Memphis VA Medical Center
Program Intro
The Catherine Austin Dietetic Internship at the Memphis VAMC is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND). The program provides approximately 1200-1300 hours of supervised practice rotations in clinical dietetics, food service management and community nutrition. The internship provides a focus on medical nutrition therapy utilizing the nutrition care process with a concentration in Ambulatory Care. This concentration focuses on providing medical nutrition therapy and nutrition counseling for veterans in the outpatient setting including primary care, home based primary care (HBPC), and specialty clinics. Additionally, interns provide inpatient nutritional care in the surgical and medicine wards, intensive care unit, geriatrics, palliative care, and spinal cord injury unit. Also included in the internship year are 80 hours of didactic classes and 40 hours of professional training. Our interns become members of local nutrition organizations such as the Memphis Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Our goal is to produce leaders in the field of dietetics. The internship program is a full-time program and awards a verification statement upon completion.
Watch this video for highlights of our program.
Program Tracks:
The Catherine Austin Dietetic Internship has two tracks for program completion. Both include a minimum of 1200 hours of supervised practice. Upon satisfactory completion of the program requirements, a VA Certificate of Program Completion and the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) Verification Statement will be awarded.
Option 1: Univerisity of Alabama online MS/Memphis VAMC Combined Track:
The VA Memphis has a partnership with the University of Alabama for an online Master of Science in Human Nutrition. Read an overview including courses, options, credit hours, contact information and tuition costs at https://ches.ua.edu/nhm/ms-in-human-nutrition/. Applicants interested in applying to this track will need to be admitted to the University of Alabama Graduate School prior to being admitted to the Catherine Austin Dietetic Internship Program. Successful completion of the master's degree is required to receive the verification statement from the Catherine Austin Dietetic Internship in this track. For more information, contact the Human Nutrition program director, Dr. Tiffany Hylton, RD, LD at tmhylton@ches.ua.edu.
Option 2: Dietetic Internship Only Track:
All applicants applying to the internship only track must have a master's degree prior to admission to the Catherine Austin Dietetic Internship at the Memphis VA Medical Center. Degree conferral and submission of updated transcripts must occur prior to the program start date.
Important 2024-25 Dates for Both Tracks:
August 5: DICAS portal opens
September 20: VA Dietetic Internship National Forum at 11am CT
(Click here to join the meeting Meeting ID: 262 911 796 869, Passcode: 8fMeUR)
October 17: Virtual Open House at 11am CT
(RSVP to the internship director for the meeting link for the Open House)
December 6: VA Dietetic Internship National Forum at 11am CT
(Click here to join the meeting Meeting ID: 249 971 058 832, Passcode: Nhkh3s)
December 16: Virtual Open House at 11am CT
(RSVP to the internship director for the meeting link for the Open House)
January 15: Last day to apply through DICAS
February 1: Last day to apply to University of Alabama
March 1: Offer extended to applicants.
March 15: Last day for appointees to accept or reject offers.
April 15: Last date to apply through DICAS for the second round.
Dietetic Internship Director Contact Information:
Jyotsna Sharman, PhD, MS, MBA, RD, LD, FAND
Dietetic Internship Director / 120
1030 Jefferson Ave.
Memphis, TN 38104
Email: Jyotsna.Sharman@va.gov
Phone: (901) 523-8990 ext. 16555
Current Credentialing Process to Become a Registered Dietitian
- Complete a minimum of a bachelor's degree at a U.S. regionally accredited university or college and course work accredited or approved by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND).
- Complete a ACEND-accredited supervised practice program. Successful completion of the Catherine Austin Dietetic Internship at the Memphis VAMC provides the intern with a verification statement issued by ACEND which allows the intern to take the National Registration Exam. Upon successful completion of the exam, the intern is officially designated as a Registered Dietitian. The Dietetic Internship must provide at least 1200 hours of supervised practice experiences to meet the Competencies/Learning Outcomes defined for entry-level practice as a registered dietitian.
- Pass a national examination administered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR). For more information regarding the examination, refer to CDR's website at www.cdrnet.org.* Graduates who successfully complete the ACEND-accredited Dietetic Internship at the Memphis VA Medical Center are eligible to take the CDR credentialing exam to become a RDN.
- Obtain state licensure if required. Licensure is required in the state of Tennessee. More information about licensure can be found online at the Tennessee Board of Dietitians/Nutritionist Examiners.
- Complete continuing professional educational requirements to maintain registration.
Effective January 1, 2024 the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR) will require a minimum of a master's degree to be eligible to take the credentialing exam to become a registered dietitian nutritionist (RDN). In order to be approved for registration examination eligibility with a bachelor's degree, an individual must meet all eligibility requirements and be submitted into CDR's Registration Eligibility Processing System (REPS) before 12pm midnight Central Time, December 31, 2023. For more information about this requirement visit CDR's website.
The Catherine Austin Dietetic Internship Program at the Memphis VAMC has been granted full accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics, 120 South Riverside Plaza, Suite 2000, Chicago, IL 60606-6995, USA, (312) 8990-0400. For more information visit their website here.
*Link will take you outside of the Department of Veterans Affairs Website. VA does not endorse and is not responsible for the content of the linked websites. The link will open in a new window.
