Department of Nutrition, Health and Human Performance • Raleigh, NC • Hybrid (M.S. DPD and Accelerated tracks), Online (M.S. Advanced Career Track), or Campus (Internship) • $725/Credit (Graduate, Tuition Only)
Meredith College offers 5 nutrition credentials, and 3 of them are ACEND-accredited paths toward RD/RDN eligibility:
- Bachelor’s, Food and Nutrition
- M.S., Nutrition, Didactic Program in Dietetics track
- M.S., Nutrition, Accelerated Dietitian Nutritionist track
- M.S., Nutrition, Advanced Career Track (online)
- Dietetic Internship
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bachelor’s Food and Nutrition | $49.2K/yr tuition (private, one rate); $196.7K over four years (derived) | 4 years (8 semesters, derived) | Not clearly stated; 46 in the major |
| M.S. Nutrition, DPD Track | $26.6K (36 credits at $725 plus fees, derived) | 2 academic years (4 semesters) | 36 |
| M.S. Nutrition, Accelerated Track | $34.7K (47 credits at $725 plus fees, derived) | Under 2 years (5 terms) | 47 |
| M.S. Nutrition, Advanced Career Track | $22.1K (30 credits at $725 plus fees, derived) | 1 year (3 terms, summer start) | 30 |
| Dietetic Internship | $15.5K flat plus a $199 technology fee | About 11 months | 21 to 22 per the catalog |
Meredith runs three ACEND programs in one department: a master’s-level Didactic Program in Dietetics, a Future Education Model graduate program that builds about 1,040 supervised-practice hours into 47 credits, and a dietetic internship. The online Advanced Career Track is the one master’s track without ACEND accreditation, though it can supply the master’s degree for a student who then completes the internship.
Seats in the integrated track are scarce, with a first cohort of 8 and 12 students inducted in July 2026, after ACEND denied a growth request in 2025. All three ACEND terms end June 30, 2027, and the DPD track does not guarantee an internship place.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Format | DPD and Accelerated tracks: hybrid (the school does not state a format; ACEND lists in-person plus online). Advanced Career Track: online. Internship: campus with a distance option |
| Credit Hours | DPD track: 36; Accelerated track: 47; Advanced Career Track: 30; internship: 21 to 22 |
| ACEND Accreditation | DPD (initial 1983), Dietetic Internship (1994), and a Future Education Model graduate program (2023), all accredited, terms ending June 30, 2027 |
| RD/RDN Eligibility | Accelerated track: yes. DPD track or Advanced Career Track: with the internship. Bachelor’s alone: no |
| Supervised Practice | Accelerated track and internship: about 1,040 hours each, in person near Raleigh |
| Cohort Size | Accelerated track: 8 (2023), 12 (2026). DPD track: maximum 66. Internship: cap of 33 |
| Entrance Exams | GRE not required for the Accelerated track and optional for the DPD track |
| GPA Floor | 3.0 across the prerequisite courses for the DPD and Accelerated tracks |
| Intake | Accelerated track: fall only, January 1, 2027 deadline. DPD track: April 1, June 1, November 1 |
| Tuition | M.S.: $725 per credit plus a $125 semester program fee. Internship: $15,500 flat. Bachelor’s: $49,170 a year |
| Institutional Accreditation | SACSCOC (Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges) |
Bachelor’s Degree, Food and Nutrition
The estimated tuition for the bachelor’s in Food and Nutrition is $49,170 a year ($24,585 a semester for 12 to 18 credits), or about $196,680 over four years (derived, tuition only). The major is 46 credits, and total degree credits were not found; the pages say only Bachelor’s Degree in Food and Nutrition, so the degree letters are unconfirmed.
The major is the feeder for Meredith’s graduate tracks, but it is not an ACEND program and does not lead to RD eligibility on its own. Credits beyond 18 a semester cost $1,219 each, and there is an $85 activity fee each semester.
Master of Science, Nutrition: Didactic Program in Dietetics Track
The estimated tuition for the DPD track is about $26,100 (36 credits at $725), or $26,600 with four $125 semester fees (derived). The program requires 36 credits over two academic years, and it issues a verification statement, not RD eligibility.
DPD Track Curriculum
The catalog splits the degree into 21 core credits and 15 capstone credits, with a sample plan over four semesters. Foodservice Management carries a lab, and the two medical nutrition therapy courses are four credits each.
- Advanced Nutrient Metabolism, Lifecycle Nutrition, and Nutrition and Food Policy
- Foodservice Management with Lab, and Medical Nutrition Therapy I and II
- Research Methods, Biostatistics, and a Dietetics Capstone
You Should Know
The program page and catalog say 36 credits, but the sample plan on the program page sums to 33. At $725 a credit, the gap is worth $2,175, so confirm the credit total with the department.
DPD Track Admissions
- Any bachelor’s degree, with eight prerequisites: biology, anatomy and physiology, microbiology, general chemistry, and organic chemistry (each with a lab), plus introductory nutrition, psychology, and statistics
- 3.0 GPA across the prerequisites; GRE optional; two recommendations, essays, and a possible interview
- Deadlines of April 1 (summer), June 1 (fall), and November 1 (spring), with no cycle year stated; the $60 fee is waived by attending an information session
- Maximum enrollment of 66
Acceptance to the master’s does not guarantee a dietetic internship place, though all M.S. Nutrition students are considered for the internship’s priority admission. The DPD track cannot be transferred into the Accelerated track.
Master of Science, Nutrition: Accelerated Dietitian Nutritionist Track
The estimated tuition for the Accelerated Dietitian Nutritionist track is about $34,075 (47 credits at $725), or $34,700 with five $125 semester fees if the summer term is billed (derived). The program requires 47 credits and runs from fall of year one to spring of year two, which is under two years.
Accelerated Track Supervised Practice
- 33 didactic credits plus 14 experiential credits; the listed practice blocks of 40, 160, 160, 480, 40, and 160 hours sum to 1,040 hours (derived)
- Practice is integrated with coursework, so there is no separate match
- Sites are described as corporations, medical centers, human service agencies, and school systems near Raleigh; who arranges them is not stated
The hours are at the 1,000-hour benchmark, and Meredith’s news says class or practice runs every weekday. That makes the track a full-time commitment, and the small cohort means admission is the real constraint rather than the schedule.
Accelerated Track Admissions
- Any bachelor’s, the same eight prerequisites as the DPD track (labs preferred but not required for anatomy and physiology and organic chemistry), and a 3.0 prerequisite GPA
- GRE not required; DICAS ($50 first program, $25 each additional); two recommendations, a resume, essays, and a possible interview
- Fall start only, with a January 1, 2027 deadline and rolling admission until full; NC State students have an articulation deadline of October 16, 2026
- No prior-learning credit; the first cohort was 8 students in 2023 and 12 were inducted in July 2026
You Should Know
Meredith’s pages describe the credits as 47 on the program page and 33 core plus 14 to 15 experiential in the catalog. Earlier Meredith news cited 1,200 supervised-practice hours for the master’s, and the track page does not total the hours itself. The school does not state a delivery format, so the hybrid label here follows ACEND’s description of in-person plus online coursework.
Master of Science, Nutrition: Advanced Career Track (Online)
The estimated tuition for the Advanced Career Track is about $21,750 (30 credits at $725), or $22,125 with three $125 semester fees (derived). The program requires 30 credits, is non-thesis, and takes one year from a summer start, taught fully online, full or part time.
The degree has 12 core credits and 18 electives, with four prerequisites (anatomy and physiology, general chemistry, introductory nutrition, and statistics). It has no ACEND accreditation and is aimed at working professionals who need the master’s degree. A student without an RD route can pair it with the Dietetic Internship: one DICAS application can admit to both, the internship contributes 6 graduate credits, and a 3.3 GPA after the first 18 credits earns automatic internship admission.
You Should Know
The program page calls this the Advanced Career Track, while Meredith’s 2026-27 tuition page still uses the older name Accelerated Community Track. The paired internship is described as a Distance Pathway, and its practice must still be completed in person.
Dietetic Internship
The tuition for the Dietetic Internship is a flat $15,500 a year ($7,750 a semester) plus a $199 technology fee, so per-credit math does not apply. The program year runs about 11 months, from August to between April and June, and the catalog lists 21 to 22 credits.
Internship Supervised Practice
- Rotations total 26 weeks (derived): 12 clinical, 5 food service management, 8 community (4 wellness and 4 public health), and 1 enrichment
- Hours of 160 food service, 480 clinical, 160 public health, 160 wellness, and 40 or more enrichment, stated as not less than 1,040
- Preceptors must be RDNs with at least a year of experience, and clinical sites must be Joint Commission-accredited; at most one remote day a week
- A distance option exists in which students find their own preceptors, with a $500 fee for each semester after the third
The distance option shifts the preceptor search to the student, and Meredith warns it may be very difficult to find clinical preceptors in some states. Students should not contact preceptors within 150 miles of Meredith without consulting staff.
Internship Admissions
- A DPD verification statement, a 3.0 GPA in the DPD and overall, and C or better in DPD science and professional courses
- DICAS, a $60 fee waived by attending an open house, a statement of up to 1,000 words, three letters, a drug screen, and a background check; GRE optional
- General application due January 1, 2027, with notice by March 1 and acceptance by March 10; priority admission for Meredith students and alumni is due November 16, 2026, and accepted priority applicants cannot enter other matches
- Enrollment cap of 33; prior assessed learning of up to 160 hours, which does not lower tuition; completion requires a master’s or doctorate and a B average in graduate classes
You Should Know
Meredith’s internship page cites 100% completion within 16.5 months, an 88% one-year exam pass rate, and 100% employment within 12 months, with no year or cohort, while a 2025-26 guidebook letter cites 98% completion and a 2024 article cites 91% for the pass rate. The mission page lists only targets. The guidebook’s hour components add to 1,060 against its stated minimum of 1,040. A 2023 Meredith story said all of its M.S. Nutrition graduates were matched to internships for seven years running, an earlier story gave a national match rate of 62% to 74%, and no newer figure was found. Pages for a Site Preceptor Pathway and an Individualized Supervised Practice Pathway no longer load, and the latter is reported as closing in December 2026.
Tuition
Meredith’s published 2026-27 graduate rate is $725 per credit hour plus a $125 semester program fee for every M.S. Nutrition track, billed by credit and not by format. The internship is a flat $15,500 a year, and undergraduates pay $49,170 a year.
- Derived M.S. tuition: DPD track $26,100, Accelerated track $34,075, Advanced Career Track $21,750, before $125 semester fees
- Derived routes: DPD track then the internship is about $41,600 before fees, against about $34,075 for the Accelerated track
- Accelerated track extras: a supervised-experience fee of up to $1,000 a year, a $175 technology fee, $175 for a drug screen and background check, health insurance at $356 a month, and $160 a semester for books
- DPD track extras: books of about $215 a semester and a $36 ServSafe certificate
- Internship extras: books of $250, insurance of $356 a month, and housing of about $1,200 a month
Be aware that:
The derived program-fee totals assume four terms for the DPD track, five for the Accelerated track, and three for the Advanced Career Track, which follows the sample plans but is not published. No differential tuition tier was found for nutrition. The DPD route total could be about $2,175 lower if the sample plan’s 33 credits is the real figure.
Meredith’s graduate assistantship page lists the M.S. in Nutrition as eligible, with tuition adjusted to half the per-credit rate for up to two academic years, fees excluded, and awards competitive. Applied to every Accelerated-track credit, that would be worth up to about $17,000 (derived). Official figures are on Meredith’s M.S. tuition and internship tuition pages.
Why Choose This Nutrition Program?
Best suited for students who want an RD route in Raleigh and are choosing between an integrated master’s with built-in practice, a master’s followed by a separate internship, and an online master’s paired with the internship.
The integrated route is the Accelerated track: 47 credits, about 1,040 practice hours, and one application, at about $34,075 in tuition. The cost is access, since the cohort is a dozen students and ACEND declined to enlarge it.
The two-step route is the DPD track followed by the internship, about $41,600 in tuition, with the extra step of an internship application that the master’s does not guarantee. The online Advanced Career Track plus the internship suits working students who already hold a verification statement, and it is the only track here without ACEND accreditation of its own.
The cost verdict is that the integrated track costs roughly $7,500 less in tuition than the two-step route and saves a second application, while a half-tuition assistantship could cut either master’s by up to half for two years. All three ACEND programs list terms ending June 30, 2027, so check their status before applying.
Accreditation
Meredith College is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) to award baccalaureate and master’s degrees, which matters for transfer credit, graduate admission, and federal financial aid.
ACEND’s directory lists three Meredith programs, each accredited with a term ending June 30, 2027: a Didactic Program in Dietetics (initial accreditation 1983, degree M.S.), a Dietetic Internship (1994), and a Future Education Model graduate program in nutrition and dietetics (January 2023). ACEND’s decisions pages show full and continued accreditation of the internship and DPD after a site visit in 2019, a 2019 DPD enrollment increase, a 2023 approval to reorganize the internship into a graduate program, and a 2025 denial of a significant enrollment increase for the graduate program. Meredith does not appear on ACEND’s Programs Under Review page.
The 2023 reorganization decision does not match the directory, which still lists both an internship and a graduate program, so the relationship between them is worth confirming with Meredith or ACEND. The bachelor’s in Food and Nutrition and the online Advanced Career Track carry no ACEND accreditation, and the accredited tracks also include online coursework in ACEND’s description, so the line between accredited and not follows the track, not the delivery format.
A graduate of the Accelerated track is eligible to sit for the CDR exam on completion. A graduate of the DPD track receives a verification statement and still needs an accredited internship, and a graduate of the Advanced Career Track holds the required master’s degree but needs a verification statement and internship as well.