Department of Nutrition and Dietetics • Huntsville, AL • Campus, Online and Hybrid • $598–$805/Credit
Oakwood University offers 4 nutrition credentials:
- B.S., Dietetics
- B.S., Nutrition with Vegetarian Culinary Emphasis
- M.P.H., Nutrition and Wellness
- Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, Distance Dietetic Internship
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| B.S. Dietetics | $96.4K flat | 4 years (8 semesters) | 120 |
| B.S. Vegetarian Culinary | $96.4K flat | 4 years (8 semesters) | 121 |
| M.P.H. | $27.3K flat | 22–24 months (published) | 42 |
| Internship Certificate | $13.0K flat | 10–12 months (2 semesters) | 24 |
Oakwood is the rare school where every stage of the dietitian pathway sits inside one department. The ACEND-accredited undergraduate program supplies the verification statement, the online master’s satisfies the graduate degree the credential now requires, and Oakwood’s own distance internship supplies the 1,000 supervised practice hours. All of it is built on plant-based nutrition, and the department states an explicit mission to increase the number of minority health care providers in dietetics.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Program Types | Two bachelor’s degrees, an online master’s, and a post-baccalaureate internship certificate |
| Format | Both B.S. Campus; M.P.H. Online; internship Hybrid, with rotations arranged locally |
| Credit Hours | 120 and 121 (B.S.), 42 (M.P.H.), 24 (internship certificate) |
| ACEND Accreditation | Yes, term 2022 to 2030. Covers the Didactic Program in Dietetics and the internship |
| RD/RDN Eligibility | Yes, if all three stages are completed. No single program here is sufficient alone |
| Supervised Practice | 1,000 hours through the internship certificate. Interns locate their own sites and preceptors |
| Specializations | Plant-based and vegetarian nutrition throughout; vegetarian culinary arts as a full major |
| Distinctive Coursework | Vegetarian Cuisine; Designing Healthy Desserts; Nutrition and Wellness built on NEWSTART |
| Exit Examination | Required at 75 percent for Dietetics, the internship and the M.P.H. before completion |
| Entrance Exams | None stated for the bachelor’s or internship |
| GPA Floor | 3.0 for the Dietetics major and for the internship; 3.0 maintained through the program |
| Tuition | $11,472 per semester at 12 to 16 hours, the same for commuting and residential students |
| Prerequisite Recency | Internship applicants need named courses completed within the past three or four years |
| Institutional Accreditation | Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) |
Bachelor of Science in Dietetics
The estimated tuition for the B.S. in Dietetics at Oakwood is approximately $96,448, being eight semesters of the $11,472 full-time package plus the $584 matriculation fee each term. The program requires 120 credits over four years and is Oakwood’s Didactic Program in Dietetics.
The B.S. in Dietetics produces the verification statement that opens the door to supervised practice, and it is the only Oakwood degree that does.
Dietetics Curriculum
A 69-credit major, which is a heavy one. The major block runs 69 of the 120 credits, leaving 51 for general education and nothing for free electives. Alongside the nutrition sequence it pulls in anatomy and physiology, microbiology, chemistry, statistics, research methods, sociology and management, so the science and cognate load is substantial.
Plant-based nutrition is in the required core, not an elective. ND 442 Nutrition and Wellness is built on plant-based diets and the principles of NEWSTART, the Adventist lifestyle framework. ND 439 Medical Nutrition Therapy I folds Adventist beliefs and professional conduct into clinical patient care. This is a denominational program and the curriculum reflects that consistently rather than incidentally.
Sequencing is mandatory and testing out is not an option. The catalog states that classes must be taken in sequential order and that CLEP results do not meet requirements for this degree, which removes a shortcut many transfer students expect to use.
- ND 321 Advanced Nutrition, the metabolism course that gates the clinical sequence
- ND 439 and ND 440 Medical Nutrition Therapy I and II, each with a lab
- ND 351 Nutrition Assessment and Counseling with Lab, four credits
- ND 421 Quantity Food Management and ND 431 Food Systems Management, both with labs
- ND 442 Nutrition and Wellness, the plant-based and NEWSTART course
- ND 453 Senior Seminar, which exists specifically to prepare students for the exit examination
- PY 411 Research I and PY 307 Statistical Methods
More curriculum details are available here.
You Should Know
- The exit examination is a real gate. Every dietetics major must pass it at 75 percent proficiency before graduating, and it covers conceptual skills, project technique and laboratory performance. ND 453 is a whole course devoted to preparing for it.
- Students must complete at least one summer of pre-approved work or volunteer experience in dietetics and maintain a professional development portfolio throughout the program. Neither is a course, and neither shows up in the credit total.
- Admission to the major requires a 3.0, an interview, a personal statement, and evidence of a twelfth-grade reading level from diagnostic testing. The reading-level requirement is unusual and easy to overlook.
- A C or better is required in every dietetics and cognate course, and the catalog also sets a recommended 80 percent standard on all tests, projects and assignments.
Bachelor of Science in Nutrition with Vegetarian Culinary Emphasis
The estimated tuition for the B.S. in Nutrition with Vegetarian Culinary Emphasis is approximately $96,448, identical to the Dietetics degree because the full-time package absorbs the extra credit. The program requires 121 credits over four years and pairs a nutrition science core with a full culinary curriculum.
The Vegetarian Culinary Emphasis is the most distinctive degree on this page and has no ACEND accreditation, which matters more than the course list.
Vegetarian Culinary Curriculum
A 38-credit culinary major with a 31-credit nutrition core. The culinary block is a genuine professional curriculum rather than a set of themed electives: menu planning, baking and pastry, sensory analysis, food service production, international cuisine, dessert design, product development and wellness cuisine, capped by a senior practicum and an advanced culinary internship. Very few universities anywhere run a vegetarian culinary major of this size.
The nutrition core overlaps heavily with dietetics. Food science, life span nutrition, community nutrition, nutrition assessment and counseling, quantity food management, food systems management, statistics and research all appear in both degrees. The two majors are close cousins, which makes the accreditation difference the deciding factor rather than the coursework.
- ND 360 Vegetarian Cuisine, covering vegetarian and vegan meal preparation
- ND 134 Introduction to Baking and Pastry and ND 317 Designing Healthy Desserts
- ND 224 International Cuisine and ND 417 Wellness Cuisine
- ND 352 Principles of Food Product Development
- ND 138 Fundamentals of Food Service Production with lab, four credits
- ND 493 Senior Culinary Practicum and ND 494 Advanced Culinary Nutrition Internship
You Should Know
- This degree does not carry ACEND accreditation and produces no verification statement. It does not lead to the RDN credential, and a graduate who later wants it would need to complete didactic dietetics coursework separately.
- It is the only one of the two bachelor’s degrees with free electives, and only four credits of them.
- The senior practicum and culinary internship are the experiential components. They are not supervised practice in the ACEND sense and do not count toward the 1,000 hours.
Master of Public Health, Nutrition and Wellness
The estimated tuition for the M.P.H. is approximately $27,316, being 42 credits at the $598 graduate rate in Oakwood’s Schedule of Charges plus the $440 general fee across roughly five terms. The program requires 42 credits, runs 100 percent online, and Oakwood publishes a completion window of 22 to 24 months.
The M.P.H. in Nutrition and Wellness is the piece that makes the in-house pathway work, because the Commission on Dietetic Registration requires a graduate degree and this one is explicitly built to satisfy it.
M.P.H. Curriculum
The didactic portion covers the five public health core areas of biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental health sciences, health services administration, and social and behavioral science, plus two research courses and six nutrition and wellness courses. One of those is devoted specifically to minority nutrition and wellness issues, which is consistent with the department’s stated mission rather than a bolt-on. The culminating requirement is a capstone research project and a practicum.
- Five public health core courses aligned to Council on Education for Public Health course areas
- Two research methods courses
- Six nutrition and wellness courses, including one on minority nutrition and wellness
- Capstone research project and practicum, seven credits of culminating activity
- Curriculum emphasis on advocating plant-based diets and assessing community health needs
You Should Know
- Oakwood’s own pages disagree on both the credit total and the rate. The program page says 42 credits; the graduate catalog describes 41 didactic credits plus 7 of culminating activity, which totals 48. Meanwhile the Schedule of Charges lists $598 per graduate credit, the catalog tuition page $570, and the M.P.H. page $580. Between the credit gap and the rate spread, the real bill could differ from the figure above by several thousand dollars. Get both numbers in writing before enrolling.
- Oakwood describes the curriculum as meeting Council on Education for Public Health course requirements, but no CEPH accreditation statement appears on the program or catalog pages. The department’s published accreditation covers ACEND only. If CEPH accreditation matters to you, and it does for the Certified in Public Health examination, verify it directly with CEPH before applying.
- The exit examination applies to M.P.H. students too, not just dietetics majors.
- A maximum of nine graduate credits may be transferred in, evaluated by the M.P.H. faculty.
- This degree does not confer RDN eligibility by itself. It satisfies one of three requirements.
Distance Dietetic Internship Certificate
The estimated tuition for the Distance Dietetic Internship is approximately $12,955, being two semesters at the published $6,000 internship rate plus the $440 general fee each term and a $75 certification fee. The program requires 24 credits across ND 495 and ND 496 and takes 10 to 12 months full time.
The Distance Dietetic Internship Program is ACEND-accredited and is what turns a verification statement into exam eligibility.
Internship Supervised Practice
- 1,000 hours of supervised practice under registered dietitian preceptors
- Rotations in clinical nutrition, food systems management and community nutrition, concentrated in medical nutrition therapy
- Interns are required to locate their own supervised practice sites and preceptors, with some assistance from the program
- On admission, interns receive access to former Oakwood preceptors and affiliation sites in their chosen area
- Preceptors complete an affiliation agreement with Oakwood; most are registered dietitians
- A one-week orientation on campus is required before rotations begin
- Rotations may be completed in-state or out-of-state at approved facilities
- An exit examination at 75 percent proficiency is required before completion
The self-sourcing requirement is the fact that should decide this for you. Placing yourself with hospitals, food service operations and community agencies, and getting each preceptor to sign an affiliation agreement, is real work that begins before the program does and is not reflected in the tuition figure. What you get in exchange is geographic freedom: you complete the 1,000 hours wherever you already live, and the only travel is the orientation week in Huntsville. For someone with existing professional contacts in a health system, that trade is a good one. For someone starting cold in an area with few dietitians, it is a serious risk.
You Should Know
- The prerequisite recency rules are strict and disqualify many career changers. Medical Nutrition Therapy I and II and Food Systems Management must have been completed within the past three years with a B or higher. Biochemistry and Advanced Nutrition, including macronutrient, micronutrient and metabolism content, must be within the past four years with a B or higher.
- The 1,000 hours meet the current standard exactly. Any source describing this program as 1,200 hours is citing the retired figure.
- The application fee is $100 and Oakwood accepts money order only.
- Since January 2024 the CDR has required a graduate degree for exam eligibility, so an internship alone is no longer sufficient. Plan the master’s alongside it.
Internship Admissions
- A DPD verification statement from an ACEND-accredited program
- Minimum 3.0 overall GPA
- Application through DICAS, the centralized dietetic internship application system
- Professional liability insurance, background check clearance, and health requirements including immunizations and a physical examination
- Computer literacy and reliable internet access
Tuition
Oakwood’s published rates for the 2025 to 2027 academic years are $805 per credit hour at 1 to 7 hours, $9,513 per semester at 8 to 11 hours, and a flat $11,472 package at 12 to 16 hours, with additional hours above 16 billed at just $580 each. Graduate credits are $598 in the Schedule of Charges, and the dietetic internship is billed at a flat $6,000 per semester rather than by credit. As a private university, Oakwood charges the same tuition to everyone; there is no in-state or out-of-state distinction anywhere in these figures.
The word “resident” in Oakwood’s schedule means a student living in university housing, not an Alabama resident. Residential and commuting students pay the identical $11,472 tuition package, and housing and meals are separate line items on top.
| Enrollment | Charge | Effective per credit |
|---|---|---|
| Undergraduate, 12 hours | $11,472 | $956 derived |
| Undergraduate, 16 hours | $11,472 | $717 derived |
| Undergraduate, 18 hours | $12,632 | $702 derived |
| Graduate, per credit | $598 | $598 |
The third row is worth sitting with. Because hours past 16 cost only $580 each, the marginal credit at Oakwood gets cheaper the more you take, which is the reverse of how most block plans behave and a genuine reason to load an 18-hour term.
Confirmed costs
- Either bachelor’s degree, 8 semesters: $91,776 tuition plus $4,672 in matriculation fees = $96,448 (derived). Blended cost per credit is $765 for Dietetics and $758 for the culinary degree
- M.P.H., 42 credits: 42 × $598 = $25,116, plus roughly $2,200 in general fees, for about $27,316 (derived)
- Distance Dietetic Internship: 2 × $6,000 = $12,000, plus $880 in general fees and a $75 certification fee, for $12,955, working out to $500 per internship credit (derived)
- The full in-house pathway, bachelor’s plus master’s plus internship: roughly $136,719 in tuition and required fees (derived)
- Health insurance $650 a semester, waivable with proof of qualified coverage
- Course and laboratory fees from $15 per lab, which adds up across a dietetics curriculum carrying a dozen lab courses
- Graduation $421 with regalia or $311 without; intent to enroll $200; internship application $100 by money order
- Summer credits are $221.12 per hour, and the Adults and Continuing Education rate is $397 per hour, both far below the part-time undergraduate rate
Be aware that:
- Cost figures for this school published elsewhere frequently apply the $805 part-time rate to a full-time four-year degree. That is the wrong rate line, and it also produces a phantom price difference between the two bachelor’s degrees, which in fact cost exactly the same.
- Three Oakwood sources give three different graduate per-credit rates, $598, $580 and $570. The Schedule of Charges is the official rate table and is used above.
- The M.P.H. credit total is stated as both 42 and 48 across Oakwood’s pages, a difference of about $3,588 in tuition.
- Resident students are required to pay a minimum of 80 percent of tuition and boarding at registration, with the balance due in three installments per semester. That front-loading is steeper than most payment plans.
- None of these figures are cost-of-attendance bundles. Housing runs $1,684 to $4,208 a semester depending on hall and occupancy, and a meal plan is mandatory for anyone in university housing.
This is a private university competing against state institutions, and the sticker gap is real: roughly $96,000 in tuition and fees for a bachelor’s before any aid. What the premium buys is a department that can carry a student from freshman year to exam eligibility without ever sending them elsewhere, and a plant-based specialization that is difficult to find at any price. Whether that is worth it depends almost entirely on how much institutional aid arrives, so run the numbers on the official schedule of charges against an actual award letter rather than against the published rate.
Why Choose This Nutrition Program?
Well matched to students who want plant-based dietetics taken seriously as a discipline, and to anyone who would rather complete supervised practice near home than relocate for it.
The whole pathway is under one roof. Didactic coursework, a graduate degree that satisfies the CDR requirement, and 1,000 accredited supervised practice hours are all available from a single department with a single ACEND accreditation running to 2030. Most students assembling the RDN credential deal with two or three institutions and a competitive national match in the middle. Oakwood removes that fragmentation, and the internship’s distance format means the supervised practice year does not require moving.
Plant-based nutrition is the curriculum, not a module. The dietetics core teaches NEWSTART and plant-based wellness as required content, the master’s is organised around advocating plant-based diets, and there is a 38-credit vegetarian culinary major with courses in vegetarian cuisine, dessert design and food product development. For a student who wants to practise in plant-based nutrition, this depth is genuinely hard to match, and it comes from a denominational health tradition rather than a recent trend.
The mission is stated and specific. The department says plainly that it exists in part to meet health care demand for minority providers, and the master’s includes a course on minority nutrition and wellness issues. Dietetics remains one of the least racially diverse health professions, and a program that names that problem and builds curriculum around it is offering something the credential itself does not.
The honest drawbacks. Cost is the obvious one, and the payment terms are demanding. The gates are numerous: a 3.0 to enter the major and to hold it, a C or better in every dietetics and cognate course, a summer of unpaid field experience, a portfolio, and a 75 percent exit examination standing between coursework and a diploma. The internship’s requirement that interns find their own preceptors shifts real risk onto the student. And the master’s has open questions on its own pages about how many credits it is and what a credit costs, with no visible CEPH accreditation despite being an M.P.H. None of that makes Oakwood a poor choice. It does mean this is a program to enter with questions answered in writing.
Accreditation
Oakwood University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. Institutional accreditation applies to every degree at the university and governs whether credits transfer, whether other graduate schools recognise the degree, and whether federal financial aid is available.
Programmatic accreditation is separate and is what determines credential eligibility. The Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics accredits the Nutrition and Dietetics program at Oakwood for the term 2022 to 2030, covering the Didactic Program in Dietetics inside the B.S. in Dietetics and the Distance Dietetic Internship Program. Holding both a didactic program and an internship under one accreditation is uncommon and is the structural reason the in-house pathway works.
Two of the four credentials fall outside that scope. The B.S. in Nutrition with Vegetarian Culinary Emphasis has no programmatic accreditation, which is normal for a culinary and food science degree. The Master of Public Health is described as meeting Council on Education for Public Health course requirements, but Oakwood publishes no CEPH accreditation statement for it, and the department’s accreditation notice names ACEND alone. That distinction is worth confirming directly, because CEPH accreditation governs eligibility for the Certified in Public Health examination and is what many public health employers look for.
Graduates of the B.S. in Dietetics receive a verification statement on completing the degree and passing the exit examination, and may then apply to accredited supervised practice programs including Oakwood’s own. On completing supervised practice together with a graduate degree, they are eligible for the Commission on Dietetic Registration examination, which has required a master’s degree at minimum since January 1, 2024. Graduates of the vegetarian culinary degree, or of the master’s alone, are not eligible for that examination and cannot enter a dietetic internship without a verification statement earned first. Alabama licenses dietitians, so the examination is a step toward practice rather than the end of it; confirm current requirements with the state board.
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