Clinical Nutrition

DCN

Clinical Nutrition

Format & Location

On-Campus (Fairfield, CT)

School/College

Start Dates

Fall (September)

Application Deadline

August 1

Completion

36-48 months

Schedule

Full-Time or Part-Time

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Check for Upcoming Dates

The Doctorate in Clinical Nutrition Program at ��Ƭapp offers a doctoral degree in clinical nutrition for those looking to pursue a career as a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and for those who are currently registered dietitian nutritionists looking to advance their knowledge.

Be ready to put your degree to use.

The Egan School’s DCN program prepares graduates to become registered dietitian nutritionists who are leaders in the profession. Of graduates who seek employment, at least 90% are employed in nutrition and dietetics or related fields within a year of graduation.

Have an impact on your community.

The program educates students with an emphasis on leadership, evidence-based practice, and research. By applying these skills to post-grad positions, 80% of graduates agree that their position contributes positively to the health outcomes of the community for which they serve.

Open doors for your career.

Only 4% of registered dietitian nutritionists have doctoral degrees. In this program, students will benefit from increased credibility and recognition that will prepare them for careers in management, research, and higher education.

Enter the industry with any background.

Offering both a Post-RDN track and a Post-Baccalaureate track, students with any undergraduate educational background can study in the DCN program. The program is open to students with a bachelor's degree in any area who have fulfilled the required prerequisites, students who have graduated from an ACEND-accredited Didactic Program in dietetics who have not yet completed an internship, and registered dietitians with or without a master's degree.

Find Out More

Course Requirements

70 credits

50 credits

Contact Us

Graduate Admission
gradadmis@fairfield.edu
(203) 254-4184

DCN Program at Fairfield

Learn more about Fairfield's highly regarded DCN program.

Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics

The Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) granted the Future Education Model Track in the DCN program candidacy for accreditation in May 2020 under the newly released Future Education Model Standards for programs in nutrition and dietetics. These accreditation standards integrate didactic coursework with supervised experiential learning in a competency-based curriculum designed to prepare nutrition and dietetics practitioners for future practice.

Future Education Model Track

��Ƭapp demonstrates its leadership in education by being among the first Doctoral programs to be granted candidacy for accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) under the new Future Education Model standards. This is an on-campus, three-year full-time, or four-year part-time program.

Following the completion of the program, graduates will be eligible to take the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) credentialing examination to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist.

The mission of the Doctorate in Clinical Nutrition (DCN) program is to prepare graduates to become Registered Dietitian Nutritionists who are leaders in the profession. Graduates will expand their knowledge of clinical nutrition to improve health outcomes with particular attention to the needs of underserved or vulnerable populations.

Goal #1

Graduates are competent registered dietitian nutritionists prepared for leadership roles in healthcare settings.

At least 80% of program students complete program requirements within 4.5 years (150% of the program length).
Of graduates who seek employment, at least 90 % percent are employed in nutrition and dietetics or related fields within 12 months of graduation.
At least 100 % percent of program graduates take the CDR credentialing exam for dietitian nutritionists within 12 months of program completion.
The program’s one-year pass rate (graduates who pass the registration exam within one year of their first attempt) on the CDR credentialing exam for dietitian nutritionists is at least 80%.
80% of returned employer surveys rank graduates working in dietetics as “adequately prepared”.
50% of graduates are employed in and/or hold a volunteer position in a leadership position one year after graduation.

Goal #2

Graduates improve the health outcomes of the community, especially in underserved populations.

50% of graduates agree they serve an underserved, or vulnerable population
80% of graduates agree that their position contributes positively to the health outcomes of the community for which they serve.

Outcome data is available upon request.

The following requirements must be met before the student is eligible to receive his/her degree from ��Ƭapp:

Verification of successful completion of all practicum and academic course requirements
Demonstrated competence in all ACEND required competencies and performance indicators
Resolution of all financial responsibilities
Return of all loaned items including library books, ID badge, etc.

Students must complete all course requirements within 150% of the program length. This equates to 4.5 years for the full-time track and 6 years for the part-time track.

The DCN program at ��Ƭapp is under the Future Education Model standards. The curriculum includes all necessary courses and experiential supervised practice required for graduates to obtain a verification statement that allows them to sit for the Registration Examination for Dietitian Nutritionist. Beginning January 1, 2024, a graduate degree will be required to sit for this exam.

RDNs are not required to be licensed in Connecticut; however, some states do require licensure/certification.

Cost breakdown for the Future Education Model track.
Asset	Cost ($)
Housing	8,000
Textbooks and Supplies	800
Parking for Practicum Sites	300
Background Check	75
Drug Testing	70
Health Requirements for Practicum Sites	200
Lab Coat	35
Hospital ID Badge	25
Non-Slip Shoes	25
Student Membership to the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetic	58
Total	9,388

Elizabeth Sack

Instructor of the Practice Clinical Nutrition

esack@fairfield.edu

Janet Stuhrcke (Hiser)

DCN, RDN, FAND, Director of Clinical Nutrition

jstuhrcke@fairfield.edu

Admission Information

For the Future Education Model DCN Track, applicants must hold a baccalaureate degree in any area from an accredited four-year college or university and must have fulfilled the required prerequisites, or have graduated from an ACEND-accredited didactic program in dietetics and have not yet completed an internship.

Applications for fall start begin October 1st. ��Ƭapp will notify applicants of acceptance no later than March 1, 2025. Applicants have until March 15, 2025 to accept an offer. After March 15, applications will still be accepted until July 1, 2025 if opening are still available.

Graduate assistantships are currently available.

Career Outlook

Employment opportunities for registered dietitian nutritionists are on the rise in the state of Connecticut and nationally. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of dietitian nutritionists is projected to grow 11% from 2018-2028, much faster than the average for all occupations.

Professional Opportunities

Registered dietitian nutritionists may be employed in a wide variety of settings, including:

Settings

Private Practice
Hospitals
Government
Food Service
Healthcare Organizations
Corporate Nutrition Programs
Food and Nutrition Industry
Schools
Sports Nutrition
Community and Public Health Facilities

Hartford Healthcare System
The Paramount at Somers
Nutrigreene

Hartford Healthcare System
Watertown Public Schools
��Ƭapp Aramark

Council of Churches of Greater Bridgeport
WIC (Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children)
Kids in Crisis
SNAP-Ed Program
Bridgeport Rescue Mission

Future Education Model DCN FAQs

No, the majority of the classes are taken on campus once a week and are offered typically Monday-Thursday from 5-7:30 p.m. The supervised experiential learning rotations may be offered during the day at the discretion of the preceptors.

Yes. Once the program is completed and all competencies have been passed, you will be eligible to sit for the RD exam through the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR). Verification statements and test eligibility will be issued after the degree is conferred by ��Ƭapp.

The as a first step towards changing the educational pathways within the field of nutrition and dietetics. We volunteered to be one of the first programs and try out this new educational pathway. That is why it is called a Future Education Model. The wave of the future in nutrition and dietetics education is to include all training at the graduate level for eligibility to sit for the RD exam. Therefore, our program includes the didactic coursework in dietetics, supervised experiential learning (similar to the dietetic internship), and the graduate degree requirements.

No, applicants are only required to have a bachelor’s degree; it does not have to be in nutrition or dietetics. There is, however, a list of pre-requisite courses which must be completed before starting the DCN program.

If the course was a college-level course taken at an accredited university and the title of the course is similar to the titles of our pre-requisite course requirements, then it is likely the course will “count” as a pre-requisite. You must have received a grade of “C” or better in each course. If you have any concerns or questions about a specific course, contact the program director Janet Hiser at jhiser@fairfield.edu and include the course number, institution, and course description in your email.

We accept 15 students into our DCN program each year.

Yes, we will interview our top candidates in a short video conference.

All students are required to have access to a personal computer with internet access. Every currently enrolled student has been provided with an email account at no cost to the student. Email is the official method of communication for University correspondence.

These University-provided email addresses are the only officially recognized email addresses for all currently enrolled students.

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