Two Delaware universities offer nutrition degrees: the University of Delaware in Newark and Delaware State University in Dover. In-state tuition runs about $14.6K a year at UD and $9.6K at Delaware State, with out-of-state rates near $39.1K and $19.6K respectively. Both hold ACEND accreditation, which is unusual density for a state this small.
The two supply supervised practice differently, and that is the decision. Delaware State runs a coordinated master’s where practice hours are built into the degree but admits only six students a year. The University of Delaware runs its own dietetic internship alongside a combined master’s and internship, so it offers more capacity and more routes. Delaware requires state licensure to practise.
Nutrition Programs in Delaware — Comparison Table
| School | Credentials | Est. Cost | Format | RD Pathway |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Delaware Newark |
BS Nutrition and Dietetics — 120 credits, accredited DPD MS Human Nutrition — dietetics, public health, or health coaching Combined MS/Dietetic Internship — meets both requirements Dietetic internship — accredited, in-person and distance tracks 4+1 BS/MS |
~$14,600 in-state ~$39,100 out-of-state 2024–25 tuition, fees additional |
Campus in Newark; internship has a distance track | Yes — accredited at both stages, with two graduate routes |
| Delaware State University Dover |
BS Food and Nutritional Sciences — Nutritional Science and Food Science tracks MS Nutritional Sciences, Coordinated Program in Dietetics — 38 credits |
~$9,593 in-state ~$19,584 out-of-state 2025–26 tuition |
Hybrid and in-class | Yes — coordinated master’s includes supervised practice |
Figures are annual tuition drawn from university announcements and exclude mandatory fees, housing, and meals. Verify current rates directly with each school before applying.
Which Delaware Nutrition Program Fits You
Choose Delaware State’s coordinated master’s if you want practice hours inside the degree and can compete for a place. The 38-credit program combines 28 credits of coursework with 10 of supervised practice, using simulation, nutrition assessment, and culinary medicine. It admits up to six students a year, so treat it as highly competitive.
Choose the University of Delaware if you want more than one route to supervised practice. It runs both a combined master’s with internship and a standalone internship, which gives more capacity than any single coordinated program in the state and lets you enter at different points.
Choose UD’s distance internship track if you cannot relocate to Newark. It is the only distance supervised practice option in Delaware — but you secure your own rotation sites rather than having them arranged, which is a substantial undertaking.
Choose Delaware State’s Food Science track if you want industry rather than the clinic. The bachelor’s splits into Nutritional Science and Food Science pathways, the latter oriented toward food technology and production rather than the RDN credential.
Delaware Nutrition Schools
University of Delaware
UD houses nutrition in the Department of Health Behavior and Nutrition Sciences, within its College of Health Sciences, and covers every stage of the route.
- BS Nutrition and Dietetics — 120 credits; enrolling in the major means completing the accredited Didactic Program in Dietetics
- MS Human Nutrition — concentrations in dietetics, public health, and health coaching
- Combined MS in Nutrition and Dietetics with Dietetic Internship — fulfils the master’s and the supervised practice requirement in one program
- Dietetic Internship — accredited, for applicants who already hold a master’s
- 4+1 BS/MS — accelerated bachelor’s and master’s
The two graduate routes solve the same problem differently. The combined MS/DI takes DPD graduates through coursework and practice in one seamless program. The standalone internship requires a master’s already in hand, along with a DPD verification statement, a 2.75 GPA, relevant work experience, and a medical nutrition therapy course completed within the past four years.
The internship’s two tracks differ in a way worth understanding before applying. For the in-person track, faculty plan rotation schedules around student preferences, prior experience, and location. On the distance track, students secure their own rotation sites, with clinical and community placements required at the time of application. That shifts a significant burden onto the applicant.
Read UD’s published DPD figures carefully. Goals stating that at least 25 percent of graduates apply for supervised practice and at least 90 percent of those who apply are admitted are ACEND programme objectives — minimum targets the program commits to meeting — not reported outcomes. The 25 percent figure in particular is a floor, not a placement rate. Ask the department for actual outcome data with the reporting year attached.
Delaware State University
Delaware State, an HBCU in Dover, runs nutrition through the Department of Human Ecology in its College of Agriculture, Science, and Technology.
- BS Food and Nutritional Sciences — with Nutritional Science and Food Science tracks; the nutritional science pathway builds on biology, chemistry, statistics, and biochemistry
- MS Nutritional Sciences, Coordinated Program in Dietetics concentration — 38 credits, 28 didactic and 10 supervised practice
The coordinated program is the differentiator and also the constraint. It combines coursework and supervised practice so graduates can sit the registration examination without a separate internship application, and it teaches through simulation, nutrition assessment, and culinary medicine. But it is full-time and admits up to six students annually, which makes it one of the smaller coordinated programs anywhere.
Timing matters. Students in the BS/MS option apply during the second semester of their junior year; everyone else applies in their senior year. The fall deadline is April 15 and the spring deadline November 15, though spring admission is rare and requires transferring graduate credits to finish within two years. All prerequisites must be complete before starting the master’s.
How to Choose a Nutrition Program in Delaware
Capacity is the real constraint
Both universities are accredited, so the question is not quality but whether you can get a supervised practice place. Delaware State’s coordinated program takes six students a year. UD’s combined MS/DI and standalone internship together offer more room, and its internship also accepts applicants from other institutions. If certainty matters, apply to more than one and consider programs across the state line.
Cost difference is substantial
Delaware State’s in-state tuition is roughly a third less than UD’s, and its out-of-state rate is less than half. For a student weighing two accredited options in a small state, that gap is significant enough to outweigh most other considerations — provided you can secure a place in the coordinated program.
The master’s requirement changed in 2024
Since January 1, 2024, the Commission on Dietetic Registration has required a master’s degree in any field, plus a verification statement from an ACEND-accredited program, to sit for the RDN exam. Both Delaware universities have structured around this, which is why UD’s standalone internship now requires a master’s already in hand and why Delaware State’s coordinated program sits at master’s level.
Location works in your favour
Delaware’s compact size and Mid-Atlantic position put Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington within roughly ninety minutes, which widens the pool of internship sites and employers considerably beyond what two universities alone would suggest. Students who do not secure an in-state place have real alternatives within commuting distance.
Nutrition Licensure and Credentials in Delaware
Delaware requires dietitians to be licensed. The Licensed Dietitian/Nutritionist credential is required to practise in the state, and it sits on top of the national RDN credential rather than replacing it.
The CDR requirements apply as elsewhere: an ACEND verification statement, a master’s degree, supervised practice hours, and a passing exam score. As both universities note, completing an accredited program alone does not qualify anyone for licensure in any state. Confirm current Delaware licensure requirements with the state board before relying on them.
Before applying, verify three things directly with the school: the current cohort size and application deadline for Delaware State’s coordinated program, since six places a year makes timing critical, whether you are applying to UD’s in-person or distance internship track and who is responsible for securing rotation sites, and that the tuition figure quoted matches the coming academic year rather than the one reported here. Individual school profiles for these programs are in progress and will be linked here as they publish.