The Healthcare System is Changing Rapidly

Health professions have increased educational standards beyond the bachelor’s degree; in fact, the Commission on Dietetic Registration has increased the requirements to be eligible to take the Registration Exam for Dietitians to the completion of a master’s degree beginning in 2024. To remain competitive in the field and obtain the advanced competencies and skills needed in the job market, completion of a master’s degree is becoming essential.

Curriculum Overview

The M.S. in Clinical Nutrition is focused on core nutrition, clinical nutrition, professional skills, and electives. This is advanced learning at its best, and is ideal for people with a strong background in clinical nutrition, confidence working at the graduate level, and a commitment to become leaders in clinical nutrition and dietetics. The curriculum is designed to prepare students to translate research; recognize and formulate responses to evolving developments in clinical nutrition practice, policy, and research; and lead and manage professional teams to design nutrition-related services.

Please consult the table below for key information about this degree program’s admissions requirements. The program may have more detailed admissions requirements, which can be found below the table or on the program’s website.

Graduate admissions is a two-step process between academic programs and the Graduate School. Applicants must meet the minimum requirements of the Graduate School as well as the program(s). Once you have researched the graduate program(s) you are interested in, apply online.

*

The Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition has a rolling admissions policy where applications will be considered after their respective deadlines listed below. Domestic applicants should submit their applications no later than 4 weeks prior to the beginning of the intended term. Applications from international applicants must be submitted 6 weeks prior to the beginning of the intended term. This additional 2 weeks is required for international transcript and matriculation processing.

General Admission Requirements

All applicants must:

• Have a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university or its equivalent and a minimum grade point average of 3.00 on a 4.00 scale
• Minimum cumulative GPA >  3.0 (on a 4.0 scale).
• Completed Didactic Program in Dietetics or have completed the following prerequisite courses:
  • General Chemistry
    • CHEM 103 General Chemistry I and CHEM 104 General Chemistry II
  • Biological Sciences
    • ZOOLOGY/​BIOLOGY  101 Animal Biology and ZOOLOGY/​BIOLOGY  102 Animal Biology Laboratory and MICROBIO 101 General Microbiology and MICROBIO 102 General Microbiology Laboratory or
    • BIOLOGY/​BOTANY/​ZOOLOGY  151 Introductory Biology and MICROBIO 101 General Microbiology and MICROBIO 102 General Microbiology Laboratory
  • Organic Chemistry
    • CHEM 341 Elementary Organic Chemistry or
    • CHEM 343 Organic Chemistry I
  • Biochemistry
    • BIOCHEM 301 Survey of Biochemistry or
    • BIOCHEM 501 Introduction to Biochemistry or
    • BIOCHEM 507 General Biochemistry I and BIOCHEM 508 General Biochemistry II
  • Physiology
    • ANAT&PHY 335 Physiology
  • Statistics
    • STAT 371 Introductory Applied Statistics for the Life Sciences or
    • STAT 301 Introduction to Statistical Methods or
    • PSYCH 210 Basic Statistics for Psychology or
    • SOC/​C&E SOC  360 Statistics for Sociologists I
  • Human Nutrition
    • NUTR SCI 332 Human Nutritional Needs
  • Clinical Nutrition
    • NUTR SCI 631 Clinical Nutrition I and NUTR SCI 632 Clinical Nutrition II

Please note, the program cannot complete a transcript review unless we receive a completed application. Applicants may check course equivalency to UW-Madison via Transferology. 

Application Process

To ensure full consideration for admission into the Master of Science in Clinical Nutrition, it is strongly recommended that applications be completed by the deadlines noted above.  Applications received after their respective priority deadlines will be considered as space permits. 

Steps to apply are listed below:

1. Complete a UW–Madison Graduate School Electronic Application.

The electronic application includes:

a. Reasons for Graduate Study. Please include a brief statement about your professional goals, and reasons for applying.

b. Letters of Recommendation. Three letters of recommendation are required. All letters of recommendation are submitted electronically through the admission application.

c. TOEFL scores, if necessary.

d. Unofficial transcript, submitted electronically into the application. 

e. Supplemental Application. This component of the application asks applicants to identify the courses taken to fulfill the prerequisite coursework. 

2. Be sure to closely follow the Steps to Apply for Graduate School and watch your application status page through MyUW for missing checklist items or additional information.

For any questions or if you need additional information please go over the Graduate Admissions FAQ, or send an email to the Graduate Coordinator (see the Contact Information box on this page).

Graduate School Resources

Resources to help you afford graduate study might include assistantships, fellowships, traineeships, and financial aid. Further funding information is available from the Graduate School. Be sure to check with your program for individual policies and restrictions related to funding.

Program Information

Students enrolled in this program are not eligible to receive tuition remission from graduate assistantship appointments at this institution.

Our program does offer scholarship opportunities. 

Minimum Graduate School Requirements

Review the Graduate School minimum academic progress and degree requirements, in addition to the program requirements listed below.

Major Requirements

MODE OF INSTRUCTION

Mode of Instruction Definitions

Accelerated: Accelerated programs are offered at a fast pace that condenses the time to completion. Students typically take enough credits aimed at completing the program in a year or two.

Evening/Weekend: ​Courses meet on the UW–Madison campus only in evenings and/or on weekends to accommodate typical business schedules.  Students have the advantages of face-to-face courses with the flexibility to keep work and other life commitments.

Face-to-Face: Courses typically meet during weekdays on the UW-Madison Campus.

Hybrid: These programs combine face-to-face and online learning formats.  Contact the program for more specific information.

Online: These programs are offered 100% online.  Some programs may require an on-campus orientation or residency experience, but the courses will be facilitated in an online format.

CURRICULAR REQUIREMENTS

Required Courses

Optional Electives

 Other Policy

Students in this program may not take courses outside the prescribed curriculum without faculty advisor and program director approval. Students in this program cannot enroll concurrently in other undergraduate or graduate degree programs.

Graduate School Policies

The Graduate School’s Academic Policies and Procedures provide essential information regarding general university policies. Program authority to set degree policies beyond the minimum required by the Graduate School lies with the degree program faculty. Policies set by the academic degree program can be found below.

Major-Specific Policies

Prior Coursework

Graduate Work from Other Institutions

With program approval, students are allowed to count no more than 6 credits of graduate prior coursework from other institutions.

UW–Madison Undergraduate*

No credits from a UW–Madison undergraduate degree are allowed to count toward the degree.

*Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences
With program approval, students may count up to six credits of undergraduate coursework, earned post-baccalaureate, from the Mayo Clinic Dietetic Internship program toward fulfillment of minimum graduate residence credit requirement. These credits cannot be counted toward the minimum graduate residence credit requirement. To request evaluation of prior coursework, a student will need to submit an official transcript from the Mayo Clinic School of Health Sciences to the Graduate Program Manager. 

No prior credit will be accepted if it was earned through supervised practice hours in a dietetic internship except those completed through the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics (UWHC) and the Mayo Clinic Dietetic Internship. 

UW–Madison University Special

This program follows  the Graduate School's policy for Transfer from UW–Madison University Special Student Career at UW–Madison. 

The final decision of accepting any prior coursework is up to the discretion of the MSCN Executive Committee. 

ProbatioN

This program follows the Graduate School's Probation policy.

ADVISOR / COMMITTEE

This program follows the Graduate School's Advisor policy and Committees policy.

CREDITS PER TERM ALLOWED

15 credits

Time Limits

This program follows the Graduate School's Time Limits policy.

grievances and appeals

These resources may be helpful in addressing your concerns:

• Bias or Hate Reporting  
• Graduate Assistantship Policies and Procedures
• Hostile and Intimidating Behavior Policies and Procedures
  • Office of the Provost for Faculty and Staff Affairs
• Dean of Students Office (for all students to seek grievance assistance and support)
• Employee Assistance (for personal counseling and workplace consultation around communication and conflict involving graduate assistants and other employees, post-doctoral students, faculty and staff)
• Employee Disability Resource Office (for qualified employees or applicants with disabilities to have equal employment opportunities)
• Graduate School (for informal advice at any level of review and for official appeals of program/departmental or school/college grievance decisions)
• Office of Compliance (for class harassment and discrimination, including sexual harassment and sexual violence)
• Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards (for conflicts involving students)
• Ombuds Office for Faculty and Staff (for employed graduate students and post-docs, as well as faculty and staff)
• Title IX (for concerns about discrimination)

College of Agricultural and Life Sciences: Grievance Policy
 

In the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS), any student who feels unfairly treated by a member of the CALS faculty or staff has the right to complain about the treatment and to receive a prompt hearing. Some complaints may arise from misunderstandings or communication breakdowns and be easily resolved; others may require formal action. Complaints may concern any matter of perceived unfairness.

To ensure a prompt and fair hearing of any complaint, and to protect the rights of both the person complaining and the person at whom the complaint is directed, the following procedures are used in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. Any student, undergraduate or graduate, may use these procedures, except employees whose complaints are covered under other campus policies.

1. The student should first talk with the person at whom the complaint is directed. Most issues can be settled at this level. Others may be resolved by established departmental procedures.
2. If the student is unsatisfied, and the complaint involves any unit outside CALS, the student should seek the advice of the dean or director of that unit to determine how to proceed.
   1. If the complaint involves an academic department in CALS the student should proceed in accordance with item 3 below.
   2. If the grievance involves a unit in CALS that is not an academic department, the student should proceed in accordance with item 4 below.
3. The student should contact the department’s grievance advisor within 120 calendar days of the alleged unfair treatment. The departmental administrator can provide this person’s name. The grievance advisor will attempt to resolve the problem informally within 10 working days of receiving the complaint, in discussions with the student and the person at whom the complaint is directed.
   1. If informal mediation fails, the student can submit the grievance in writing to the grievance advisor within 10 working days of the date the student is informed of the failure of the mediation attempt by the grievance advisor. The grievance advisor will provide a copy to the person at whom the grievance is directed.
   2. The grievance advisor will refer the complaint to a department committee that will obtain a written response from the person at whom the complaint is directed, providing a copy to the student. Either party may request a hearing before the committee. The grievance advisor will provide both parties a written decision within 20 working days from the date of receipt of the written complaint.
   3. If the grievance involves the department chairperson, the grievance advisor or a member of the grievance committee, these persons may not participate in the review.
   4. If not satisfied with departmental action, either party has 10 working days from the date of notification of the departmental committee action to file a written appeal to the CALS Equity and Diversity Committee. A subcommittee of this committee will make a preliminary judgement as to whether the case merits further investigation and review. If the subcommittee unanimously determines that the case does not merit further investigation and review, its decision is final. If one or more members of the subcommittee determine that the case does merit further investigation and review, the subcommittee will investigate and seek to resolve the dispute through mediation. If this mediation attempt fails, the subcommittee will bring the case to the full committee. The committee may seek additional information from the parties or hold a hearing. The committee will present a written recommendation to the dean who will provide a final decision within 20 working days of receipt of the committee recommendation.
4. If the alleged unfair treatment occurs in a CALS unit that is not an academic department, the student should, within 120 calendar days of the alleged incident, take his/her grievance directly to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. The dean will attempt to resolve the problem informally within 10 working days of receiving the complaint. If this mediation attempt does not succeed the student may file a written complaint with the dean who will refer it to the CALS Equity and Diversity Committee. The committee will seek a written response from the person at whom the complaint is directed, subsequently following other steps delineated in item 3d above.

Other

n/a

Graduate School Resources

Take advantage of the Graduate School's professional development resources to build skills, thrive academically, and launch your career. 

1. Articulating and integrating specialized knowledge in the field of advanced clinical nutrition - including energy metabolism, micronutrient requirements, and nutrigenomics needed to meet the challenges of future careers and opportunities.
2. Articulating and demonstrating advanced skills in nutritional assessment and nutritional care of patients with complicated disorders/diseases in a clinical or community setting.
3. Demonstrating advanced skills in nutrition counseling and education needed to precipitate behavior and cognitive change.
4. Formulating systems to gather, analyze and interpret data from a practice setting to develop appropriate protocols and care plans using the nutritional care process.
5. Formulate problem statements and writing research proposals using appropriate study design.
6. Demonstrating an ability to understand, interpret, evaluate, and design clinical nutrition research.
7. Demonstrating high level problem-solving, critical thinking, and use of informatics required in advanced clinical nutrition practice.
8. Demonstrating advanced professional skills in communication, information and project management, leadership, and ethics.

Faculty

David Eide, PhD

Instructors

Michelle Johnson, MS, RD
Nathan Johnson, PhD
Tara LaRowe, PhD, RDN
Amber Haroldson, PhD, RDN
Taiya Bach, MPH, RDN
Sylvia Escott-Stump, MA, RDN

Program Manager

Makayla Schuchardt, MS, RDN, CNSC mlschuchardt@wisc.edu

Graduate Coordinator

Katie Butzen, MS, kbutzen@wisc.edu