Prepare for RND exam in five years
Registered Dietitian Nutritionists are allied medical professionals who put into practice
the science and art of food and nutrition to promote health and wellbeing.
RND credentialing exam requirements
Students must have a master’s degree and 1,000 hours of experiential learning to take the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) credentialing exam to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN).
Bluffton is meeting this need with the 4+1 Integrated Master’s Program.
This program can be completed in 5 years if you begin as a first-year student.
Benefits of Bluffton’s 4+1 program
- Competency-based education model: This means that practical hands-on learning is integrated into traditional classroom learning.
- Accelerated learning: Students complete a bachelor’s in nutrition and dietetics, a Master of Nutrition and Dietetics, along with the required 1,000 supervised experiential learning hours, in five years
- Seamless transition: Students may enter the Bluffton University program as a first year student and complete their master’s degree without changing schools.
- Cost saving: Save time and money by paying for only 12 months of graduate courses and supervised experiential learning hours
- Residential program: Except for the summer semester of three online courses, all classes are in-person and supervised experiential learning is completed in local professional work sites.
Pathway to becoming an RDN
As a first-year student with a career goal of becoming an RDN, we’ve developed a plan
to help you reach your goals. Seamlessly earn your bachelor’s and master’s degrees
at Bluffton University and be prepared to take the RDN credentialing exam.
Bachelor degree
- Declare a major in nutrition and dietetics. Course requirements include supervised experiential learning which count toward your 1,000 hours necessary to take the credentialing exam to become a RDN.
- Apply to continue: Apply for a fourth year of nutrition and dietetics and the RDN Integrated Master’s Program in March of your junior year:
- Receive a bachelor’s degree upon successful completion of the nutrition and dietetics major
- Begin the Master’s in Nutrition and Dietetics program with three on-line courses starting the summer after graduation
Certain criteria must be met to gain admission to the master’s program.
Admission to the MND program cannot be guaranteed at any point. Faculty will take
a wholistic approach to determining admission to the master’s program. There are a
limited number of seats per year.
RDN Integrated Master’s PRogram requirements
Bluffton students will apply for the fourth year of nutrition and dietetics and the RDN Integrated Master’s Program. Enrollment is limited to 10 students per year in 2023. Plans are to expand student enrollment when feasible.
Application deadline is March 1 of the junior year.
Later dates may be considered.
Application requirements for current Bluffton University undergraduate students:
- Overall minimum GPA of 3.0 (confirmed with transcripts)
- All NTR classes passed with a B- or better
- Completion of the first three years of the nutrition and dietetics curriculum at Bluffton
University with the above requirements met.
- Transfer students need to adhere to the same requirements. Equivalency will be evaluated individually.
- 200-300 documented hours of work in food service or health care
- Letters of recommendation from supervisor and nutrition and dietetics faculty
- Discuss attendance, professionalism, behavior, attitude, interest in the profession and the ability to do written and oral graduate work.
- Written resume
- Written personal statement addressing:
- Personal interest in nutrition and dietetics
- Significant academic or work responsibilities held
- Professional goals and reasons for desiring to enroll in this program
- Strengths you possess and areas in which you need to gain greater experience
- Anything else you would like us to know about you
- Interview with faculty and selection committee
not selected for the master's program?
Students not admitted to the program will continue their fourth year at Bluffton with special advising to plan courses that meet their individual interests. They will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in food and nutrition. Every effort will be made by the professors to ensure that students have solid plans upon graduation.
Students in their first year or sophomore years who determine they might not meet these requirements should discuss options with their advisor to find an alternative major, such as food and nutrition with a concentration in either wellness or business. This planning should be done as early as possible.