How to hire a dietician

How to hire a dietician, step by step

Here's a step-by-step dietician hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a dietician job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new dietician
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a dietician do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The dietician hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A dietician's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, dieticians from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   This list shows salaries for various types of dieticians.

   Type of Dietician	Description	Hourly rate
   Dietician	Dietitians and nutritionists are experts in the use of food and nutrition to promote health and manage disease. They advise people on what to eat in order to lead a healthy lifestyle or achieve a specific health-related goal.	$15-46
   Nutrition Internship	Nutrition interns are individuals who are on the job training for the tasks performed by licensed nutritionists or dieticians. The interns provide a nutrition care process that includes prescription of parenteral and enteral recommendations and analysis of laboratory values... Show more	$11-25
   Nutritional Consultant	A Nutritional Consultant provides assistance regarding food service and nutritional programs. They help patients improve their health and control of disease.	$14-60

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Patient Care
   • Nutrition Education
   • Medical Nutrition Therapy
   • Rehabilitation
   • Diet Restrictions
   • Quality Standards
   • Diet Modifications
   • Diabetes
   • Nutritional Care
   • Allergies
   • Diet Orders
   • Food Selection
   • Tray Line

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Lead weekly nutrition classes for weight loss, cholesterol control and diabetes education.
   • Manage the anemia status of patients by reviewing necessary lab data and initiating or adjusting medication doses.
   • Spearhead initiation of diabetes support groups.
   • Input have CMS and facility mandate timelines.
   • Complete MDS's and care plans on all residents as needed.
   • Utilize EMR to both gather information and document patient assessments and medication.

   More dietician duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your dietician job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A dietician salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, dieticians' average salary in alabama is 50% less than in alaska.
   • Seniority. Entry-level dieticians earn 67% less than senior-level dieticians.
   • Certifications. A dietician with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a dietician's salary.

   Average dietician salary

   $55,763yearly

   $26.81 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level dietician salary

   $32,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 14, 2025

   Average dietician salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$76,132	$37
   2	District of Columbia	$72,370	$35
   3	New Jersey	$69,892	$34
   4	Rhode Island	$68,183	$33
   5	Massachusetts	$68,165	$33
   6	Connecticut	$66,446	$32
   7	New York	$66,339	$32
   8	Vermont	$64,148	$31
   9	Washington	$60,973	$29
   10	Arizona	$57,837	$28
   11	Virginia	$57,240	$28
   12	Florida	$57,015	$27
   13	Iowa	$55,882	$27
   14	Hawaii	$55,806	$27
   15	Illinois	$53,718	$26
   16	Utah	$52,063	$25
   17	Missouri	$52,057	$25
   18	South Carolina	$50,481	$24
   19	Pennsylvania	$49,178	$24
   20	Texas	$48,381	$23

   Average dietician salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Health Advocates	$74,016	$35.58	21
   2	Encompass Health	$73,445	$35.31	115
   3	The McGuire Group	$69,853	$33.58
   4	Bering Straits	$68,833	$33.09	4
   5	Healthcare Services Group	$68,794	$33.07
   6	VNA Hospice & Palliative Care of Southern California	$68,719	$33.04
   7	Roper St. Francis Healthcare	$68,115	$32.75
   8	Tift Regional Medical Center	$64,790	$31.15
   9	Nevada Regional Medical Center	$64,206	$30.87
   10	BridgePoint Healthcare	$64,122	$30.83
   11	Holy Name Medical Center	$64,056	$30.80
   12	Sharp HealthCare	$61,881	$29.75	1
   13	Clinical Management Consultants	$61,864	$29.74
   14	AHMC Healthcare	$61,823	$29.72	2
   15	Spectrum Healthcare Resources	$61,477	$29.56
   16	Hinsdale Health System Inc	$61,297	$29.47
   17	Logan Health	$60,694	$29.18
   18	Virginia Hospital Center	$60,688	$29.18
   19	Lb	$60,518	$29.10
   20	Bon Secours Community Hospital	$60,251	$28.97	2

4. Writing a dietician job description

   A good dietician job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a dietician job description:

   Dietician job description example

   Sunrise considers the health and safety of its residents, family members, and team members as its highest priorities. All offers of employment with Sunrise are conditioned on completing and passing a background and drug test, participating in mandatory vaccine programs (e.g., Covid-19), participating in testing requirements (e.g. Covid-19, TB) and using designated PPE when required.

   Sunrise Senior Living offers a comprehensive benefits plan to eligible team members including health, dental, vision, retirement benefits, short-term disability, long-term disability, and paid time off. Team members may also be eligible to receive a bonus based on their position. Some leadership roles are eligible to receive annual bonuses. All team members have the potential to receive spot bonuses and other incentive awards.

   EOE

   
   Qualifications
   

   Sunrise Senior Living has championed quality of life in senior care for more than 30 years. We believe team members are our greatest resource and are looking for people who share our commitment to provide quality care for seniors and their families. It's no surprise that many of the world's leading experts in Senior Living entrust their career to Sunrise.

   At Sunrise, you will…
   
   Make a Difference Every Day
   We are passionate about our mission — to champion quality of life for all seniors. We deliver high-quality care with a personal touch and encourage our residents to enjoy life to the fullest.

   Be Part of a Uniquely Supportive Community
   The care-focused environment we create for residents extends to our team members. We offer programs, rewards, and benefits to help you live your best.

   Ignite Your Potential
   We believe potential has no limits. We offer best-in-class leadership development programs designed to grow our leaders. We are committed to helping our team members achieve their career goals.

   Sunrise Senior Living was again named as one of the Best Workplaces in Aging Services™ by Fortune and certified as a Great Place to Work® by Activated Insights. This is the 5th time Sunrise has received this top culture and workplace designation, highlighting the special place Sunrise is to be a part of.

   Apply today to learn why Sunrise Senior Living is a certified Great Place to Work ®

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right dietician for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   To find dietician candidates, you can consider the following options:

   • Post your job opening on Zippia or other job search websites.
   • Use niche websites that focus on engineering and technology jobs, such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post your job on free job posting websites.

6. Interview candidates

   Your first interview with dietician candidates should focus on their interest in the role and background experience. As the hiring process goes on, you can learn more about how they'd fit into the company culture in later rounds of interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents. You can move on to the technical interview if a candidate is good enough for the next step.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new dietician

   Once you've decided on a perfect dietician candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   To prepare for the new dietician first day, you should share an onboarding schedule with them that covers their first period on the job. You should also quickly complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Finally, Human Resources must ensure a new employee file is created for internal record keeping.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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