Northland Community & Technical College’s Dietetic Technician A.A.S. program was granted full accreditation on February 10, 2020, from the Accreditation Council on Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND). This fully online degree program was granted candidacy for accreditation in February of 2016. Candidacy for accreditation lasts for a period of four years. Candidacy status does not translate into automatic conferment of accreditation.
The first cohort of dietetic technician students was accepted fall semester, 2016. The program is a 67 credit track that trains professionals to work in a wide variety of settings, including health care, public health, food service, and research. Graduates of this program are eligible to take the registration examination from the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR). Northland currently holds a 100% pass rate for graduates sitting for the CDR exam.
In February 2019, the Dietetics program underwent a site visit from ACEND following an application process and self-study report completed by Northland. The ACEND board met in January 2020 to review the findings from the site visit and subsequently granted full accreditation for the maximum term of seven years.
“I am so excited that our hard work towards full accreditation has paid off. It is so rewarding to now help others meet their goals through Northland’s fully online dietetic technician program,” expresses Northland Dietetic Program Director Angela Brekken, “Our students’ success translates into our success as a program and institution of higher learning. I am so proud of our dietetic technician program, but most of all, our students!”
Online learning can be a very important tool to help working adults pursue a degree. Brekken shares of her own experience that online learning was the only viable option while pursuing her own dietetics career. “Without online education options, I may have never met my educational goals. Many students in the program are returning to school after being away for some time. In addition to this, most are working full-time jobs and managing a household.” Brekken completed her master’s degree online and is currently pursuing her PhD in the same manner.
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