Dietetics Major, B.A.; B.S.

B.A. degree or B.S. degree 

A Dietetics major prepares students to meet the educational knowledge and skills specified by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) as part of the requirements to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN). The complete set of requirements for the RDN include: completing the DPD, Dietetic Internship (DI), and a Master's degree. After completing the requirements, students may apply to the AND's Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) to take the dietetic registration examination and become RDN-eligible on the CDR Registry.

Students pursuing this major are encouraged to meet with a dietetics advisor to ensure they understand the educational pathway and to complete the program in a timely manner.

• Effective January 1, 2024, any person taking the registration examination for the RDN credential will need to have completed a Master’s degree along with an accredited DPD.

Admission Requirements, Retention & Termination Standards

Students must have a minimum of 3.00 overall GPA in order to declare the dietetics major and enter the Pre-professional Phase. Students must achieve an overall minimum GPA of 3.00, which will include the DPD course work; the student cannot have a grade lower than a 2.0 (C) in any DPD course work in order to be considered for the Professional Phase.

Both GPAs must include courses completed at other institutions as well as those completed at CMU.

Selection criteria include:

1. Application;
2. Overall GPA;
3. DPD Course Work;
4. To graduate with dietetics as a major and to receive a verification statement from the dietetics program, students are not allowed to take any required dietetic courses as credit/no credit;
5. Professional recommendation;
6. Work, volunteer, and extra-curricular experience;
7. Autobiographical statement.

Professional Phase Requirements:

1. Adherence to the Academy of Nutrition Dietetics Professional Code of Ethics.
2. Maintenance of a 3.0 GPA overall and in DPD coursework.

Program Requirements

Dietetics Core (40 hours)

NDS 160	Introduction to Food and Culinary Techniques	3(2-2)
NDS 271	Food and Culture	3(3-0)
NDS 361	Food Science	4(3-2)
NDS 364	Food Safety, Sanitation, and Health	3(3-0)
NDS 367	Institutional Food Production Laboratory	1(0-2)
NDS 370	Nutrition	3(3-0)
NDS 374WI	Nutrition in the Life Cycle	3(3-0)
NDS 469	Foodservice Systems Administration	3(3-0)
NDS 471	Medical Nutrition Therapy I	3(3-0)
NDS 472	Medical Nutrition Therapy II	3(3-0)
NDS 473	Advanced Nutrition	4(4-0)
NDS 480	Nutritional Education and Counseling	4(4-0)
NDS 481	Community Nutrition: Field Work	3(Spec)

Other Requirements I (5-8 hours)

CHM 120	Survey of Chemistry	4(4-0)
CHM 127	Introductory Chemistry Laboratory	1(0-2)
CHM 131	General Chemistry I	4(3-3)
CHM 132	General Chemistry II	4(3-3)

Note: You must take both CHM 120 and CHM 127 OR CHM 131 and CHM 132.

Other Requirements II (11 hours)

BIO 208	Microbiology	4(3-3)
CHM 342	Survey of Organic Chemistry	4(3-3)
CHM 421	Introductory Biochemistry for Health Sciences	3(3-0)

Notes:

• A student opting to take CHM 345 and CHM 346 instead of CHM 342 must have the equivalent of CHM 132 as a prerequisite.
• A student with CHM 345 and CHM 346 may elect CHM 521 and CHM 522, instead of CHM 421.

Other Requirements III (4-8 hours)

Select one of the following options:

Option 1 (4 hours)

BIO 392

Mammalian Physiology

4(3-3)

Option 2 (8 hours)

HSC 214	Human Anatomy	4(3-3)
HSC 215	Human Physiology	4(3-2)

Other Requirements IV (3 hours)

Select one of the following:

HSC 544	Biostatistics	3(2-1)
STA 282QR	Introduction to Statistics	3(3-0)

Total: 63-70 semester hours