Licensure: RDN to Licensed Professional LDN
Steps to becoming a licensed RDN.
In most states, registered dietitians (RDNs) also must obtain licensure or certification to practice. It is the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics' (ACEND) considered opinion that the program is designed to, and does, meet all state dietetics licensure and certification laws as some states may interpret their statutes differently.
Most people are unaware of the fact that individuals do not need to be licensed to call themselves a “nutritionist.” The term “nutritionist” is not protected. However, the term “licensed nutritionist/dietitian” is protected by licensure in Massachusetts. Most positions will require licensure or RDN certification, and frequently both. In Massachusetts there are educational and experiential prerequisites for obtaining the LDN.
The LDN Licensure Board accepts the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) internship and examination as equivalent to the statutory requirements for professional experience and a Board-administered examination. So, the fully qualified RDN only has to pay a licensure fee for the LDN license.
Without the RDN credential, graduates who wish to become licensed must meet one of the following criteria:
- You must have a bachelor's degree or higher for licensure. Your major course of study should be in dietetics and nutrition, human nutrition, nutrition education, public health nutrition, or a very similar field.
- The law requires professional experience prior to licensure. The experience may be a Board-approved formal, post-baccalaureate internship of not less than 900 hours in the field of dietetics and nutrition and supervised by a licensed dietitian/nutritionist, or it may be paid professional experience. The length of that experience depends on your level of nutrition education:
- An individual with a doctoral degree must have one year of post-degree experience.
- An individual with a master's degree must have two years of post-degree experience.
- An individual with a dachelor's degree must have three years of post-degree experience.
For information on Massachusetts state licensure:
- Visit https://www.mass.gov/orgs/board-of-registration-of-dietitians-and-nutritionists
- Contact the Massachusetts Division of Professional Licensure, 1000 Washington Street, Suite 710, Boston; 617-727-9925
- Visit the licensure website at https://www.mass.gov/ocabr/government/oca-agencies/dpl-lp/ (click on “Division of Professional Licensure Boards” and then “Dietitians and Nutritionists”)
For more information about state licensure requirements in other states in the U.S., click here.