About
Undergraduate
Graduate
Faculty and Staff
Information Sessions
NYC Food Policy Center
Contact

MS Nutrition - Academic Dietetic Internship

MS Nutrition – Academic Dietetic Internship (MS-DI)

This 36-credit (1.5 years/3 semesters) program is for students who have completed an undergraduate Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD) and have been accepted into the Hunter College Dietetic Internship Program.

The 1.5-year (3 semester), 36 credit MS-Academic Dietetic Internship Track is comprised of the courses below. Each course is 3 credits except where noted. Classes meet once a week.

Required Courses (15 credits total)

PH 75000 Biostatistics or equivalent
NUTR 72500 Nutrition Research
NUTR 78000 (78003) Capstone or NUTR 79000 Thesis
NUTR 73100 Advanced Nutrition I
NUTR 73200 Advanced Nutrition II

Experiential Practice Courses (12 credits total)

NUTR 70000 Seminar in Dietetics Practice
NUTR 70100 Pre-Professional Practice in Dietetics: Clinical
NUTR 70200 Pre-Professional Practice in Dietetics: Food Service
NUTR 70300 Pre-Professional Practice in Dietetics: Community

Specialization/Major Electives (9 credits total)

NUTR 73300 Nutrition and Human Development
NUTR 74600 Nutrition and Disease
NUTR 74700 Advanced Nutrition and Assessment Lab (1 credit)
NUTR 74800 Assessment and Counseling
NUTR 77000 Topics in Nutrition (1, 2, or 3 credits)
NUTR 78301, 02, 03 Independent Study (1, 2, or 3 credits)
Other NUTR or Biology or other electives approved by advisor

All tuition and fees are determined by the City University of New York (CUNY) Board of Trustees and are subject to change without notice. Updated tuition rates and fees can be found on the Graduate Admissions website.

Other DI-Related Costs (estimated)

Please note that there are costs associated with onboarding for rotations, which may include fingerprinting, criminal background checks, and various health checks. The costs depend on the individual rotation sites. We have no control over their demands, but aim to choose sites that cover the charges for onboarding costs. We estimate a total of $300.

Books ~$400; you will likely use textbooks from your DPD program as well
Transportation (NYC Metrocard) ~$1200 (or ~$32 per week; students are responsible for their own transportation to and from assigned sites; whenever possible, practice sites have been selected which are easily accessible by public transportation)
Professional Liability Insurance ~$35-$50
DI-related Incidentals ~$75
AND Intern Membership $58
Conferences and meetings (costs for events vary) ~$100
Cost of living in NYC, very rough estimate
Housing ~$12,000/ year + utilities; most landlords also expect first and last month’s rent
Food (meals are the responsibility of the interns) ~$3,400
Health insurance (highly variable)
Other cost of living incidentals (entertainment, apparel, etc.) ~$2,700

The mission of the Dietetic Internship Program is to provide students with a rigorous, high quality educational and supervised practice experience, which will prepare them as competent and effective dietetic practitioners with a focus in urban public health and community nutrition. The DI Program provides interdisciplinary practicum and didactic experiences that will prepare dietetic interns to attain entry-level competencies in nutrition therapy, food service systems management, community nutrition, and public health nutrition. Dietetic interns will develop ethical values consistent with professional health care and abide by codes of practice while practicing within diverse, multi-ethnic urban communities.

This mission is further encapsulated in our values statement, as we value the following:

Diversity
Life-long learning
An interdisciplinary approach to healthcare
Socially and ecologically sustainable food systems

Goal 1: The program will prepare interns to be competent entry-level dietitians, with a specialty in community and public health nutrition.

Objectives:

Program Completion:
1. For DI Certificate Program: at least 80% of interns complete program/degree requirements within 13.5 months (150% of planned program length).
2. For MS/DI: at least 80% of interns complete program/degree requirements within 27 months (150% of planned program length).
Of graduates who seek employment, at least 80% are employed in the field of nutrition and dietetics or related fields within 12 months of graduation.
At least 80% of program graduates take the CDR credentialing exam for dietitian nutritionists within 12 months of program completion.
The program’s one-year pass rate (graduates who pass the registration exam for dietitian nutritionists within one year of first attempt) on the CDR credentialing exam for dietitian nutritionists is at least 80%.
At least 80% of program graduates who respond to alumni surveys will rate the quality of the DI in preparing them for their first job in nutrition and dietetics as Well to Excellent.
At least 80% of employers who respond to the employer survey will rate program graduate’s preparation for entry-level practice as Satisfactory to Outstanding.

Goal 2: Program graduates will be prepared to actively address the changing health needs of society, and to address the unique needs of metropolitan areas such as New York City.

Objectives:

At least 80% of program graduates will indicate that they received Well to Excellent preparation in community/public health nutrition.
At least, 80% of graduates will become involved in professional organizations, such as the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Public Health/Community DPG, local dietetic associations, and/or the American Public Health Association.

Outcomes data is available upon request.

Hunter’s Dietetic Internship program, within the Department of Nutrition and Public Health, is accredited by ACEND. For more information on ACEND and accreditation, please contact:

Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics
120 South Riverside Plaza
Suite 2190
Chicago, Illinois 60606-6995
Phone (800)-877-1600 ext 5400
E-mail: acend@eatright.org
https://www.eatrightpro.org/acend

Effective January 1, 2024, the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) requires a minimum of a master’s degree to be eligible to take the credentialing exam to become a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN). In order to be approved for registration examination eligibility with a bachelor’s degree, an individual must have met all eligibility requirements and be submitted into CDR’s Registration Eligibility Processing System (REPS) before 12:00 midnight Central Time, December 31, 2023. For more information about this requirement visit CDR’s website.

In some states, graduates also must obtain licensure or certification to practice. All U.S. states and territories with licensure and certification laws accept the RDN credential for state licensure and certification purposes. Even though the Certified Dietitian Nutritionist (CDN) license in the state of New York is optional and not required in addition to the RDN certificate to practice, our students often tell us that their start date is pushed back if they don’t receive this certification. For more information about state licensure requirements, visit the Commission on Dietetic Registration website.

For more information about educational pathways to become an RDN, visit the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics website.

Program outcomes data is available upon request.