New York University Nutrition Degree Programs

Department of Nutrition and Food Studies, NYU Steinhardt • New York, NY • Campus • $2,363/Credit (Graduate, Private)

New York University lists 7 nutrition credentials, and the route to RD/RDN eligibility runs through 1 master’s plus a competitive internship that sits inside it:

  • M.S., Nutrition and Dietetics, 40-credit Clinical Nutrition (with the NYU Dietetic Internship)
  • B.S., Nutrition and Food Studies (the Nutrition and Dietetics concentration is the DPD)
  • B.S., Global Public Health/Nutrition and Dietetics with a dual MPH in Public Health Nutrition
  • M.S., Nutrition and Dietetics, 34-credit Clinical Nutrition (for dietitians; non-RD route)
  • M.S., Nutrition and Dietetics, 34-credit Foods and Nutrition (non-RD route)
  • Ph.D., Nutrition and Dietetics
  • M.A., Food Studies (non-RD)

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
M.S. Clinical Nutrition (40 credits)$94,520 tuition; $99,772 with fees on the published plan (derived)4 semesters; about 2 years with the internship40
B.S. Nutrition and Food StudiesNot clearly stated4 years128
B.S. GPH/Nutrition and Dietetics + MPHNot clearly statedAs little as 5 years157
M.S. Nutrition and Dietetics (34 credits)$80,342 in tuition before fees (derived)Full-time 9 credits a term; part-time 4.534
Ph.D. Nutrition and DieteticsNot clearly statedNot clearly stated54
M.A. Food StudiesNot clearly statedNot clearly stated33 to 39

NYU holds two ACEND programs, a Didactic Program in Dietetics and a Dietetic Internship, and neither is a Coordinated Program or Future Education Model graduate program. The internship is housed in the 40-credit master’s, but admission to it is a separate competitive application, so enrolling in the M.S. does not guarantee a place. The 40-credit M.S. does not require a DPD to apply, and DPD courses taken inside it do not count toward the degree.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
FormatCampus: Greenwich Village; ACEND lists the DPD and internship as fully in-person
ACEND AccreditationDPD (initial 1978) and Dietetic Internship (initial 1988), both with terms to June 30, 2030 per the directory
RD/RDN Eligibility40-credit M.S. with the NYU internship: yes. Other degrees: no on their own
Supervised Practice1,000 hours over 26 weeks per the internship page; the bulletin says 1,200 over 27
Entrance ExamsNone. The GRE is not required for the M.S.
GPA FloorNot stated for the M.S.; internship prefers a B overall and in DPD courses
Cohort SizeAbout 8 to 12 interns a cycle, with a waitlist
IntakeM.S.: fall (January 15) and spring (October 1). Internship: separate DICAS application
Tuition2026-27: $2,363 per credit plus registration and service fees
Institutional AccreditationMiddle States Commission on Higher Education

Master of Science, Nutrition and Dietetics: 40-Credit Clinical Nutrition

The estimated tuition for the 40-credit M.S. at NYU is $94,520 (40 credits at $2,363), or about $99,772 with registration and service fees on the published four-term plan of 9, 10, 9, and 12 credits (derived, holding the 2026-27 rate flat). The program takes four semesters of study, with full-time at 9 credits a term and part-time at 4.5.

M.S. Curriculum

The core is advanced nutrition (6 credits), statistics (3), two advanced clinical electives (6), research methods (3), and a culminating research experience (3). The 15 credits of internship courses cover medical nutrition therapy, two practice courses, nutrition-focused physical exam, and counseling, and without the NYU internship a field experience of 1 to 2 credits substitutes. With the internship, the courses reconcile to 36 credits plus 4 of electives.

M.S. Supervised Practice

  • One semester of coursework (five graduate courses, 12 credits, B or better in each), then rotations at 40 hours a week with 6 concurrent practice credits
  • Rotations total 26 weeks per the internship page: clinical nutrition therapy 13, staff relief 3, clinical management 1, pediatric dental 1, community 4, and food service 4
  • Sites are assigned by the program and have included NYU Langone, Albert Einstein and Montefiore, Memorial Sloan Kettering, Mount Sinai, and Stamford Hospital in Connecticut, subject to change
  • Rotations are unpaid at NYU, and NYU’s cost estimates list housing, insurance, transit, and clearance items that sum to about $18,794 (derived)

M.S. Admissions

  • The M.S. needs a resume, a 2 to 3 page statement, two letters, and transcripts, with deadlines of October 1 for spring and January 15 for fall, a $75 fee, and no deferral
  • No DPD is needed to apply, but all DPD courses must be finished before an internship begins, and the DPD can take up to two years
  • The internship uses DICAS with a statement under 1,000 words and three references; the fall 2026 date was September 24, 2026, with acceptances by October 23, 2026 and March 1, 2027 for spring
  • Applicants must apply to or be enrolled in the 40-credit M.S., hold a DPD verification statement or a declaration of intent, and pay $50 to NYU plus DICAS fees
You Should Know

NYU’s bulletin says 1,200 hours over 27 weeks and says the M.S. is recommended but not required for the internship, while the internship page says 1,000 hours over 26 weeks and requires the M.S. The bulletin also says the internship requires 12 months of enrollment, against about two years for degree and internship on the program page. The DPD is described as 17 courses and 57 credits on one page and 18 courses and 60 credits on another.

Bachelor of Science, Nutrition and Food Studies

The B.S. is 128 credits with two concentrations, Nutrition and Dietetics, which meets the DPD requirements, and Food Studies, which does not. NYU has no degree titled B.S. Nutrition and Dietetics. A verification statement needs at least 29 credits at NYU, a 2.5 GPA for undergraduates or 3.0 for graduates, and no DPD grade below C.

B.S. Global Public Health/Nutrition and Dietetics with MPH

The dual degree is 157 credits and can be finished in as little as five years, with the DPD completed through Steinhardt alongside a Master of Public Health in Public Health Nutrition. The public health school offers no internship. A B.S./M.S. dual degree of 136 to 150 credits was found in search results only and not opened.

M.S., Nutrition and Dietetics: 34-Credit Programs

The 34-credit Clinical Nutrition degree is only for people who already hold the RDN or have completed an internship, and the 34-credit Foods and Nutrition degree is for people already credentialed in a health field. At $2,363 a credit that is $80,342 in tuition before fees (derived). Neither is an RD route, and a Bronx VA internship that partners with NYU for a 34-credit M.S./DI is a separate program, not NYU’s.

Doctor of Philosophy, Nutrition and Dietetics

The Ph.D. is 54 credits with a candidacy exam after two years of coursework and a dissertation, and it makes no ACEND statement. A search result suggested admission only in alternate years, which was not verified, and funding information was not found. Most assistantships go to doctoral students.

Master of Arts, Food Studies

The M.A. is 33 to 39 credits with a three-credit capstone seminar and no thesis, and it includes one nutrition core course. It is not an RD route.

Tuition

NYU Steinhardt’s estimated 2026-27 graduate tuition is $2,363 per credit, plus a registration and service fee of $584 for the first credit each term and $81 for each additional credit. NYU is private, so one rate applies to everyone, and the page notes that increases are expected each year.

  • Published term totals reconcile: 9 credits is $22,499, 12 credits is $29,831, and 16 credits is $39,607
  • Derived: the 40-credit plan is $94,520 in tuition and $5,252 in fees, or $99,772, with later years likely to cost more
  • Internship-related estimates from NYU include health insurance of $3,600, housing near $13,000, transit of $1,650, and about $1,000 in smaller items; the page gives no total
  • No nutrition-specific differential was found, and the billing basis for undergraduate DPD courses taken by graduate students was not found

Be aware that:

A career changer who needs the DPD first will take more terms than the four-term plan, and that adds cost. Official figures are on NYU Steinhardt’s graduate tuition page, and NYU’s bursar calculator governs.

Why Choose This Nutrition Program?

Best suited to career changers who can fund a premium-priced master’s and want the degree and the internship in one Manhattan department.

The honest trade-off is that the master’s does not secure the practice placement: the internship is a separate application with about 8 to 12 places, a career changer may need up to two years of DPD courses first, and those courses do not count toward the degree. The advantage is that the 40-credit M.S. needs no DPD to apply, and the department runs its own hospital-based internship and a dual public health route.

If you are already a dietitian, the 34-credit degrees are built for you and carry no credential. If research is the goal, the Ph.D. or the Food Studies M.A. are the relevant degrees.

Accreditation

NYU is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, which matters for transfer credit, graduate admission, and federal financial aid. The last reaffirmation confirmed in this review was June 26, 2014, and no later review was verified.

ACEND’s directory lists a Didactic Program in Dietetics (initial accreditation April 1, 1978, B.S. offered) and a Dietetic Internship (initial December 1, 1988, M.S. offered, with a non-degree verification-statement-only option), both accredited with terms ending June 30, 2030. ACEND’s January 2023 decisions list both as fully and continued accredited after a site visit, and no NYU entry appears in 2019 through 2022 or 2024 through 2026. NYU is not on the Programs Under Review page, and the decisions pages were read through archived copies because the live pages were blocked.

The M.S. degrees themselves are not ACEND-accredited, and the directory lists no graduate program for NYU. A graduate who completes the 40-credit M.S. with the NYU internship has the master’s and the supervised practice and can sit for the CDR exam, while a graduate of the B.S. holds a verification statement only.

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