DPD/MS+DI Program Dietetic Internship Portion

About the DI Program

The Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND)-accredited Dietetic Internship (DI) at Boston University is a six-credit, 29-week, full-time program designed to provide you with critical thinking skills and prepare you for entry-level employment as an RDN. The clinical sites provide excellent opportunities to observe and participate in a wide variety of specialty areas of practice such as nutrition support, pediatrics, oncology, nephrology, cardiology, diabetes, surgical care, out-patient counseling, food service, and management.

In our ACEND-accredited BU DPD/MS+DI program, students are notified of their DI placement at one of our affiliate hospital sites during the fifth semester of the MS program. Student input and career goals are heavily weighed, in addition to learning style, clinical aptitude and proficiency. Final placements decisions are determined by the faculty.

The DI portion of the program is designed to provide you with critical thinking skills and prepare you for the national registration exam and entry-level employment as an RDN. Our training sites, throughout the Greater Boston area, provide excellent opportunities to observe and participate in a wide variety of specialty areas of practice such as community nutrition, medical and surgical care, nutrition support, oncology, nephrology, cardiology, diabetes, out-patient counseling, food service, and food service management and engage with people across the life span from children to aging adults. Each intern completes a staff relief rotation and an elective rotation in an area of their interest.

The BU DI program currently is associated with several affiliated hospitals; namely: Boston Medical Center in Boston, MA,  St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center in Boston, MA, Mass General Brigham Newton- Wellesley Hospital in Newton, MA, Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton, MA, University of Massachusetts in Worcester, MA, UMass Memorial HealthAlliance – Clinton Hospital in Clinton, MA, Emerson Hospital in Concord, MA, Lahey Clinic in Burlington, MA, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital–Needham in Needham, MA, Winchester Hospital in Winchester, MS, Beverly Hospital in Beverly, MA, Lawrence General Hospital in Lawrence, MA, Mount Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, MA, and Milford Regional Medical Center in Milford, MA. These health care facilities collectively offer a broad range of population demographics, hospital size, and health care acuity to meet the diverse needs and interests of our students.

In addition, the BU DI is associated with other medical centers, clinics, and institutions for specialized rotations, including American Renal Associates, Boston College Sports and Performance Nutrition, BU Dining Services, Codman Square Community Center, DaVita Dialysis Health Care, Florida State University Sports and Performance Nutrition, Franciscan Children’s Hospital, Green Bay Packers Sports and Performance Nutrition, NeuroLogic Private Practice, Quincy Public School, Sargent Choice Nutrition Center (BU’s one of a kind private practice with specialty areas such as eating disorders, GI, food allergies, sports nutrition, women’s health, behavior change), Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital, VA Hospital of Bedford, Walden Behavioral Care.

Schedule

The DI begins in January or June once you complete the five-semester academic program. However, if your MS graduation is delayed for any reason (such as a medical leave of absence), the date of the placement in the DI will be based upon dietetic internship site availability. The Director, Dietetic Internship and the Director, Programs in Nutrition will initiate the process of assessing and reviewing your prior learning in these courses before beginning the Dietetic Internship program.

This full-time course requires tuition payment as well as a nonrefundable $1,000 fee to the internship site during the first two weeks.

A car may be necessary to get to the DI rotations as some sites are as far as 60 miles from Sargent College. Each student should be prepared to provide their own transportation to sites that are not accessible by public transportation.  

After successfully completing the DI, which includes documentation of completing dietetic competencies and the MS+DI program evaluation, you will receive the DI Verification Statement acknowledging you have met the competencies for the supervised practice component of entry-level dietitian education programs as mandated by ACEND.

The DI is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND), 120 South Riverside Plaza, Suite 2190, Chicago, IL 60606-6995. Telephone: 312-899-0040 ext. 5400.

Please note:

• Students who are admitted into Sargent College routinely participate in clinical education experiences as a part of the respective program curricula. Most clinical education facilities require criminal background checks to determine students’ eligibility for participation. History of a criminal background may disqualify students from participating in these experiences which are required for successful completion of the degree program.
• Students may have to provide documentation of medical exams or immunizations before clinical education experiences.
• There may be some clinical placements that are unavailable to students who are non-US citizens.
• Students are responsible for all expenses related to clinical education including travel-related expenses and placement specific costs. Travel-related costs include access to a car or car-ride service as not all placement sites are accessible via public transportation. Additional placement costs (up to approximately $125 per placement) may include fingerprinting, lab coat or scrubs purchase, etc. Questions regarding requirements for specific sites should be directed to the Clinical Education Services Office (clined@bu.edu; Sargent room 218).

Questions?

Please contact us at sargrad@bu.edu.

The BU DI is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND), 120 South Riverside Plaza, Suite 2000, Chicago, IL 60606-6995. Telephone: 312-899-0040 ext. 5400. For more information, please visit the ACEND website.