Head-to-head comparison
Southwest Tennessee Community College vs Brillare Beauty Institute: which has better ROI?
Option A Memphis, TN
Southwest Tennessee Community College
- Net price / year
- $4,754
- Earnings, 10 years
- $34,071
- Payback
- No payback
Option B Cleveland, TN
Brillare Beauty Institute
- Net price / year
- $17,894
- Earnings, 10 years
- $24,728
- Payback
- No payback
Neither clears its cost on institution-wide earnings, but Southwest Tennessee Community College comes closer — median earnings $34,071 against a $9,508 total, vs $24,728 at Brillare Beauty Institute. (Scorecard, 2026 · our math.)
| Measure | Southwest Tennessee Community College | Brillare Beauty Institute |
|---|---|---|
| Net price / yr | $4,754 | $17,894 |
| Total net cost | $9,508 | $71,576 |
| Median earnings, 10 yrs | $34,071 | $24,728 |
| Median debt | — | $7,479 |
| Payback | — | — |
| 20-year net return | -$295,288 | -$544,216 |
College Scorecard (2026), institution-level · payback and returns are our math. Figures blend all majors.
The short answer
Which is cheaper, Southwest Tennessee Community College or Brillare Beauty Institute?
Southwest Tennessee Community College, at $4,754 a year after aid versus $17,894 — a gap of $13,140 a year, or $62,068 across the full degree. These are net prices after grants and scholarships, not sticker prices, so they reflect what an aided student pays.
The short answer
Do Southwest Tennessee Community College or Brillare Beauty Institute graduates earn more?
Southwest Tennessee Community College graduates report a median $34,071 ten years after entry, $9,343 more than the $24,728 at Brillare Beauty Institute. Both are institution-wide medians from federal tax records, so a high-paying major at the lower school can beat the average at the higher one.
The short answer
Which graduates more of its students?
84% of students finish at Brillare Beauty Institute, against 19% at Southwest Tennessee Community College. Completion matters to the ROI arithmetic because a degree that is never finished still carries its cost and its debt, but earns none of the graduate premium above the $48,360 high-school baseline.