Cal State Northridge Nutrition Programs

Department of Family and Consumer Sciences • Northridge, CA • Campus • $8,328/yr Resident Tuition and Fees

Cal State Northridge offers 3 Nutritional Sciences credentials:

  • B.S., Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science (Nutrition and Dietetics Option, DPD)
  • Post-Baccalaureate DPD Certificate, for bachelor’s holders in any field
  • Combined M.S. and Dietetic Internship, or a DI-only certificate for applicants who already hold a master’s

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
B.S.$8,328/yr in-state (tuition and fees, confirmed all-in)4 years (120-credit bachelor’s norm)Not clearly stated
Post-Bacc CertificateNot clearly stated (billing structure unconfirmed)About 4 semesters (2 years)39
M.S./DI~$20.1K total in-state (derived, 24 months)~24 months (combined); ~12 months (DI-only, for those with a master’s)33 (per the university catalog)

CSUN genuinely runs a combined M.S./DI pathway, about 24 months long, alongside a shorter DI-only certificate for applicants who already hold a master’s, contrary to any characterization of CSUN as offering only a DPD and a fully separate internship. CSUN also offers a Post-Baccalaureate DPD Certificate, a distinctive 39-unit route for career changers who already hold an unrelated bachelor’s degree and want DPD coursework without a second full undergraduate degree.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
Program TypesB.S. (ACEND DPD); Post-Bacc DPD Certificate; Combined M.S./DI or DI-only (for those with an existing master’s)
FormatCampus
Credit HoursB.S.: not clearly stated; Post-Bacc Certificate: 39; Combined M.S./DI: 33 (per catalog)
ACEND AccreditationYes — DPD confirmed; the Dietetic Internship is accredited per CSUN’s own pages, not independently cross-checked in ACEND’s directory
RD/RDN EligibilityYes, on completing the combined M.S./DI or DI-only track together with the required graduate degree
Supervised Practice1,216 hours: 552 primary concentration, 424 secondary, 240 foodservice management
IntakeInternship: January 15 deadline via DICAS and the D&D Digital match, about 12 to 14 interns a year
PrerequisitesDPD verification statement, or a documented plan to complete DPD coursework
Tuition$8,328/yr B.S. resident, tuition and fees combined; graduate study adds CSUN’s own campus fees to the CSU systemwide grad rate
Institutional AccreditationWSCUC (WASC Senior College and University Commission)

Bachelor of Science, Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science (Nutrition and Dietetics Option)

The estimated tuition for the B.S. at CSUN is $8,328 per year in-state, an all-in figure that already combines the $6,838 CSU systemwide tuition rate with CSUN’s own mandatory campus fees. The Nutrition and Dietetics Option follows the standard four-year, 120-credit bachelor’s timeline.

B.S. Curriculum

The Nutrition and Dietetics Option is CSUN’s ACEND-accredited DPD, embedded in the broader Nutrition, Dietetics and Food Science major.

B.S. Admissions

Admission follows standard CSU freshman and transfer requirements; students declare the Nutrition and Dietetics Option to be on the DPD track.

Post-Baccalaureate DPD Certificate

CSUN’s own pages do not separately itemize tuition for the Post-Baccalaureate DPD Certificate; it is billed at standard CSUN per-unit rates, though this was not independently confirmed as a distinct fee schedule. The certificate requires 39 units, typically completed over about 4 semesters (roughly 2 years).

Certificate Curriculum

This certificate is designed for bachelor’s holders from any field who want to complete ACEND-accredited DPD coursework without earning a second undergraduate degree, and it issues a DPD verification statement on completion.

Certificate Admissions

  • Prerequisite science and nutrition coursework required
  • Application via Cal State Apply, plus a resume, personal statement, and 2 letters of recommendation
  • Departmental approval required

Combined M.S. and Dietetic Internship, or DI-Only

The estimated tuition for the combined M.S./DI at CSUN is approximately $20,076 total in-state (derived: 24 months of graduate tuition and CSUN’s campus fees). CSUN’s catalog lists 33 units for the Dietetic Internship certificate. Applicants who already hold a master’s can instead complete a shorter DI-only track, planned around 12 months.

M.S./DI Curriculum

CSUN runs two entry points into the same accredited internship: a roughly 24-month combined M.S./DI for students without a graduate degree, and a roughly 12-month DI-only certificate for applicants who already hold or are finishing one.

M.S./DI Supervised Practice

  • 1,216 total hours: 552 in a primary concentration, 424 in a secondary concentration, 240 in foodservice management
  • Integrated into either the combined track or the DI-only track, not a separate post-degree application on top of the internship itself

At 1,216 hours, CSUN’s total sits meaningfully above the roughly 1,000-hour ACEND standard, reflecting a broader concentration structure than some other CSU internships researched for this guide.

M.S./DI Admissions

  • DPD verification statement, or a documented plan to complete DPD coursework
  • Application via DICAS and the D&D Digital match
  • Deadline January 15; about 12 to 14 interns admitted a year
You Should Know

A July 1 deadline sometimes associated with CSUN’s dietetics programs applies to the Post-Baccalaureate DPD Certificate’s application cycle, not to the Dietetic Internship. CSUN’s own Dietetic Internship page states a January 15 deadline through DICAS. Confirm which deadline applies to the specific program you’re applying to.

Tuition

CSU campuses bill a flat systemwide semester rate rather than a true per-credit price. Divided across a typical 30-unit academic year, CSUN’s all-in undergraduate rate works out to approximately $278 per unit (derived, for comparison only, not how CSUN actually bills).

  • $8,328/year in-state for the B.S.: $6,838 CSU systemwide tuition plus $1,490 in CSUN mandatory campus fees, confirmed as an all-in total on CSUN’s own tuition page
  • $8,548/year CSU systemwide tuition for graduate study, plus the same roughly $1,490/year CSUN campus fee, for a combined graduate total near $10,038/year
  • Nonresident students add $471 per unit on top of the systemwide rate

Be aware that:

Unlike some CSU campuses where the commonly quoted figure is tuition only, CSUN’s own $8,328 undergraduate figure already combines tuition and mandatory campus fees, so it should not be treated as an incomplete number the way a bare $6,838 figure would be elsewhere.

Official tuition figures are published on CSUN’s tuition and other fees page.

Why Choose This Nutrition Program?

Best suited for students who want a genuinely combined M.S./DI pathway at CSU pricing, or who already hold an unrelated bachelor’s and want a dedicated post-baccalaureate route into DPD coursework.

Career changers with an unrelated bachelor’s can use the Post-Baccalaureate DPD Certificate instead of returning for a second four-year degree, then move into the combined M.S./DI or the internship-only track once eligible.

Applicants who already hold a master’s get a shorter path: CSUN’s DI-only certificate runs about half the length of the combined M.S./DI track.

The honest trade-off is that CSUN’s own materials mix deadlines for its different programs in ways that are easy to misread; confirm which deadline (January 15 for the internship, a separate cycle for the certificate) applies to the specific program before applying.

Accreditation

Cal State Northridge is institutionally accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC), which governs credit transfer, graduate admission eligibility, and federal financial aid access across the CSU campus.

ACEND accredits CSUN’s Didactic Program in Dietetics, embedded in the B.S.’s Nutrition and Dietetics Option, and separately accredits its Dietetic Internship, which covers both the combined M.S./DI and DI-only entry points. The Post-Baccalaureate DPD Certificate’s specific ACEND status, distinct from the umbrella undergraduate DPD accreditation, was not separately confirmed on CSUN’s own pages.

Graduates of the combined M.S./DI or DI-only track are eligible for the Commission on Dietetic Registration’s national exam once the graduate degree, ACEND-accredited coursework, and supervised practice are all complete. Graduates of the DPD alone, whether from the B.S. or the Post-Baccalaureate Certificate, are not RD-eligible and must complete a Dietetic Internship, at CSUN or elsewhere, plus a graduate degree, to pursue the credential.

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