Tennessee State University Nutrition Degree Programs

Department of Human Sciences, College of Agriculture • Nashville, TN • Campus • $4,734/Semester at 12 Credits In-State (Undergraduate, Public)

Tennessee State University offers 1 dietetics credential, and it does not lead to RD/RDN eligibility on its own:

  • B.S. in Human Sciences, Food and Nutritional Sciences concentration, “with or without” Dietetics Verification (the ACEND-accredited Didactic Program in Dietetics is the verification option)

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
B.S. Human Sciences, Food and Nutritional Sciences (DPD option)$9,468 a year in tuition and fees at 12 credits; $9,858 at 15 (derived, in-state)4 years plus a summer field experience120 (derived from the catalog plan)

The lead fact is that the university has no dietetic internship, coordinated program, or graduate nutrition degree. The DPD gives a verification statement, and supervised practice is a separate post-baccalaureate internship that graduates apply for through DICAS, which the school calls very competitive. The department’s 2026-27 catalog says it does not currently offer graduate programs.

ACEND records show the DPD on a reduced accreditation term in 2025 and returned to full accreditation in September 2025. The degree was titled Family and Consumer Sciences in 2024-25 and 2025-26 and became Human Sciences in 2026-27.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
FormatCampus; ACEND lists the DPD as fully in person with no distance education approval
ACEND AccreditationDidactic Program in Dietetics: accredited, term ends December 31, 2028 per the directory, after a reduced term in 2025
RD/RDN EligibilityNo on its own; the DPD gives a verification statement, then an outside internship and a graduate degree
Supervised PracticeNone in the degree apart from a 2-credit field experience; the RD route needs 1,000 hours elsewhere
Entrance ExamsNone for the DPD
GPA Floor2.75 cumulative at junior standing, with B or better in introductory nutrition and foods
IntakeSeparate DPD application and interview; deadlines and cohort size were not found
Tuition2026-27: $330 per credit plus a $774 program service fee for 12 credits, $4,734 in-state; $11,442 out-of-state
Institutional AccreditationNot confirmed for this profile; check the university’s accreditation page

Bachelor of Science in Human Sciences, Food and Nutritional Sciences

The concentration is about 120 credits on the catalog plan, with a summer field experience after the junior year. Courses include food principles and meal management, nutrition across the life span, nutrition assessment and counseling, advanced nutrition, medical nutrition therapy I and II, quantity food production, foodservice systems management, organic chemistry, biochemistry, and microbiology, with a senior project as the capstone.

  • Students apply to the DPD after admission to the university, at junior standing with 60 or more hours, a 2.75 GPA, B or better in introductory nutrition and foods, and C or better in biology and chemistry, with transcripts and an interview
  • The catalog adds a 75 percent comprehensive exam for the verification statement, while the DPD web page lists only a C or better in coursework
  • “With or without” dietetics verification means a student can finish the concentration without the verification statement, and the mechanism is not described beyond the title
  • The school says internship placement is more likely with a DPD GPA above 3.5, relevant experience, and leadership, and does not guarantee a place
You Should Know

The prerequisite course named in the catalog is a dental hygiene nutrition course code, while the web page and the degree plan name a different introductory nutrition course, so confirm which one counts. The DPD page quotes $8,982 in-state and $23,454 out-of-state for 15 credits with no year, which does not match the 2026-27 bursar table. An old application form still lists a 1,200-hour internship and a former director.

Tuition

Tennessee State is public, so residency changes the price. These are 2026-27 undergraduate rates.

  • 12 credits: $3,960 maintenance plus $774 program service fee is $4,734 in-state; adding $6,708 non-resident tuition makes $11,442
  • 15 credits: $4,155 plus $774 is $4,929 in-state and $11,955 out-of-state; each credit from 13 up adds $65 in-state
  • Derived annual totals at 12 credits are $9,468 in-state and $22,884 out-of-state; at 15 credits $9,858 and $23,910
  • No nutrition tuition differential was found; lab fees are $75 for each biology lab and $35 for each chemistry lab
  • School-listed program costs include about $500 in books, $20 liability insurance, $80 for non-skid shoes, and a $58 Academy membership

Be aware that:

The bursar publishes per-term figures only, so the annual numbers are derived. Official figures are on the university’s fees page.

Why Choose This Nutrition Program?

Best suited to Tennessee students who want an ACEND-accredited DPD at a public historically Black university in Nashville, in a land-grant agriculture college.

The accredited DPD comes with a published course sequence and no differential tuition. The honest limit is that it stops at the verification statement, internship places are competitive and not guaranteed, the school has no graduate route, and no outcome results are published.

If you want the RD credential, plan the internship and a master’s elsewhere from the start. If you want food or nutrition work without it, the same concentration can be completed without verification.

Accreditation

The university’s institutional accreditor was not confirmed for this profile, so check its accreditation page. The department’s family and consumer sciences programs also hold accreditation from the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences, which is separate from ACEND.

ACEND’s live directory for Tennessee lists the Didactic Program in Dietetics as accredited, with initial accreditation on April 1, 1977 and a term ending December 31, 2028. ACEND’s decisions show full and continued accreditation after a site visit in July 2020 and after a progress report in January 2021, then a reduced accreditation term in July 2025 and its removal in September 2025.

The Programs Under Review page lists no Tennessee State program. The school’s own pages and the directory do not mention the reduced term, and the start date of that term was not found. A graduate holds a verification statement only and is not eligible for the CDR exam on that basis.

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