Dietetic Technicians
Assist in the provision of food service and nutritional programs, under the supervision of a dietitian. May plan and produce meals based on established guidelines, teach principles of food and nutrition, or counsel individuals.
Also Known As:
Cook Chill Technician (CCT)
Diet Assistant
Diet Clerk
Diet Tech (Diet Technician)
Diet Tech (Dietetic Technician)
Diet Technician Registered (DTR)
Dietary Aide
Dietetic Assistant
Dietetic Technician Registered (DTR)
Nutrition Technician
Wages
Annual wages for Dietetic Technicians in United States
Job Outlook
Average
New job opportunities are likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
31,700
3% Change From 2024
Explore Dietetic Technicians video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Attend interdisciplinary meetings with other health care professionals to discuss patient care.
- Conduct nutritional assessments of individuals, including obtaining and evaluating individuals' dietary histories, to plan nutritional programs.
- Supervise food production or service or assist dietitians or nutritionists in food service supervision or planning.
- Plan menus or diets or guide individuals or families in food selection, preparation, or menu planning, based upon nutritional needs and established guidelines.
- Observe and monitor patient food intake and body weight, and report changes, progress, and dietary problems to dietician.
- Determine food and beverage costs and assist in implementing cost control procedures.
- Prepare a major meal, following recipes and determining group food quantities.
- Provide dietitians with assistance researching food, nutrition, or food service systems.
- Observe and monitor patient food intake and body weight, and report changes, progress, and dietary problems to dietician.
- Plan menus or diets or guide individuals or families in food selection, preparation, or menu planning, based upon nutritional needs and established guidelines.
- Analyze menus or recipes, standardize recipes, or test new products.
- Select, schedule, or conduct orientation or in-service education programs.
- Develop job specifications, job descriptions, or work schedules.
- Conduct nutritional assessments of individuals, including obtaining and evaluating individuals' dietary histories, to plan nutritional programs.
- Conduct nutritional assessments of individuals, including obtaining and evaluating individuals' dietary histories, to plan nutritional programs.
- Develop job specifications, job descriptions, or work schedules.
- Determine food and beverage costs and assist in implementing cost control procedures.
- Refer patients to other relevant services to provide continuity of care.
- Observe and monitor patient food intake and body weight, and report changes, progress, and dietary problems to dietician.
- Deliver speeches on diet, nutrition, or health to promote healthy eating habits and illness prevention and treatment.
- Attend interdisciplinary meetings with other health care professionals to discuss patient care.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")