UW-Stout's online Master of Science (M.S.) in Nutrition & Dietetics will help prepare you to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN) and to provide advanced education for current RDNs. The degree program is available for students who do or do not have undergraduate preparation in nutrition. To become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), you will also need to complete Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD) courses and a Dietetic Internship (DI) in addition to completion of the MS Program. The DPD courses and DI are also offered at UW-Stout.
Note to prospective students: As of 2024, the Commission on Dietetic Registration has changed the requirement from a bachelor's degree to a master's degree in order to be eligible to take the CDR credentialing exam for Registered Dietitian Nutritionist.
Designed for working adults, our 100% online program will prepare you with the knowledge, skills and competency in professional and ethical behaviors to successfully practice as an RDN. And you'll enhance your work and volunteer experience while completing the degree. Upon completion of the M.S. Nutrition & Dietetics and Dietetic Internship, you will be ready to practice in dietetics.
Career-Defining Curriculum
Our curriculum encompasses a variety of areas within dietetics, including nutrition research, clinical nutrition, nutrition counseling, community nutrition, and foodservice management. You will engage in high impact practices including research, collaborative projects and assignments, and community-based learning.
Program Overview
Full-time students can complete their graduation requirements in one year (summer, fall, and spring sessions). The curriculum is designed this way because approximately 90% of the Dietetic Internship (DI) programs start in the fall. The DI program is your final step to completing the dietetic education requirements to be eligible for the RDN credentialing exam.
"What makes UW-Stout’s graduate program really amazing are the faculty and staff that support us. The number one reason I stayed at Stout for my graduate degree was the faculty and staff’s dedication and advocacy for their students."
-- Heidi LochenM.S. Food & Nutritional Science
Use the Request Information form to receive a program summary and learn more about the M.S. Nutrition & Dietetics.
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Tuition & Fees
Customized Instruction at UW Stout can be described as programs that are designed with the adult learner in mind. If you're comparing UW-Stout's customized instruction tuition to our competitors, keep in mind:
- Customized instruction tuition rate.
- There are no additional university-based semester or technology fees.
- Students in customized instruction programs pay the same rate of tuition regardless if Wisconsin residents, out-of-state or international participants.
Value for Your Money
There’s more to value than just tuition. UW Stout also provides:
- Program Director – faculty with discipline expertise.
- Student Services adviser – one point of contact, providing support to students for each program.
- Courses and programs may be stackable for use in another program.
- Courses are flexible and convenient for working professionals.
Other universities will present costs and value differently - make sure you're comparing apples to apples.
General UW-Stout Graduate School Application
All prospective graduate students at UW-Stout must follow a standard application process through our Graduate School. Beyond that, each graduate program has specific requirements that must be met to be successfully admitted to the program:
Program-Specific Admission Requirements
Eligibility
To be admitted with full status to the M.S. Nutrition & Dietetics program, you must:
- Have earned a minimum GPA of 3.0
The prerequisites for admission to the program are statistics (Stats 320 or equivalent), physiology and anatomy (BIO 234 or equivalent), nutrition (FN 212 or equivalent), and advanced nutrition (FN 320 or equivalent).
Applicants who are denied admission due to deficiencies in these prerequisites will be advised that the courses can be taken at UW-Stout as a special non-degree student, but this will not guarantee admission into the graduate program.
In alignment with the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics, the M.S. in Nutrition & Dietetics program has the following overarching program objectives:
- At least 80% of full-time students will complete program/degree requirements within 18 months (150% of the program length).*
- Of graduates who seek employment, 80% are employed in nutrition and dietetics or related fields within 18 months of graduation.*
- 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 within one year of first attempt) on the CDR credentialing exam for dietitian nutritionists is at least 80%.*
In order to meet the program objectives, the following learning objectives are established for this program:
- Apply and integrate graduate-level nutritional sciences principles when presented with a practical problem.
- Design, implement, evaluate, and disseminate nutrition research.
- Demonstrate creative, critical, and strategic thinking skills that can be applied to nutrition and dietetics.
- Employ a professional, philosophical, and ethical approach to work following the professional code of ethics.
- Apply effective leadership, management, and collaboration strategies to meet operational goals.
- Apply evidence-based food and nutrition information to meet the needs of individuals, groups, and organizations.
- Utilize patient-centered educational strategies to create nutrition care plans that promote positive outcomes.
- Integrate public policy, the physical and social and cultural environment, food, nutrition, and biological influences into community nutrition practice.
- Demonstrate effective communication skills.
Advisory Committee Members
| Lindsay | Heidelberger | MS in ND Program Director | KHFNS Dept., UW-Stout |
| Mitch | Holliday | Captain, EdD, RDN, FAND, Dietitian Chief Professional Officer | Public Health Service |
| Laura | Knudsen | MS, RDN, Clinical Dietetian | Mayo Clinic Health System Red Cedar |
| Susan | Krahn | MS, RDN, CD, CLC | Nutrition Matters |
| Mary | LaRue | HWF | KHFNS Dept., UW-Stout |
| Karen | Ostenso | BS in Dietetics Program Director; Associate Professor | KHFNS Dept., UW-Stout |
| Kerry | Peterson | Department Chair KHFNS; Professor | KHFNS Dept., UW-Stout |
| Sarah | Sippl | Past Graduate, RDN | |
| Stacey | Getten | UW-Stout Dietetic Internship Coordinator | KHFNS Dept., UW-Stout |
| Lara | Lange | Adult Services Coordinator | UW-Stout |