How to become a Registered Dietitian

First you must complete the series of approved courses from the American Dietetic Association at an approved educational institution. This can be done as a Bachelor of Science degree or as an addition to a Bachelor degree or Masters degree you may have already received. Upon the completion of these courses, you receive a Verification Statement. This basically acknowledges that you have finished the minimum coursework. If you are in your last semester, you can also receive an intent for completion of the Verification Statement statement, saying you are registered for and intend to complete the coursework.

Upon receiving these papers you can then apply for a Dietetic Internship (DI) or an Approved Pre-Professional Practice Program (AP4). These are intense internships that prepare you for your career in Dietetics. These may be incorporated into some Masters Degree programs, or you can get some Masters credits, depending on where you do it.

Once you have completed the DI or AP4 you can then register for and sit for the RD exam. This is an exam which tests on several disciplines within dietetics: community, clinical, management, sanitation and safety, and more. There are study guides and study courses to take for this exam, much like the SATs, GREs, and MCATs. This is the registration exam. If you pass this exam, you are then a Registered Dietitian. If you do not pass, you may retake it again next time around.