Iowa State University launched their Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) accredited Master of Professional Practice in Dietetics (MPP) graduate degree program to train future Registered Dietitian Nutritionists (RDNs) in August 2021. We are reaching out to invite you to serve as a preceptor for our program to train future Iowa RDNs. Our Iowa-based student enrollment is dependent on the number of preceptors we have, even more so now, since all students in the program will be completing the same supervised experience each semester. We are particularly interested in increasing our preceptors in and around the Ames/Des Moines, Mason city, Iowa city, Davenport, Waterloo areas. Students will be simultaneously enrolled in online didactic coursework, while completing their supervised experiential learning each semester. We anticipate that the students will be on your site approximately 24 hours or 3 days a week. Preceptors have the flexibility to choose days and times of student on-site experiences. Details about supervised experience include- Food Systems Management supervised experience • Occurs during the summer semester • Students complete 250 hours on-site in 11 weeks • Facility options include but not limited to: public schools, health care facilities (universities, hospitals, long-term care, skilled nursing/rehab care, acute inpatient rehabilitation facilities) Community Nutrition supervised experience • Occurs during the fall semester • Students complete 250 hours on-site in 11 weeks • Facility options include but not limited to: WIC/health department, Agency on Aging, food banks, food pantries, public schools, universities, Extension, outpatient nutrition, private practice,
employee wellness. Medical Nutrition Therapy supervised experience • Occurs during the spring semester • Students complete 400 hours on-site in 15 weeks • Facility options include but not limited to: hospital, long-term care, acute inpatient rehabilitation facilities, skilled nursing/rehab care, outpatient nutrition, private practice, consulting Details about our program (https://www.dietetics.iastate.edu/), your role as a preceptor (https://www.dietetics.iastate.edu/preceptors/) and continuing education opportunities (https://www.dietetics.iastate.edu/orientation-continuing-education/) can be found at the links provided. You can earn 3 CPEUs per year from the Commission on Dietetic Registration for your role as a preceptor. We also have other free CPEU opportunities online, including Nutrition-Focused Physical Exam training. A recording of our recent townhalls about the program changes can be found at https://www.dietetics.iastate.edu/orientation-continuing-education/. If you are interested in serving as a preceptor or have questions about our new program, please reach out to us at mppisu@iastate.edu. We would love to partner with you in training future RDNs. Thank you, Preceptors.
Submitted by Mridul Datta, PhD, RD, LD, FAND