How to Become a Nutritionist and Registered Dietitian in Virginia

Virginia is the first place that peanuts were grown in the United States, the location of the first Thanksgiving in North America, and designates Milk as its state beverage. It’s also the home of the only oyster museum in the entire world. As with many other states, food and nutrition is important to the residents of Virginia, and when they need help making nutritional choices, they turn to registered dietitians. This is a rewarding career field, and this page will show you all you need to know to practice as a dietitian in Virginia.

Requirements to Become a Dietitian in Virginia

Basic Requirements

• Age: Completing registration requirements requires most applicants to be at least 21 years old.
• Education: A bachelor’s degree is required.
• Licensure: Virginia does not certify, register or license individuals as other states do. However, the state board requires CNR registration to function as a dietitian.
• Degree: Your bachelor’s education must be in food and nutrition, food sciences, dietetics or a similar field approved by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
• Experience: At least 900 hours of supervised, post-graduate experience is required to become a registered dietitian.
• Citizenship: All registered dietitians must be legally eligible to hold work in the United States.
• Examination: Completion of the CNR exams are required.

Application Process

• Licensure: Virginia does not directly license dietitians, but to practice in the state, one must be registered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration.

Degrees Related to Dietitians

The degrees most useful to a dietitian include food and nutrition, dietetics, food sciences and similar AND-approved disciplines. These also help to fulfill the requirements to become a registered dietitian.

Major Cities in Virginia

• Virginia Beach, known as a vacation retreat, is home to 448,479 people.
• Norfolk, the second-largest city in the state, has 246,139 residents.
• Home to the famous Chesapeake Bay, Chesapeake has 230,571 people.
• The state capital of Richmond sees 214,114 people call the city home.

What Does a Nutritionist Do?

• Dietitians and nutritionists are experts in healthy food choices and nutrition planning. They help clients to make the right dietary decisions and create meal plans to help clients live a healthy lifestyle.
• Many nutritionists follow a path of awareness and education, acting as teachers to help people learn to make their own healthy choices. Some work one-on-one with clients, while others teach classes or give seminars to large groups.
• Institutional career paths include development, evaluation and implementation of healthy meal plans for places like long-term care facilities, hospitals, prisons or educational institutions.

Related Careers

Careers related to the dietitian include the nutritionist, who performs many of the same functions and works side-by-side with the dietitian. Dietetic technicians are also a related field, and they focus largely on implementing the meal plans and strategies established by dietitians.

Employment Numbers in Virginia

According to the numbers provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there are 1,350 dietitians employed in the state of Virginia as of 2015, with the field expected to grow by 16% nationwide over the next 7 years.

Salary Ranges in Virginia

A nutritionist in Virginia can expect to earn an annual salary of around $54,780.

Virginia Dietitian Links

• Commission of Dietetic Registration
• Virginia Board of Health FAQ
• Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics
• Dietitian Career Outlook by the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Nutritionist and Dietitian Programs in Virginia