Develop knowledge and skills to meet accreditation standards as a Registered Dietician (RD).
Objective
Develop Knowledge And Skills Necessary To Provide Entry Level Services
Students will develop the knowledge and skills associated with the standards of the American Dietetics Association (ADA).
Indicator
National Registration Examination For Dietetics (RD Exam)
Graduates who take the National Registration Examamination for Dietetics (RD Exam) will pass it on the first time it is attempted. This indicator is consistent with the requirements of the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education (CADE), the accrediting body for the American Dietetics Association.
Criterion
80% Passing On First Administration
The report from the American Dietetic Association will indicate that 80% of first-time test takers on the National Registration Examination for Dietetics (RD Exam) who have graduated from the Combined Master's and Dietetic Internship Program pass the exam.
Finding
RD Exam Results
Of the seven students who have taken the Registration Examination for Dietetics (R.D. Exam), four have passed on the first attempt, for a pass rate of 57.1%, short of the 80% goal. One person has attempted the exam three times without success.
Action
Addressing Identified Weaknesses
This criterion was not met for 2009-2010. In order to help improve the pass rate, the program is placing more emphasis on attendance and participation in a review course, in case studies that aid in application of information, and in lecture over test material during classes. The DI Director is ensuring that students taking the mock RD exam receive a score of at least 80% before they are eligible to sit for the Registration Exam. Also, the DI Director is putting greater emphasis on the GRE score as a screening mechanism. This is an important consideration since the two students who failed the RD exam multiple times had GRE scores in the 600's. Since that time, the majority of interns have had scores of at least 900, and no one has been accepted with a score of less than 700 on the GRE.
Objective
Internship/Field Activities
Students develop knowledge and skills as they particpate in internship/field activities that prepare them for entry-level positions as dieticians.
Indicator
RD Supervisor Checklist Of Portfolio Activities
Embedded assessments are found in courses such as FCS 579, 530, 583, 575, and SOC 543. For example, as each student complete a semester of FCS 579, the supervised practice portion of the program, the Registered Dietitian supervising that student completes a check sheet indicating which of the skills of the entry-level dietitian have been met with that semester's work. A portfolio of activities in the courses FCS 583 and 575 and SOC 543 will be used to measure student learning as they progress through the Combined Master's and Dietetic Internship Program. An example of a portfolio is available in the Dietetic Internship Director's office but portfolios for this program generally are much too large to attach to this document.
Criterion
90% Of Students Scoring At Least 80% Of Entry Level Dietitian Competencies
90% of students' portfolio evaluation (the evaluations of the Registered Dietitians with whom the students were working is part of this) will show successful completion of 80% or more of the competencies for an entry-level dietitian.
Finding
Portfolio Assessment
100% of students in this cohort demonstrated successful completion of at least 80% of the competencies for an entry-level dietitian based on portfolios and portfolio assessments.
Action
Entry-Level Preparation
We strive to assist students as they improve their portfolios and the activities and assessments that form the basis for the portfolios. When students' portfolios are not up to the standard required of the program, faculty mentor students to bring the portfolios to meet the standards.
Objective
Demonstrated Knowledge And Skills For Entry-level
Students will demonstrate entry-level knowledge and skills to provide dietician services.
Indicator
Mock RD Exam
This exam has proven, over the past three years it has been used, to be an excellent diagnostic tool as well as a predictor of whether or not the student will pass the National Registration Examination for Dietetics (RD Exam) on the first attempt.
Criterion
90% Of Students Score At Least 80% On Mock RD Exam
90% of students who exit the program will score a passing grade on the Mock RD Exam of 80% or higher (a passing grade on the Mock Rd Exam is required before a Letter of Verification will be issued; the Letter of Verification must be issued before a student can sit for the National Registration Examination for Dietetics).
Finding
Mock RD Exam Results
Of the seven students who graduated from this program in December of 2009, six of them received a passing score on the Mock RD Exam of 80% of higher (a score of 80% or higher is required so that students can be issued a letter of verification and take the Registration Examination for Dietetics). This yields a percentage of 85.7%, short of the 90% goal.
(Please note that the faculty member responsible for this area left unexpectedly and did not complete the analysis. All efforts to retrieve the information have been unsuccessful.)
Action
Entry-Level Skills
The faculty member responsible for this area left unexpectedly and did not do the required analysis on the weaknesses identified by the Mock RD Exam. However, a new Dietetic Internship Director has been hired, and she will follow through to analyze results of the Mock RD Exam with cohort groups beginning with those graduating in December of 2011, the first group for which she will have this data.
Goal
Supervised Practice
Students in the Combined MS and Dietetic Internship Program will progress through supervised practice in clinical, community and foodservice rotations and a curriculum that will augment knowledge and increase skills to promote excellence in research and dietetic practice.
Objective
Scheduled Rotations And Research Activities
Students will acquire practical and critical thinking skills from each scheduled rotation and research activity. Rotations are in various clinical, community, food service, and research settings and total 1,000 hours over three long semesters. Content and activities in the rotations are designed to meet the requirements of the accrediting body, the Commission on Accreditation for Dietetics Education.
Indicator
End-of-Rotation Exams
End of rotation exams will be used to measure students' progress toward knowledge and skills demonstrations.
Criterion
90% Of Students Score 80% At End Of Rotations
Over 90% of the students will indicate on survey that through program goals they had acquired practical and critical thinking skills and provide a rating of satisfactory or higher on the survey
Finding
Progression/Successful Completion
100% of students graduating in December of 2009 completed their rotations and indicated that they had acquired practical and critical thinking skills, providing a rating of satisfactory or higher on the survey taken at the time of graduation.
Action
Progression/Successful Completion
The program will continue to nurture students through the process. This cohort lost one member due to factors outside the scope of the program, and another member who was accepted did not ever begin her rotations. The program will continue to try to be as selective as possible and accept only those students with a high probability of successful program completion.