Southern Illinois University - Food and Nutrition
Earn a Human Nutrition and Dietetics Degree.
Dietetics is a booming field and a hot career choice!
Research is uncovering links between diet and disease that are revolutionizing both health care and wellness care. Individual people are re-evaluating their own health expectations and demanding diets that go beyond simple calorie counting and a "one number for all" ideal weight.
At SIU, you’ll choose a specialization leading to certification as a registered dietitian (RD) or Nutrition for Wellness. Nutritionists and dietitians find careers managing diets and providing nutrition regimens with sports teams, corporations, schools, hospitals, health clinics and in nutrition therapy.
The program obtains a 94% passage rate on the Registration Examination for Dietitians and 100% of students who apply for a Dietetic Internship are accepted.*
See what SIU can do for you
Earn a Master's Degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetics
Our hands-on Master of Science degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetics with a dietetic internship serves as a launchpad for exciting careers in all areas of dietetics: community nutrition, clinical and food service management.
Our top-notch coursework and solid internship emphasize community nutrition: promoting health and preventing disease. This opens the door to limitless opportunities for those interested in providing nutrition education to individuals or groups; and those who would like to work in public health nutrition settings.
Registered Dietitian Nutritionists (RDNs)
Registered Dietitian Nutritionists (RDNs) is listed as a top job in Forbes Magazine, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts a job outlook that is growing much faster than average, with a median pay at more than $59,000.
Accreditation
The HND program at SIU is fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Sample Classes
- Careers in Dietetics
- Personal Nutrition
- Foundations of Nutrition
- Experimental Foods
- Quantity Food Production
- Nutrition & Wellness Education
- Nutrition and Obesity
- Nutrition Biochemistry
- Nutrition for Sport and Exercise
- Medical Nutrition Therapy
- Community Nutrition
Get Involved!
Students can join the Student Nutrition Academic Council (SNAC), a registered student organization, dedicated to providing community outreach, nutrition education on campus, and providing volunteer experience to undergraduate students.
Students often join the Southern Illinois Culinary Club where they can to tap into their foodie side by creating new recipes and whip up foods from different cuisines from around the world!
Experiential Learning
- Access to their own private computer lab and resource library.
- Hands-on practical nutrition education experience offered though motivational interviewing, lifecycle labs, nutrition education, and simulated case studies.
- Updated, modern kitchen labs equipped with state-of-the-art technology to provide a skill-based learning environment for quantity food production and food science courses.
- Opportunities to volunteer at food banks, public health, nutrition fairs at school, etc.
You’ll also have the chance to work on meaningful research with our top-notch faculty. Current research includes: nutrition and food insecurity research, assessment of nutrition and health-related behaviors of domestic brown-water mariners, and interrelated factors of diet, environmental sustainability, and health among college students.
