennessee in 2026
Tennessee Knoxville and Tennessee Tech offer two different ways to organize advanced electrical study. Knoxville provides an optional Power and Energy Systems concentration alongside its broad electrical core. Tennessee Tech’s standard BSEE separates breadth and depth electives, while its program page also describes a Mechatronics concentration. Our 2026 ranking examines the current campus bachelor’s plans and their admission, project and tuition conditions.
For both programs, a general university admission decision is only part of the academic plan. Knoxville has a separate departmental progression review. Tennessee Tech publishes additional engineering admission conditions and a preparatory Student Success route for qualifying applicants.
Electrical Engineering bachelor’s rankings by state+
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Inside this ranking
How we ranked electrical engineering bachelor’s programs in Tennessee
This selected Tennessee ranking reviews the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Tennessee Technological University in Cookeville. The two campus electrical bachelor’s degrees are evaluated using their current 2026–27 catalog or Fall 2026 degree map, with concentrations distinguished from the standard reviewed plan.
Knoxville leads for its required electrical breadth, power-related study and senior design sequence. Tennessee Tech follows for its clear separation of breadth and depth electives and its three-course circuits/electronics foundation. The editorial order reflects these reviewed curricula; a particular concentration, location or starting pathway may favor either school.
The July 2026 undergraduate budget lists 2026–27 annual base tuition of $11,560 in state or $31,672 out of state, with estimated general fees of $2,464 or $2,806 respectively. Engineering courses add $252 per semester credit; applicable undergraduate natural-science courses add $175 per credit, excluding mathematics. Housing, food, books, other applicable charges and personal expenses are separate. These university budget figures are not a complete electrical-degree price.
Tennessee Knoxville builds its electrical degree around required study in energy-system components, devices, circuits, signals and communications before students choose their senior electives. The 2026–27 catalog places Senior Design Theory and Senior Design Practicum in the final year, alongside twelve electrical elective credits and six broader technical credits. The college also describes a Power and Energy Systems concentration for students interested in generation, distribution and transmission. Its 127–131-credit range reflects the published course alternatives and university requirements. Applicants should evaluate that academic breadth together with the department’s separate, competitive process for progression into upper-division study.
Where it stands out
Knoxville merits attention if you want required energy and communications coursework and the option to organize advanced study around electrical power. Its senior design sequence and approved elective lists provide concrete topics for comparing project preparation, technical depth and possible co-op timing.
What to weigh
Admission to the college does not guarantee departmental upper-division progression, which considers grades, academic progress and available space. The curriculum requires C or better in the specified technical subjects. Engineering and natural-science course differentials are additional to the university’s general tuition and fee estimate, so the actual schedule affects cost.
The 2026–27 plan requires circuits, digital logic, signals and systems, electric energy system components, electronic devices/circuits, fields and communications.
Twelve senior electrical elective credits and six technical elective credits follow separate approval rules.
The college describes an optional Power and Energy Systems concentration addressing generation/distribution, transformers and power transmission.
Areas of focus
Optional Power and Energy Systems concentration
Admission & progression
The college’s standard first-year consideration criteria include its Success Prediction Indicator and a mathematics ACT of 25 or SAT of 590; applicants below those criteria may receive holistic review.
Upper-division progression in the department is competitive and space dependent, with evaluation during ECE 202; students receiving transfer credit for that course have a separate evaluation timetable.
At least C is required in computer engineering, computer science, electrical engineering and mathematics courses used for the degree.
Design & practical experience
Senior Design Theory and Senior Design Practicum provide the required six-credit senior design sequence.
The college describes optional research, co-op and internship opportunities; the individual opportunity and its timing should be discussed with the program.
$6,298 resident tuition and service fees per semester
Cost basis & conditions +
For fall 2026 and spring 2027, the on-campus undergraduate table lists $6,298 in resident tuition/program-service fees at 12 or more credits, or $8,398 for domestic nonresidents. Engineering adds a special academic fee of $42 per credit, capped at $500 per semester for undergraduates. International nonresident charges, summer billing and online-course fees follow separate rules. Course charges and living expenses are additional.
Tennessee Tech’s Fall 2026 electrical degree map makes its advanced study structure easy to identify. Three required circuits and electronics courses lead into microcomputer systems, signals and electromagnetics, while twelve EE breadth credits and six depth credits give students a way to organize their later choices. The 128-credit plan finishes with two capstone design courses. The university separately describes a Mechatronics concentration for students interested in electrical and mechanical systems working together. This review uses the standard campus BSEE plan, allowing applicants to compare the concentration against a clear electrical foundation rather than assume both routes have identical requirements.
Where it stands out
Tennessee Tech suits students who want a visible distinction between broad electrical electives and more focused advanced study. Applicants interested in robotics or embedded controllers can ask how the standard BSEE and optional Mechatronics concentration differ in prerequisites, laboratory work and senior project preparation.
What to weigh
Engineering has additional admission conditions beyond the university’s general routes; the Student Success Program is a preparatory alternative for qualifying applicants. The sample degree map begins with calculus. Tuition and program-service fees also exclude the separate Engineering academic fee, and international nonresident billing differs from the domestic nonresident flat-rate category.
The Fall 2026 degree map requires three circuits/electronics courses, digital systems, microcomputer systems, signals and systems, electromagnetics, programming and data structures.
The plan separates twelve EE breadth elective credits, six EE depth elective credits and career electives.
The program also describes an optional Mechatronics concentration; the reviewed 128-credit plan is the standard electrical engineering route.
Admission & progression
Tennessee Tech publishes general first-year admission routes, with additional requirements for engineering: a 2.85 GPA, ACT composite of 17 and ACT mathematics subscore of 17.
Applicants who meet general university requirements but not the program’s conditions may enter the Student Success Program to prepare for the intended major.
The degree map starts with calculus; an individual mathematics placement and prerequisite review should establish the actual first semester.
Design & practical experience
Capstone Design I and II are required in the senior year of the Fall 2026 map.
Professional Issues in ECE precedes the capstone, and the program connects electrical study with applications such as microgrids, embedded controllers and robotics.
What matters in electrical engineering bachelor’s programs in Tennessee
Advanced course structure
Power-focused study and separately defined breadth/depth electives provide different ways to plan a specialty.
Progression rules
College entry, departmental progression and course prerequisites have different roles in the two programs.
Course-sensitive costs
Engineering charges add to the published university tuition and service-fee categories.
Choose Tennessee electrical engineering depth through the course plan
Knoxville’s 2026–27 catalog requires energy-system components, electronic devices and circuits, signals and systems, fields and communications. Twelve senior electrical elective credits and six broader technical credits follow separate approval rules. The college’s Power and Energy Systems concentration is an option for students who want to investigate generation, distribution, transformers and transmission in more depth.
Tennessee Tech’s Fall 2026 degree map includes three circuits and electronics courses, microcomputer systems and electromagnetics. It then separates twelve electrical breadth credits from six depth credits. Students interested in Mechatronics should compare that concentration with the standard plan, identifying which approved courses and project preparation change. A concentration name alone does not establish that every advanced elective is interchangeable.
Connect admission and progression with the senior design schedule
Knoxville evaluates departmental progression during ECE 202, with a separate timetable for students receiving transfer credit for that course. The review is competitive and considers grades, academic progress and available space. Students who do not progress cannot register for departmental upper-division courses. This matters when estimating how soon a transfer student could reach Senior Design Theory and Senior Design Practicum.
Tennessee Tech’s published engineering admission requirements are additional to the general university routes. The Student Success Program can prepare qualifying applicants for entry into their intended major. Its standard electrical map begins with calculus and places two capstone courses in the senior year. Discuss the actual starting mathematics course before assuming that the eight-semester sample map fits your preparation.
Budget Engineering charges beyond the headline tuition
Knoxville’s 2026–27 undergraduate budget separates annual base tuition from general fees and living costs. Its course-fee guidance adds $252 per engineering credit and $175 per applicable natural-science credit, excluding mathematics. A semester with several laboratory sciences can therefore have a different set of additions from a later semester dominated by engineering electives.
Tennessee Tech publishes a campus flat-rate tuition and program-service category at twelve or more credits, with separate domestic and international nonresident rules. The current Engineering academic fee is $42 per credit, capped at $500 per undergraduate semester. Use the same planned enrollment load and separately awarded aid when comparing the two schools through our engineering cost guide.
Questions, answered
What else should you know?
Which Tennessee electrical engineering degree programs are reviewed?+
This selection covers Tennessee Knoxville and Tennessee Tech in Cookeville. It evaluates their campus electrical bachelor’s plans using current catalog or degree-map evidence, rather than combining bachelor’s and graduate requirements.
Does Knoxville guarantee upper-division electrical study after admission?+
No. The department conducts a separate competitive progression review based on grades, academic progress and available space. The catalog identifies the evaluation point and a separate rule for transfer credit in ECE 202.
How does Tennessee Tech organize advanced electrical electives?+
The Fall 2026 standard BSEE map separates twelve breadth elective credits from six depth elective credits, alongside career and other elective requirements. The program also describes an optional Mechatronics concentration with its own academic planning.
Are Engineering fees included in basic university tuition?+
Both schools identify additional Engineering charges. Knoxville assesses a per-course-credit differential; Tennessee Tech has a per-credit academic fee with an undergraduate semester cap. Other applicable fees and living expenses remain separate.
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