By Anne Custer<\/p>\n
The health field is constantly changing and expanding with new
\ntechnology, new research, and new jobs. The growth rate for dietitians
\nis expected to increase by 21% over the next ten years. Dietitians work
\nto educate patients and the public on proper nutrition for optimal
\nhealth. They work in a variety of settings such as hospitals, nursing
\nhomes, non-profit organizations, public health clinics, government
\nagencies, food service settings, and the corporate world.<\/p>\n
A person who is interested in nutrition, education, health,
\nhelping others, and cooking may be best suited for this profession.
\nA dietitian\u2019s day-to-day tasks may include, but are not limited to
\nassessing a patient\u2019s nutritional needs, counseling on healthy eating
\nhabits, developing meal plans, evaluating progress, and promoting
\nhealthy eating.<\/p>\n
A dietitian working in the corporate world may have different
\nday-to-day tasks compared to a dietitian working in a hospital.
\nAs a corporate dietitian, Molly McBride, RD, LD works for the retail
\nfood chain, Kroger, offering food and nutrition expertise, answering
\nproduct inquiries, creating recipes, writing blogs for the Kroger
\nSimple Truth blog, and acting as a Subject Matter Expert (SME) for
\nKroger brands.<\/p>\n
Education<\/strong> Experience<\/strong> Training<\/strong> Location<\/strong> Hours<\/strong> Networking<\/strong> Retail Dietetics<\/strong>
\nAspiring dietitians must complete a Bachelor of Science degree in an
\naccredited program. These programs can take many names such as
\nNutrition; Human Nutrition, Foods, & Exercise; Dietetics; or Nutritional
\nScience. When researching programs, confirm that they are accredited by
\nthe Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics of
\nthe Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. After completion of an
\nundergraduate degree in Dietetics or a related field, the next step is
\nsupervised practice, or a dietetic internship (DI). This is usually
\n1,200 hours of hands-on experience that lasts about a year. These are
\nall over the United States and Puerto Rico and can emphasize Clinical,
\nCommunity, Food Service, Sports Nutrition, Medical Nutrition Therapy, or
\nbe a general program that dabbles in many areas. Once this is completed,
\nthe soon-to-be dietitian must pass a registration exam. In most states,
\na license to practice is required as well. For Molly, her education
\nbegan at Eastern Kentucky University and continued at The Christ
\nHospital for her DI. Once she passed the exam, she began
\nworking for a long-term care facility. After three years, she had the
\nopportunity to interview for Kroger. She accepted the job and began
\nworking at the corporate call center.<\/p>\n
\nThose looking to enter the field must have significant work and\/or
\nvolunteer experience. Because the internships are extremely competitive
\n(only 50% match rate), it\u2019s crucial to set yourself apart as an
\napplicant. A quick Google search will reveal that most resources, like
\nthe Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, recommend some type of
\nexperience. This increases your chances of being matched and solidifies
\nyour choice to become a dietitian. Valuable work and volunteer
\nexperience relates to the health and nutrition field or the specific
\ntrack of dietetics you are interested in. Someone who wanted to be a
\nclinical dietitian may seek opportunities in hospitals or clinics.
\nExamples of this in my pursuit of becoming a registered dietitian (RD)
\ninclude volunteering for a hospital and a children\u2019s fitness camp,
\ninterning here at The Vegetarian Resource Group, shadowing an RD, and
\nworking at my school\u2019s gym as a fitness assistant and nutrition analyst.
\nIt can also be helpful to have experience in food service. For example,
\nMcBride started working at Panera Bread. While in school at Eastern
\nKentucky, she worked as a student caller then manager for the school\u2019s
\nalumni office and as a nutrition associate working alongside a dietitian
\nat a local hospital. These experiences helped her land an internship as
\nwell as provided her with skills needed for her job at Kroger. Those
\nlooking to work in the corporate world may seek out work in corporate
\nfitness and nutrition or as an associate of a retail food store.
\nPrograms are also looking for leadership skills so if possible, try to
\nstick to a few activities and focus on moving up and taking on more
\nresponsibility. There are many opportunities out there to get involved
\nin your community and your university to diversify your application; you
\njust have to find them!<\/p>\n
\nThe training aspiring dietitians receive is mainly through the
\nsupervised practice in their DI. Each rotation varies greatly depending
\non the program and its focus. Students will spend more time working in
\nsay a free clinic if the focus is community or in a rehabilitation
\ncenter if the focus is medical nutrition therapy. This allows the
\nstudent to explore and learn about different aspects of nutrition in
\npractice. The training received after completion of supervised practice
\nis dependent on the employer. Registered dietitians must also complete
\ncontinuing education credits throughout their career.<\/p>\n
\nCorporate dietitians work for businesses that need nutrition consulting.
\nThis type of dietitian can work in a variety of places such as a large
\ndrug store, a fast food chain, or like McBride, a retail food chain.
\nThese professionals develop menus, check nutrition facts, create food
\nlabels, and consult with the company on its products and nutrition
\ninformation. More specific tasks would be established depending on where
\nyou decide to work. McBride says, \u201cMy day-to-day includes being a final
\nescalation point for our call center product team ambassadors to answer
\nquestions for our millions of customers, managing information in a
\nproduct knowledge database, providing nutrition education, developing
\nnutrition-related materials, writing digital\/social media content, and
\nof course being a resource for plant-based nutrition.\u201d (McBride has been
\na vegan for four years.) Her office is based out of Blue Ash, OH which
\nis a satellite location from the downtown corporate building. However,
\nthis type of work may be flexible. McBride is getting married and will
\nbe moving to Columbus, OH after the wedding. Her employer is allowing
\nher to work full-time from home and come into the office just two days
\nout of the month.<\/p>\n
\nHours vary from job to job and even day to day. McBride usually works
\nfrom 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Monday to Friday and says, \u201cSometimes important
\nmeetings, some community events, or continuing education retail RD
\nconferences, are in the evenings or weekends, so my schedule is flexible
\nenough to accommodate these.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u201cI have learned a lot from dietitian conferences I have attended,
\nbefriending other dietitians on LinkedIn, diving into areas of nutrition
\nthat pique my interest, and learning about all the moving parts of my
\njob,\u201d explains McBride, \u201cFor example, working in the grocery retail
\nsetting, it\u2019s also important to know about agriculture, manufacturing,
\nbranding, and regulations.\u201d Her advice for aspiring dietitians is to
\nnetwork with other dietitians and areas of nutrition that inspire you.
\nLinkedIn can provide a great resource to do so.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cThe job of a retail grocery RD is a newer concept,\u201d says McBride, \u201cRDs
\nin this sector are a growing trend, as RDs are being recognized,
\nespecially if they have a background in business or develop a strong
\nunderstanding of it, for their impact to [the] company\u2019s ROI (return on
\ninvestment), health & wellness strategy, food and culinary insights,
\nproduct development ideas, food safety expertise, and
\nlabeling\/regulatory knowledge, as some examples. I work with two other
\nRDs at the Kroger corporate level and we have a strong working
\nrelationship with numerous departments including pharmacy, regulatory,
\ncorporate brands, consumer affairs, corporate food technology, digital,
\nand social media, amongst others. We are viewed as food and nutrition
\nsubject matter experts for the Kroger organization.\u201d More and more
\ncompanies are beginning to realize the benefit of having a dietitian on
\nstaff thus creating more opportunities for corporate dietitians.<\/p>\n