About Certificate in Dietetics (Dietetic Internship) and M.A. in Family & Consumer Sciences

The Dietetic Internship Program at San Francisco State University provides supervised practice experience as well as graduate didactic coursework. This program is for students who are pursuing the Registered Dietitian (RD)/Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) credential. The program provides a minimum of 1024 hours of supervised practice experience as well as four graduate-level courses to meet required competencies. Additionally, in order to receive a Verification Statement indicating eligibility to take the RD exam, students must either already possess a master’s degree prior to starting the internship program or enroll in SF State’s M.A. in Family & Consumer Sciences degree and complete the degree within six months of completing the supervised practice component of the Dietetic Internship Program. A Verification Statement will not be issued until both a graduate degree and the Dietetic Internship Program requirements are completed.

Only students who have completed or are near completion of a Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD) are eligible to apply for this internship and graduate degree program. A DPD is typically an undergraduate degree in dietetics, although there are other tracks. For more information about becoming an RD/RDN, DPD programs, and Dietetic Internship programs, and dietetics education, please visit the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics website.

SF State Dietetic Interns will be placed in rotations in hospitals, long-term care/skilled nursing facilities, community nutrition programs, and/or other health/community organizations in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area for supervised practice experiences. In addition to the internship portion of the program, interns will be required to take graduate level academic courses in nutrition and dietetics. The Dietetic Internship Program at SF State, for those who already possess a graduate degree, is a full-time, 11-month program, from mid-July through early June. For those who do not have a graduate degree, completion of both the Dietetic Internship and the M.A. in Family & Consumer Sciences is expected to take 18 months.

How does this program help me become an RDN/RD?

This Dietetic Internship program provides the knowledge and supervised practice experience to become an RD/RDN. Starting in 2024, in order to be eligible to take the RD/RDN exam, individuals must have completed a graduate degree, a DPD program, and a Dietetic Internship. Upon completion of all program requirements and a graduate degree, graduates will be given a verification statement. The Program Director will submit graduates to the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) stating eligibility to take the RD/RDN exam. After successfully passing the exam, graduates may put the credential of RD or RDN after their name.

The state of California does not currently have licensure for dietitians. However, California does have a Business & Professions Code which provides title protection for Registered Dietitians and describes scope of practice. Employers in California who typically hire dietitians, such as hospitals, health clinics, skilled nursing facilities, dialysis units, and public health departments, typically require the RD/RDN credential.

Most other states in the United States have state licensure for RDs/RDNs. A graduate of this program who passes the RD/RDN credentialing exam would be eligible for licensure in these other states as long as they meet that state’s licensure requirements. 

The mission of the San Francisco State University Dietetic Internship is to provide a high-quality program that prepares interns in the areas of medical nutrition therapy, community nutrition, and management. Upon completion of the program, graduates will be prepared for entry-level work as Registered Dietitian Nutritionists/Registered Dietitians (RDs/RDNs), to provide services to individuals, families, consumers and the institutions, industries and businesses serving them in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area.

 

Program outcomes data are available on request.

  • Goal 1: Graduates of the program will be prepared for entry-level practice as Registered Dietitian Nutritionists/Registered Dietitians (RDNs/RDs).

    • Objective 1: At least 80% of program graduates, who already possessed a graduate degree upon admission, will complete program requirements within 17 months (150% of the program length - standard completion time is 11 months). At least 80% of program graduates, who are admitted without a graduate degree and must also complete the M.A. in Family & Consumer Sciences, will complete program requirements within 27 months (150% of the expected time to complete the program and the M.A.).

      • Outcome: 98% of interns from the last three years finished the program within 17 months.
    • Objective 2: 95 percent of program graduates take the CDR credentialing exam for dietitian nutritionists within 12 months of program completion.
      • Outcome: 100% of graduates from the last three years took the RD exam within 12 months of program completion.
    • Objective 3: The program’s one-year pass rate (graduates who pass the registration exam within one year of first attempt) on the CDR credentialing exam for dietitian nutritionists is at least 80%
      • Outcome: 98% of graduates, over the last three years, passed the credentialing exam within 1-year of program completion.
  • Goal 2: Graduates of the program will became gainfully employed as Registered Dietitian Nutritionists/Registered Dietitians (RDNs/RDs).
    • Objective 1: Of graduates who sought employment in dietetics, 50% will be employed within 3 months of program completion (and after starting job search) in nutrition and dietetics or related fields, and 95% within 1 year.

      • Outcome: 77% of graduates from the last three years found employment within 3 months, and 100% within 12 months
    • Objective 2: 80% of employers of DI graduates will consider them to be prepared for employment.
      • Outcome: 83% of employers who responded to the survey (low response rate) considered graduates from the last three years, to be prepared.
    • Objective 3: At least 80% of graduates will be employed in a nutrition/dietetics related position located in the greater San Francisco Bay Area one year after program completion.
      • Outcome: 86% of graduates from the last three years, one-year post program completion, were employed in the Bay Area.