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Post-Baccalaureate Program

Students who already have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited university may complete dietetics course requirements as a post-baccalaureate student or as a second degree student.

Students interested in completing post-baccalaureate Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD) coursework in order to obtain a Verification Statement must hold a bachelor's degree from a U.S. regionally accredited institution or foreign equivalent. The DPD Verification Statement is required to enter many supervised practice programs, including dietetic internships. Obtaining supervised practice is a required step in order to become a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN). For more information about pathways to becoming an RDN, visit: https://www.fcs.uga.edu/fdn/careers-in-dietetics.

Meet the DPD Director

FAQs

  1. I have a bachelor’s degree from another university, but it is not in dietetics. Can I complete undergraduate course requirements at The University of Georgia to obtain a DPD verification statement?
  2. Can I complete DPD course requirements as a graduate student at The University of Georgia to obtain a verification statement?
  3. I completed my degree at a university outside of the United States. Can I take coursework at The University of Georgia to meet the dietetics requirements?
  4. Can I complete the DPD coursework online?
  5. What courses are required for the DPD Verification Statement?
  6. Is there an application to apply to the post-baccalaureate DPD track at The University of Georgia?
I have a bachelor’s degree from another university, but it is not in dietetics. Can I complete undergraduate course requirements at The University of Georgia to obtain a DPD verification statement?

Yes. You have two options to complete the Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD) course requirements at the undergraduate level. For both, you must be enrolled at the University of Georgia. Visit the University’s site for prospective students to obtain application information and deadline dates (https://www.admissions.uga.edu/admissions/).

Option 1. Complete a second bachelor’s degree in dietetics. This option is required if you have more than 16 credit hours of coursework to complete. Once you are admitted, your previous coursework will be evaluated and you will be advised which courses are needed to complete a degree in dietetics. A DPD Verification Statement will be issued to you upon successful completion of the dietetics degree. Visit this page to learn more (https://www.fcs.uga.edu/fdn/undergraduate/dietetics).

Option 2. Apply as a post-baccalaureate, non-degree seeking, student and complete remaining coursework needed to meet dietetics knowledge requirements. This option is available only if you have 16 credit hours or less of DPD coursework to complete. A DPD Verification Statement will be issued to you upon successful completion of this coursework. To apply to the post-baccalaureate program, visit this page (https://www.admissions.uga.edu/admissions/other-students/post-baccalaureate/).

Options to complete DPD coursework are also available at the graduate level (see below).

Can I complete DPD course requirements as a graduate student at The University of Georgia to obtain a verification statement?

Yes. You can take the needed courses in addition to what is required for your graduate program. Some courses can be used toward both the DPD verification and a graduate degree. You would not be eligible to enter our combined MS/DI or PhD/DI program, which requires a DPD verification statement for entrance. For more information, please view the graduate program website for admissions criteria (https://www.fcs.uga.edu/fdn/graduate) as well as the program-specific options below:

Once accepted to the graduate school, the following programs may also be combined with DPD coursework with your research advisor's approval.

I completed my degree at a university outside of the United States. Can I take coursework at The University of Georgia to meet the dietetics requirements?

Yes. Before applying or upon acceptance to UGA, you will need to have your academic degree(s) validated as equivalent to the bachelor’s degree conferred by a U.S. regionally accredited college or university before your program of study can be determined. Please see the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics website for a list of agencies that will perform this service: https://www.eatrightpro.org/acend/students-and-advancing-education/international-students/foreign-degree-evaluation-agencies. The report can be sent to you directly, and you can then forward this to the DPD director. For more information about education and RD credentialing requirements for those with foreign degrees, visit: https://www.eatrightpro.org/acend/students-and-advancing-education/international-students

Additionally, UGA Admissions has a helpful site for international applicants: https://www.admissions.uga.edu/admissions/international/

Can I complete the DPD coursework online?

The majority of the DPD courses are seated, in-person courses offered during daytime hours on campus. 

What courses are required for the DPD Verification Statement?

You will need to complete the following courses with a minimum of a “C” grade in addition to meeting a set of specific knowledge requirements in order to receive a DPD Verification Statement from the University of Georgia:

BIOL 1107-1107L, Biology I
CHEM 1211-1211L, Freshman Chemistry I
CHEM 1212-1212L, Freshman Chemistry II
Course in statistics
Course in psychology
COMM 1110 or 1500
CHEM 2211-2211L, Modern Organic Chemistry I (requires General Chemistry as prerequisite)
CBIO 2200-2200L, Anatomy and Physiology I
CBIO 2210-2210L, Anatomy and Physiology II
MIBO 2500, Microbiology and Health Care or 3500, Introductory Applied Microbiology
BCMB 3100, Introductory Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
NUTR 2100, Fundamentals of Human Nutrition
NUTR 3100, Macronutrients and Energy Balance
NUTR 3600-3600L, Food Principles
NUTR 3610-3610L, Quantity Food Production
NUTR 4070, Research Methodology in Human Foods and Nutrition
NUTR 4100, Micronutrient Nutrition
NUTR 4500, Medical Nutrition Therapy I
NUTR 4510, Nutrition Related to the Human Life Cycle
NUTR 4520, Clinical Nutrition Interventions
NUTR 4530, Medical Nutrition Therapy II
NUTR 4540, Public Health Nutrition
NUTR 4600, Food and Nutrition Policy
NUTR 4610, Foodservice Procurement and Financial Management
NUTR 4620, Management of Foodservice Organizations
NUTR 4660, Nutrition Education Methods
NUTR 4645, Functional and Nutritional Properties of Foods
NUTR 5900, Professional Development in Nutritional Sciences

If a student wishes to use a nutrition course from a different university to meet DPD course requirements, the student must provide a course description and syllabus to the DPD director. The program director or a designated faculty member will review the course syllabus to verify that the course is equivalent to the UGA course. If the course content and student learning objectives match a DPD course and the student received a “C” grade or better in the course, then the student will be granted the substitution and will not be required to repeat the course. If the course is largely equivalent in content, but does not cover all student learning objectives/ knowledge requirements for registered dietitians (KRDNs), an activity or one-credit independent study course may be developed to assure that the student meets all KRDNs. The DPD does not give course credit or grant course substitutions for prior work or volunteer experience.

Some courses may be taken at another university if they are approved in advance by the DPD director as equivalent; however, a minimum of 15 credits of NUTR courses must be taken in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Georgia to receive a Verification Statement from our program.

Is there an application to apply to the post-baccalaureate DPD track at The University of Georgia?

Yes. You must complete the departmental application for preliminary consideration.

Once your departmental post-baccalaureate application has been reviewed and the DPD director has confirmed there is an available slot in the program, you must apply for admission to the University of Georgia. Visit the appropriate sites below to obtain application information and deadline dates:

Second BS degree in dietetics (This option is required if you have more than 16 credit hours of NUTR coursework to complete. Coursework from your previous institutions will be transferred to UGA).
https://www.admissions.uga.edu/admissions/ or https://www.admissions.uga.edu/admissions/international/

Non-Degree Post-baccalaureate DPD coursework only (This option is available if you have 16 or fewer credit hours of NUTR coursework to complete. Coursework from your previous institutions will NOT be transferred to UGA, as this is a non-degree seeking path).
https://www.admissions.uga.edu/admissions/other-students/post-baccalaureate/ or https://www.admissions.uga.edu/admissions/international/

Graduate degree options (These options are available if you wish to obtain your DPD verification statement along with a graduate degree).

Once accepted to the graduate school, the following programs may also be combined with DPD coursework with your research advisor's approval.

Contact

Emma Laing

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