School of Community Health and Behavioral Sciences, Bouvé College of Health Sciences • Boston, MA • Campus (Minor); certificate delivery not stated • $1,259/Credit (Graduate Certificate, Derived Default Rate)
Northeastern University offers 2 nutrition credentials, and neither leads to RD/RDN eligibility:
- Nutrition Minor (undergraduate)
- Graduate Certificate in Global Health and Nutrition Entrepreneurship
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nutrition Minor | No separate rate | Not clearly stated | 18 to 20 |
| Global Health and Nutrition Entrepreneurship Certificate | $15.1K (12 credits at $1,259, derived) | Not clearly stated (4 courses) | 12 |
Northeastern has no nutrition or dietetics major at any level, no ACEND-accredited program of any type, and no route to the RD credential. Boston-area lists and older web pages still name an online M.S. in Applied Nutrition, but that degree last appears in the 2023-24 catalog and is absent from every catalog since, so it is described here as retired, not as officially discontinued.
Readers who need the dietitian credential should look at the Boston-area ACEND programs instead, such as Boston University, Simmons University, and Tufts University.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Format | Minor: campus (Boston). Certificate: the catalog lists Boston, and its delivery format and admissions details were not found |
| Credit Hours | Minor: 18 to 20 (5 courses). Certificate: 12 semester hours (4 courses of 3) |
| ACEND Accreditation | None. Northeastern appears in no ACEND decision from 2019 through 2026, the program directory, or Programs Under Review |
| RD/RDN Eligibility | No. Neither credential leads to RD eligibility, and there is no nutrition or dietetics major |
| GPA Floor | Minor: 2.0 in the minor. Certificate: 3.0 minimum |
| Tuition | 2026-27 default graduate rates: College of Professional Studies $1,259 per credit; Bouvé $1,995 per credit |
| Institutional Accreditation | NECHE (New England Commission of Higher Education) |
Nutrition Minor
The Nutrition Minor is run by the Department of Public Health and Health Sciences in Bouvé and has no tuition rate of its own. It requires 18 to 20 credits across five courses: HSCI 1105, HSCI 2350, and HSCI 2500 at four credits each, plus two supporting courses worth 6 to 8 credits, with a 2.0 minimum GPA in the minor.
The catalog carries no accreditation or RD language. The minor’s elective lists differ between the catalog and Bouvé’s program page, which affects which courses count and not the credit total, and the catalog is treated as authoritative here.
Graduate Certificate in Global Health and Nutrition Entrepreneurship
The estimated tuition for the certificate is about $15,108 (12 credits at $1,259, derived at the College of Professional Studies default graduate rate). The program requires 12 semester hours in four 3-credit courses, NTR 6101, 6130, 6155, and 6202, with a 3.0 minimum GPA.
The catalog lists Boston only and gives no admissions information or accreditation language, and the certificate does not appear in the graduate programs directory that was paged through. Delivery, deadlines, and the actual billing rate were not found, since the rate page does not name the certificate.
Retired: Master of Science, Applied Nutrition (Online)
This College of Professional Studies degree was entirely online and part time, with a stated length of 12 to 18 months. The 2023-24 catalog listed 45 quarter hours, a 3.0 GPA, and five concentrations: Business and Entrepreneurship in Nutrition, Integrative Health and Wellness, Nutrition Education, Nutrition and Fitness, and Obesity and Nutritional Health. Its last archived page, from October 2023, estimated $38,300 in tuition for 2023-24, and it said outright that it was not a registered dietitian program and gave no verification statement.
The degree is missing from the 2024-25, 2025-26, and 2026-27 catalogs, and its program web address was retired in 2024. A state listing that still shows it as an in-person Seattle program at $0 contradicts Northeastern’s own pages and should not be relied on.
Tuition
Northeastern’s published 2026-27 default graduate rate is $1,259 per credit in the College of Professional Studies, the rate this profile applies to the certificate, and $1,995 per credit in Bouvé, which would cover Bouvé graduate nutrition courses such as EXSC 5240 and PHTH 5236. Northeastern is private and charges one rate regardless of residency.
- Derived certificate cost: 12 credits at $1,259 is $15,108
- College of Professional Studies comprehensive fee of $50 a term, up to $100 a year, which does not apply to online students
- Health and Counseling Fee of $225 a year, a Northeastern student health plan at $3,049 a year, and a one-time $450 International Student Fee
Be aware that:
Whether the certificate is billed at the default rate or a program-specific one is unconfirmed, and undergraduate rates for the minor were not researched. Official figures are on Northeastern’s tuition and fees page.
Why Choose This Nutrition Program?
Best suited for students who want nutrition coursework alongside a public health, health science, or global health entrepreneurship focus, and who are not looking for a dietitian credential.
Undergraduates in Bouvé can add the five-course minor to a health science or public health degree. Working professionals can look at the 12-credit certificate if it is currently offered, which should be confirmed with the College of Professional Studies.
The geographic verdict for anyone who wants the RD credential in Boston is to look past Northeastern. The city has ACEND-accredited programs at several other schools, and a student who enrolls here expecting a dietetics pathway will not find one.
Accreditation
Northeastern is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education (NECHE), a member since 1940, last reviewed in 2018 with the next review in fall 2028, per its catalog. Institutional accreditation matters for transfer credit, graduate admission, and federal financial aid.
No Northeastern program carries ACEND accreditation. Northeastern University does not appear in ACEND’s accreditation decisions for 2019 through 2026, in its program directory for Massachusetts, or on its Programs Under Review page, and the school’s accreditation page lists no dietetics accreditor. The only Northeastern entries on ACEND’s pages belong to Northeastern State University in Oklahoma, an unrelated school that is a likely source of confusion in aggregator listings.
That means the minor and the certificate fall outside ACEND by design. A graduate of either is not eligible for the CDR exam on that credential, and becoming a registered dietitian would require an ACEND-accredited program elsewhere, a master’s degree, supervised practice, and the exam.