How to become a dietitian
Hi everyone! In light of dietitians’ week starting tomorrow, I thought I’d do a post for people considering dietetics as a career option.
Dietitians week this year is 5-9th
June and it’s a week to celebrate and promote dietetics!
As a reminder, dietitians are
healthcare professionals that assess, diagnose, and treat nutritional issues.
You have to have an accredited degree and maintain your professional
registration to call yourself a dietitian. It’s a protected title, regulated
by law.
Nutritionists can also work with
people to manage nutritional problems but it’s not a regulated title. So,
anyone can call themselves a nutritionist, even if they haven’t got any
qualifications.
I’ve got lots of blog posts on what to expect during the dietetics degree, and about my career. I’ll link some here:
Day in the life of weight management dietitian
Day in the life of hospital dietitian
What to expect on B placement as a dietetic student
What to expect on C placement as a dietetic student
Week in the life of a first year dietetics student
As I said, you need a degree to
become a dietitian, but it starts with GCSEs. Most universities want a 4 (grade
C) or above in English language and Maths. This then takes you into your A
levels.
What A levels to pick:
Picking 2 science based subjects
for your A levels will put you in good stead for dietetics. Some universities
will specify Biology AND Chemistry, while others may say biology, or chemistry,
plus another science subject like Maths or Psychology. The grades required
depends on the university you want to go but it’s typically at least B grades
in all your subjects.
For context, I did A level Biology,
Chemistry, and Sociology with ABB grades respectively. And I got into the
University of Nottingham.
Considering the modules at
university will include subjects like biochemistry, food science, and genetics,
I think that both biology and chemistry would be most helpful.
If you’re doing the International
Baccalaureate (IB), at most universities you’ll need about 34 points with at
least Biology or Chemistry at higher level at grade 5 or above.
Access courses:
If you didn’t do A levels or you
didn’t do science based A levels, you can still do a degree in dietetics. Access
courses and foundation courses are also accepted. Again, the specific numbers
are university dependent, but most would require a minimum of 60 credits
overall with 45 credits at Level 3, in biology and/or chemistry. Most universities
also specify you’d need a distinction in the science subjects, and they’ll take
a merit in other subjects.
Non-academic requirements:
Uni’s also like when you do work
experience or spend some time shadowing dietitians. This shows your interest in
the course and gives you the chance to figure out if dietetics is for you. It
can be difficult to arrange work experience but contacting hospitals local to
you can be a good starting point.
Volunteering in a hospital/care
home is another good way to show your interest in working in healthcare. Again, it gives you the chance to figure out if the healthcare
environment is right for you.
You can also attend some nutrition
taster days run by universities to get a feel for things. I went to one at King’s
College London and it confirmed my interest in nutrition! This is another way
to strengthen your uni application and show your interest in the profession.
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The university degree:
There’s one more step between doing
your A levels (or other qualifications) and starting a dietetics degree. You’ll
have to do an interview to get into a dietetics course. I remember being terrified
for all of my interviews, it’s a nerve wracking experience!
I’ve got a blog post here about my
interview experience at each university I applied for. Each university will
have a different interview process, but you should get information about it
before it happens.
They'll generally ask questions about why you want to do dietetics, nutrition based questions, and what skills you have.
Now onto the degree…
My dietetics degree was 4 years
with an integrated master’s degree. Most universities do the degree in 4 years
for a BSc, while some do it in 3 years with longer term times. Modules differ
between places but will typically include: biochemistry, human metabolism,
nutrition through the lifespan, physiology, health behaviours, and fundamentals
of dietetics.
You can also do a dietetics degree
as a postgraduate student, provided your first degree has some relevance e.g., you
did BSc nutrition. The post graduate degree is typically 2 years full time. You’ll
have to interview for this also.
Placement:
A core part of the degree is
placement, where you get to practice as a student dietitian under the
supervision of qualified dietitians. You have to complete 1000 hours of placement
across the degree. This gives you the chance to learn, develop skills, and put
the theory into practice in a real working environment.
In my degree, I had a 3 week ‘A’
placement in first year. This was shadowing/observing dietitians to give us a
feel for the role. Covid then messed up the rest of my placements, so they were
a bit out of the ordinary. My 12 week ‘B’ placement was reduced to 3 weeks of
virtual placement and 7 weeks in a hospital. This took place in autumn/winter
of 4th year. I then did my final 12 week ‘C’ placement in the spring
of 4th year.
It’s
typically in a hospital setting but now there’s more opportunities to do it in
other places. I did 2 weeks of my C placement with Slimming World, for example. You need to pass placement in order to complete the degree. And if you’re struggling
to meet the learning objectives your placement time will be extended, or you
may have to redo it completely. This can be a scary time, but you’ll be
supported all the way through.
Apprenticeship pathway:
A newer avenue to become a
dietitian has recently become an option. A couple of universities now offer a
dietetic degree apprenticeship where you’ll learn on the job and get paid while
doing so. Your tuition fees will also be paid for, and you’ll be able to study
while putting it into practice. It varies by employer, but you’ll typically
need 3 A levels or equivalent to do the apprenticeship. It takes 3-4 years depending
on the university.
After the degree:
After you’ve completed your degree
and passed placement, you can then apply for Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) registration and call
yourself a registered dietitian!
There are so many places for
dietitians to work in, not just hospital setting. We can work in industry with
food companies/retailers, weight management providers, charities, research
institutions, social media, and freelancing to name a few.
You’ll need to renew your
registration with the HCPC every 2 years. This ensures that you’re still able to
practice safely and appropriately, and you’re keeping up with the latest research
in nutrition. If you’re selected to be audited by the HCPC you need to provide
evidence of your Continued Professional Development (CPD) for the previous 2
years.
CPD can be anything from reflecting
on a challenging situation at work, reading a nutrition book, watching a webinar, presenting/teaching
others about dietetics, or performing an audit. You’ll have to explain how the CPD
you’ve done has benefitted you in your role and benefitted the patients/clients.
I hope this blog post has been
useful to know the journey of becoming a registered dietitian! Promoting dietetics
is one the main reasons I started my blog, as I would’ve loved to have all this
information before I applied for the degree.
I’m happy to answer any questions about dietetics in the comments below or on my Instagram @kaegoskitchen
Key points:
- To do a dietetics degree you’ll need 3 A levels or equivalent, in science based subjects.
- Before the degree you’ll have to interview with every university you apply for.
- The degree is 3-4 years depending on where you go. And placement is a core part of it, with 1000 hours needing to be completed during the degree.
- A newer route is now available, with a dietetic degree apprenticeship where you’ll learn on the job and get paid.
- After the degree, you’ll be a registered dietitian and can work in many places. You’ll need to renew your registration every 2 years with the HCPC.
Bye for now! 👋
References:
https://www.bda.uk.com/news-campaigns/campaigns/dietitians-week.html
https://www.bda.uk.com/about-dietetics/what-is-dietitian.html
https://www.londonmet.ac.uk/courses/undergraduate/dietetics---bsc-hons/
https://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/courses/dietetics-bsc/
https://www.kcl.ac.uk/study/postgraduate-taught/courses/dietetics
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