Nutrition and Dietetics

Research, internships and clinical experience are essential to nutrition students. You’ll have opportunities to explore your interests, build your skills and develop mentoring relationships with leaders in the field. We take full advantage of our location in the heart of Boston, and more specifically the Longwood Medical Area. Our students have been placed at the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources, Ethos, Women’s Lunch Place, Community Servings, Greater Boston Food Bank, a variety of local WIC programs, and a variety of local hospitals. 
 
Upon graduation, completing a Dietetic Internship Program is a crucial step in becoming a Registered Dietitian. Our students are successful in internship programs nationwide – we have an excellent placement rate.

Program mission:

The mission of the Simmons University DPD is to educate students and foster an appreciation of lifelong learning in preparation for supervised practice, and success in the nutrition and dietetics profession. We aim to prepare students to be effective in a profession that improves the eating behaviors and subsequent health and quality of life of a multicultural and diverse population, a profession that adds to the scientific investigation about food and health, and one that fosters an appreciation of nutrition and dietetics' relationship to other sciences.

The Didactic Program in Dietetics' goals and corresponding program outcomes are shown below:

Goal 1: Simmons University DPD graduates will be prepared to become competent entry level dietetics professionals.

Goal 2: Program graduates will be well prepared to succeed in one or more of the following: a nutrition related graduate program or nutrition related employment.

Corresponding Program objectives:

• At least 80% of students complete program requirements within 3 years (150% of planned program length).
• At least 50% BS/70% of DPD students of program graduates apply for admission to a supervised practice program prior to or within 12 months of graduation.
• Of program graduates who apply to a supervised practice program, at least 55% BS/80% DPD students% are admitted within 12 months of graduation.
• The program’s one-year pass rate (graduates who pass the registration exam within one year of first attempt) on the CDR credentialing exam for dietitian nutritionists is at least 80%.
• At least 75 % of graduates will agree or better to being prepared on 75% of the items (that pertain to content they learned at Simmons) on the graduate survey.
• At least 75% of Directors of Supervised Practice will rate Simmons University DPD graduates as adequately prepared or better on 75% of items listed on the survey.
• Of graduates who applied to nutrition/public health related graduate programs, 70% will be admitted  within 12 months of application.
• Of graduates who sought nutrition/public health related employment, 50% will be employed within 12 months of application.

Visit the Tuition and Financial aid page to find the estimated expenses for a typical full-time undergraduate resident student who is a non-nursing major and additional information pertaining to program cost and financial aid. Students can also review the Simmons University Academic Calendar to review information regarding semester dates.

Prospective and current students are encouraged to review the Nutrition Student Guide for more information pertaining to programmatic policies and procedures.

Additional Program Costs

• Laboratory coat ($35).
• Individual course materials (e.g. books, access to professional electronic resources) should be expected.
• Membership fees recommended for the program may include the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics ($58, OPTIONAL but strongly recommended).
• Transportation to clinical and fieldwork sites ($30/semester).
• Transportation, meal costs, and registration fees to attend professional meetings and practical experiences should be expected.
• Most internships charge an application fee between $50 and $100. Additionally, there is a fee to register with the Centralized Application System (]~$50 for the first application and $25 for each application after) and $55 to apply to the computer matching process used to determine intern placement (through D & D Digital). Note that these fees are subject to change.