Certification
The AND certification process offers two career options: Registered Dietitian (RD) and Dietetic Technician, Registered (DTR). Both are educated nutrition professionals qualified to work in hospitals, academia and private practice, and differ mostly in the hours of training and level of college degree required. A Registered Dietitian must complete a bachelor's degree or higher and more than 900 hours of training, while a Dietetic Technician is required to complete and associate level degree and 450 hours of training. About 72% of the AND’s members are Registered Dietitians, and 2% are Dietetic Technicians. Members are granted these accredited titles by fulfilling the AND’s strenuous certification requirements in addition to any state or local regulations. Through its ADAF foundation, the AND issued nearly $500,000 in certification scholarships in 2011, $100,000 of which went to doctoral students.
The terms “Registered Dietitian” and “Dietetic Technician” are “legally protected titles” and can be used only by someone who has completed coursework approved by the AND. In recent years, the AND has lobbied for stricter regulation over the professional licensing of dietitian and nutrition professionals and supported state regulations that would include heavy fines for the dispensing of nutritional advice without the proper license.
AND's Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education (CADE) is the organization’s accrediting agency for education programs that prepare individuals for careers as dietetics professionals. In 2011, CADE changed its name to Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND). The Accreditation Council is recognized by the Department of Education and is a member of the Association of Specialized and Professional Accreditors. The council’s fees earn the AND about $1.1 million dollars per year.
Read more about this topic: American Dietetic Association