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What is an outpatient dietitian and how to become one
You've no doubt heard about diets that recommend unusual combinations, like a pint of beer and a raw egg for breakfast. If you want to know which diets are legit, talk to a dietitian. But confirming trendy diets isn't in these professionals' job description. They are more concerned with giving patients sound dietary advice that can complement their health and current treatment.
Outpatient dietitians set up in doctors' offices, independence practices, and sports facilities. As a dietitian, you'll be responsible for educating people on weight management, eating healthy, and the best foods to manage conditions like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and other disorders.
To become an outpatient dietitian, you need a degree in nutrition or other related field. A master's degree is an added advantage. You'll also need to pass the Commission on Dietetic Registration Exam to become a registered dietician. Complete all these, and you can differentiate phony diets from authentic ones.
What general advice would you give to an Outpatient Dietitian?
Dr. Jeremy Akers Ph.D.
Dietetics, Graduate Program Director, James Madison University
Avg. Salary $62,717
Avg. Salary $59,228
Growth Rate 7%
Growth Rate 0.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.88%
Asian 8.49%
Black or African American 9.10%
Hispanic or Latino 12.08%
Unknown 3.70%
White 65.75%
Genderfemale 92.52%
male 7.48%
Age - 40American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%
Asian 7.00%
Black or African American 14.00%
Hispanic or Latino 19.00%
White 57.00%
Genderfemale 47.00%
male 53.00%
Age - 40Stress level is high
7.1 - high
Complexity Level is advanced
7 - challenging
Work Life balance is good
6.4 - fair
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Outpatient Dietitian career paths
Key steps to become an outpatient dietitian
Explore outpatient dietitian education requirements
Start to develop specific outpatient dietitian skills
Skills 
Percentages Patients 29.55% Medical Nutrition Therapy 10.66% Patient Care 6.34% Nutrition Services 4.87% Home Health 4.15% Complete relevant outpatient dietitian training and internships
Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New outpatient dietitians learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an outpatient dietitian based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real outpatient dietitian resumes.Research outpatient dietitian duties and responsibilities
- Manage the anemia status of patients by reviewing necessary lab data and initiating or adjusting medication doses.
- Perform nutritional education, complete comprehensive assessments, calculate patient needs for nutrition support and determine patients at risk for malnutrition.
- Create educational lesson discussing hypertension prevention, risk factors, MNT.
- Monitor patients' nutrition status, laboratory values, diet tolerance, and motivate them to adhere to dietary/medications recommendations.
Prepare your outpatient dietitian resume
When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your outpatient dietitian resume.
You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an outpatient dietitian resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.
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Apply for outpatient dietitian jobs
Now it's time to start searching for an outpatient dietitian job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:
- Browse job boards for relevant postings
- Consult your professional network
- Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
- Watch out for job scams
How Did You Land Your First Outpatient Dietitian Job
Are you an Outpatient Dietitian?
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Average outpatient dietitian salary
The average Outpatient Dietitian salary in the United States is $62,717 per year or $30 per hour. Outpatient dietitian salaries range between $38,000 and $102,000 per year.
What Am I Worth?
How do outpatient dietitians rate their job?
Outpatient Dietitian reviews
No room for upward mobility in most healthcare areas. Pay is bad. Still the lowest paid healthcare professionals for the amount of education required to become a RDN. For that much education better off becoming a PA or RN that becomes a NP.
I love the daytime work hours and having the weekends off most of the time. I love it when a client is interested in diet and ready to learn.
Some areas of nutrition-especially outpatient-require a certain amount of persuasive ability. It can be hard to work with the public all the time. And some dietitians, mostly clinical and hospital food service have to work some holidays.
Updated January 8, 2025
