Admissions

University Admission Requirements

A student applying to a master's program must:

• have earned a four-year bachelor's degree or its equivalent from a college or university that is accredited by the appropriate regional accrediting association, or do so within one academic year
• present unofficial transcripts from each college or university other than Illinois State at which graduate, undergraduate, or non-degree credit was earned. The unofficial transcript should be easily readable and clearly indicate degree(s) awarded, courses and course grades for each term. If accepted, official transcripts can be emailed from the university to GraduateAdmissions@IllinoisState.edu or mailed in a sealed envelope to: Illinois State University, Graduate School, 209 Hovey Hall, Campus Box 4040, Normal, IL 61790-4040.

International students can learn more about specific application requirements by visiting the Office of Admissions.

Additional Program Admission Requirements

A student applying to this program must:

• Complete at least a Bachelor's degree
• Have a preferred cumulative GPA of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale)
• Complete a didactic program in dietetics (DPD) with a DPD verification statement

Dietetics Inclusive Centralized Application Service (DICAS)

Illinois State University participates in the online Dietetics Inclusive Centralized Application Service (DICAS) process. To apply, you will need to create an account in the DICAS portal and add our program to your list. Please note that the dietetic internship program at Illinois State has different options, each tied to specific applications in DICAS. Please ensure you are applying to the specific program you intend to complete. 

• Illinois State University Distance Dietetic Internship and online Master of Science in Nutrition- This application is intended for students who plan to complete their distance dietetic internship and graduate degree requirements online at Illinois State University.
• Illinois State University Distance Dietetic Internship Certificate Program- This application is intended for students who will complete their distance dietetic internship at Illinois State University but already have a graduate degree or are working towards their graduate degree at another institution.

The centralized application will require you to complete your personal information, academic history (includes sending official transcripts to DICAS), supporting information, and program materials.

If you need assistance with the centralized application, please contact DICAS customer support at 617-612-2855.

Recommendations

In the DICAS portal, you will be prompted to enter the name and email address for each of your chosen recommenders. This will prompt an email request to be sent to the recommender on your behalf. Our program requires 2 recommendations.

• One academic recommendation (ex: DPD director, faculty/staff, academic advisor)
• One professional recommendation (ex: employer, volunteer coordinator, supervisor of professional practice experiences)

You are encouraged to choose recommenders who can speak to your ability to be successful in a distance learning program.

Personal Statement

The personal statement is your opportunity to highlight your unique qualifications, experiences, and commitment to your academic and professional goals. Because we understand each student is unique, we do not have any required writing prompts. Instead, we encourage you to use this statement to demonstrate why you’re a strong candidate for our program. Please limit the personal statement to 1,000 words.

Application Fee

Our program's application submission fee is $35 for each internship track (if applying to both tracks, submit $70). These funds are distributed back to admitted students to assist with funding conference attendance, projects, etc.  We accept online payments.

Submit your application fee.

Application Timeline

At this time, Illinois State University participates in the Spring application cycle with the program starting in the fall.

• Application Opens: August 5
• Priority Deadline: January 15 at 11:59 pm CST
• Program Decision Date: March 1
• Applicant Decision Date: March 15

You may submit your application materials via DICAS anytime from August 5 through January 15. Our team will conduct a holistic review of applications on a bi-monthly basis. Suitable candidates will be invited to complete an interview process. Once our team has made a decision, you will be notified via email of your application status (no later than March 1). Students will have until March 15 to accept or decline an offer.

Application review and program admission will be completed on a rolling basis until all available slots are full. You are encouraged to follow the priority deadline of January 15, however any applications submitted after this date will be reviewed accordingly, as space in our program allows.

Our program is committed to following the ACEND Programs Code of Conduct and Traffic Rules. You are expected to follow the ACEND Code of Conduct and Traffic Rules for Applicants.

Applying to the Graduate Program

In an effort to reduce the time and cost associated with applying to dietetic internships, only the DICAS application is required for admission consideration to Illinois State University. All admitted student will be required to provide official transcripts to the Graduate School before the start of the dietetic internship program.

How to Apply for Preselect

We accept preselect applications only from Illinois State University students in the accelerated master’s sequence (FND dietetics sequence), the senior dietetics sequence, or the Master’s of Science in Nutrition sequence.

• Application Opens: August 5
• Priority Deadline: October 15
• Program Decision Date: Prior to fall break
• Applicant Decision Date: Prior to winter break

Prospective preselect students may submit their application materials via DICAS anytime from August 5 through October 15. Our team will conduct a holistic review of applications after the priority deadline. Suitable candidates will be invited to complete an interview process. Once our team has made a decision, you will be notified via email of your application status (prior to fall break). Students will have until the last day of the fall semester to accept or decline an offer.

Eligible preselect applicants are encouraged to follow the priority deadline of October 15, however any applications submitted after this date will be reviewed accordingly, as space in our program allows.

Students accepted into the preselect cohort will need to submit their supervised practice schedules to the program for approval in early April.

Eligible preselect students who are not selected in the fall are encouraged to reapply to our program using the general DICAS application timeline. Additionally, students can apply to other internships through DICAS.

If you have individual questions about your eligibility after the preselect process, please direct questions to dieteticinternship@ilstu.edu.

Preselect Application Timeline

Preselect applications will be reviewed in the fall prior to the year you intend to begin the distance dietetic internship program.

If you are not preselected to our internship, we encourage you to reapply during the match process as you may still have potential to match with our programs. If you have individual questions about your eligibility after the preselect process, please direct questions to dieteticinternship@ilstu.edu.

Global Access to Online Degree Programs

When applying, international students applying to a fully online program must agree to  our international online and hybrid programs disclosure and disclaimer statements. Due to limited on-campus courses, immigration documentation cannot be issued for students seeking F-1 or J-1 status.

Graduate Coordinator