Lesia Z, RD

The first thing I thought I’d share about my education is the process I’m going through. First of all, what is the difference between a dietitian and a nutritionist?

A dietitian has at least a four-year Bachelor's degree in nutrition and dietetics (or graduate degree), has completed an internship and has passed a national registration exam from the American Dietetic Association.

A person with a master's degree in nutrition can be called a nutritionist. However, the title is used by a variety of persons, including those without any nutrition education, possibly only a personal interest in nutrition.

The rough draft of the next few years of my life includes completing my course work for a BS in Dietetics (should be done by July 2012), applying to and being accepted into an ADA accredited internship (9-12 months), and taking (and PASSING) the national registration exam. If all goes smoothly I expect to be an RD by the end of 2013.

The options for an RD are various. I can work in a hospital, in private practice, research, sales (blech), community education or treatment/therapy (to name a few). Right now I’m most intrigued by the treatment and education aspects, but time will tell. I need at least 100 hours of volunteer work for my internship application, so I’m trying to spend lots of time in different facilities to get as much experience as possible. Right now I’m volunteering at the Inner Door Center, a treatment facility for eating disorders and mental health issues. In October I will also be spending some time at the Beaumont Diabetes Nutrition Education department, and I hope to also work in the Beaumont Weight Loss clinic.

So far I love the nutrition community at Madonna University. I’m getting to know the professors (whom I thank in advance for their letters of recommendation), and am surrounded by a great group of peers. I’ve joined the Nutrition Network, a fantastic group of Dietetics students whose scheduled events and volunteer activities will help me reach the 15 volunteer hours I need for my Community Nutrition class well before I take it in the spring. Yay!