The Dietetic Internship, or DI for those of us in the know, is "an accredited, supervised practice program at a health-care facility, community agency or foodservice corporation." Source.
Translation: 6-12 months of working as a dietitian, while being judged by your preceptors (RDs who volunteer their time to show newbies the ropes) and your internship director. Oh, by the way... the internship is unpaid. In fact, I will be paying tuition in order to complete the internship.
The most daunting part of the DI is probably the application process (coming from someone who has yet to start the DI
). You must apply to your various programs, but also pay a matching fee to D&D (not Dungeons and Dragons). All DI applicants are matched to their program and find out on the same day and time. It is quite the hullabaloo (yes I just used that word, what of it?) for DPD students, and is highly competitive. HERE is an excellent post by a former intern that addresses the competitive nature of the DI.While I am sad that I will be mooching off of my husband (while I
My DI program is unique in that it is combined with the graduate program. Most interns meet one another for the first time during their orientation week. My fellow DIs and I have been enrolled in the graduate program for the past few years, and have been able to get to know each other during that time. We also took a DI prep class this fall, where our preceptors came and spoke to us about their area of expertise. If you are looking to complete a graduate degree, I highly recommend a combined program. Click HERE to see all of the accredited programs.
PS - Enjoy your NYE! I am refraining from sharing my resolutions... my theory is that perhaps they are like birthday wishes and must be kept secret
