The Distance Dietetic Internship is a nine-month program that provides 10 hours of graduate credit through the internship and supervised practice experiences during rotations in Clinical, Community, and Food Service. The distance DI is available to students that are currently enrolled in the online MS in Community and Clinical Dietetics program through the UIUC Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition.

Effective January 1, 2024, the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) will require a minimum of a master’s degree to be eligible to take the credentialing exam to become a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN).

Distance interns will complete supervised practice sites on M-Th or M-F, depending on the location of the site. The DI program is full-time, beginning in August and ending in May each year. The program:

Rotation Sites

As a student enrolled in the distance dietetic internship program, it is the responsibility to secure their own supervised practice sites and have these approved by the program director no later than March of the year you are planning to start supervised practice.

Please review the minimum site requirements accessed here.

The following information is intended to provide prospective interns with information on the multi-step process to become a registered dietitian nutritionist.

1. Bachelor's Degree - Complete a Bachelor's Degree from a U.S. regionally-accredited college or university.
2. Required Dietetics Courses - Complete the courses that meet the ACEND accreditation standards. ACEND-accredited dietetics programs, known as DPD Programs, combine the coursework necessary to meet the ACEND Standards of Education along with the bachelor's degree program (Step 1). The undergraduate dietetic program at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign is an ACEND-accredited DPD Program. Students with a bachelor's degree in another area of study must complete the course requirements of a DPD Program to be eligible to begin an ACEND-accredited dietetic internship.
3. Dietetic Internship - Apply to a dietetic internship (also known as an ACEND-accredited supervised pre-professional practice program). This is a highly competitive process. The University of Illinois Graduate dietetic internship accepts students who are currently enrolled in a graduate program in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Upon successful completion of a dietetic internship, students will receive a Verification Statement - which is required to take the national exam (step 4).
4. National Registration Exam - Study, register for, take, and pass the national Registration Examination for Dietitians administered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR). The verification statement from the Illinois State Dietetic Internship allows the student to take the Registration Examination for Dietitians.
5. State Licensure (when applicable) - Those RDNs who practice in states where licensure is required, such as Illinois, are required to obtain a practice license.
6. Continued Professional Education - Once you are a RDN, you maintain your registration status by completing the required continuing education activities each five year time period.

General Information

• Program Mission and Goals
• Prospective Applicants
• Current Students
• Accreditation Status

Helpful Links

• Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
• Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND)
• Commission on Dietetic Registration
• Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Foundation Scholarships and Financial Aid
• Individuals with Foreign Degrees

Please note that effective January 1, 2024, the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) will require a minimum of a master's degree to be eligible to take the credentialing exam to become a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN). In order to be approved for registration examination eligibility with a bachelor's degree, an individual must meet all eligibility requirements and be submitted into CDR's Registration Eligibility Processing System (REPS) before 12:00 midnight Central Time, December 31, 2023. For more information about this requirement visit CDR's website.

*Program outcome data is available on request.