New Master of Science in Dietetics and Internship launched

In August, the Lipscomb University Health Sciences Center enrolled the first 12 students in its new Master of Science in Nutrition and Dietetic Internship (MS DI), a program that combined Lipscomb’s existing master’s and internship to meet new accreditation standards for the industry.

Currently, students with an Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND)-accredited bachelor’s degree in dietetics can complete a dietetic internship to sit for the registration examination for Registered Dietitians (RD), but starting in 2024, the RD title will become a master’s level credential, said Dr. Autumn Marshall (’92), chair of the nutrition department. Lipscomb responded to this industry change by developing its own graduate program to allow students and interns to fulfill all their licensure requirements at Lipscomb.

Becoming ACEND accredited in 2002 had already fueled increases in faculty hires and research, said Marshall. Becoming its own stand-alone department also fueled the addition of a sixth full-time faculty member and even more research as the department develops new specialized tracks, she said.

Dr. Tracy Noerper, director of the Masters in Nutrition program, alongside Anne Lowery, internship director, said the master’s program provides students with the ability to choose concentration areas of interest.

“It is valuable that students can tailor their experiences to something they are interested in because we have concentrations in health promotion and wellness, medical nutrition therapy and sports nutrition,” said Noerper.

This means interns can have more experiential time in areas of interest and can tailor their dietetics research interests.