How to hire a nutritional consultant

How to hire a nutritional consultant, step by step

Here's a step-by-step nutritional consultant hiring guide:

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

What does a nutritional consultant do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The nutritional consultant 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

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a nutritional consultant to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a nutritional consultant that fits the bill.

   The following list breaks down different types of nutritional consultants and their corresponding salaries.

   Type of Nutritional Consultant	Description	Hourly rate
   Nutritional Consultant	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.	$14-60
   Dietetic Internship	In a dietetic internship, an intern primarily performs support tasks to gain industry insights and experience while under a dietitian's directives and supervision. Their duties typically include conducting research and analyses, gathering and analyzing data from previous projects and studies, participating in the development of new meal and nutritional plans, and assisting in food delivery operations... Show more	$14-63
   Clinical Dietitian	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... Show more	$20-38

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Diabetes
   • Weight Loss
   • Nutrition Assessments
   • Food Service
   • Menu Planning
   • Medical Nutrition Therapy
   • Allergies
   • Weight Management
   • Nutrition Services
   • Nutrition Programs
   • Healthy Lifestyle
   • Technical Assistance
   • Recipe Development
   • Blood Pressure

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage the in-store dietitian program providing nutrition education, culinary workshops, food demonstrations, and nutritional assessments.
   • Specialize in weight loss, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and lactose intolerance
   • Provide nutrition assessments, counseling and diabetes education to visually impair population individually and in group setting.
   • Ensure compliance to USDA requirements.
   • Conduct BMI and weigh-ins for insurance members during health insurance out reach events.
   • Help clients with food allergies and auto immune disorders to construct a healing diet.

   More nutritional consultant duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your nutritional consultant job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A nutritional consultant can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, nutritional consultants' average salary in alabama is 54% less than in alaska.
   • Seniority. Entry-level nutritional consultants 76% less than senior-level nutritional consultants.
   • Certifications. A nutritional consultant with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a nutritional consultant's salary.

   Average nutritional consultant salary

   $62,346yearly

   $29.97 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level nutritional consultant salary

   $30,000 yearly salary

   Updated December 18, 2025

   Average nutritional consultant salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$81,367	$39
   2	Oregon	$73,841	$36
   3	New Jersey	$69,024	$33
   4	New York	$68,276	$33
   5	Virginia	$63,759	$31
   6	New Mexico	$59,943	$29
   7	Washington	$59,725	$29
   8	Iowa	$52,973	$25
   9	Texas	$51,814	$25
   10	Colorado	$51,169	$25
   11	Illinois	$49,874	$24
   12	Kansas	$48,505	$23
   13	Florida	$45,865	$22
   14	Georgia	$42,300	$20

   Average nutritional consultant salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Wayne County, Michigan	$77,586	$37.30	4
   2	King County	$70,349	$33.82
   3	Red Star Yeast	$64,961	$31.23
   4	Colorado State Express	$63,397	$30.48
   5	Lasalle Company Inc	$59,829	$28.76
   6	Land O'Lakes	$56,787	$27.30
   7	PetSmart	$55,010	$26.45
   8	My Florida Regional Mls	$53,507	$25.72
   9	Bickford Senior Living	$51,233	$24.63
   10	UnityPoint Health	$49,652	$23.87	5
   11	New York State Restaurant Association	$48,498	$23.32
   12	Commonwealth Of Pennsylvania	$36,688	$17.64
   13	Florida Dept. of Health	$35,273	$16.96
   14	State Of Florida	$34,088	$16.39	13
   15	Florida Department of Transportation	$34,002	$16.35

4. Writing a nutritional consultant job description

   A nutritional consultant job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. To help get you started, here's an example of a nutritional consultant job description:

   Nutritional consultant job description example

   Ask us about our student loan repayment program!
   
   You've already chosen a career that makes a difference in people's lives, now choose a company that wants to make a difference in yours.
   
   * Bickford will provide you a balanced work environment where you are treated fairly and set up to succeed
   * Through Bickford's family culture you will feel connected and challenged to grow within a supportive team environment
   * We will help you find more meaning, purpose and happiness in your life by engaging in the valuable work of Bickford
   
   Your day-to-day:
   
   * Counsel Residents on any dietary issues and healthy eating habits
   * Develop nutrition plans while taking into account the Residents tastes
   * Assess Residents' nutritional and health needs
   * Evaluate if the meal plans have a positive effect on clients' health
   * Create educational material about healthy eating habits
   * Read and contribute to the latest nutritional research
   * Speak to groups about the importance of nutrition to prevent specific diseases
   * Document Resident progress
   
   Requirements:
   
   * ServSafe certification. If uncertified, may obtain certification upon hire
   * CPR and First Aid certification. If uncertified, may obtain certification upon hire
   * High School diploma/GED or one year related experience or training
   * Valid driver's license and acceptable driving record
   * Willing to take additional training or education which may be required by specific states
   * Willing to travel to all Bickford Branches located in NE, IA, IL, IN, OH, VA, and MI.
   
   "MOM WAS ALWAYS THE HOSTESS. Every holiday or special occasion was an excuse for her to cook a meal fit for a king. Mom would beam with pride at each compliment or yummy noise. The entire family looked forward to it. When mom moved to Bickford, she worried about who would prepare holiday meals for our family. Thankfully, our entire family received an invitation to attend the Thanksgiving meal at Bickford. The most tender turkey was carved and served with the traditional sides cooked to perfection. After the main course, we were all blown away when the Kitchen Manager came out with mom's famous whipped topping. Looking at mom, she was all smiles again."
   
   As one of our Bickford Family Members, you have the opportunity to create experiences like this.
   
   Being a Bickford Family Member, our employees are family to us, means having the opportunity to be something more than an employee. Great possibilities lie ahead - to grow as a person and in your career. To live the Bickford Core Purpose of Enriching Happiness and to be a leader. It's the opportunity to become your personal best. To be connected to a family that achieves more together. And to be recognized for all of it. It's all here for you.
   
   We invite you to apply to join the Bickford family today!

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find the right nutritional consultant for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important sources of talent for any company is its existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and current employees and ask if they know or have worked with nutritional consultants they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit nutritional consultants who meet your education requirements.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter now have more than 3.5 billion users, and you can use social media to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your nutritional consultant job on Zippia to find and recruit nutritional consultant candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit nutritional consultants, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   Remember to include a few questions that allow candidates to expand on their strengths in their own words. Asking about their unique skills might reveal things you'd miss otherwise. At this point, good candidates can move on to the technical interview.

   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 nutritional consultant

   Once you have selected a candidate for the nutritional consultant position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   To prepare for the new employee's start date, you can create an onboarding schedule and complete any necessary paperwork, such as employee action forms and onboarding documents like I-9 forms, benefits enrollment, and federal and state tax forms. Human Resources should also ensure that a new employee file is created.

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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How much does it cost to hire a nutritional consultant?