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Home College of Health Sciences Graduate Clinical Nutrition Admissions

Admission Requirements

 

You have two options for applying to our internship program:

  1. Pre-select
  2. Traditional Matching

The program is approved for 16 interns, with six slots potentially filled early through the pre-selection process. For Pre-select, preference will be given to outstanding graduates of the UofM undergraduate Dietetics program, or those expected to graduate by August of the same year. We do not offer conditional admission.

To be eligible for acceptance into the program, students choosing either option must complete the following requirements:

Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is no longer required.

If you did not receive your undergraduate degree within the U.S., you must have your transcripts analyzed and complete all required undergraduate courses before consideration. Email Mary Catherine Schallert for more information.

Application Procedures

1. Submit Application

Pre-select application
Complete the application for internship.

Applications for the pre-select option must be received by NOVEMBER 15. Pre-selected candidates will be notified by the end of January.

Traditional Match application
Complete the DICAS application.

Application materials for traditional match MUST be filed electronically through the DICAS system. Application for the April match must be submitted by the second week of February.  Applications received after the deadline will not be considered. 

2. Submit Additional Required Documents*

BOTH Pre-select and Traditional Match:

a. One official transcript from each undergraduate school attended

b. Three letters of recommendation: Recommendations should be from those who very familiar with your academic, nutrition, and/or foods-related work experience. One recommendation letter should be completed by your DPD director.

c. Personal statement of goals and professional interests: Use this opportunity to share information about you that will not be found on your application. You may include:

  • how you became interested in the field of nutrition
  • your personal goals
  • how the skills you have developed through work, school or hobbies will help you become a successful intern and dietitian
  • special challenges you may have faced
  • why you have a deficiency in your application (if applicable)

Finally, discuss how you heard about this program and why you feel this program is best for you and the program. Your personal statement should give us a feel for who you are and should not be more than two pages long, and display exceptional grammar, spelling and punctuation skills.

d. Declaration of intent to complete an ACEND-approved DPD, or Verification Statement of Completion from an ACEND-approved DPD (obtained from the director of your undergraduate didactic program)

Additional steps for Traditional Match:

In addition to the above steps, you must complete the DICAS application. Applications for the April match must be received no later than the second week in February. 

Please contact your undergraduate DPD Director for any questions regarding DICAS.

Application Checklist

Pre-select

  1. Internship application
  2. Three letters of recommendation; one must be from the DPD director
  3. Personal statement (Be sure to spell-check and have at least two faculty read and approve.) 
  4. Transcript(s)

Traditional Match

  1. DICAS application
  2. Three letters of recommendation; one must be from the DPD director
  3. Personal statement (Be sure to spell-check and have at least two faculty read and approve.)
  4. Transcript(s)

On Acceptance to Program

  • Copy of official final transcripts for all colleges attended
  • Verification Statement obtained from your ACEND-approved DPD
  • Application for Graduate School (Do not apply until you have been accepted and received instructions from the director.)

Dietetic Intern Evaluation Process

The evaluation of the dietetic intern is measured using a variety of formative and summative strategies. Formative strategies assess the intern's progress, and summative strategies evaluate knowledge and performance at the end of rotations and courses and at the end of the Dietetic Internship. The following policies were developed to ensure that each dietetic intern receives frequent feedback throughout the course of the internship, and understands the requirements necessary for program completion and award of Dietetic Internship Verification Statement.

1. Frequent verbal feedback from the preceptors, clinical assistant professor and internship director will be provided to the dietetic intern throughout all rotations and projects. The interns will receive formative oral feedback throughout the program thus the written summative evaluation at the end of the rotation or project should not contain any feedback that was not shared throughout the rotation.

2. The dietetic intern must complete 100% of the assigned learning activities. Competency-based outcomes are provided for each rotation and intern. The preceptor will review all competencies to confirm that all work has been completed and evaluate the interns on each competency activity and overall performance in the rotation using the prescribed evaluation forms. At the conclusion of a rotation, an intern receiving an overall rating of less than 3 (entry level) on the Professional Performance Evaluation will meet with the internship director, clinical assistant professor and preceptor to discuss a plan for performance improvement. The intern may be required to repeat the rotation experience or be assigned additional work to meet the educational objectives of the rotation. Students not receiving a score of 3 after remediation and following the appropriate disciplinary action procedures will be dismissed from the dietetic internship.

3. The dietetic interns must maintain a 3.0 cumulative grade point average in required UofM graduate courses during the dietetic internship program.

4. The dietetic intern must complete 100% of all assigned projects and all projects must be completed with a grade of 80% or better. Any performance that is unsatisfactory (below 80%) must be performed again for re-evaluation.

5. The dietetic intern must demonstrate professionalism at all times during rotations and related professional development activities as assessed via verbal feedback from preceptors, clinical coordinator and internship director, and as rated on the Professional Performance Evaluation Form completed at the end of every rotation. If at any time a performance evaluation rating or verbal feedback suggests a lack of professionalism (e.g., disrespectful interactions, cheating, lying, plagiarism, forgery, violates confidentiality), the incidence(s) will be investigated and the dietetic intern may be dismissed from the program, or placed on probation and removed from a rotation and/or will be assigned additional work and/or counseling until an acceptable level of professionalism is achieved.

6. Interns complete self-assessments throughout the rotations.

7. Dietetic interns unwilling or unable to meet all of the standards described above will not be allowed to continue in the Dietetic Internship program, but will receive counseling regarding their options.

Program Completion Requirements

To earn the Dietetic Internship Verification Statement, the dietetic intern must:

  • maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher in graduate courses and graduate.
  • complete all supervised practice rotations and staff relief with an overall rotation evaluation score of ≥3 Entry Level.
  • complete all paperwork associated with Competency Outcomes.

Students in the dietetic internship must not:

  • exhibit habitual disregard of policies and procedures of the program, department or institution.
  • be absent or late without cause and/or proper notification.
  • act dishonestly.
  • use/possess alcohol or illegal drugs immediately before or while on duty and/or use during classroom or supervised practice.
  • take on responsibilities without authority.
  • violate confidentiality of a patient/client.

If upon review of the above criteria, it is determined that a dietetic intern is failing to meet performance criteria, the dietetic internship director confers with the dietetic intern regarding performance and/or conduct and implements a plan for improvement that includes the following:

1. Written guidelines for improved performance within designated time frames.

2. Copies of the guidelines are given to the dietetic intern, preceptor to whom the intern is assigned and the school director.

3. The dietetic intern’s performance is evaluated by the dietetic internship director, clinical assistant professor and preceptor based on the pre-determined time schedule as outlined in written guidelines.

Based upon completed rotation evaluations, the dietetic internship director, in consultation with the clinical assistant professor and college director makes the final decision on the disposition of the dietetic intern. The disposition will include one of the following:

1. The dietetic intern improved performance during the probationary period and is assumed to be able to graduate with the rest of the class unless other problems arise.

2. The dietetic intern is advised that additional time will be required before he/she can graduate. The time cannot exceed two semesters.

3. The intern is asked to leave the program because it is determined that competencies cannot be reached in any reasonable length of time.

Successful Completion of Internship Requirements

After the program director verifies that each intern has completed all requirements for program completion, Verification Statements are awarded. Verification Statements must be signed and dated with month/date/year in two places: (1) when the individual completed program requirements and (2) the date the Verification Statement was signed by the dietetic internship director. The program director’s signature must be in an ink color other than black to distinguish an original from a photocopy.

Contact Tracy Bruen at tracy.bruen@memphis.edu with any questions or for more information.