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Maximum Enrollment
The Russell Sage College Dietetic Internship Program is accredited to accept 30 interns annually in the Onsite (24 interns) & Distance (6) Tracks.
Program Format
The dietetic internship incorporates three graduate courses totaling 1,040 hours of supervised experience in a variety of settings with two graduate coursework classes. Activities to achieve competencies for the concentration area, communications, are integrated into all five courses.
Those who complete the program will receive a Verification Statement and graduate certificate. We also offer a 42-credit Applied Nutrition master’s and Dietetic Internship option.
| Dietetic Internship Required Courses | Credit Hours |
|---|---|
| NTR 525 Advanced Medical Nutrition Therapy | 3 |
| NTR 530 Dietetic Internship Practicum 1 (fall) | 6 |
| NTR 531 Dietetic Internship Practicum 2 (spring) | 6 |
| NTR 555 Nutrition Research: Interpretation & Communication | 3 |
| NTR 532 Dietetic Internship Practicum 3 (summer) | 6 |
| Total Required Credit Hours | 24 |
Those who complete the program will receive a Verification Statement and graduate certificate. Interns have the option of applying the graduate certificate to a master’s degree in Applied Nutrition (a 2-year MS/DI) or Health Services Administration. The Internship Director is available for advisement about graduate course work.
Beginning on January 1, 2024 a minimum requirement of a master’s degree is required to take the registration examination for dietitians. For more information, please visit the Commission on Dietetic Registration’s website.
Required Practicum Hours
| Rotations | Weeks | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| CLINICAL ROTATIONS | 14 Weeks | 560 Hours |
| Acute Care | 10 weeks | 400 hours |
| Long Term Care | 2 weeks | 80 hours |
| Outpatient | 2 weeks | 80 hours |
| FOOD SERVICE MANAGEMENT ROTATION college or university, school-based, healthcare and corporate settings | 6 weeks | 240 hours |
| COMMUNITY ROTATION various organizations | 5 weeks | 200 hours |
| ELECTIVE ROTATION various organizations | 1 week | 40 hours |
| TOTAL | 26 weeks | 1040 hours |
Full-time and Part-time Options for Completing the Dietetic Internship
All interns will be actively completing practicum and related coursework during the summer, fall, and spring semesters. Full-time interns are in practicum for 40 hours/week and part-time interns complete 24 hours/week of practicum (excluding holidays and allotted time between practicum rotations). These hours do not include lunch break.
Each semester will include mandatory in-person and virtual orientations/class days, advising sessions at minimum of once per semester and end of semester presentations.
In addition to practicum interns will complete NTR-525, Advanced Medical Nutrition Therapy in the fall semester and NTR-555, Nutrition Research: Interpretation and Communication in the spring semester. Both NTR-525 and NTR-555 are offered fully online.
The following components must satisfactorily be completed to receive the Verification Statement, which qualifies the intern to sit for the registration examination for dietitians.
- successfully complete all planned practicum experiences of the DI (clinical, management and community);
- successfully achieve all competencies by the end of the program;
- earn an overall average grade of “B” or better in the five required graduate courses; and
- pass a final comprehensive examination (minimum 75% score)
DI Program requirements must be completed within two years of the start date.
The following materials will also be completed during the last week of the DI: paperwork required by the Commission on Dietetics Registration (CDR) to qualify for the RD exam; exit interviews and any other required business is completed. Completion packets which include Verification Statements are mailed.
Practicum Placements
All rotations are appointed by the Dietetic Internship program director and coordinator. Interns are provided a preference survey upon acceptance into the program. The Dietetic Internship program coordinator works diligently to schedule and secure all onsite interns placements and great effort goes into matching placements with intern preferences. Interns will receive placement roughly a month prior to the start of the program.
Interns are assigned to a variety of facilities and transportation to and from each site is the responsibility of each intern. The director and coordinator will make every effort to arrange placements within close proximity to where the intern will be residing throughout the program, however, there are times when up to one-hour of travel may be required.
Gainful Employment
The Dietetic Internship Certificate Program is subject to Gainful Employment Regulations.
Accreditation Status
The Dietetic Internship program at Russell Sage’s School of Health Sciences is currently granted accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) of The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. ACEND is the only accrediting agency for dietetics education recognized by the United States Department of Education (USDE). The address and telephone number of ACEND are: 120 South Riverside Plaza, Suite 2190, Chicago, IL. 60606-6995, 312-899-4876. On the web: www.eatrightpro.org/acend
Russell Sage College is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools and is chartered by the Board of Regents of the University of the State of New York.