PMHNP Programs in Tennessee
Tennessee has 6 verified, in-state PMHNP programs, including strong academic medical centers in Nashville and Memphis. It also has the lowest nurse practitioner wages and the most compressed pay ceiling of any state in this guide. Both facts belong in the same decision, so here are the verified programs, the licensure rules, and the pay data without the gloss.
The short version
Tennessee has 6 verified, in-state PMHNP programs, listed below from our canonical dataset with sourced accreditation, credits, clinical hours and cost.
Tennessee is a restricted-practice state: NPs practice under physician supervision and face Schedule II–IV prescribing limits unless authorized by formulary or after physician consultation. For psychiatric prescribing specifically, those controlled-substance limits are not a footnote.
The statewide NP wage is $117,590 (BLS OEWS, May 2025) — about $14,700 below the $132,300 national median, and the lowest of the major Southern states we cover.
The ceiling is unusually low too. Tennessee's 90th percentile is $137,880 against a national 90th of $174,420 — a gap of about $36,500. Experience buys less additional pay here than almost anywhere else.
Because clinical training transfers but wages do not, this is a state where it is worth comparing the national online field and considering where you intend to practice, not just study.
Tennessee trains psychiatric nurse practitioners well. Vanderbilt and the University of Tennessee Health Science Center are serious academic centers, and the 6 verified in-state programs cover master's, doctoral and certificate routes. The training is not the problem.
The pay is. Tennessee's nurse practitioner wages sit materially below the national market at every point in the distribution — the 10th percentile is $82,790, the median is $117,590, and the 90th percentile stops at $137,880. That last figure is the striking one: in most states an experienced, well-placed NP can reach into the $170,000s, and in Tennessee the top decile does not clear $140,000. The state's mean wage ($115,510) sitting below its median is another signal of a compressed, low-spread market.
None of that argues against training here. It argues for being deliberate about where you practice afterwards, and for treating the licensure constraints below — particularly the controlled-substance limits, which bite hardest in psychiatry — as part of the same calculation. The verified programs are listed below.
The 6 verified psychiatric nurse practitioner (PMHNP) programs based in Tennessee
University of Tennessee Health Science Center
Memphis, TN
University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Knoxville, TN
Union University
Jackson, TN
Vanderbilt University School of Nursing
Nashville, TN
East Tennessee State University College of Nursing
Johnson City, TN
Vanderbilt University School of Nursing
Nashville, TN
Accredited online psychiatric nurse practitioner (PMHNP) programs Tennessee residents can do
Most PMHNP study is online. These verified, accredited programs enroll students from most states and let you complete the supervised clinical hours near you. Online programs set their own state authorization, so confirm each one admits Tennessee residents before you apply.
California State University, Fresno
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageDrexel University College of Nursing and Health Professions
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 640 clinical hrs
Program pageFairleigh Dickinson University Henry P. Becton School of Nursing and Allied Health
ACEN-accredited · MSN · 750 clinical hrs
Program pageGeorgia Southern University School of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · BSN-to-DNP · 630 clinical hrs
Program pageGeorgia State University Byrdine F. Lewis College of Nursing and Health Professions
CCNE-accredited · MSN · 500 clinical hrs
Program pageHerzing University
CCNE-accredited · MSN / post-master's certificate · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageJohns Hopkins University School of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 500 clinical hrs
Program pageLa Salle University School of Nursing and Health Sciences
CCNE-accredited · MSN · 692 clinical hrs
Program pageLewis University College of Nursing and Health Sciences
CCNE-accredited · MSN · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageNorthern Kentucky University School of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · MSN · 750 clinical hrs
Program pageRadford University School of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageRocky Mountain University of Health Professions
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate · 540 clinical hrs
Program pageSimmons University
CCNE-accredited · MSN / post-master's certificate · 756 clinical hrs
Program pageUniversity of Cincinnati College of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · post-master's certificate
Program pageUniversity of South Alabama College of Nursing
CCNE-accredited · MSN / post-master's certificate · 600 clinical hrs
Program pageConfirm current state authorization with each program. For the full comparison of these programs, see our online PMHNP ranking.
How to become a PMHNP in Tennessee
The path to becoming a psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioner in Tennessee is the same graduate-nursing route used nationwide, with one local variable: your APRN license and prescriptive authority come from the Tennessee Board of Nursing. Here are the five steps.
- 01
Earn a BSN and an RN license
Most PMHNP programs admit Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) graduates who hold an active RN license. If you start with an associate degree or a non-nursing bachelor's, bridge programs exist. You'll practice on a Tennessee RN license while you complete graduate school.
- 02
Enroll in an accredited PMHNP program
Choose an MSN or a BSN-to-DNP with a PMHNP focus. The degree must hold CCNE or ACEN accreditation, or it won't qualify you for the certification exam. Tennessee has 6 verified in-state programs (listed above), and 46 accredited online programs also enroll Tennessee residents.
- 03
Complete a minimum of 500 supervised clinical hours
The ANCC requires at least 500 faculty-supervised clinical hours, and many programs require 600 to 750. Securing local clinical placements is the biggest practical hurdle, so confirm whether a program arranges your preceptors before you enroll.
- 04
Pass the ANCC PMHNP-BC certification exam
The ANCC PMHNP-BC first-time pass rate was 83% in 2024 and 82% in 2025. Either the ANCC exam or the newer AANPCB PMHNP exam qualifies you for state licensure; ANCC's PMHNP-BC is the one most employers list by name.
- 05
Get Tennessee APRN licensure and DEA registration
The Tennessee Board of Nursing issues your APRN license and prescriptive authority once you're certified, and a federal DEA registration lets you prescribe controlled substances. Practice authority varies by state, so confirm current Tennessee requirements with the board before you enroll.
For the full national pathway, including itemized cost, timeline, and program selection advice, see our complete guide on how to become a PMHNP.
Tennessee NP licensure and prescribing limits
Tennessee licenses advanced practice nurses through the Tennessee Board of Nursing, on top of national PMHNP-BC certification. The state is classified restricted practice, meaning career-long physician supervision rather than a relationship you can graduate out of.
The detail that matters most for psychiatric practice is prescribing. Tennessee imposes limits on Schedule II–IV prescribing unless the prescription is authorized by formulary or follows physician consultation. Psychiatric-mental health practice leans on exactly those schedules — stimulants for ADHD, benzodiazepines, and several agents used in substance use treatment — so this constraint shapes day-to-day practice more directly for a PMHNP than it would for, say, a family NP.
Practically: ask any prospective employer how the formulary and consultation requirements are handled in their setting before you accept a role. The answer varies a great deal between a large academic system and a small outpatient practice.
What the state requires
- Active Tennessee RN license (or a multistate compact license)
- Graduate PMHNP degree from a CCNE- or ACEN-accredited program
- National PMHNP-BC certification (ANCC)
- APRN certificate of fitness from the Tennessee Board of Nursing
- A collaborating physician relationship (required under restricted practice)
- Schedule II–IV prescribing subject to formulary authorization or physician consultation
- DEA registration to prescribe controlled substances
State board: Tennessee Board of Nursing
PMHNP pay in Tennessee
Tennessee's statewide NP wage is $117,590 per BLS OEWS (May 2025), across 12,150 nurse practitioners. That is roughly $14,700 below the $132,300 national NP median.
The spread tells you more than the median. Tennessee's quartiles run $102,640 to $130,330, the 10th percentile is $82,790, and the 90th percentile is $137,880. Set that against the national 90th percentile of $174,420 and the picture is clear: the Tennessee market is compressed at both ends, and the usual reward for seniority is muted. The state mean of $115,510 falling below the median is consistent with that — there is no long upper tail pulling the average up.
Cost of living offsets part of this, and Tennessee has no state income tax on wages, which closes some of the gap in real terms. But it does not close a $36,500 difference at the top decile. If long-run earnings are a priority, this is a state where telehealth across state lines, or practicing in a neighbouring market, deserves a serious look. BLS does not publish a separate psychiatric-mental health NP wage; that specialty pays above the NP average nationally. See our PMHNP salary guide.
The Tennessee PMHNP job market
Tennessee's demand is real even where its wages are not competitive: the state has significant rural mental health provider shortages alongside two substantial urban markets in Nashville and Memphis, and a well-documented burden of substance use disorder that drives demand for psychiatric prescribers specifically. The BLS projects nurse practitioner employment to grow about 40% from 2024 to 2034 nationally; a Tennessee-specific projection is not separately verified here. The tension worth naming is that the roles hardest to fill — rural, community, substance-use focused — are also the ones where the Schedule II–IV consultation requirement is most awkward to satisfy.
- Community mental health centers and FQHCs in Tennessee often qualify for the federal NHSC Loan Repayment Program, which is particularly relevant given the state's rural shortage designations.
Choosing a PMHNP program from Tennessee
With 6 verified in-state programs plus the national online field, the Tennessee shortlist is manageable. A few factors carry more weight here than elsewhere:
- Be explicit with yourself about where you plan to practice. Tennessee training is portable; Tennessee wages are not, and the gap at the top of the distribution is large.
- Ask who arranges your clinical placement. School-arranged placement is a real advantage; student-arranged means sourcing your own Tennessee preceptor.
- Ask specifically how a program prepares you for Schedule II–IV prescribing under Tennessee's consultation and formulary rules — it is a bigger part of psychiatric practice than of most specialties.
- Given the wage ceiling, be skeptical of high-cost private programs here — the Tennessee market may not repay the debt as quickly as the same degree would elsewhere.
- Decide between an MSN, a BSN-to-DNP and a post-master's route — see our MSN PMHNP ranking and post-master's certificate ranking.
- Compare against the national online field in our online PMHNP ranking.
Keep researching
Best Online PMHNP Programs
The full national field of accredited online options.
Post-Master's PMHNP Certificates
The certificate route for nurses who already hold a graduate degree.
PMHNP Programs by State
Browse every state's verified programs.
How to Become a PMHNP
The pathway, certification, and clinical-hour requirement.
PMHNP Salary Guide
What psychiatric NPs earn by state, experience, and setting.
Best PMHNP Programs
The flagship ranking across every format.
Questions, answered
How many PMHNP programs are in Tennessee?+
How much do PMHNPs make in Tennessee?+
Can nurse practitioners practice independently in Tennessee?+
Can a PMHNP prescribe controlled substances in Tennessee?+
Can I do a PMHNP online in Tennessee?+
Program details and figures trace to primary sources; gaps are labeled, not estimated.
- [1] U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OEWS: Nurse Practitioners (29-1171), national and state wages (May 2025)
- [2] U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook: Nurse Practitioners
- [3] AANP, State Practice Environment (Tennessee: restricted practice)
- [4] AANP State Policy Fact Sheet — Tennessee (Oct 2025)
- [5] Tennessee Board of Nursing