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
2033 Projected Employment
26,100
4% Change From 2023
Explore Dietetic Technicians video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Observe and monitor patient food intake and body weight, and report changes, progress, and dietary problems to dietician.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Develop job specifications, job descriptions, or work schedules.
- 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.
- Select, schedule, or conduct orientation or in-service education programs.
- 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.
- Analyze menus or recipes, standardize recipes, or test new products.
- Determine food and beverage costs and assist in implementing cost control procedures.
- Observe and monitor patient food intake and body weight, and report changes, progress, and dietary problems to dietician.
- Develop job specifications, job descriptions, or work schedules.
- Attend interdisciplinary meetings with other health care professionals to discuss patient care.
- Refer patients to other relevant services to provide continuity of care.
- Deliver speeches on diet, nutrition, or health to promote healthy eating habits and illness prevention and treatment.
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.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for 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.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- 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.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- 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.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
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")