Career Outlook
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 11% growth for nutritionist and dietitian jobs by 2030, faster than the national average.
The dietetics track combines graduate coursework with a dietetic internship to prepare you to become a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN).
Tuition & Fees
Funding Opportunities
Download Nutrition Brochure
The program’s cohort model, which begins every fall semester, fully immerses you in your studies. Along the way, you will form key educational and professional relationships with peers. Courses are offered in a hybrid format (combination of in-person and online courses).
Our program provides a foundation in clinical nutrition, public health principles and programs, health communications, nutrition research, leadership, and sustainability. You will be provided with the skills and knowledge needed to become an entry-level dietitian able to practice in diverse settings. You will learn the principles of developing interventions to address the nutritional wellness needs of individuals and communities.
The Dietetics track totals 42 credits, and provides over a 1,000 hours of supervised experiential learning fulfilling all the requirements for a dietetic internship as well as a master's degree in nutrition. Our unique program integrates supervised experiential learning hours throughout coursework in the first year, and provides students with internship experiences in the second year.
The dietetics track offers full and part-time options with a structured sequence of courses. Coursework includes program planning, management and evaluation, health communication, motivational counseling, medical nutrition therapy and more.
The dietetics track offers full and part-time options with a structured sequence of courses. You will complete a total of 42 credits with a minimum of 1,000 supervised experiential learning hours. Admission requirements include the following:
Basic Science Courses: | Nutrition and Math Courses: |
Chemistry (4 credits) | Food Preparation or Food Science with lab (4 credits) |
Organic Chemistry (4 credits) | Introduction to Nutrition or Basic Nutrition Course |
Biochemistry (3 credits) | Human Metabolism |
Biology or Microbiology (3 credits) | Clinical Nutrition, Human Nutrition or Medical Nutrition Therapy |
Anatomy and Physiology (8 credits) | Statistics or Biostatistics (3 credits) |
ACEND requires a minimum of 1,000 hours of supervised experiential learning with a minimum of 700 hours in professional work settings. Supervised experiential learning is provided throughout the curriculum via case studies, simulation, a graduate research project and other course projects.
In the last three terms of the program, students take a dietetics clerkship course and are placed at various professional work settings for supervised experiential learning (SEL) in food service management, community nutrition, wellness and clinical sites. The major focus of the SEL rotations is clinical. Sites include acute care, outpatient, long-term care and clinical specialties, such renal, diabetes and eating disorders. Typically, students will be at their SEL site from Tuesday through Friday with Mondays reserved for classes.
Students who complete each of the following requirements will earn a Master’s of Science and be granted a verification statement that will allow them to take the CDR registration examination to become an RDN.
The graduate coursework component of the program will follow the academic calendar of Hood College. When students are placed at supervised experiential learning sites during the last three semesters of the program, they will observe the working hours and calendar of the preceptor with whom they are placed.
Click here for the current academic calendar.
As fully matriculated graduate students, you may defer payment on undergraduate student loans and apply for financial aid through the Hood College Office of Financial Aid. For more information on funding your graduate education, click here.
The dietetics track offers full and part-time options with a structured sequence of courses. You will complete a total of 42 credits with a minimum of 1,000 supervised experiential learning hours.
Prior Learning Credit Policy
The Nutrition Program accepts up to 5 credits of prior learning experience towards degree completion for applicable graduate classes taken within the past 5 years with a grade of B or higher. To receive credit, students need to provide all requested supporting documentation to the program director. Students will also need to show they have achieved competence in any course-related competencies and performance indicators assigned to the course they will be getting credit for. Assessment methods include but are not limited to clinical skills demonstration, exams, preceptor evaluations and projects. Students must achieve a score of 3 or 80% to be considered competent in the assessed competency
Program of Study:
Fall 1 (11 credits)
Spring 1 (11 credits)
Summer (6 credits)
Fall 2 (7 credits)
Spring 2 (7 credits)
To prepare competent entry-level Registered Dietitian Nutritionists (RDNs) to be culturally sensitive practitioners who use an evidence-based approach to practice and promote the health and wellness of individuals and families who make up the diverse global community.
Goal 1: Graduates will be competent entry-level Registered Dietitian Nutritionists who are culturally sensitive and provide health and nutrition services to diverse communities.
Goal 2: Graduates will use an evidence-based approach to deliver nutrition services in the community.
Program outcomes data are available upon request.
To become an RDN, you have a variety of choices.
Until 2024, you must hold a baccalaureate degree from a regionally-accredited college or university and must complete an ACEND-accredited undergraduate or graduate Coordinated Program (CP), or a Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD), followed by an accredited supervised practice program.
After 2024, a master's degree will be required to take the CDR registration examination. Individuals may complete a "future graduate program" such as the Hood College program or an ACEND-accredited graduate "coordinated program." Alternatively, you may complete an ACEND-accredited DPD program, followed by an ACEND-accredited supervised practice program and a master’s degree program. The master’s degree can be in any subject.
After completion of the academic and supervised experiential learning hours, students who earn a verification statement are eligible to take the registration examination for RDNs. Once you successfully pass the exam, the RDN credential is conferred. To maintain the credential, RDNs must complete 75 hours of continuing professional education every five years. A visual depiction of the routes to registration after 2024 can be found here.
Many states require that individuals who practice nutrition and dietetics hold a license or a certificate granted by the state in which they practice. Typically, ACEND-accredited programs fulfill the requirements for licensure and individuals with the RDN credential are able to apply for a license, pay associated fees and submit documentation of their education and training to be granted a license. However, as each state has different requirements, you must check the laws in the state in which you plan to practice.
This link provides a map that indicates the type of state regulation required for nutrition and dietetics practitioners across the United States: https://www.cdrnet.org/state-licensure
The state of Maryland requires nutrition and dietetics practitioners to be licensed by the state. For more information about Maryland licensure: https://health.maryland.gov/dietetic/Pages/Index.aspx
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects 11% growth for nutritionist and dietitian jobs by 2030, faster than the national average.
Our Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) accredited program equips you with expert training as prioritized by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and the American Society of Nutrition.
Frederick Health, Frederick County Public Schools, Adventist HealthCare and Kaiser Permanente are among numerous regional organizations that actively recruit dietitians and nutritionists.
Program Director, Nutrition Science
Assistant Director of Graduate Admission
"Our cohort is a little family, and the connections I made with them and with the Hood community are the most meaningful part of the journey thus far."
With new requirements to become a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN), our master’s in nutrition science is the pathway to licensure.
New graduate program in nutrition science is poised to train registered dietitian nutritionists (RDNs) and more.