Two More Days for D&D Digital Rearranging!

The official end of "online reordering," or rearranging our D&D Digital matching internship choices is on Monday, March 26th by 11:59 pm CST (or 8:59 pm PST). See the Spring 2012 timeline here.

I am still unsure of my final internship choices, and I hope to finalize my decision soon. How you rank your internships is a huge deciding factor on whether and where you get accepted, and I hope that you will get accepted to your best choice! :)

I was talking to a co-worker about the low rate of applicants getting matched to a program, and we were discussing the benefit of non-interview internship programs releasing applicant info, either their highly ranked applicants or "discarded" applicants, to their applicants. Wouldn't it be great to know that you didn't stand a chance in certain programs you applied for, so you can rank the internships you are most likely to get into higher? I think that would greatly increase the match rate, because there are many resulting programs with open spots that are unfilled. Unfortunately, only two of my internships require interviews, so I am unsure of how well I rank in the other four internships I applied for.

I am currently comparing my applied internships forwards and backwards to finalize my priority of possible matches.

What are your decision criteria for ranking your internships?

- Program focus
- Length of program
- Location
- Types of rotations
- Available rotation sites
- # Hrs spent in each set of rotations
- Compatibility with director through contact (e-mail, open house, phone call, interview)
- Cost (cost of program, available stipend, cost of living, transportation)

I feel like applying to these internships is so much harder than applying to college! Just knowing that you need to choose the right programs which will help expose you to all the different areas of dietetics and help you grow as a dietitian is pretty challenging. I feel that the most important thing is you are enthusiastic about what the program has to offer; you can deal with the other decisions, like how am I going to pay for this?, later. This is serious professional training, a giant step that separates us from nutritionists to dietitians. I really hope that we will get matched to good programs this round. :)

Good luck with your internship rankings!

Happy RD Day! and interviews, oh my!

How has everyone celebrated National Nutrition Month so far? AND's NNM theme for 2012 is "Shape Up Your Plate" in reference to the newest MyPlate. Today also happens to be RD Day, so if you see a RD around, congratulate him/her for their dedication to dietetics! And for the rest of us who are RD hopefuls, we can still celebrate today as a reminder of our fueling desire to work in the dietetics field. :)

For those of you who applied for the Spring 2012 match (on a Sunday and April Fool's no less!), this time is critical for interviews and rearranging our D&D Digital internship matching choices (D&D deadline: Monday, 3/26 11:59 pm CT). My co-worker who is finishing up her last quarter at UCD recently received her interview, and I have two interviews in the near future! I am feeling very excited, nervous and determined, and yet feel clueless on how I am planning on rearranging my D&D choices.

I wanted to share Jenny Westerkamp's 30 min Interview Prep video: http://www.justin.tv/allaccessinternships/b/306478423

Also, AAI posted articles on interview tips: http://allaccessinternships.com/articles.php?category=Interview%20Tips

Congratulations if you already completed your interviews, and good luck if you have future interviews! And for those of you who don't need interviews for their internship choices, lucky you! Let's get matched and be one step closer to being a RD! :)

Apps IN!

There's no better feeling than submitting all of your DI applications!

I applied to six internships for this matching process, and I look forward to possible interviews next month! I believe all of my internships require interviews, so I will probably rearrange my D&D matching choices accordingly.

Here is a rough timeline of things that I have learned from applying through DICAS for the spring match (which the majority of internships participate in):

Preferably by October/November, very latest by December: 

- Research the DI programs forwards and backwards through the list of accredited programs on the AND website and the applicant guide. Narrow down your selections based on your eligibility and interests to roughly 5-10 internships.

- For the programs you plan to apply, look up the required persons needed to write your rec letters. Most likely, they require two professors in food and nutrition (sometimes one of the two includes your DPD director) and one work reference (job or internship supervisor). Ask these persons in advance to help you write good rec letters for you, and give them supplemental information on you (resume, your dietetic experiences, qualifications, your DI programs of interest).

Preferably by December, very latest by January:

- Register for your DICAS application when it opens in the beginning of Dec. Complete the information you know now, and scan through the application to know what you need to include later on.

- For your rec letter writers, submit their contact information soon so they will receive their e-mails from DICAS and have adequate time to submit their recommendations for you.

- Order your transcript to be sent directly from your DPD's college to the DICAS transcript dept. You need to account for mailing time and for the DICAS dept to transfer your transcript to your application and calculate your DPD GPAs (science, professional and overall). Unfortunately, you don't get to view your DPD GPAs until after you submit your application.

- Submit your DPD contact information for DICAS to obtain your verification statement or intent to complete.

- Process any necessary paperwork/pay processing fees for your DPD department by their deadlines.

- Contact your DI programs of interest by e-mailing the director. Not only are you making a great first impression, you are also demonstrating a great interest in the program (tell the director what parts of the program interest you and back them up with complementary experiences you already have) and asking questions that cannot be answered on the DI program website (shows that you are already knowledgeable about the program and want to seek even more).

In case you're unsure of what questions to ask, try some of the following:

What do you think are the most challenging aspects of your program?

I am very interested in (insert specific rotations), can you tell me more about how the interns' played a role?

Do the interns work independently or in groups most of the time?

What qualities do you seek most in your interns?

What do you recommend I can do between now and applying for your internship that can make me stand out from the competition of other applicants?

Depending on the director, some directors prefer communicating by e-mail or by phone. Be sure that your e-mail and phone voicemail are professional, and also leave your phone number so the director has an option to respond either by e-mail or phone.

- If you can, attend the open house or schedule a personal visit to the internship program. Open houses usually run in November, December and January. Some internships have virtual open houses to accommodate potential interns who cannot travel; definitely participate in these! These will help you get a good feel of the environment of the program, and you have the opportunity to ask great questions and make a great impression to the director. That way, the director matches the application to a face when reviewing many applications.

- If needed, take the GRE. It takes roughly 10 days for you to receive your complete score report, and you can input your scores on DICAS. Depending on the programs which require the GRE, they may or may not need your official score report during the application process. I would still recommend for you to send your official scores to those programs at the end of your GRE exam (4 schools are included).

[In terms of preparing for the GRE, definitely use the Powerprep software they have to know the sections and type of questions of the updated GRE.]

- For DICAS, you only list your DPD classes, not everything you took in college. Obtain a list of DPD classes from your DPD that has a list of science DPD classes and professional DPD classes. Clarify with your DPD director if needed.

Preferably by January, latest by February:

- Create a checklist of all application materials needed for every program you apply to. Every program has their own list of application requirements even when using DICAS. Make sure that the questions/topics for the personal letters match the same as DICAS, and if they differ, be sure to address those other questions either in addition to the DICAS questions or instead of the DICAS questions (probably should clarify with the director to make sure you are doing it correctly). Most likely, you would need to submit your application fee to each program separately. Include a business cover letter with each payment to give a good professional impression (instead of only sending the check in the envelope).

For combined graduate degree and DI programs, you most likely need to submit a graduate school application at the same time of submitting DICAS. Be sure to follow all of their requirements as well (probably need to submit a transcript for that application too).

When you designate each personal statement to each DI program in DICAS, there is an option to add supplemental information for the program. This is used for any extra materials necessary for the program. I personally used it for a 2-pg business letter of application for one of my programs.

- Work on your main personal statement! Try to use a timeline format while answering the required questions (what first got you interested in dietetics, how you carried out your interest in your experiences, what weaknesses you improved on and what strengths you gained, how your experiences shape your short-term and long-term goals, what complementary experiences you wish to gain through the DI program to help you achieve those goals, and why you are a great match to the program). Adjust your personal statement for each program. Make sure that the program name and director's name you use matches with the program's designated personal statement.

Make sure to use strong action verbs whenever possible.

Be truthful in your experiences, but do not forget to sell yourself! Explain the work situation and your role, what you did to perform well, and the result that created a positive impact and proves your attained skills contributory to be a dietetic intern.

Even when talking about your weaknesses, always speak positively. Always speak weaknesses before your strengths, and try to use weaknesses that are not major skills needed to succeed in the internship (i.e. mastering fluency of a language). I personally spoke of not doing well on academic performance while juggling two majors and other activities, but not letting it stop me from pursuing dietetics and gaining more dietetics knowledge and experiences.

In addition to creating a timeline and making sure that paragraphs flow together in harmony, also make sure that your specific interest and the program's emphasis is communicated throughout the paper. Do not introduce conflicting ideas (i.e. talking about being a community dietitian when the program has a clinical focus).

The character limit is 8000 characters (roughly 1000 words). I was told by the DICAS department to not copy and paste directly from the word document to DICAS, but to copy and paste from the word document to notepad, then to DICAS. There should be less trouble with character limit that way (I had trouble with saving my personal statement even though I met the character limit). Be sure to scan through the DICAS personal statement box to ensure that you fix weird characters (sometimes "s turn into ?s) and separate paragraphs.

- Be sure to complete your section on honors/awards, volunteer/work experience, extracurricular activities wholeheartedly.

For the number of weeks/hours per week/hours per year, it is fine to estimate/average these numbers.

For volunteer/work experience, start with one to two sentences explaining the type of facility you worked in, then list your responsibilities.

For extracurricular activities, list important experiences/projects/activities that you actively contributed to in addition to your responsibilities. It is very helpful to have served as an officer in several organizations vs. being a general member in ten clubs.

- After you complete your volunteer/work experiences in DICAS, use the information to help you write your resume. You want your resume to list specific information about projects you led, people you have trained, the efficiency of how you accomplished your responsibilities, any new changes you implemented, and any other information that shows your positive impact to the workplace. Try your best to use numbers (as in number of beds/patients, number of employees you trained, how much $ you raised/used in budget). Use your resume to go beyond your list of responsibilities.

For the resume, you must ensure that the layout is continuous and easy to read. It should be scanned in 10 seconds or less, and contain only the most impressive things about you. Also, it should focus on dietetics and dietetics skills. It is fine to include non-dietetics experiences as long as you can demonstrate that the skills you achieved will apply to the dietetic internship.

Include a heading (name, address, e-mail address, phone number). If you have a professional website/blog, you can also include its link. Make sure that the website is up-to-date, professional, and related to food/nutrition/dietetics. If it's not relevant to dietetics, then there's no use to put it.

No need for objective. It's clear that your objective is to get into an internship.

Include your education: name of college/university, city/state, years attended or graduation date, bachelors/majors. GPA is optional (only list it if it helps you, meaning it should be a high GPA), and definitely list honors if you achieved high honors or dean's list.

Include your best work/volunteer experiences where you made the largest impact. Use bullet points (no more than 3-4 per experience), and do not use periods at the end of each phrase.

Include other supplementary information, such as activities and professional association memberships. Maybe you authored articles or carried out research studies. No need to include references (you have your rec letters in DICAS).

- Before you submit your DICAS application, scan through every section to make sure that you filled all information completely and accurately. Be sure that you complete every item of your application checklists! Submit your DICAS application and certify mail your supplementary application materials to your programs by the deadline!

Even though it was difficult to work with the DICAS website in some areas, it was very nice to not need to print all application materials for every program that I applied to! I am very thankful for the support from my rec letter writers, as well as the important people in my life who helped me so much throughout this process.

Do you have any other tips on applying to DIs?

DICAS Personal Statements

It's the final stretch: 5 days left to go!!

Unfortunately, DICAS is not making things simpler. I am having trouble uploading my personal statement of 7989 characters; it would only allow me to save with 7988 characters. Granted, the total character limit is 8000 characters.

Is anyone else having the same problem?

It's almost the end of January!

I'm feeling like this right now...

How are everyone's DI apps so far? :) More accomplished than I am, I hope!

Finding a Mentor

I decided to contact one of my favorite dietitians, Ellie Krieger, through her website to see if she was willing to allow me to assist her with any of her projects. There's no harm trying right?

Well, here is how it turned out:

On Sun, Jan 15, 2012 at 12:05 PM, <forms@formbldr.com> wrote:

Comments:: Happy New Year Ellie! I am a prospective dietetic internship applicant; I graduated from University of California, Davis with dual degrees in Communication and Clinical Nutrition. I love your approach to healthy food and nutrition and your career (very hooked on "So Easy"), and I was wondering if you can give me any advice on what types of experiences I can gain now to go into your similar field. I would also like to offer my free assistance in anything you need through the Internet, such as social media, your blog, and even testing recipes. Thank you very much for your time, and I look forward to hear from you.

CAPTCHA:
Please enter the code above: : 6fe6dd6

Hi Christy,

Thanks so much for your email. One suggestion is to join some of the Dietetic Practice Groups offered through the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics specifically Nutrition Entrepreneurs (http://www.nedpg.org/) and Dietitians in Business & Communication (http://www.dbconline.org/). Both have ListServs where you can gain much knowledge for fellow RDs and dietetic students in the field.

Unfortunately, I do not need an assistant at this time but thank you so much for your kind offer.

Best,
Ellie

Alright, time to look for another dietetic mentor. :) Jenny Westerkamp of All Access Internships has said through her webinars that she found her sports internship and current job through e-mailing a dietitian, so I thought I might try it too! Do you have any suggestions on creating your own internship/finding your dietetic mentor?

How to Improve your Chances

I must correct how I say ADA, it's AND (Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics) now. AND posted "Suggestions to Improve Your Chances at Getting a Dietetic-Internship Position" for current DPD students and unmatched applicants. Suggestions include:

1) Meeting above the min. requirements for GPA & GRE (if required).

- DIs primarily request a min. 3.0 GPA, but competitive applicants bring a much higher GPA than that.

- Retake classes if needed to increase your GPA, and retake GRE if needed to increase your scores (V, Q, W).

2) Asking only the individuals who know you well enough to write strong letters of recommendation for you.

- Many DIs require recommendations from DPD faculty (sometimes even specifically the DI director and/or foodservice management professor) and an internship/work supervisor. Make sure to give your best impression and to do the best possible work you can, so they can sincerely write positively about you in great detail. That way, they truly believe in you, instead of feeling obligated to do so because of their position.

3) Communicate effectively, efficiently and professionally.

- Sound polite and professional throughout all your application materials that you submit to your internships. This can apply to your personal statement, resume, explaining your experiences, as well as your professionalism in social media, your phone voicemail and e-mail address.

- Speak well of your DPD program and experiences; any complaining, gossip and negative stories are not welcomed because they speak poorly of you. It's important to realize that every program/organization has their own quirks and dysfunctions, and even more important to work around them. Focus on improving your outlook on things, and motivate others to do as well!

4) STAND OUT! (don't you wish your application incorporated a hologram video of yourself to STAND OUT? lol yes, me too...)

- Gain volunteer/work experience in a variety of dietetics fields and focus more time on areas you are interested to work in for the future. You want to have experience in different fields (usually clinical, FSM & community), as well as narrow down to a specific area you're most passionate about.

- Become more socially involved on campus and AND through membership to dietetics organizations and membership associations; try your best to gain leadership positions in these organizations.

- Publish and present any research or projects for journals, conferences and poster sessions.

5) UP your odds of getting accepted.

- Make sure you meet all minimum (i.e. GPAs, GRE) requirements and you are okay with all internship costs and living expenses.

- Ratio of applicants to openings: the lower it is, the less competitive it is and easier for you to get in.

- If you are financially capable, apply to more programs and be more open-minded to apply to programs in different geographic regions (California and East Coast (esp. Boston) tend to be more competitive). Read up on their financial aid (i.e. stipends, scholarships, graduate assistantships, Stafford loans eligible) and the general internship schedule and whether or not you think you can handle a part-time job along with the internship. Maybe part-time or distance internships are better options for you.

- Contact program directors of every internship you're applying to so you can introduce yourself, ask for more details about the program that you cannot read on their website (read up their website thoroughly first), and also ask about what you can do to make your application more competitive and stand out from the rest. It's also a good opportunity to get a good feel of the director's personality and willingness to assist potential applicants.

6) Avoid the following:

- Posting embarrassing information on the Internet (i.e. blogs, Facebook); make sure that your entire application and any information the directors can look up on you are professional throughout.

- Criminal behavior (may make you illegible to work in healthcare facilities).

- Never misrepresent or falsify information regarding your education, work experiences or credentials. Be honest! When you look back in the past for things you have done leading up to this point, isn't it comforting to know that you were capable to juggle all of those things independently? Be the real you.


I also felt that Benedictine University's coordinated DI/Master's program posted up some helpful tips (see pg. 87-88) on how to succeed in their program, and I feel that they can apply to all dietetic internships. It's also to good to read them, understand them and practice them pre-dietetic internship phase!

Would you like to share your tips on how you improve your chances on getting matched? :)