I would highly recommend that before you spend your time and money educating yourself for a career, talk to dietitians about their jobs. Ask them about a typical day, what they like / dislike about their jobs, how they got their job, etc. Does this describe a job that you would like? Also, check out the salary survey of ADA members, which was published August 2001. You should find it in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. After you read the survey ask yourself does this meet your salary expectations?

Here are some dietitian salaries from JADA August 2001:

Area of Practice	Median Salary
Clinical Dietitian	$37,565
Food and Nutrition Management	$48,370
Community Nutrition	$37,990
Consultation and Business	$48,810
Education and Research	$47,040
Dietetic Technician	$27,430

My Bachelor's degree is in Dietetics with a minor in Chemistry from the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley. My Master's degree is in Nutrition with a minor in counseling and guidance from North Dakota State University in Fargo. I am registered with the American Dietetic Association and licensed in Minnesota. I did not do an internship, but completed practical experience during graduate school instead. I worked one year as a student dietitian at the University of Illinois Research Hospital in Chicago between my bachelor's and master's degrees.

My passion has been clinical practice, but I also loved forming a nutritional support service (intensive care nutrition with oral or tube feedings or IV formulas) in a community hospital. So you would call me a generalist rather than specializing in say diabetes or pediatrics. I was the only clinical dietitian in a 173 bed hospital with an attached 125 bed long term care facility (nursing home) so I worked with every type of patient and diet.

Dietitian qualifications are a 4 year degree in dietetics or nutrition with a 9 - 12 month internship or completion of a coordinated undergraduate program that combines classroom and clinical experience.

I am the president of a corporation whose mission is using computer technology and the Internet to deliver nutrition information, data and software. During the course of my professional career, I have worked as a clinical dietitian in a hospital and long term care, out patient medical clinic, consultant to an anorexia / bulimia (eating disorders) program at a mental health center, taught at the University of Minnesota, Duluth and 2 dietetic technician programs in Minneapolis before designing software for a CDROM publisher and starting my consulting corporation.

Funny thing is I got into jobs that were over my head, but I usually learned valuable new skills. In the traditional jobs I have had in dietetics (hospital, long term care, out-patient medical and mental health clinics), I learned from doctors, nurses and patients as well as continuing education (CE) programs on every aspect of medical nutrition therapy. Continuing education programs taught me the practical applications or provided me with information about new research that I could incorporate into my practice. Prior to teaching at the University and diet tech programs, I didn't have any training to "teach" however, teaching a diet to one patient is similar to teaching 170 students. Prior to designing software, I knew PC word processing and that was it. I have learned a lot about designing software and computer technology from programmers and database developers as well as reading computer magazines and manuals. FYI, I have never taken a computer course and learned what I know on the job, reading software manuals and just working for technology companies.

However, to design databases or publish web sites, you don't need any formal training or education or a degree. You can learn what you need from reading software manuals, looking at what other people do on the Internet and doing it yourself. Unfortunately, this pays much more than dietetics.

My hospital and clinical responsibilities covered nutritional assessment and support, anthropometrics (skinfold measurements with a caliper) and using diet to treat diseases or maintain health. Teaching responsibilities covered teaching over 500 students per year and every nutritiion class offered at UMD. In the diet tech programs, I was the program director for about 20 students at each school where I taught nutrition and foods classes as well as supervised hospital experience rotations for students. Software design responsibilities included designing algorithims based on nutrition practice that make nutrient analysis software programs work correctly, testing the software to make sure it worked correctly, identifying nutrient databases and designing databases for brand name food nutrient data as well as working at trade shows to sell the software. I have managed database development, which includes not only finding data to store, but designing the database information to produce meaningful reports people need. Internet publishing includes writing the content you see here, writing the html code and marketing the site to generate income. I also designed the Healthy Body Calculator at this web site, but hired a programmer to write the code that makes the calculator work. With my corporation, I can do whatever I envision.

As to salary, check out the salary survey in JADA above. Teaching jobs vary in salary ranges depending on whether or not the staff is unionized and can mean overworked and underpaid at large universities unless you do research as a PhD. Consulting can range from $50+ per hour depending on your skills and area of the country. Most companies contact me because of my computer / database skills and I know nutrition. Remember though that with consulting, you continually have to market for clients whereas in a staff position, your employer assigns you the work to be performed and finds new work for you to do. Consultants also have to pay all their own expenses including health insurance. So if you decide to go into consulting, charge two to three times what you need per hour.

Since I am president, I can go as far as my vision, energy and enthusiasm take me, but I have to focus all 3 on products that are profitable or have the potential for profit.

I continually take continuing education classes at state and national meetings like ADA, but I don't think I will get any more degrees. Are you aware that when you become a registered dietitian, you have to take 75 credit hours every 5 years. What that means is for every 1 hour spent in an educational program, you get 1 credit. This is unlike college classes where you get 3 credits for attending a class 3 hours a week for 12 - 16 weeks.

Since 1989, on the job computer training and work experiences have amassed to what I know today. When I need to know more about a particular topic or skill I ask people I know (aka networking) especially programmers, buy books or magazines about the topic and just sit down at a computer to learn what I need to know. I surfed the World Wide Web in March 1995 and by July had launched the first Ask the Dietitian web site. My #1 criteria for any job is have fun while I provide services or products that enhance people's health.

Don't exactly know what you mean by profession responsibilities? Please explain.

If I consider my current position, I need patience to identify problems, logic to figure out solutions and creativity to think of possibilities for new products. I am a visionary who sees probable solutions and the confidence to take risks in spite of the risk of failure.

Unfortunately I spend too much time working on computers and because of that don't get as much exercise as I did at jobs where I walked around. So I now schedule exercise outside my work.

My family has been fortunate to have a dietitian who is also a good cook and serves healthy food. The proof of that is my children will eat anything including spinach, asparagus and they are willing to try unfamiliar foods.

I would first highly recommend that you talk to some dietitians who are doing what you think you would like to do. Then ask one of them to mentor you. Get a job in health care during college to see if you like the work. Don't spend 4 years of your life educating yourself for something you find you don't like or doesn't meet your salary expectations. Your coursework probably follows the educational guidelines from ADA for approved dietetic programs. In spite of this take outside courses in subjects that you would like to explore. The future definitely includes computer technology, complementary and alternative medicine - find out how it fits with health and wellness. Take some business and marketing courses as you will probably change careers at least 8 times during your work life. Read newspapers, magazines and watch tv to see what aspect of nutrition the public is interested in, then educate yourself about it becauset they will seek you as the nutrition expert.

Good luck and remember to have fun with your career.

Check the Journal of the American Dietetic Association's "Report on the 1999 Membership Database" in the August 2001 journal. There is a survey of members in public health with ranging years of experience. Your specific job responsibilities may not be exactly reported, but there should be information for you to determine your salary range.

In the US, you need a 4 year degree in nutrition or dietetics, a 9 - 12 month internship (internships have to be approved by the American Dietetic Association) and successful passing of a national registration test that is offered every April and October. Or you can get a masters degree with a preplanned practical experience to complete the degree and internship requirements, but you would still have to take the national registration test.

I would suggest contacting the American Dietetic Association. Go to their web site section on becoming an RD / DTR (Dietetic Technician Registered). To practice in the US, you would need to become registered. ADA has reciprocity with a few countries including Ireland so check if Turkey has reciprocity with ADA.

Many states in the U.S. license who can call themselves a dietitian or nutritionist or provide nutrition / dietetic services. As to volunteering, I would suggest you again talk to ADA (612-877-1600, press 0 for the operator). Perhaps you could intern in the U.S. which would also allow you to take the registration test.

FYI, outside the US, many people spell dietitian as dietician (a tic in the middle) and in the United States, dietitian is spelled dietitian (a tit in the middle). Since the internet is worldwide, either spelling would be correct.

Would suggest you get a degree in nutrition, probably another masters degree. To get info about becoming an RD go to the American Dietetic Association site. You may have to take a lot of prerequisite courses to meet the ADA's educational requirements that were not met by your exercise physiology degree. Then after graduation, you have to complete a 9 month internship or professional experience combined with a master's degree. There are CUP programs that combine an undergraduate degree with the internship and could take 3 years if you have all the general education prerequisites. So that is why I suggested the master's degree as your best option.

FYI, some states now have licensure that restricts who can provide nutrition advice within a state. Check on licensure with your state dietetic association which is probably located in the capital of the state in which you live.

FYI, dietitians are 97% white female. The American Dietetic Association periodically surveys its members and publishes the results of those surveys in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. The last salary survey was published in 1996 and should be available in the library of any college with a dietetics program or medical school. Salaries vary depending on whether you choose clinical (hospital, our patient clinic or nursing home), food service or private practice. Health clubs or corporate wellness programs may be a better mix of your degrees if you have both exercise physiology and nutrition. Lastly, positions for dietitians in some areas are tight due to the fact that dietitians tend to stay close to home as many have families. Before you spend the time educating yourself to become a Registered Dietitian, check with your state's dietetic association for job openings and state salary ranges as well as colleges with programs.

I have mostly worked with college and Olympic athletes, but also bodybuilders. Ask the Dietitian attracts a lot of athletes as well as exercised individuals who are concerned about an optimal weight and diet for performance. Their needs are as varied as their sport and diet so the type of work depends on assessing the athlete's needs.

I would suggest you look into becoming a veterinarian, as I don't know diddley about animal nutrition other than the rats and chicks I worked with doing research or pet dogs and cats I have had. GI tracts differ greatly among species as well as among birds, fish and large mammals.

Start looking at the Animal Science home page of the University of Minnesota. Perhaps you can find an email link to write a teacher there and ask about major, courses, etc.

Good luck. Sounds like a fun career.

It would depend on what your Bachelor of Science degree is in. The pre-requisites for dietetics are science (biology and chemistry) and nutrition. After completing BS in nutrition, one has to complete an internship or a clinical experience plus a Masters degree. Or if you lived near a college dietetics program that combined the BS degree and internship (Coordinated Undergraduate Program) you could complete the course work and internship at the same time. Before you go register for classes, check out ADA Education / Experience Requirements page at the ADA web site for the results of the latest survey of members salaries based on job responsibilities.

I don't have any, but I would suggest you contact your local hospital and talk to their Dietary Department head. You may also want to contact long-term care facilities such as nursing homes with a similar request. Since you are a student, they may share their survey form with you as well as any results.

Don't exactly understand your question about the whole scope of the field.

Dietetics is opening up beyond the traditional health care job though the majority of dietitians still work in hospitals, nursing homes or outpatient clinics. Public health nutritionists have a master's degree in nutrition and are usually registered dietitians. They often work in county, state and federal programs with a nutrition component like WIC, EFNEP, school lunch, etc. Call your state public health department and ask to talk to a dietitian about their job. If you want to become a registered dietitian, you will need an internship or graduate degree with work experience. Check out the American Dietetic Association home page for information on careers and colleges in dietetics.

Food technology research and development is actually a whole other field with a 4 year degree in Food Science. Food scientists develop new foods, design food labels and know some nutrition, but not medical nutrition therapy. Dietitians know medical nutrition therapy, understand food labels and have some knowledge on how to research and develop new foods for food manufacturers. If you want information about food science, check out the Institute of Food Technologists.

The profession of dietetics is about 97% white female. Most graduates tend to stay put which leaves pockets of where there are job openings. I can only speak for Minnesota and since there are 4 undergraduate (4 year) and 2 technical (2 year) schools here, there are lots of dietitians and dietetic technicians. Therefore, not as many jobs are available. Whereas, there seems to be more openings in the South. I would suggest you call the New York State Dietetic Association. If you can't find their phone number, call the American Dietetic Association at (312) 899-0040. I would also suggest you contact a hospital or clinic near you and ask to talk to their dietitian about local health care job conditions. ADA has periodically done salary surveys and the results are available in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.

I would think that your culinary degree and a degree in dietetics would land you a good food service job (administrative dietitian) either in a health care facility or public health or possibly with a food manufacturer. These usually pay a better salary than clinical nutrition ones.

First check out the American Dietetic Association home page as the answers to many of your questions are there. ADA has a list at their web site of colleges that offer dietetics programs. You will need a four year college degree plus an internship (9 months to 1 year after college) to become a registered dietitian or a two year degree and clinical experience to become a registered dietetic technician. Dietetic technicians assist dietitians and do similar work.

If you have an interest in food and how it nourishes the body or wellness and health, dietetics may be for you. I went into dietetics because I loved to cook and a girlfriend's father who was president of Cellu Featherweight food company talked to me about becoming a dietitian. Cellu Featherweight makes dietetic foods that can be bought in grocery stores. Food companies usually hire food technologists to design new foods. Check out the Institute of Food Technologists.

The advantages are you work when people eat and are awake which is 6 AM to 7 PM, so no shift work like nursing or other health care careers, but you may have to work weekends and holidays. It's exciting to see a person get better by changing what or when they eat. You don't have to know how to cook or even like cooking to become a dietitian. The disadvantages are that dietitians are 97% female who are not unionized and therefore, beginning salary can be under $30,000 per year for a new graduate. The American Dietetic Association periodically does surveys of members to determine what type of work members perform and what they are getting paid for that work.

Most dietitians work with patients (clinical dietitians) or work with food service (administrative dietitians) either in hospitals, nursing homes or out patient clinics. Some clinical dietitians work in private practice (counsel patients), perform nutrition research, consult with smaller health care facilities or teach in colleges / universities. Other dietitians work for companies who sell food products, a few work in media and communications (TV, radio, newspaper) or some work with athletes or professional sports teams. There are different areas of practice that dietitians work in / with such as public health, senior citizens, mental health, cancer, renal (kidney), children (pediatrics), diabetes, rehabilitation, sports & wellness or school food service.

Call your local hospital or clinic and ask to talk to a dietitian. Most would be happy to show you around and tell you what a typical day is like. Ask lots of questions like "how did you get interested in becoming a dietitian" or "where did you go to school". To become a dietitian, you will need to major in dietetics or nutrition. Your minor could be in chemistry, business or counseling depending on whether you want to be a clinical or administrative dietitian. You don't have to make a decision about your area of practice (i.e. diabetes or children) until you graduate, but you should decide if you want to work with patients (clinical) or food (administrative) as that will determine the courses you take the last 2 years of college.

PS The letters after my name mean: MS = Masters of Science (2 years of graduate school after bachelor's degree); RD = registered dietitian; LD = state licensed dietitian. FYI most people don't list their bachelors degree after their name.

Don't know what a certified nutritionist is. Unfortunately, people with an interest in nutrition or who sell nutritional supplements often call themselves nutritionists. Some states license who can call themselves nutritionist and those who qualify, become licensed. Therefore unless someone is a licensed nutritionist, the title nutritionist does not necessarily signify any education or training in nutrition or any qualifications to counsel people on nutrition. Traditionally, nutritionist had referred to a person who has a graduate degree in nutrition, but that practice has become less used because of the confusion caused by persons without any degree calling them a nutritionist.

A registered dietitian has completed a 4-year college degree in nutrition or dietetics, completed an internship and passed a registration test by the American Dietetic Association. Check out the American Dietetic Association web site. In order to stay registered, dietitians have to complete 75 hours of continuing education every 5 years. Some states also license who can call themselves a dietitian.

Never heard of IAACN. What is the long name of the organization?

Why not surf around the American Dietetic Association where they have lots of info about becoming a dietitian, schools and internships. Would suggest your niece consider a double major in exercise physiology and nutrition. Now that would be a winning combination. There are some great schools in TX which are listed at the ADA site.

Why don't you contact the American Dietetic Association at (312) 899-0040 or visit their web page at www.eatright.org where they have undergraduate, graduate and internship programs listed.

Why not contact the professional sports teams in California and ask to talk to their sports nutritionist? Then ask that person where they went to school and how did they get their job. At a minimum, you will need a Masters degree. Why not think about getting it in exercise physiology?

Check out the American Dietetic Association. They have lots of info to answer your questions. Since 97% of dietitians are women, your diversity would be welcome.

Check out the American Dietetic Association's home page that has lots of info.

Check out the American Dietetic Association site. You can contact them at 312-899-0040 for a list of accredited dietetics programs. They have a referral network called "Find a Dietitian" on their web site to locate dietitians in your area.

FYI, Richard Simmons didn't develop the deal a meal, a dietitian did as an educational tool. She sued Richard Simmons and I remember that she was awarded damages.

Deal a meal is based on the exchange system, but uses individual cards for each exchange. The person moves cards from one side of a folder to the other to keep track as exchanges are eaten each day. I haven't keep close track if Richard Simmons has made any changes to what the dietitian developed. I don't believe the deal a meal diets are individualized like a dietitian would do with an exchange diet for weight loss. I also don't know if there are various calorie levels for deal a meal so maybe one "size" deal fits all. Whereas, a dietitian could customize the calorie intake and meal plan to the individual.

Thanks for the positive feedback. It is nice to hear, especially from peers. I used to do nutrition support and loved it.

You could check BYTINGIN newsletter, which provides an annual directory of food service and nutritional analysis software. They are putting up a web site, but is still under construction. You can e-mail the BYTINGIN editor Sue Grossbauer.

The government has a database of food and nutrition software that was maintained by the National Agriculture Library. The NAL used to have a printed directory of nutrition software and demo copies of each software at their library in Washington. The NAL has discontinued this as of last year, but your library may have an old copy.

There are monthly software reviews by John Orta in the back of Journal Of the American Dietetic Association. He is at California Sate University - Los Angeles.

I designed features for 6 nutritional analysis software programs for Hopkins Technology so I am not exactly unbiased. I have been working for HT for over 7 years. I prefer complete nutrition analysis, weight loss, exercise and cookbook software. The qualities that I like in nutritional analysis software are ease of use (don't have to read the manual), large database with few or no missing nutrient values covering at least 30 nutrients, Windows platform, graph / print capabilities, able to add foods to the database, costing of meals / recipes, recipe scaling (increase or decrease number of servings), BMR / activity calorie calculations. inexpensive (<$100) and good technical support.

Good luck with your assignment and career in dietetics. I graduated with a BA from University of Northern Colorado at Greeley and a Masters from North Dakota State University at Fargo. By the way, I have never taken a course in computers and can do anything with computers except program! Take computer classes and become a techie RD.