Department of Nutrition and Exercise Science, School of Natural Health Arts and Sciences • Kenmore, WA • Campus and Online • $500 to $774/Credit (Graduate, Private)
Bastyr University offers 4 current nutrition credentials, and 2 of them together form a route to RD/RDN eligibility:
- Master of Science in Nutrition with a Didactic Program in Dietetics, the M.S./DPD (ACEND-accredited coursework, campus)
- Dietetic Internship, a non-degree supervised practice program (ACEND-accredited, campus with some virtual elements)
- Master of Science in Nutrition and Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology, a dual degree (no ACEND statement, campus)
- Master of Science in Integrative Nutrition (online, no ACEND statement)
Program Tracks Overview
| Program | Est. Tuition | Est. Duration | Credit Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| M.S. Nutrition with DPD | $60,340 in tuition; $61,745 with fees (published plan) | 2 years full time | 78 quarter credits |
| Dietetic Internship | $14,820 in tuition; $15,150 with fees (published) | About 10 months, 39 weeks minimum | 15 credits; about 1,200 hours of supervised practice |
| M.S. Nutrition and M.A. Counseling Psychology | Not published for the dual degree | 3 years full time | Total not stated; at least 146.5 listed (derived) |
| M.S. Integrative Nutrition (Online) | $27,000 at $500 per credit; $28,100 with fees | 18 to 24 months (catalog); 2 years (web page) | 54 |
The lead fact is that the M.S./DPD is not a coordinated program. It supplies the ACEND-accredited coursework and a verification statement, and graduates then complete a supervised practice program such as Bastyr’s own Dietetic Internship, which is a separate application. The other two master’s degrees carry no ACEND statement and do not lead to RD/RDN eligibility on their own.
Bastyr also lists a B.S. in Nutrition, Food, and Exercise, but its page says it is not accepting applications and the 2026-27 catalog does not list it. A standalone thesis M.S. in Nutrition and a San Diego M.S. in Nutrition for Wellness and Health Coaching appear in the 2024-25 catalog and not in the current one.
Quick Facts
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Format | M.S./DPD and internship: campus (the M.S./DPD page never states a delivery format; the internship has some virtual seminars and rotations). M.S. Integrative Nutrition: online, asynchronous |
| ACEND Accreditation | M.S./DPD and Dietetic Internship: accredited per the school. Internship term to June 30, 2027 per the school; both programs show an ACEND site visit on October 4, 2026 |
| RD/RDN Eligibility | M.S./DPD plus a supervised practice program, such as the internship. The dual degree and the integrative M.S.: no |
| Supervised Practice | None inside the M.S./DPD apart from clinic practicums. Internship: about 1,200 hours |
| Entrance Exams | No GRE found. Internship uses DICAS |
| GPA Floor | M.S./DPD: 3.0. Internship: 3.0 in the DPD. Integrative M.S.: 2.75 |
| Intake | M.S./DPD: September 2027. Internship: September 2027. Dual degree: July 2027. Integrative M.S.: January 2027 |
| Tuition | 2026-27: M.S./DPD $60,340 over two years; integrative M.S. $500 per credit; internship $14,820 |
| Institutional Accreditation | Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities |
Master of Science in Nutrition with a Didactic Program in Dietetics
The estimated tuition for the M.S./DPD at Bastyr is $60,340 across two years, or $61,745 with university and course fees, from the school’s published year-by-year plan (derived per-credit figures are in the Tuition section). It is 78 credits on the quarter system, of which 64 must be earned in residence, and takes two years full time in Kenmore, near Seattle.
M.S./DPD Curriculum
Coursework covers advanced macro- and micronutrients, bioactive compounds, nutrigenomics and the microbiome, whole foods production, therapeutic cooking, food science, food service management, medical nutrition therapy, counseling skills, supplementation, and a public health course. Two clinic practicums at the Bastyr Center for Natural Health add 44 hours each plus 4 interim hours, which is where the program page’s 92 clinical hours come from. There is no thesis, only a 1-credit food service capstone.
M.S./DPD Admissions
- A bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution, with a 3.0 GPA overall or in the last 45 credits, or B or better in four science courses; the catalog and web page word these as alternatives, and case-by-case exceptions exist
- Prerequisites: human physiology, major-level organic chemistry with lab, major-level biochemistry within 7 years, introductory nutrition, general psychology, college algebra or statistics, and microbiology
- The next start listed is September 2027; the application deadline, cohort size, and GRE were not found
- Graduation also requires 150 hours of work or volunteering (50 clinical, 50 food service, 50 community), a DPD exit exam at 75 percent or higher, and student membership in the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
You Should Know
The program page also lists a goal of 300 volunteer or paid nutrition hours, while the graduation requirement is 150. The catalog says the program is not coordinated and reports an average 95 percent internship match rate with no year; the program page says outcome data are available from the program director on request. Up to six internship seats are reserved for Bastyr DPD students in the catalog, and up to twelve on the internship page, which also states the whole cohort is twelve.
Dietetic Internship
The internship is non-degree: 15 credits, about 10 months full time and at least 39 weeks, for $14,820 in tuition and $330 in fees. The catalog gives about 1,200 supervised practice hours, while another section of the internship page says over 1,000. It takes 12 interns a year, in person in Seattle with some virtual seminars and rotations, and offers concentrations in integrative medicine and environmentally conscious whole-foods nutrition, with sports nutrition as an elective rotation.
- Admission needs a DPD or Foundation Knowledge and Skills verification statement, a master’s degree before the start, a 3.0 DPD GPA, three references, and a personal statement of 1,000 words or fewer; DICAS costs $50 for the first program and $25 for each additional one
- For the September 2027 start, the pre-select DICAS deadline is January 13, 2027 and the standard DICAS deadline is February 1, 2027, with decisions by February 26 and acceptance by March 10
- Bastyr M.S./DPD students can apply through a pre-select pathway
- The page lists over $1,000 in other costs, including about $15,000 in living costs (derived as $1,500 over 10 months), car insurance of about $1,000, and onboarding items
- The page gives an 80 percent first-attempt CDR exam pass rate for 2021 through 2025, but the internship’s completion and employment figures are goals, not results
- The page lists the internship’s accreditation term ending June 30, 2027, while ACEND shows an October 4, 2026 site visit and an April 2026 action to continue accreditation after a complaint, whose details are not published
Master of Science in Nutrition and Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology
The dual degree takes three years full time on campus in Kenmore. The school does not state a total credit figure; the courses with listed credits add up to 146.5 (derived), which is a floor because two courses show none. It combines nutrition coursework with a counseling psychology curriculum, nutrition clinic practicums, and an exit exam in place of a capstone.
- The school says graduates are eligible to take the state licensing exams for mental health counseling and for certified nutritionist, and that nutritionist practice is allowed in select states; it does not mention the RD credential
- The counseling master’s is accredited by MPCAC from March 2024 to March 2032, per the school’s accreditation page
- Admission needs a 3.0 GPA overall or in the last 45 credits and B or better in general psychology, physiology, organic chemistry, biochemistry, and microbiology; the next start is July 2027
- Bastyr’s tuition page has no price for this dual degree, and its only counseling listing is the stand-alone 93-credit M.A., which is a different program
Master of Science in Integrative Nutrition (Online)
The M.S. in Integrative Nutrition is run by Bastyr Online and is 54 credits of 7.5-week courses taken one at a time, completely asynchronous. At $500 per credit it is $27,000 in tuition, or $28,100 with $1,100 in fees, and the school offers a tuition guarantee that locks the price if enrollment is uninterrupted. The program page says two years full time and the catalog says 18 to 24 months.
- The capstone includes an original case report; the web page calls it an Applied Capstone Project and the catalog calls it a Capstone Research Project
- Admission needs a bachelor’s degree and a 2.75 GPA, with lower GPAs reviewed by the chair; no prerequisites, GRE, deadline, or cohort size were found, and the next start is January 2027
- The school says the program fulfills the academic requirements for Certified Nutrition Specialist certification. The CNS also needs 1,000 supervised hours and an exam, neither of which the degree includes, and the ACNPE accredited-programs list does not include Bastyr
- The catalog says 45 of the 54 credits must be earned in residence; for an online program this wording should be confirmed with the school
Tuition
Bastyr is private, so one rate applies to every student. The tuition page publishes year-by-year totals for the M.S./DPD rather than a per-credit rate, so the figures below are derived.
- M.S./DPD: year one is 46 credits for $31,428 in tuition ($683 per credit, derived), plus $640 in university fees and $150 in course fees; year two is 32 credits for $28,912 ($904 per credit, derived), plus $440 and $175. The total is $61,745 with fees, a blended $774 per credit before fees
- Dietetic Internship: $14,820 in tuition for 15 credits ($988 per credit, derived) plus $330 in fees, for $15,150
- M.S./DPD plus the internship: $76,895 in published tuition and fees (derived as $61,745 plus $15,150), before DICAS fees, onboarding costs, and living costs
- Integrative M.S.: $13,500 in tuition per year, plus $650 and $450 in fees, for $28,100 in total
- The tuition page is undated and notes an increase beginning in fall 2027, so later cohorts should expect higher prices
Be aware that:
Older third-party listings show $475 per credit for the integrative M.S., against $500 on Bastyr’s pages now. Official figures are on Bastyr’s tuition and fees page.
Why Choose This Nutrition Program?
Best suited to career changers and graduates who want a master’s-level route to the registered dietitian credential with an integrative, whole-foods framing, and to students who want a non-RD integrative nutrition degree online.
The two-step RD route pairs the M.S./DPD with the school’s own 12-seat internship, and the pre-select pathway gives Bastyr DPD students a defined route into it. The honest limit is that the M.S./DPD is not coordinated, so a student must still win an internship place, the school’s match figure carries no year, and the B.S. that would have supplied an undergraduate entry point is closed to applicants.
If you want counseling alongside nutrition, the dual degree is the one built for it, with no published price. If you want the RD credential and cannot move to Kenmore, choose a program with an online or coordinated route instead.
Accreditation
Bastyr is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. The commission issued a show-cause sanction on November 1, 2024 over finances and, according to Bastyr, reaffirmed accreditation and removed it on February 6, 2026. The school’s accreditation page still carries older state-authorization language, which matters for the online M.S. and should be confirmed before enrolling from outside Washington.
The school states the M.S./DPD is accredited by ACEND, but gives no type or term end for it, and its accreditation page also lists a B.S. DPD that the 2026-27 catalog does not. ACEND’s 2019 decisions page shows full and continued accreditation for a Bastyr DPD and internship, naming the university but not the degree, and the 2020 through 2022, 2024, and 2025 pages show no Bastyr entry. The 2023 page records the internship adding distance education, and the 2026 page records it continuing accreditation after a complaint with no details.
ACEND’s Programs Under Review page lists both the DPD and the internship with a site visit on October 4, 2026, and no outcome is published yet. The live ACEND directory could not be loaded for this profile, so term dates there were not checked. A graduate of the M.S./DPD holds a verification statement and still needs an accredited supervised practice program before the CDR exam.