Dietetics & Nutrition Services

Types of Degrees Dietetics & Nutrition Services Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many dietetics and clinical nutrition services graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Bachelor’s Degree	2,782
Master’s Degree	1,694
Graduate Certificate	755
Basic Certificate	529
Associate Degree	324
Undergraduate Certificate	42
Doctor’s Degree	32

What Dietetics & Nutrition Services Majors Need to Know

People with careers related to nutrition were asked what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. They weighted these areas on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the highest.

Knowledge Areas for Nutrition Majors

Nutrition majors often go into careers in which the following knowledge areas are important:

• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

Skills for Nutrition Majors

nutrition majors are found most commonly in careers in which the following skills are important:

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.

Abilities for Nutrition Majors

Some of the most crucial abilities to master while a nutrition student include the following:

• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.

What Can You Do With a Dietetics & Nutrition Services Major?

People with a nutrition degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Dietetic Technicians	9.3%	$27,140
Dietitians and Nutritionists	14.6%	$60,370

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Dietetics & Nutrition Services?

This is a less frequently chosen undergraduate major. Only 2,782 students graduated with a bachelor’s degree in dietetics and clinical nutrition services in 2021, making it rank #110 in popularity. The major attracts more women than men. About 86% of the recent graduates in this field are female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of nutrition majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	115
Black or African American	203
Hispanic or Latino	436
White	1,797
International Students	84
Other Races/Ethnicities	147

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Nutrition, too. About 3.0% of those with this major are international students. The most popular countries for students from outside the country are:

• China
• Saudi Arabia
• Venezuela
• Canada
• India

How Much Do Dietetics & Nutrition Services Majors Make?

Bachelor’s Degree Starting Salary

The median starting salary of students who graduated in 2017-2019 with a bachelor’s degree in nutrition was $32,137 per year. These stats come from the U.S. Department of Education. During this timeframe, most salaries fell between $26,971 (25th percentile) and $33,198 (75th percentile).

One thing to note here is that not all of these people may be working in careers related to nutrition.

Salaries According to BLS

Nutrition majors often go into careers where salaries can range from $30,130 to $61,210 (25th to 75th percentile). This range includes all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Dietetics & Nutrition Services

Some degrees associated with nutrition may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

Find out what the typical degree level is for nutrition careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	13.5%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	34.8%
Some College Courses	3.4%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	1.8%
Bachelor’s Degree	15.4%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	13.8%
Master’s Degree	9.9%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	2.0%
Doctoral Degree	3.9%

Online Dietetics & Nutrition Services Programs

In the 2020-2021 academic year, 268 schools offered some type of dietetics and clinical nutrition services program. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	19	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	1	0
Associate’s Degree	61	5
Bachelor’s Degree	63	12
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	105	26
Post-Master’s	10	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	3	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	3	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Dietetics & Nutrition Services Worth It?

The median salary for a nutrition grad is $30,130 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

Majors Related to Dietetics & Nutrition Services

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to nutrition.

Major	Number of Grads
Nursing	322,592
Health & Medical Administrative Services	89,359
Allied Health & Medical Assisting Services	84,492
Practical Nursing & Nursing Assistants	84,274
Allied Health Professions	82,308
Public Health	40,596
Health Sciences & Services	35,945
Rehabilitation & Therapeutic Professions	29,833
Mental & Social Health Services	29,053
Medicine	28,629
Dental Support Services	26,399
Communication Sciences	22,298
Pharmacy/Pharmaceutical Sciences	20,393
Clinical/Medical Laboratory Science	18,901
Somatic Bodywork & Therapeutic Services	10,751
Health/Medical Prep Programs	9,210
Other Health Professions	7,984
Dentistry	6,770
Bioethics/Medical Ethics	5,115
Alternative Medicine & Systems	3,564
Chiropractic	2,658
Health Aids/Attendants/Orderlies	2,374
Medical Illustration & Informatics	2,089
Optometry	1,822
Advanced Dentistry & Oral Sciences	1,775
Ophthalmic & Optometric Support Services	960
Medical Science	909
Movement & Mind-Body Therapies	294
Alternative Medical Support Services	227
Energy & Biologically Based Therapies	68

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.