Clinical Nutrition

Types of Degrees Clinical Nutrition Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many clinical nutrition/nutritionist graduations there were in 2020-2021 for each degree level.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	826
Bachelor’s Degree	129
Graduate Certificate	44
Doctor’s Degree	12
Undergraduate Certificate	2

What Clinical Nutrition Majors Need to Know

O*NET surveyed people in occupations related to clinical nutrition and asked them what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important for their jobs. The responses were rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being most important.

Knowledge Areas for Clinical Nutrition Majors

This major prepares you for careers in which these knowledge areas are important:

• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.

Skills for Clinical Nutrition Majors

A major in clinical nutrition prepares you for careers in which the following skill-sets are crucial:

• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.

Abilities for Clinical Nutrition Majors

As you progress with your clinical nutrition degree, there are several abilities you should pick up that will help you in whatever related career you choose. These abilities include:

• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

What Can You Do With a Clinical Nutrition Major?

People with a clinical nutrition degree often go into the following careers:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Dietitians and Nutritionists	14.6%	$60,370

Who Is Getting a Bachelor’s Degree in Clinical Nutrition?

This major is dominated by women with about 87% of recent graduates being female.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of clinical nutrition majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	1
Black or African American	2
Hispanic or Latino	10
White	103
International Students	7
Other Races/Ethnicities	6

Geographic Diversity

Clinical Nutrition appeals to people across the globe. About 5.4% of those with this major are international students.

How Much Do Clinical Nutrition Majors Make?

Salaries According to BLS

The median salary for someone in a career related to clinical nutrition is $61,210. This median refers to all degree levels, so the salary for a person with just a bachelor’s degree may be a little less and the one for a person with an advanced degree may be a little more.

To put that into context, according to BLS data from the first quarter of 2020, the typical high school graduate makes between $30,000 and $57,900 a year (25th through 75th percentile). The average person with a bachelor’s degree (any field) makes between $45,600 and $99,000. Advanced degree holders make the most with salaries between $55,600 and $125,400.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Clinical Nutrition

Some degrees associated with clinical nutrition may require an advanced degree, while others may not even require a bachelor’s in the field. Whatever the case may be, pursuing more education usually means that more career options will be available to you.

Find out what the typical degree level is for clinical nutrition careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Bachelor’s Degree	27.6%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	32.2%
Master’s Degree	23.0%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	4.6%
Doctoral Degree	9.2%

Online Clinical Nutrition Programs

In the 2020-2021 academic year, 49 schools offered some type of clinical nutrition/nutritionist program. The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	2	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	0	0
Associate’s Degree	1	0
Bachelor’s Degree	8	3
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	36	16
Post-Master’s	2	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	2	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	2	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	0	0

Is a Degree in Clinical Nutrition Worth It?

The median salary for a clinical nutrition grad is $61,210 per year. This is based on the weighted average of the most common careers associated with the major.

This is 53% more than the average salary for an individual holding a high school degree. This adds up to a gain of about $426,200 after 20 years!

Majors Related to Clinical Nutrition

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to clinical nutrition.

Major	Number of Grads
Dietetics/Dietitian	3,788
Dietitian Assistant	637
Other Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition Services	493
Dietetic Technician	227

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.