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The differences between nutrition interns and clinical dietitians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a nutrition internship and a clinical dietitian. Additionally, a clinical dietitian has an average salary of $59,133, which is higher than the $36,506 average annual salary of a nutrition internship.
The top three skills for a nutrition internship include patients, nutrition education programs and nutrition education materials. The most important skills for a clinical dietitian are patients, patient care, and medical nutrition therapy.
| Nutrition Internship | Clinical Dietitian | |
| Yearly salary | $36,506 | $59,133 |
| Hourly rate | $17.55 | $28.43 |
| Growth rate | 7% | 7% |
| Number of jobs | 48,204 | 57,500 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
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. They prepare a case study presentation that applies evidence-based guidelines and nutrition care process research. It is also part of their responsibilities to provide nutrition services, meal plans, and lesson plans.
A clinical dietitian is responsible for providing quality nutritional care for patients by monitoring their current health conditions, advising nutritional and dietary supplements to maintain their healthy lifestyle, and speed up their recovery process. Clinical dietitians often coordinate with other medical professionals to assess food choices and develop nutrition programs for the patients. A clinical dietitian must have excellent knowledge of the medical industry to offer the best services to the patients and accurately handle their inquiries and concerns.
Nutrition interns and clinical dietitians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Nutrition Internship | Clinical Dietitian | |
| Average salary | $36,506 | $59,133 |
| Salary range | Between $24,000 And $53,000 | Between $43,000 And $80,000 |
| Highest paying City | - | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | - | California |
| Best paying company | - | University of California |
| Best paying industry | - | Health Care |
There are a few differences between a nutrition internship and a clinical dietitian in terms of educational background:
| Nutrition Internship | Clinical Dietitian | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 79% | Bachelor's Degree, 73% |
| Most common major | Food And Nutrition | Dietetics |
| Most common college | University of Maryland - College Park | University of Maryland - College Park |
Here are the differences between nutrition interns' and clinical dietitians' demographics:
| Nutrition Internship | Clinical Dietitian | |
| Average age | 42 | 42 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 18.0% Female, 82.0% | Male, 8.7% Female, 91.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 7.8% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 10.1% White, 66.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% | Black or African American, 8.6% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 10.0% White, 65.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9% |
| LGBT Percentage | 8% | 8% |