Video:Career Profile: Dietitian

Transcript:Career Profile: Dietitian

Hi, I'm Sharon Richter for About.com. Today I'm going to talk to you about what it's like to be a Registered Dietitian.

Places a Dietitian Could Work

A registered dietitian might find a job working in private practice, in HMO, working in a hospital setting. They could also work in a school or the food industry, they could work in a business setting, such as consulting for a restaurant or a food company and now, with the growing concern with the health industry, it's a huge business to be entering.

Background of a Dietitian

So, when one is trying to becoming a registered dietitian, they need a medical background. They're going to need a Bachelor's Degree of Science where they'll be doing all the pre-med sciences. Then, they're going to need to do a hospital internship. Within this hospital internship, it can range from 6 to 12 months, and you do three different types of rotations. You do a community rotation, a hospital rotation and a food service rotation. Upon completion of your rotation, you sit for a national exam and then you need to maintain your license as a registered dietitian by completing continuing education credit.

Special Certifications for Dietitians

Some dietitians hold special certifications; this can be in pediatrics, it could be in renal disease, this could be in diabetes. Many times, people who work in hospitals do have these specifications, and then that way they can really focus in on the various different diseases, to help these type of patients out. A registered dietitian is a team player in a hospital. When someone is diagnosed with an illness, very frequently changing their diet will improve their status. They might have a drug interaction that their diet is very significant in; they also may need to alter what they are eating to really improve their condition.

Options Besides Hospitals

Some other career paths that dietitians may take are in corporate wellness, working with businesses to improve the overall health of the company; are in sports nutrition, working with sports teams; are in research, working with different pharmaceutical companies concerned about drug interactions, and now with the growing concern with health care, there are so many different jobs coming about in the near future.

Salaries of Dietitians

When thinking about the salary of a dietitian starting in a hospital, it usually ranges around $50,000 to get started, in private practice, it might range closer to seventy-five to a hundred thousand, and consulting for larger businesses, it often ranges for over one hundred thousand dollars. From there, with health being such a concern in our society, it definitely can increase over time. With people living longer, caring more about their bodies and their wellness, this is a growing industry that's definitely going to take off, and there's definitely a large career path ahead of us.

Thanks for watching; if you'd like to know more about what it's like to be a Registered Dietitian, please visit About.com.