Nutritionist | Imamother

amother

Orange

Fri, Feb 05 2016, 8:22 am

I am looking into the idea of getting a degree in nutrition. I have a BA, but not in that field (It is in education). Anyone with experience becoming either a Registered Dietitian (RD) or
Dietetic Technician, Registered (DTR) ? Any online options, although seems like most things require on-site pre-work. Any nutritionists with advice (ex. kosher issues)?

underthestars

Fri, Feb 05 2016, 9:41 am

I begin by saying I am NOT a nutritionist, but think it is a GREAT idea!! My husband is becoming a trainer/nutritionist and I am so happy with this career for him. He has some online courses and some courses in school. There is such a need for it in our community and I really think it is such a wonderful career choice. Kudos to you if you do go in this direction!

amother

Mint

Fri, Feb 05 2016, 10:35 am

RD since 1992 here! I enjoy my career and there are many different kinds of jobs you can do, but don't expect a high salary unless you are in management or are very entrepreneurial.

After you fulfill your undergraduate coursework requirements (and your education degree will certainly help with that), you will need to do an internship, which can be very, very competitive. There are no fully online options that I know of, but some internships now have "distance" options, which may be more convenient. You would do the internship coursework online and arrange practicum experiences near your home. You need to be a real go-getter to make this work. (I attended a traditional hospital-based program and the director arranged all our site placements for us).

No matter what, you will have some undergrad food courses and will work in food service settings for anywhere from a few days to a few months as an intern. You might be able to arrange your internship food service rotations at a kosher facility. In school, some people might use their own utensils and ask a rav for advice when you know what the cooking setup is. For tasting food (a few of my jobs have included doing food service quality control) I would enlist anyone standing around to have a free snack!

Good luck! Post again if you have any specific questions.

amother

Mint

Fri, Feb 05 2016, 10:55 am

Oh by the way, you might not need a degree in nutrition...the director of the didactic program (DPD - the school part of your training before the internship) will look at your prior college work and let you know what undergraduate courses you would need to fill in the blanks. You could also do this as part of a master's degree. Ask around at a few different colleges, as the process may vary. Make sure you are going through a CDR* approved DPD that will issue an official Verification Statement.

*CDR is the Commission on Dietetic Registration, the credentialing arm of the AND (Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics), our main professional body.

amother

Mint

Sun, Feb 07 2016, 11:10 am

Interesting about TTI. The actual academic degree is from University of Alabama. Might be worth looking into "Bama" directly, and see if there are any benefits to using TTI as a go-between.

I was not familiar with the completely online options for the DPD until now. Thanks for mentioning it, r1! There are a few others:

http://www.eatrightacend.org/A.....85422
Click the first option for distance education, then click "go." There are a lot of acronyms in the listings; please post again if you need anything de-mystified.

(ACEND is the accrediting body for education programs, not CDR, sorry for my previous misstatement.)