How to Become a Nutritionist: Courses and Career Advice
Do you have an obsession with food and nutrition? Interested in a career where improving people’s health is the everyday norm? If you haven’t already considered becoming a Nutritionist, now may be the perfect time to do so! Learn how to become a nutritionist with all the skills required for advising people for their healthy diet plans.
What do Nutritionists do?
Nutritionists are responsible for advising others on all matters related to health and nutrition. They play a role in helping people make positive dietary choices, while at the same time assisting those with health problems related to nutrition. From weight management to rehabilitation to illness recovery and more, dietitians make incredible differences in the lives of those they work with.
Specific responsibilities vary in accordance with the setting in which the dietitian works, though may include:
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Creating diets and eating plans in accordance with patient requirements
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Assisting overweight individuals in their efforts to lose weight healthily
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Advising individuals, groups and families on how to live healthy lifestyles
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Assisting in the treatment of individuals with eating disorders
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Teaching others the basics of nutritional science and running workshops
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Creating diets for schools, hospitals and care facilities
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Studying the latest developments in nutrition and human biology
Am I Right For the Job?
A career in nutrition is ideal for anyone interested in directly helping people on a daily basis, while also carrying out plenty of research and experiments. The role of the dietitian is highly scientific in nature and is perfectly suited to those with a curious and inquisitive nature. It is also necessary to be committed, caring, patient and unwilling to quit when presented with even the most extraordinary challenges.
Just a few of the skills and character traits required to succeed as a dietitian include:
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A genuine passion for health and nutrition
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The desire to continually research and experiment with human nutrition
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A flawlessly non-judgmental attitude
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The ability to explain complicated issues in simple terms
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Patience and advanced interpersonal skills
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The ability to work as part of a wider team
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Comprehensive organisation skills
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Flexibility and punctuality
Ongoing Progression
Average salaries vary significantly, in accordance with position and setting. Newly qualified dietitians may be taken on by private or public healthcare providers for around £20,000, while those with more experience may take home £35,000 or more. Many dietitians choose to work on a self-employed basis, building their own client lists and reputations along the way.
Professional Lifestyle
Diet and nutrition is a particularly dynamic field in which no two days are ever the same. Every individual a dietitian encounters is fundamentally different from the previous and the next, which in turn calls for enormous flexibility and wide-reaching competences. One moment you are advising a teenager struggling with an eating disorder, the next you are being interviewed on live TV about a recent breakthrough in nutrition.
“I honestly didn’t realise how deep and complex the subject of nutrition was until I began studying it formally. Taking a course intensified my interest in food and health science massively, which confirmed to me that this really is the industry for me. I take such satisfaction from helping others with their everyday health – I genuinely could not see myself doing anything else.”– Shaun Wright, Family Nutrition Consultant
Taking the Next Step
Working professionally as a dietitian without first studying the subject in-depth isn’t a realistic prospect. As a subject of science and a profession that focuses on human health, there is a great deal to explore and investigate before getting started. Nonetheless, it is a truly fascinating and captivating subject.
Online Nutrition Courses
Here at Brentwood Open Learning College, we offer only the highest quality online diet and nutrition courses, engineered specifically for distance learning:
Diploma in Diet and Nutrition (Level 4)
Begin writing your future success story today with our most advanced Level 4 Diet and Nutrition Diploma.
We also offer an intermediate Level 3 Certificate, which introduces the key concepts and scientific fundamentals all nutritionists must master.
For more information about our Nutrition certificate/diploma courses and Free Courses, get in touch with the BOLC admissions team today.
