University of Houston Nutrition Degree Programs

Department of Health and Human Performance, College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences • Houston, TX • Online (M.S.), Campus (B.S.), or Hybrid (Internship) • $422/Credit (Graduate, Texas Resident, Bursar Table)

The University of Houston offers 5 nutrition credentials, and the internship routes are the ones that complete the RD pathway:

  • B.S., Human Nutrition and Foods (ACEND Didactic Program subplan)
  • Post-baccalaureate Didactic Program plan (non-degree)
  • M.S., Nutrition (online, for interns and RDs)
  • Dietetic Internship (non-degree, onsite or distance)
  • Combined M.S./Dietetic Internship (onsite or distance)

Program Tracks Overview

ProgramEst. TuitionEst. DurationCredit Hours
B.S. Human Nutrition and Foods$47.6K in-state, $111.1K out-of-state (four times UH’s two-semester cost estimate; varies by college)4 years120 minimum
Post-Baccalaureate DPD PlanNot clearly statedNot clearly statedIndividual plan
M.S. Nutrition (Online)$12.7K resident per the bursar table, or $18.0K at the $600 flat rate (before fees)About 16 to 17 months (4 semesters, derived)30
Dietetic Internship$8,000 flat27 weeksNon-degree
Combined M.S./Dietetic Internship$20.7K resident or $26.0K non-resident (derived, before fees)4 semesters30 plus the internship

The University of Houston’s RD route is built around its Dietetic Internship, which is offered onsite in Houston or at a distance anywhere in the United States, and which can be taken alone or combined with an online master’s. The master’s cannot be entered cold: it admits only current or accepted dietetic interns, or registered dietitians credentialed in 2008 or later, and its six supervised-practice credits are part of the 30. A Didactic Program in Dietetics comes first, through a B.S. subplan or a post-baccalaureate plan.

ACEND’s Programs Under Review page lists both the DPD and the internship with a site visit dated September 20, 2026 and a decision still pending, so the 2027 term end in the directory may change.

Quick Facts

FeatureDetails
FormatM.S.: online, cohort-based. Internship: onsite in Houston or distance with student-arranged sites. B.S.: campus
Credit HoursB.S.: 120 minimum; M.S.: 30 (24 coursework plus 6 practice); internship: non-degree
ACEND AccreditationDPD (initial 1977) and Dietetic Internship (initial 1994), both accredited with terms to December 31, 2027; a September 2026 site visit has a decision pending
RD/RDN EligibilityInternship and combined M.S./Internship: yes, with a DPD verification statement first. B.S.: verification statement only
Supervised PracticeAt least 1,000 hours over 27 weeks (about 37 a week, derived); onsite sites 10 to 40 miles from campus
Entrance ExamsM.S.: GRE waived with an undergraduate GPA of 3.0 or higher. No interviews for the internship
GPA FloorInternship: 3.0 DPD, 3.0 overall, and 2.8 science. M.S.: 3.0 major GPA with a 2.6 Graduate School floor. B.S. subplan: 3.0
IntakeInternship DICAS deadlines February 15 and October 15, with orientation in January and June. M.S.: November 15 (spring) and June 1 (fall)
Tuition2026-27: graduate resident $421.76 per credit, non-resident $949.76; internship $8,000 flat
Institutional AccreditationSACSCOC, per UH’s catalog

Bachelor of Science, Human Nutrition and Foods

The B.S. in Human Nutrition and Foods is a 120-hour degree with at least 36 advanced hours, no longer named Nutrition/Dietetics. UH’s cost page estimates $11,888 a year in-state and $27,776 out-of-state for two 15-hour semesters, and says costs vary by college, so four times those figures gives about $47,552 and $111,104 (derived).

All students begin on the standard plan, and the ACEND subplan is a separate application at junior standing with CHEM 1311, 1111, 1312, and 1112, NUTR 3101, at least 12 hours of DPD courses, and a 3.0 average. A verification statement needs a 3.0 in DPD coursework. A Nutritional Sciences subplan is pre-professional and does not lead to the RDN. The B.S. is campus-based, though ACEND lists the DPD as approved for distance education.

Post-Baccalaureate Didactic Program Plan

The post-baccalaureate plan is a non-degree deficiency plan that earns a verification statement for people who already hold a bachelor’s degree. Its cost, length, and cohort size were not found.

You Should Know

UH’s pathways and post-baccalaureate pages say a verification statement needs the ACEND subplan or the Nutritional Sciences subplan with a 3.0, while the degree-plan page says the Nutritional Sciences subplan is not a pathway to becoming an RDN, and the internship page says its graduates are not eligible. Treat the Nutritional Sciences subplan as non-RD.

Master of Science, Nutrition (Online)

The online M.S. in Nutrition is 30 credits: eight 3-credit courses (24) plus 6 supervised-practice credits. Its tuition is about $12,653 for a Texas resident at the bursar’s $421.76 per credit, or $18,000 at a flat $600 per credit, before fees (derived). It is a non-thesis, fully online, cohort-based degree, typically four semesters, or about 16 to 17 months by the term pattern.

M.S. Curriculum

The courses cover advanced medical nutrition therapy and physical assessment, enteral and parenteral support, clinical management and leadership, and counseling and education. Capstone I and II end in an abstract, poster, or other dissemination, with no thesis. A failed or withdrawn course drops the student from the cohort.

M.S. Admissions

  • Open only to students currently in or accepted to a dietetic internship with a documented start date, or RDs credentialed in 2008 or later with at least 1,000 supervised-practice hours
  • Three recommendations, a personal statement, a resume, and a portfolio; a 3.0 major GPA with a 2.6 Graduate School floor; a degree in nutrition, dietetics, food science, food systems management, or a health field
  • GRE waived with a 3.0 undergraduate GPA; deadlines of November 15 (spring) and June 1 (fall), and DICAS is not used
  • Partner internships listed include Priority Nutrition Care Distance, Morrison Healthcare, Gulf Coast, and Baptist Health System
You Should Know

UH’s pages disagree on Texas residents’ price. The program’s tuition page gives a flat $600 per credit all-inclusive only to non-residents and sends residents to a calculator, an open-house presentation says $600 per credit plus fees for in-state and out-of-state students alike, and the bursar table lists $421.76 for residents. That is a difference of about $5,350 before fees. The program page says the GPA is above 3.0 major and cumulative in one place and a 2.6 cumulative in another, and course numbers appear as 6305 and 6306 on one page and 7305 and 7306 on another.

Dietetic Internship

The UH Dietetic Internship costs $8,000 flat, the same for out-of-state interns, in a 27-week program for people who hold or are completing a graduate degree. It has onsite and distance options and can be combined with the online M.S.

Internship Supervised Practice

  • At least 1,000 hours over 27 weeks: clinical 10 weeks, community 8, management 4, and elective 4, plus one week of virtual orientation
  • Onsite interns train at more than 50 active sites in and around Houston, including the Texas Medical Center, NASA Johnson Space Center, and Sysco headquarters, 10 to 40 miles from campus, and need a reliable car
  • Distance interns train near home anywhere in the United States, but must hold signed preceptor agreements and qualification forms before applying; sites need UH approval, and interns find them themselves
  • Houston-area distance applicants must not contact Texas Medical Center sites without clearing it with the director

The distance option removes the relocation but shifts the preceptor search to the applicant before the application is even filed, which is the hardest part of any distance route. ACEND’s directory flags that more than 10% of sites are student-identified.

Internship Admissions

  • A DPD verification statement or declaration of intent, with a 3.0 DPD GPA, 3.0 overall, and 2.8 science, plus evidence of paid work experience
  • DICAS ($50 first application, $25 each additional) plus a $50 non-refundable UH fee; no interviews
  • Early Admission for UH DPD students on February 1 and October 1; DICAS deadlines of February 15 and October 15, with notification by March 1 and November 1 and acceptance by March 10 and November 10
  • Orientation in January and June; cohort size was not found

Completion needs the hours, an exit exam passed at 80% in at most two attempts, and for the M.S./Internship a 3.0 GPA and a satisfactory practicum grade. Prior paid experience can earn up to four weeks of credit without a fee reduction. Interns in the internship alone are not eligible for financial aid, while M.S./Internship interns are.

Combined Master of Science and Dietetic Internship

The combined route satisfies the graduate-degree and supervised-practice requirements in one package, onsite or at a distance, and still requires a DPD verification statement first. Tuition plus the $8,000 internship comes to about $20,653 for a Texas resident at the bursar rate or $26,000 for a non-resident at the flat rate (derived, before fees and the $50 application fee). The hours are spread over the last three of four terms, and the first term is coursework only. The MS component is classified as online and the internship as hybrid.

Tuition

The University of Houston’s published 2026-27 graduate rate for human nutrition is $421.76 per credit hour for Texas residents and $949.76 for non-residents in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences’ Professional Graduate 1 category. The M.S. page also lists a flat $600 per credit for international and non-resident students, described as all-inclusive for the online Extend option.

  • Required fees each semester: Online Education Fee $279, Recreation and Wellness Center $121, Student Services $260, and UC Fee $135, for $795 if all four apply
  • Derived M.S. for a resident: 30 credits at $421.76 is $12,652.80, or $13,768.80 with four online fees and $15,832.80 with the full fee stack
  • Derived M.S. for a non-resident: 30 credits at $600 is $18,000 all-inclusive
  • Internship: $8,000 flat, plus a $50 application fee, housing of $600 to $1,200 a month, parking of $20 to $100 a month, books of about $100, and lab coats of about $50; UH covers liability insurance, drug screen, and background check
  • Undergraduate per credit: $361.86 resident and $914.46 non-resident in Liberal Arts and Education, and $385.59 and $939.38 in Social Sciences; which category covers Human Nutrition and Foods was not stated

Be aware that:

UH’s pages say the Online Education Fee is for students taking only online courses, and do not say whether the other three fees are billed to online-only students. The undergraduate non-resident estimate on UH’s cost page ($27,776) does not reconcile with its own components, which come to about $28,466. Whether Texas residents pay the bursar rate or the flat $600 for the online M.S. should be confirmed with UH before budgeting.

Official figures are on UH’s graduate tuition and fees pages.

Why Choose This Nutrition Program?

Best suited for students who already hold a DPD verification statement and cannot relocate, or who want a Houston internship with Texas Medical Center rotations and an optional online master’s alongside it.

If you cannot relocate, the distance internship lets you train near home anywhere in the United States, but you must secure approved preceptors before you apply, and the program expects about 37 hours a week for 27 weeks.

If you live in Houston, the onsite internship offers more than 50 sites, a car is required, and you can pair it with the online master’s to meet the graduate-degree requirement in about four semesters.

If you have no DPD yet, start with the B.S. subplan or the post-baccalaureate plan, since both the internship and the master’s require it or an existing RD credential.

Accreditation

The University of Houston is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), per its catalog, which matters for transfer credit, graduate admission, and federal financial aid. The accreditation level was not confirmed.

ACEND’s directory lists the UH Didactic Program in Dietetics (initial accreditation 1977, B.S. offered) and the UH Dietetic Internship (initial 1994, M.S. and a non-degree option offered), both accredited with terms ending December 31, 2027. ACEND’s decisions pages show full and continued accreditation of both after a site visit in July 2019 and a distance-education change for the DPD in October 2023. No probation, reduced term, or candidacy appears, and ACEND lists no Coordinated Program or Future Education Model program at UH.

Both programs are listed on the Programs Under Review page with a site visit on September 20, 2026, so a reaccreditation decision is pending and the term end could change. A graduate of the combined M.S./Internship completes the degree and supervised practice and can sit for the CDR exam. The B.S. and the post-baccalaureate plan give a verification statement only, and the online M.S. alone does not lead to eligibility.

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