Apply for a New Dietitian License
Qualification Requirements
Commission on Dietetic Registration
If you hold a current dietitian registration issued by the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR), then you have already met the educational, experience, and examination requirements needed to apply for a Texas dietitian license.
Educational and Experience Requirements
Applicants for a Texas dietitian license must complete educational, experience, and examination requirements in accordance with 16 TAC, Chapter 116.
Applicants must have completed an approved preplanned professional experience program or internship in dietetics practice of not less than 900 hours under the supervision of a licensed dietitian or a registered dietitian.
To show proof of completing the preplanned professional experience program or internship, you must submit along with your application materials a photocopy of the registration card issued by the Commission on Dietetic Registration. The registration card must be in active status.
Preplanned Professional Experience Program
A preplanned professional experience program must be approved or recognized by the Commission on Dietetic Registration.
Internship Program
An internship must be a coordinated undergraduate program in dietetics, or a professional experience program in dietetics approved or recognized by the Commission on Dietetic Registration.
Examination Requirements
You must pass two examinations before applying for a Texas license:
- The examination accepted for licensure in Texas is the Registration Examination for Dietitians offered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration
- The Texas Jurisprudence Examination
For more information on the examination process, please see the dietitian examinations page.
Application and Fees
To apply for a new license, submit a completed application (apply online or apply by mail) along with the fee of $108.
You must also submit with your application materials:
A dietitian license is valid for two years after the date of issuance and may be renewed biennially.
Fitness of Applicants for Licensure
In determining your fitness for licensure, the department will consider your past ethical behavior as well as your skills and abilities to provide adequate nutrition services.
To this end, the department may request and consider previous evaluations, professional or personal references, transcripts from official hearings, and any other information that may be pertinent to determining the fitness of an applicant.
A complete listing of conditions for denial of licensure can be found in ยง116.51(d) of the dietitian administrative rules.
Out of State Applicants
Degrees and course work received at foreign colleges and universities shall be acceptable only if such course work could be counted as transfer credit from accredited colleges or universities as reported by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers.
Applicants with Criminal Convictions
TDLR asks about criminal history because some criminal history may be grounds for denial or revocation of a license. TDLR's Licensing Division conducts a criminal background check through the Department of Public Safety (DPS) on each original license application and each renewal application filed. If the application or the DPS check reveals a conviction that could be a basis for denying the license, the Licensing staff will refer the matter to TDLR's Enforcement Division for further review.
Please see the Guidelines for License Applicants with Criminal Convictions, which describe the process by which TDLR determines whether a criminal conviction renders an applicant an unsuitable candidate for the license, or whether a conviction warrants revocation or suspension of a license previously granted.
