Education for the Future Dietitian Lesson

Apple Diet Image For a Dietitian or licensed Nutritionist, education is important. Many colleges and universities offer appropriate programs; however, only a few institutions per state offer the licensing (a permit from an authority that an individual can perform a certain job, do a particular tong, etc.) needed to work in today's field. Thirty-three of the forty-six states that require governing of this field require a license to work as a dietitian. The other states require a certificate or a registration process.

Qualifications differ from state to state. Most programs require at least a bachelor's degree (an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years) and then another internship or further education. Many of these students will need an undergraduate degree in dietetics, food and nutrition or another food service related field. They will study many different subjects but most of the course material will focus on food, nutrition, institution management, chemistry, biochemistry, biology, microbiology, and physiology. It is important that the student has a good science background so he/she can understand how food affects the human body.

Here is a sample of the classes a student may be required to take. The first 2 years of core classes is not included in this schedule (from the University of GA).

Sample Schedule at the University of Georgia
Fall Semester		Spring Semester
Engl 1101	(I)3	Engl 1102	(I)3
Math 1113	(I)3	Social Science	(V)3
CHEM 1211/1211L	(II)4	CHEM 1212/1212L	(V)4
PSYC 1101	(V)3	BIOL 1103/1103L	(II)4
FDNS 2000	1	World Lang & Culture	(IV)4
	14		17
STAT 2000	(VI)4	MIBO 2500/2500L	4
CHEM 2211/2211L	(IV)4	CHFD 2100 or HACE 2100	(VI)3
SPCM 1100	(IV)3	Social Science	(V)3
World Lang & Culture	(IV)3	World Lang & Culture	(IV)3
PE	1	FDNS 2100	(VI)3
	15		16
BCMB 3100	3	CBIO 2210/2210L	4
CBIO 2200/2200L	(VI)4	FDNS 3100	3
Major Elective	3	FDNS 3610/3610L	4
FDNS 3600/3600L	4	FDNS 4600	3
	15		14
FDNS 4100	3	FDNS 4530	4
FDNS 4610	1	FDNS 4620	2
FDNS 4510	3	FDNS 4540	3
FDNS 4500	3	FDNS 4520	2
FDNS 4645	2
Major Electives	4	FDNS 4660	3
	16		14

The FDNS (Foods and Nutrition) courses are required classes within the major. These classes are either in the school of Family and Consumer Science or in the Nutrition Science department.

Obtaining a degree in this field requires many science and chemistry classes. A natural strength and interest in these fields would be a advantageous to someone seeking a career as a registered dietitian.

After finishing the bachelor degree program, an individual must obtain additional licensing. Many students will seek certification from the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, formerly the American Dietetics Association. To earn this certificate, one must participate in an approved internship for 5 years or a supervised practice situation that lasts for about 1 year. Either way, this can prove to be very demanding and time consuming. Acquiring this extra license is important and most companies will require a future employee to have it.

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