Dietitian Salary
Before getting to the average dietitian salary data let’s take a look at what a dietitian actually does. Nutritionist’s are clearly needed more and more in today’s society as obesity and health problems stemming from horrible eating habits are really taking a toll on the population of the United States. The incredible increase in diabetes in this country is a clear sign that people need to take a closer look at their eating habits. Luckily there are dietitians around to help!
Dietitians are called upon, in various settings, to supervise meal preparation, serving meals, the planning of nutrition programs, prevent and treat illnesses with healthy, dietary modifications and more. Dietitians are often employed in a variety of locations such as hospitals, schools and several other organizations. Often it a dietitian will specialize in one of four areas:
Clinical Dietitian: clinical dietitians provide their services to patients in hospitals and nursing care facilities. They work closely with their patients to provide them the proper nutritional programs that will work to help prevent and cure their specific health problem. Some of the functions that they would perform could include managing overweight patients, diabetic patients and critically ill patients.
Community Dietitian: community dietitians work in places such as public health clinics, health maintenance organizations, home health agencies and hospices. They can be called upon to create nutrition plans and help provide proper instruction on grocery shopping and cooking to elderly people, children and special needs individuals.
Management Dietitian: management dietitians are usually in charge of large-scale meal planning and preparation in healthcare facilities, the company cafeterias, prisons and schools. Rather than working on a small scale they tend to oversee many other dietitians and prepare budgets, equipment and supplies, records and reports and will also enforce sanitary and safety rules.
Consultant Dietitian: consultant dietitians generally work under contract and work in a more flexible way. They can provide all of the services a regular dietitian can perform, but will do so on a case-by-case basis. Some consultant dietitians will work for wellness programs, supermarkets, various businesses or even sports teams.
Dietitian Salary Information
A dietitian’s salary varies greatly based on years of experience, skill, location and employer. The average dietitian salary in the U.S. is $50,590 per year. Of course, as stated salaries can vary greatly. According to the American diabetic Association average annual salaries for dietitians in the year 2007 could be broken down like this:
$60,008 in consultation and business; $64,002 in food and nutrition management; $66,061 in education and research; $52,000 in clinical nutrition/ambulatory care; $53,997 in clinical nutrition/long-term care; $48,006 in community nutrition; and $48,984 in clinical nutrition/acute care.
Education and Licensing Needed to Become a Dietitian
In order to become a full fledged dietitian you will be expected to complete a bachelor’s degree in one of several areas: nutrition, dietetics, food service systems management or other related speciality. Graduates who go on to complete further graduate studies in areas such as food, nutrition, chemistry, biology, institution management and other related categories will have much higher chances of landing desirable positions.
Most states require dietitians to be fully licensed before they can start work as accredited dietitians. Each state has their own specific requirements for licensure so please do some further online research to find out the specifics of your state.
It is also a good idea to become certified by the Commission on Dietetic Registration of the American Dietetic Association. Although not required it can also give you a leg up when job hunting. In order to be certified you will need to pass an exam and have completed your degree as well as a supervised internship.
Job Growth Outlook For Dietitians
Employment opportunities for dietitians is expected to increase by 9% between the years 2008 and 2018. This is about average in terms of growth when compared to other jobs in the United States. The baby boomers are getting older and will be wanting to stay healthy as long as they possibly can and are expected to resort to nutrition planning as one means of doing so.
With the light being shined ever more brightly on issues like obesity and diabetes in the US, dietitians should enjoy further employment opportunities.
The two areas that are expected to grow in terms of job openings the most for dietitians are hospitals and food services providers.
If you are interested in this rewarding career be sure to do some further research online into possible online education opportunities or specific state requirements for certification.
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