Accelerate Your Career
Dietitians can make a tremendous difference for people from all walks of life by giving them the tools and information they need to live healthy lifestyles, meet their nutritional or performance goals or heal and recover from illness. With the flexibility of online coursework, small classes, hands-on experience and personalized support from faculty, the University of Northern Colorado will prepare you to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), or strengthen your skills as an RDN through the online M.S. in dietetics.
Degree Details
Credits Required:
Master's - 35, with internship - 55
Location/Delivery:
Online
Degree Options
M.S. in Dietetics
The Dietetics master’s degree is a two-year, online program. The 35-credit curriculum supports the development of skills related to being a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist. Through your coursework, you’ll develop critical thinking and leadership skills that will support your work and development as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist. This program assumes an undergraduate background in Nutrition and Dietetics and Registered Dietitian Nutritionist status.
Take the next step! Explore courses, contact information and admission requirements.
M.S. in Dietetics with Dietetic Internship
The Dietetics master’s degree with Dietetic Internship is a three-year program designed to prepare you for successful completion of the Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Examination as well as for entry-level practice. It consists of two years of online coursework and one year of supervised practice. This program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND). The 55-credit curriculum supports the development of skills related to being a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and provides hands-on learning opportunities in supervised practice settings. Gaining your M.S. in Dietetics will also prepare you for furthering your career for opportunities that require a graduate degree. Through your coursework, you’ll develop critical thinking and leadership skills that will support your future work and development as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist. This program assumes an undergraduate background in Nutrition and Dietetics and completion of the Didactic Courses in Dietetics.
Take the next step! Explore courses, contact information and admission requirements.
Your Future in Dietetics
Opportunities in dietetics are on the rise and having a graduate degree will set you apart from others in the field. Registered Dietitian Nutritionists promote healthy lifestyles through good nutrition, disease prevention and medical nutrition therapy.
Consider UNC’s M.S. in Dietetics if you are interested in:
- An online program and UNC has a long history of offering online programs in Dietetics
- An affordable graduate program
- Diverse faculty research agendas
- Opportunities for electives in other programs
- An opportunity to complete your internship and become eligible to sit for the Registration Exam to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist.
- A Capstone Course that provides you with the opportunity to complete an in-depth study of an area of evidence-based research/practice, write a comprehensive paper and present the project results.
You’ll learn:
Critical thinking and leadership skills that will support your future work and development as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist.
Sample courses:
- Nutrient Metabolism
- Nutrition Assessment
- Nutrition Counseling Methods
- Nutrition Communication
- Public Health Nutrition
- Research Methods
Faculty SPOTLIGHT
Nicole Withrow, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor/Dietetic Internship Director
Nicole Withrow earned her bachelor’s degree from Purdue University and a master’s and doctorate from Colorado State University. She was a nutrition trainee for the Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) program at JFK Partners, University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus before joining the nutrition and dietetics faculty at University of Northern Colorado.
Her research interests in pediatrics – with a special interest in children with special needs – focuses on dietary habits, reasons for food selectivity, nutritional risk, weight status, specialized dietary interventions and GI issues in children with developmental disorders. Her research has led her to work on developing an innovative way to screen for nutritional risk helping children with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
“To date, there isn’t an eating screening inventory which encompasses four domains that can impact nutritional risk in children with ASD. I’m working on the development of the Sensory Processing, Aberrant Mealtime Behavior, Motor, Inventory for Eating (SAMIE). The SAMIE (with respect to ASD) will serve as a foundational step toward the development of standardized eating assessment instruments and clinical eating interventions which are necessary to improve the quality of life in all children who are suffering with an ASD,” she says.
She adds that UNC’s program is unique because it offers a Nutrition B.S., Dietetics B.S. and a Nutrition Minor on campus, as well as a distance-based Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD). In addition it offers a Master of Science in Dietetics (MS) and a Master of Science in Dietetics with a Dietetic Internship (MS/DI). Students have several options to choose from, for example a recent graduate from our undergraduate dietetics program can apply for the post-baccalaureate dietetic internship or apply to the MS/DI.
“Our classes are rigorous but facilitated by dedicated instructors who integrate a variety of teaching methods because they understand the importance of different learning styles,” Withrow says. “I’m often told students are surprised by the amount of support they receive from the administrative staff and faculty. They’ve said they feel like one big family with fellow students and faculty, that UNC is their ‘home away from home,’ and that they were appropriately challenged and equally supported.”
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