OnCore Nutrition - Two Peas in a Podcast

Episode 37 - Tips for starting and progressing your nutrition career

Episode Summary

Calling all nutrition students and new grads...talking through tips to finding and fueling your fire and an exciting workshop we have planned just for you.

Episode Notes

Find and Fuel Your Fire Workshop

Tickets via Eventbrite

Getting a nutrition job is HARD! 

The Dietetics Workforce Report 2018

• There has been a 95% increase in dietetic grads over the last 7 years.
• Grads in Vic ↑ from 65 to 127 per year from 2010 to 2016.
• There is great concern that there is an oversupply of practitioners causing difficulties in new graduates finding positions and inhibiting movement for existing employees. 
• Many grads are still seeking work up to 12 mths post graduation.
• In this time, grads are driven to volunteering - but not always meaningful 
• You are highly qualified. There is a significant need for your skills. We have an ageing population, chronic disease and dietitians provide such important prevention and management care
• The report highlighted that Dietitians are highly qualified, however there are obvious gaps in business and professional skills in many courses. 
• Despite working in a clinical role 30% of dietitians had no clinical supervisor.

file:///C:/Users/laure/Downloads/Dietetics%20Workforce%20Report.pdf

Potential career pathways 

Clinical dietetics

• Popular!
• When we’ve advertised for grad jobs there have been >100 applicants. 
• A quarter of organisations reported receiving >50 applicants for junior positions and advertisements were rare! 
• Hard to get grad jobs 

Consultancy and private practice

• Often don’t graduate with skills for business set up and challenging to dive into sole practitioner position without prior experience. Requires ++ mentoring and supervision. 
• Important for your own development but also for the reputation of the profession 

Food service

Media and marketing

• Don’t expect to get here straight away - need some experience behind you 
• Be responsible with what you put out into the world, social media etc. Don’t know what you don’t know. 

Public health and nutrition

Eventually policy, health promotion, advocacy

• Often start as a public health dietitian, community dietitian

Food industry

• Consulting
• Food analysis and product development, sensory evaluation
• Food technology and science
• Research 

Nutrition research and education

• Generally requires specialisation and smaller projects or honours, masters, PhD

https://www.deakin.edu.au/exercise-nutrition-sciences/careers-in-nutrition-and-dietetics

https://www.myhealthcareer.com.au/dietetics-career/

Our tips

• Volunteer meaningfully
• Upskill 
• Get a mentor - a meaningful one
• Apply for everything - know your limits/hard passes
• Apply well
• Prepare for interviews 
• Seek feedback - and actually be prepared to take it 

Our upcoming workshops

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/find-and-fuel-your-fire-student-early-dietitian-nutritionist-workshop-tickets-112762650122

Wed 26th Aug at 6pm 

Sun 29th aug at 2pm

Topics to cover 

How to land the job you want

• Job application preparation
• Interview (including phone/video interview) preparation 
• Setting yourself apart 
• What NOT to do! 
• Volunteer / work experience opportunities
• Professional development 

Finding your career niche / Progressing your career 

• Specialising 
• Quality projects opportunities in nutrition 
• Education opportunities in nutrition 
• Research opportunities in nutrition 
• Conference / presentation opportunities 

Supervision and mentoring

• Finding the right supervisor

Innovation in dietetics  

• Identifying gaps
• Pitching your idea
• Introduction to grants and proposals 

Delivery 

• Online 
• 2hr workshop 
• 2 sessions - one evening, one weekend 
• ‘Take home’ toolkit of resources