Dietetic Internship Program Schedule
Overview
UC Davis Medical Center Program Dates:
2024-2025 Class: September 3, 2024 - August 1, 2025
2025-2026 Class: September 15, 2025 - July 2, 2026
The first week of the program is an Orientation Week. After approximately one week of general orientation, all interns begin with food service management at the UC Davis Medical Center. Following completion of the management experiences, interns begin rotations in clinical nutrition core, advanced clinical nutrition, management, ambulatory and community nutrition. The sequence of each intern's schedule is different, but all interns will complete the following experiences:
Dietetic Internship credit is not granted for prior learning or work experience.
Food Service Management
Dietetic Interns will spend 4 weeks in food service management rotations. Experiences may include:
| Recipe Development | Cost and Revenue |
| Menu Planning (Retail and Patient) | Marketing |
| Quality Improvement | Taste Testing |
| Food Production | Food Costing |
| Leadership | Collaboration |
| Teamwork | Decision Making |
| Human Resources Management | Safety and Sanitation |
Clinical Nutrition Core
Dietetic Interns will spend 12 weeks in clinical nutrition core rotations. Experiences may include some of the following areas:
| General Medicine | Ear, Nose and Throat |
| Cardiology | Rehabilitation |
| Neurosurgery | Oncology |
| Surgery | Renal Transplant |
| Trauma | Hepatology |
| Gastrointestinal Disorders | Nephrology |
| Endocrinology | Cardiothoracic Surgery |
Adult Critical Care
Dietetic Interns will spend 4 weeks in critical care nutrition rotations. Experiences may include some of the following intensive care units:
| Trauma | Cardiothoracic Surgery |
| Burn | Medical/Surgical |
| Neurosurgery | Surgical |
Pediatric Acute Care
Dietetic Interns will spend 4 weeks in pediatric nutrition rotations. Experiences may include some of the following areas:
| Pediatric Unit | Neonatal Intensive Care Unit |
| Pediatric Intensive Care Unit | Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Unit |
Ambulatory Practice
Dietetic Interns will spend four to eight weeks in UC Davis Medical Center ambulatory practices. Experiences may include some of the following areas:
| Transplant | Bariatric Surgery |
| Pediatric Specialty Clinics Health Education and Management | Adult/Pediatric Endocrine |
| Primary Care Networks | Cancer Center |
Community Nutrition
Dietetic Interns will spend two to five weeks in community settings. Experiences may include some of the following areas:
| Food Bank | Supplemental Program for Women Infants, and Children (WIC) |
| Outpatient Dialysis |
Elective Experience
Interns may spend up to two weeks completing electives. Experiences may include some of the following areas:
| Adult Specialty Clinics | Advanced Pediatrics |
| Pediatric Specialty Clinics | Outpatient Dialysis |
| Adult Inpatient Specialty |
Staff Relief
After demonstration of competence, interns complete a minimum of two weeks of staff relief experience in inpatient clinical nutrition. In general, interns spend up to 5-6 weeks in staff relief experience. The staff relief experience solidifies interns' knowledge, provides an opportunity to gain independence and reinforces practices for an entry-level dietitian. Interns apply knowledge learned throughout the internship including assessment, implementation of interventions, problem-solving, consideration of disease pathophysiology and documentation skills. Interns are supervised by an RD, who reviews and co-signs all documentation.
Didactics
Classroom time accompanies supervised practice. Interns spend approximately 165 hours in didactic class time throughout the year.
Please click on the link below for detailed information on didactic classes:
UC Davis Dietetic Internship Didactic List
Wellness Time / Time Away
The program has schedule Winter and Spring Breaks for which the intern will be off. Interns may also receive time off for scheduled UC Holidays. Scheduled time away may vary based on the learning experiences.