Graduates with a degree in nutrition definitely selected the right career area at the right time. Never before have Americans been more interested in or fastidious about how they eat, meaning that the professional advice of graduates with a degree in nutrition has become a much sought after commodity. Graduates with a degree in nutrition will find careers at every step of the food production and distribution chain. Certainly graduates with a degree in nutrition know they have stepped into a career area that appears to be growing by the minute.
Hospital Careers One of the first places that graduates with a degree in nutrition are likely to look for career opportunities is in area hospitals. This makes good sense and often results in a successful job search for graduates who can produce a degree in nutrition when they interview. Hospitals of all sizes are reliant upon the services of nutritionists to make certain that those patients who are hospitalized over time are receiving meals that are matched appropriately with their dietary and nutritional needs. Cooks are responsible for preparing food but they are not responsible for building a menu that addresses patient needs and acknowledges patient limitations. It is the job of the nutritionist to help direct the flow of information about the patient’s condition into a manageable list of possible dietary choices.
Patient’s who will be staying in the hospital for a week or more or likely to receive a visit from the hospital nutritionist who will talk to them about their body’s needs and make suggestions for healthy and helpful eating off the hospital menu for the duration of the hospital stay. When patients are preparing for discharge after a medical stay that includes heart, stomach, diabetes,blood pressure, allergy and other major illnesses or conditions a hospital nutritionist is likely to stop by the patient’s room with an eating plan or a nutritional manual that will help patients and their families to take up the task of healthy eating when the patient is no longer under hospital supervision.
When patients leave the hospital today it is often with a laundry list of medications. Nutritionists can also assist patients in making certain that the foods they eat will enhance and not defeat the purposes of the medication. While such directives do not require the attention of a physician, patients will definitely benefit by the thoughtful and patient attention to detail that graduates with a degree in nutrition can supply.
The demand for hospital workers on every level is high today. The need for graduates with a degree in nutrition is no exception. Hospital work is demanding and can be emotionally draining. But the work is steady and reliable and is not without the personal satisfaction often received by those who help the sick and infirm.
School Employment Today’s public schools feed our nation’s young people at least one meal each day. In some locations schools also provide a breakfast meal for needy children to get them off on the right foot for the long day ahead. School departments may have the responsibility for thousands of meals every week. It is not enough to simply feed children today, it has become more and more important to make certain that we are feeding them well. Statistics are making the case nutritionists have long attempted to make. If you feed children fast food laden with fat, salt and sugar you will end up with obese children with a multiplicity of health problems.
By hiring a graduate with a degree in nutrition school systems in effect are taking a major stride toward insuring healthy menus will be prepared and served in the school meal programs. This does not mean that the food served has to be tasteless or lacking in spontaneity. It means a graduate with a degree in nutrition can help to build the kinds of menu plans for school children of all ages that will provide them with a well balanced and health enhancing meal, that can also be flavorful and enjoyable. Jobs with public schools can be especially enjoyable if the graduate with a degree in nutrition has the opportunity to work in a community familiar to him or her. The salary is competitive and the benefits solid. Some contracts for school nutritionists connect them to the school schedule meaning a good number of school year holdiays and summer’s off.
Institutional Nutritionists Some graduates with a degree in nutrition will find careers in large scale feeding situations that can be called institutional. These may include feeding college students, seminarians, prisoners or armed services. The numbers of people that fall under the guidance of a graduate with a degree in nutrition are large but the goal is still the same. It is not the job of the nutritionist to cook the food or even select the particular dishes to be cooked. It is the job of the nutritionist to certify that all in the particular group are receiving appropriate amounts of health sustaining food choices.
Certainly special care must be given to single out those individuals who need special consideration due to health problems like hypertension, diabetes or allergies. They must be provided with appropriate substitutions for those things which they cannot eat.
There is considerable responsibility attached to working in large settings as the staff nutritionist. Many people eating in large facilities have no special needs but the nutritionist must still ascertain that healthy food choices are being offered. But in addition to that general concern, graduates with a degree in nutrition really do take on the responsibility for insuring that the food prepared and presented gives options to meet the needs of every single person present. And as always the goal is not just survival but rather the goal is to provide meals that will allow students, prisoners, whoever the chance to maintain sound minds and bodies.
Obviously the pay scale for graduates with a degree in nutrition who are caring for the nutritional needs of a facility will depend upon the ownership of that facility. State or federal facilities will normally rank lower than private institutions.
Food Production Large food production companies hire graduates with a degree in nutrition to help them certify that the food they produce does in fact meet and surpass government nutritional standards. The work of graduates with a degree in nutrition may lead them into assisting with the production of graphs, charts and labels that will help convince customers that eating a particular product will not only be a taste pleasing event but will also help them to stay trim and ingest appropriate body building agents.
In a nation that loves to eat, food production companies are truly big business. But in a country now overwhelmed by the desire to get and stay healthy and svelte, eating right has become a near obsession. This raises the bar for food producing companies. No longer is it enough to produce and distribute food that is fresh and safe. Now it becomes important to justify everything that appears on your product label and to deliver a product that meets the healthy test. For this reason the services of graduates with a degree in nutrition have taken on a whole new significance. Appropriately enough there are good jobs available for graduates with a degree in nutrition in the food industry.
Government Careers The United States Government bears responsibility for the welfare of its citizenry. Part of that responsibility is to oversee the production and distribution of food products . There are numerous departments of our federal government that hire graduates with a degree in nutrition. Food and Drug Administration, Public Heath, Department of Agriculture, Surgeon Generals Office, Department of Education, Health and Human Services are just a few of the many federal government bureaus that are likely to hire graduates with a degree in nutrition.
Some of these hires will oversee food production, some will help to educate the public about wise food selections, all will look toward using their degree in nutrition to improve the lot of the American consumer. Compensation for government jobs is regular, dependable and usually is accompanied by a sold benefits package.
International Outreach Some graduates with a degree in nutrition who also have a certain human compassion and a willingness to take on a challenge will find careers in outreach programs aimed at assisting in third world nations. With so many impoverished and mal nourished people in our world there is no shortage of positions for graduates with a degree in nutrition. Organizations like the United Nations, the International Red Cross, the Peace Corps and Oxfam America hire nutritionists to go into foreign lands to help teach native peoples the basics of nutrition and how to prepare nutritionally sound meals based on the food they can produce or purchase at market.
Nutritionists working for these international relief agencies keep a careful eye on the specific nutritional needs of pregnant women, developing children, and the elderly trying to insure that their most basic nutritional needs are met. It is not enough to simply fill the stomachs of the poor. Graduates with a degree in nutrition can make a huge difference in the lives of the impoverished of our planet by sharing their knowledge in a way that may help people to survive and children to grow to maturity strong and healthy.
Working for an international agency during this time of civil unrest is hazardous at best. Graduates will want to assess the risks but also balance them against the immense good that they can accomplish by using their degree in nutrition in this selfless pursuit. The pay will be only a small part of the total reward.
Graduates with a degree in nutrition have a real skill to offer to both the rich and the poor. All must eat and all want to eat those things that will be life enhancing. Graduates with a degree in nutrition have the ability to help us all.
