Students in the MS Nutrition Sciences, Dietitian Education Program (DEP) complete 58 credit hours of graduate coursework, including 24 credit hours of practicum requirements.
The DEP track curriculum is taught completely online to allow flexibility and convenience for students who reside outside of Birmingham and for the integration of practicum requirements. Though the curriculum is entirely online, practicum requirements are completed in-person within facilities that meet supervised practice requirements. The DEP track, including practicum requirements, can be completed wherever you are located. Students do not have to relocate to Birmingham to complete the program.
This is a full-time graduate-degree program; courses are offered in a specific sequence of study. Courses or supervised practice hours taken at any other institution cannot fulfill requirements of the DEP as there is no policy to evaluate equivalencies. Pre-requisites for admission to the program are evaluated on a case-by-case basis by the program.
NTR 674: Practicum in Medical Nutrition Therapy II (4 hours)*
NTR 675: Practicum in Dietetic Administration (4 hours)*
NTR 676: Advanced Practicum in Dietetics (4 hours)*
NTR 501: RDN Certification Review (0 hours)**
*Denotes practicum course. These courses are considered in-person experiences and therefore are subject to tuition charges based on state residency classification (resident or nonresident).
**Students are required to register for NTR501 during their final spring semester. NTR 501 is the two-day Review/Overview Course that is hosted on the UAB Campus. Students are not charged tuition for this course but will pay a non-refundable $550 fee.
Graduation Requirements
Students are required to maintain a 3.0 GPA to maintain good Academic Standing. Graduates receive their Verification Statement and are eligible to take the national exam to become a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN) offered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) once they have completed all degree requirements of the MS in Nutrition Sciences, Dietitian Education Program. The maximum time allowed for completion of the MS in Nutrition Sciences, Dietitian Education Program is three years.