Chico State Nutrition Programs

Nutrition and Food Science Department • Chico, CA • Campus • $9,344–$11,054/Year (tuition and campus fees)

Chico State offers 2 dietetics credentials:

  • B.S., Nutrition and Food Science (Option in General Dietetics)
  • M.S., Nutritional Science (Option in Dietetics, with Dietetic Internship)

Program Tracks Overview

Program Est. Tuition Est. Duration Credit Hours
B.S. $37.4K / $93.9K 4 years (8 semesters) 120
M.S./DI $22.1K / $40.5K 2 years (4 semesters) 39

Chico State’s defining advantage is a complete RD route at public tuition on one campus: an ACEND-accredited DPD bachelor’s followed by a 2-year master’s with its own accredited dietetic internship. Internship seats are few, six in the M.S./DI and four in a separate internship-only track, so the bachelor’s alone does not guarantee the second step.

Quick Facts

Feature Details
Program Types DPD bachelor’s; master’s combined with a dietetic internship
Format Campus; weekly internship class can be joined virtually from distant rotations
Credit Hours 120 (B.S.); 39 (M.S./DI)
ACEND Accreditation Yes: Didactic Program in Dietetics and Dietetic Internship
RD/RDN Eligibility Yes, after the M.S./DI. B.S. alone: No; graduate degree and supervised practice needed
Supervised Practice 1,000 hours in the internship’s second year
Internship Seats 6 (M.S./DI); 4 (internship-only, Chico graduate students)
Intake Fall only for both programs
GPA Floor 2.75 to declare the DPD; 3.0 for the M.S./DI
Experience Gate 40 hours in acute or long-term care before applying to the internship
Tuition 2026–27: $6,838 undergraduate or $8,548 graduate, plus $2,506 campus fees; non-residents add $471/unit
Institutional Accreditation WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC)

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

The estimated tuition for the B.S. in Nutrition and Food Science, Option in General Dietetics at Chico State is approximately $37,376 for California residents (four years at $9,344 in tuition and campus fees). The program requires 120 semester units and can generally be completed in 4 years (8 semesters, derived from the 120-unit standard).

B.S. Curriculum

The General Dietetics option is Chico State’s ACEND-accredited DPD, requiring 75 to 76 major units plus 43 units of General Education. Students start in the Nutrition and Food Science major and formally declare the dietetics option once they finish a science and nutrition prerequisite block, usually in the spring of sophomore year.

Verification rules. A C or better is required in every DPD course and on every graded knowledge competency assignment. Graduates receive a DPD verification statement, which qualifies them to apply to dietetic internships or to sit for the NDTR exam.

  • BIOL 104 Physiology
  • BIOL 211 Microbiology with lab
  • CHEM 107 General Chemistry for Applied Sciences
  • CHEM 108 Organic Chemistry for Applied Sciences
  • MATH 105 Statistics
  • NFSC 340 Human Nutrition

More curriculum details are available here.

B.S. Admissions

Admission to the university is separate from declaring the DPD option, which has its own once-a-year application.

  • Minimum 2.75 cumulative GPA for all college work
  • C or better in the six prerequisite courses above; biochemistry or exercise metabolism recommended in progress
  • Intent to Declare request with a course plan completed with an advisor, a resume, and a one-page personal statement
  • Application window March 1 to April 15 for fall; no spring admission
  • Transfer students can declare after one semester at Chico State
You Should Know
  • Only current Chico State Nutrition and Food Science majors can declare the option. Bachelor’s holders from other fields who want the DPD must apply to the M.S. in Nutritional Science instead, and the department estimates the DPD plus master’s takes about 3 to 3.5 years.
  • A DPD bachelor’s no longer leads to the RDN exam on its own. Graduates still need a master’s degree and accredited supervised practice.

Master of Science, Nutritional Science (Option in Dietetics, with Dietetic Internship)

The estimated tuition for the M.S. in Nutritional Science with Dietetic Internship at Chico State is approximately $22,108 for California residents (two years at $11,054 in graduate tuition and campus fees). The program requires 39 units and can generally be completed in 2 years (4 semesters) full time.

M.S./DI Curriculum

Year one is classroom-only: research methods, nutritional epidemiology, public health nutrition, motivational interviewing, advanced macro and micronutrient metabolism, nutritional genomics, and advanced clinical nutrition. Students also start a capstone project. Year two moves into full-time rotations with a small practicum course each semester.

  • NFSC 600 Research Methods in Nutritional Research (4 units)
  • NFSC 601 Nutritional Epidemiology
  • NFSC 663 Public Health Nutrition
  • NFSC 560 Principles of Motivational Interviewing in Nutrition Counseling
  • NFSC 644 Nutritional Genomics
  • NFSC 671 Advanced Clinical Nutrition
  • NFSC 698 Capstone Professional Project

The M.S. in Nutritional Science also offers General Nutritional Science and Nutrition Education options, which do not include supervised practice.

M.S./DI Supervised Practice

  • 1,000 hours, including 25 hours of alternate practice experiences
  • Fall of year two: food service administration and clinical rotations, 480 hours over 12 weeks
  • Spring of year two: clinical and community rotations, 520 hours over 13 weeks
  • Sites include hospitals, long-term care, dialysis clinics, school food service, county health departments, WIC, and UC Cooperative Extension
  • 40 hours a week plus a weekly 2-hour internship class; reliable transportation is required
  • No credit for prior learning

Splitting the program into a classroom year and a rotation year means students are not juggling graduate courses during full-time placements. The site list leans toward Northern California community and public health settings, which fits the program’s goal that at least half of its graduates work in Northern California.

M.S./DI Admissions

The program admits six students each fall, and applicants from outside Chico State apply twice.

  • Bachelor’s degree and a DPD verification statement or letter of intent
  • Prerequisites: general chemistry, organic chemistry, microbiology, physiology, and statistics
  • Minimum 3.0 cumulative and DPD GPA
  • Resume showing at least 40 hours of acute or long-term care experience
  • Two recommendations, one from an employer and one from a Chico State nutrition faculty member, on the department’s form
  • Statement of purpose, academic writing sample, and $50 fee
  • Non-Chico applicants: DICAS and the Chico State graduate application by January 15; current Chico General Dietetics students: graduate application only
You Should Know
  • A Chico State nutrition faculty recommendation is required, which is harder for outside applicants to obtain.
  • Chico State’s Graduate Studies page lists December 1 for the Dietetics option, while the internship page lists January 15. Confirm the deadline with the department.
  • The separate internship-only track takes four Chico State graduate students a year for a 26-week, full-time internship. Its students are not eligible for financial aid.

Tuition

Chico State does not charge per unit for full-time California residents. In 2026–27, full-time undergraduates pay $6,838 in CSU tuition and graduate students pay $8,548, both plus $2,506 in campus mandatory fees, for $9,344 and $11,054 a year. Non-residents add $471 per unit.

Credential Resident Non-Resident (adds $471/unit)
B.S. (4 years, 120 units) $37,376 $93,896
M.S./DI (2 years, 39 units) $22,108 $40,477

Totals are derived from Chico State’s 2026–27 cost of attendance figures and assume no increases after 2026–27. See Chico State’s cost of attendance page.

Confirmed costs

  • Internship application fee: $50, plus DICAS fees for outside applicants
  • Background check: $39.50; drug screen: $42
  • Professional liability insurance: $40; Academy student membership: $50
  • Immunizations, TB test, and CPR training: $65 to $120

Be aware that:

  • These line items come from an undated department cost sheet, and its per-semester tuition figures appear to predate 2026–27 rates.
  • CSU tuition is set by the Board of Trustees and can rise after enrollment.
  • Internship-year transportation adds up; the department sheet estimates about $424 a month.

For a California resident, the full sequence of a DPD bachelor’s and the M.S./DI comes to about $59,500 in tuition and fees over six years, with federal aid available throughout the M.S./DI. The real risk is not cost but access: with six combined seats, most DPD graduates should plan to apply to other internships as well.

Why Choose This Nutrition Program?

Well suited to California students who want public tuition, a small cohort, and a route that keeps the bachelor’s, master’s, and internship at one school.

An in-house pipeline. Chico State General Dietetics students apply to the M.S./DI with only the graduate application, and the internship-only track is reserved for Chico State graduate students. A student who performs well in the DPD has a direct path that outside applicants do not.

A clean split between study and practice. The M.S./DI puts graduate coursework in year one and full-time rotations in year two, so interns are not balancing research methods with a 40-hour placement.

Community and public health emphasis. Required courses in public health nutrition, epidemiology, and motivational interviewing, plus rotations with WIC, county health departments, and Cooperative Extension, suit students aiming for community nutrition in Northern California.

The trade-offs. Seats are very limited, the DPD option is closed to non-Chico bachelor’s holders, and rotations require reliable transportation across the region. The master’s adds two years after the bachelor’s, so the full route takes about six years from freshman year.

Accreditation

Chico State is institutionally accredited by the WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC). That accreditation covers all Chico State degrees and governs credit transfer, graduate admission elsewhere, and federal financial aid eligibility.

ACEND accredits two Chico State programs: the Didactic Program in Dietetics, delivered through the B.S. Option in General Dietetics, and the Dietetic Internship, offered as the combined M.S./DI and the internship-only track.

The General Nutritional Science and Nutrition Education options of the M.S. fall outside ACEND’s scope. That is normal for graduate degrees aimed at research, teaching, or public health work rather than supervised practice.

B.S. graduates with a verification statement can apply to dietetic internships or sit for the NDTR exam. M.S./DI graduates hold a master’s degree and completed supervised practice, making them eligible for the Commission on Dietetic Registration’s RDN examination. California does not require separate state licensure for RDNs.

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