Becoming a clinical nutritionist (Careers, education and salary)
Clinical nutrition career overview
What you’ll do: Clinical nutritionists work with patients to evaluate their diets and make nutrition recommendations to promote overall wellness and address health concerns.
One key factor of the job: You’ll look at—and study—diet-related illnesses, such as hypertension, cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes, and how the right diet may keep them from advancing in patients.
Where you’ll work: Private practice, hospitals, clinics, health departments, long-term care facilities, prisons, schools and research settings
Degree you’ll need: A bachelor’s degree plus a master’s degree in clinical nutrition
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services states that the average American diet consists of “excess sodium, saturated fat, refined grains and calories from solid fats and added sugars.” The guidelines state that Americans eat less vegetables, fruits, whole grains, dairy products and oils than recommended. Clinical nutritionists aim to change these statistics.
What is a clinical nutritionist?
A clinical nutritionist evaluates how a person’s nutrition and diet can impact health, help prevent disease, or help to relieve chronic illness symptoms. Amber Dixon, Dietitian and CEO of Elderly Assist, Inc., explains that clinical nutritionists provide individualized nutrition plans, monitor a patient’s progress and then make adjustments to those plans as needed.
Where does a clinical nutritionist work?
“[Clinical nutritionists] work in a variety of settings including hospitals, clinics, private practices and long-term care facilities,” explains Dixon. They may also work in the food and supplement industry, local health departments, prisons, school districts and in research settings. A clinical nutritionist may also choose to work in a college, educating future nutritionists.
What does a clinical nutritionist do?
Clinical nutritionists help patients improve their health by making strategic diet changes. They may work to help prevent diet-related disease or manage the symptoms of a condition the patient already has, such as PCOS, and they recommend nutrition strategies to help patients meet their individual goals. Nutritionists may recommend specific meal plans to improve a patient’s or family’s nutrition and food choices.
Clinical nutritionists may use laboratory tests to help evaluate diets and recommend nutrition changes
They may work as part of a patient’s medical team to provide the patient with comprehensive healthcare.
Clinical nutritionists may diagnose and treat diseases that affect the intake, absorption and metabolism of food in patients
They promote good health through education and prevention of diet-related disease
Who is the job right for?
If you want to become a clinical nutritionist, it’s important to have a passion for the work that you will be doing. People who truly enjoy learning about nutrition and helping others are the most likely to be successful in this career.
“People who truly enjoy learning about nutrition and helping others are the most likely to be successful in this career.”
Clinical nutritionists should be strong communicators and should enjoy engaging with people. They need both written and verbal communication skills, and active listening talents are also essential to successfully working with people. If you have compassion, empathy and patience, you will likely be able to develop an important rapport with your patients, which allows you to better understand their challenges and help them find solutions.
While it’s important for a nutritionist to enjoy engaging with people, nutritionists need a scientific, methodical approach to their work, too. It’s ideal if you enjoy math and have strong math skills, since math plays a key role in calculating nutrient and caloric intake and establishing other metrics that will help you to help your patients. A genuine interest in science and a thorough understanding of biology are also important.
Clinical nutritionists planning to open their own practice will need an entrepreneurial mindset. Organization skills, marketing knowledge and a driven, committed nature are all important in operating your own business.
What education is needed?
Your path to becoming a clinical nutritionist starts with an undergraduate degree, wich can be earned either in a traditional setting or online bachelor’s program. While you don’t need an undergraduate degree specifically in nutrition, a degree in a related field, like biology or health science, may also be helpful.
Next, you will need to earn your master’s degree in clinical nutrition or a closely related field. Master’s degree programs in nutrition may require you to have completed a certain number of courses in a field like biosciences before beginning your graduate degree.
Certificate in clinical nutrition
To become a clinical nutritionist, you will usually have to earn the Certified Nutrition Specialty (CNS) credential. CNS certification requires that you complete 1,000 hours of supervised practice experience and pass the Board for Certification of Nutrition Specialistsexamination offered by the American Nutrition Association. The exam is offered twice a year in June and December and you must apply to take it two months prior to the actual exam date.
Don’t forget to become licensed if your state requires it
Depending on the state where you will live and practice, you may also need to become licensed to work as a clinical nutritionist. The American Nutrition Association maintains a database of state laws about required licenses for nutritionists and dietitians.
Many states allow any individual to perform individualized nutrition counseling, while states like North Dakota, Georgia and Florida require that nutritionists be licensed in order to practice.
How to get experience as a clinical nutritionist
“Students can get experience as a clinical nutritionist by completing a supervised practice program or internship, volunteering in a healthcare setting, or working as a research assistant,” Dixon says.
Many nutritionist degrees require that students get hands-on experience, so consider looking for a program that will help you to get experience before you’ve completed your education. Joining a nutritionist organization can also help to connect you to available internships and other opportunities to help you get experience.
Clinical nutritionist salary
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) 2023 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, dietitians and nutritionists earned a median annual wage of $69,680. While the BLS doesn’t differentiate between dietitian and nutritionist salaries, it does sort median annual salaries based on the location where dietitians and nutritionists work:
Outpatient care centers: $80,190
Hospitals: $73,670
Health practitioner offices: $67,080
Nursing homes: $67,820
Specialty food companies: $68,440
And here are the median annual salaries by state:
Dietitians and Nutritionists
National data
Median Salary: $69,680
Projected job growth: 6.6%
10th Percentile: $44,910
25th Percentile: $58,290
75th Percentile: $81,860
90th Percentile: $98,830
Projected job growth: 6.6%
State data
State
Median Salary
Bottom 10%
Top 10%
Alabama
$62,030
$45,910
$85,570
Alaska
$77,890
$56,500
$98,100
Arizona
$66,590
$49,250
$86,610
Arkansas
$58,240
$28,900
$77,240
California
$84,690
$32,520
$120,820
Colorado
$68,930
$48,980
$91,730
Connecticut
$77,080
$55,420
$95,860
Delaware
$68,420
$60,210
$95,990
District of Columbia
$81,220
$38,820
$105,830
Florida
$68,020
$46,760
$85,220
Georgia
$68,910
$41,110
$89,980
Hawaii
$79,650
$59,050
$100,240
Idaho
$66,450
$39,280
$89,810
Illinois
$63,440
$38,010
$82,830
Indiana
$59,960
$38,280
$82,230
Iowa
$66,700
$53,450
$80,820
Kansas
$64,660
$46,210
$84,690
Kentucky
$63,210
$36,640
$89,190
Louisiana
$64,130
$48,820
$89,060
Maine
$67,550
$53,940
$130,820
Maryland
$75,700
$39,340
$105,880
Massachusetts
$74,970
$50,980
$101,050
Michigan
$69,660
$52,390
$104,000
Minnesota
$72,660
$58,130
$84,960
Mississippi
$57,670
$27,570
$74,950
Missouri
$57,720
$27,040
$80,390
Montana
$64,120
$42,010
$87,530
Nebraska
$63,610
$26,230
$82,410
Nevada
$66,760
$37,810
$91,430
New Hampshire
$73,670
$56,450
$93,270
New Jersey
$79,910
$61,930
$114,030
New Mexico
$63,010
$46,220
$81,370
New York
$77,900
$54,640
$103,480
North Carolina
$63,010
$46,450
$85,850
North Dakota
$66,370
$53,040
$80,690
Ohio
$64,200
$48,100
$80,620
Oklahoma
$65,990
$40,910
$83,780
Oregon
$81,600
$61,980
$101,670
Pennsylvania
$63,210
$46,120
$84,090
Rhode Island
$67,040
$41,950
$96,910
South Carolina
$64,320
$38,300
$89,700
South Dakota
$63,650
$44,370
$88,860
Tennessee
$61,270
$30,460
$77,910
Texas
$64,400
$44,340
$89,780
Utah
$57,870
$31,930
$106,300
Vermont
$73,690
$58,140
$95,210
Virginia
$73,500
$51,130
$93,110
Washington
$77,470
$47,170
$99,380
West Virginia
$69,100
$48,840
$91,320
Wisconsin
$66,630
$52,000
$85,220
Wyoming
$67,320
$40,800
$98,910
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) 2023 median salary; projected job growth through 2032. Actual salaries vary depending on location, level of education, years of experience, work environment, and other factors. Salaries may differ even more for those who are self-employed or work part time.
Job growth for clinical nutritionists
Clinical nutrition is a promising career, and the BLS predicts that nutritionist employment will grow by 6.6% through 2032, which is about as fast as the job growth for all occupations.
The increased interest and awareness of the role that nutrition can play in promoting wellness and the importance of controlling illness means that we are likely to see more nutritionist career opportunities in the coming years.
Getting started
“Getting started as a nutritionist involves education and building a strong foundation in nutrition science, gaining experience in the field and obtaining the necessary certifications and licenses,” says Dixon. “Networking with other professionals in the field can also be helpful in finding job opportunities and advancing your career.”
Online job boards tend to feature many clinical nutritionist jobs. If you completed nutritionist internships, consider reaching out to your internship supervisors, who may be aware of upcoming job vacancies. Depending on your career goals, you might decide to open your own nutritionist private practice, allowing you to start marketing to potential clients.
