What Sets Us Apart?
Personal Attention & a Culture of Support
With a cohort limited to just 10 students, you are not just another number. You will form real relationships with your classmates and the program director. Your online cohort will create a culture of learning, professional growth, and connection. Although you may be miles apart, your community is just a click away.
Focus on Sustainability
UVM is a national leader in all areas related to sustainability. The UVM MSD is among the few dietetic programs that have adopted sustainability as a program focus. This theme is embedded throughout the graduate coursework and SPE, preparing graduates to be leaders at the intersection of dietetics practice and sustainability.
Connections Across the US
There is rich diversity that comes from classmates participating from around the country. While there are core program requirements to ensure comparable practice experiences, no two rotations are identical. This wide variety of experiences contributes to unique learning opportunities and engaging class discussions.
Diverse Experiences
You will be exposed to a variety of practice settings, populations, and professional development opportunities to prepare for entry-level work as a registered dietitian nutritionist. This diversity of experiences will support you in becoming a well-rounded practitioner and developing a robust professional network.
Some examples include:
- Sustainable food systems immersion experiences (e.g., farm tour, farmer's market, hunger councils)
- Cultural responsiveness activities (e.g., free health clinic for migrant farm workers, ethnic market)
- Inter-profressional practice opportunities (e.g., virtual care planning clinic, end-of-life ALS care planning meeting)
- Volunteer experiences (e.g., state food bank, garden-based learning)
- Professional meetings (e.g., affiliate dietetic association, hunger advocacy)
- Legislative initiatives (e.g., legislative day, draft bill related to sustainable food systems)
Career Focus
The UVM MSD program is designed with your professional future in mind! During your time in the program you will receive guidance and mentorship on how to become a competitive candidate in your preferred area of practice.
What I found most valuable about the MSD program was the encouragement and flexibility offered to explore areas of professional practice within community nutrition that were of particular interest to me. Every week we spent time as a cohort reflecting on our various SPE experiences and any influence they had on our professional development. Graduating from the MSD program, I felt confident that I had not chosen a single career path. Instead, I could see endless possible professions to pursue as a registered dietitian.
Mattie Alpaugh, MS, RDN, Class of 2018