The need for dietitians and nutritionists is increasing with obesity and other food related health disorders at an all-time high among Americans. Whether in schools, hospitals or communities, dietitians and nutritionists are sought after allied medical health professionals because of their understanding of healthy eating and nutrition.
If you are interested in working with food and nutrition you may want to consider a career as a dietician or nutritionist. The first step to a career as a dietician or nutritionist is starting an online health care degree.
Here’s an overview of nutrition and dietetics careers.
- Job Description: A dietitian or nutritionist creates tailored dietary choices for individuals and groups. For example, a dietitian may asses and analyze a given sample of the population to check if their eating habits are meeting basic dietary needs. Dieticians also assist in making a person’s diet healthier by indentifying poor food choices and replacing them with healthy alternatives.
Unlike weight loss experts, dietitians are focused on health instead of slimming down—which is often done at the expense of the individual’s health. Dietitians and nutritionists also work with people by assessing how much they need to eat each day. Once the daily required dietary values are known, the dietitian creates a menu that the person needs to follow. - Training and Education: To practice as a registered dietitian or a nutritionist you need to have a license and registration. Obtaining these credentials means earning a four year dietetics or nutrition degree at an accredited college or university. You can spend approximately 900 hours in a supervised dietetic internship but those opportunities are becoming increasingly rare.
The typical route to become a dietitian or nutritionist includes finishing your dietetics courses and getting your degree, then applying for licensure at the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education. At present, there are approximately 240 schools that offer a dietetics degree. - Work Options: There are many places where you can start your career as a dietitian or nutritionist. Dietitians are now being employed in public schools and universities to create healthy food options for students and staff. There are also dietitians in hospitals and clinics that prepare the food patients need while making sure it does not interfere with any medication or medical condition.
Dietitians can also work in the manufacturing and food sector by assessing and evaluating the quality and nutrition that food products have. Finally, there are also some dietitians who prefer to stay in the university setting, working as food researchers and nutrition professors. - Salary and Job Outlook: Working in the corporate world as a nutritionist usually commands a respectable salary. The average salary for a dietician or nutritionist is $51,000 a year. Wages vary greatly depending on location, experience, education and organization. A trend of hiring dietitians and nutritionists in restaurants and other food joints is emerging as more people are becoming conscious of the food they eat.
There are approximately 60,000 dietitians and nutritionists working in the United States. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics the career field is expected to grow by 9% through 2018 which is an average rate of growth compared to all other jobs. The main emphasis will be on teaching individuals and groups healthy eating habits to prevent diseases.
If food and health are interesting to you, a career as a nutritionist and a dietitian may be the right fit. Use these tips to help you prepare and apply for nutritionist and dietetics jobs.