This week in my Academic Strategies class the unit was on career planning. At my age, I am not really thinking about a career, but researching for my career goal has been very enlightening for me. The degree that I am going for is BS in Nutrition Science. I chose this degree because I have been interested in Fitness and Nutrition for several years and have studied it extensively on my own. I am retired now and have quite a few college credits, but no degree. Because of my age, I don’t think a Registered Dietitian or Nutritionist is a realistic goal because of the internship required and the additional coursework. I then looked at Dietetic Technicians, but found that the Median salary was less than I was making at Wal-Mart ($9.65) and that there were not many jobs available. I have found that the American Dietetic Association does have a Dietetic Technician, Registered and the salary is better for this (between $33,800 and $37,700 per year). I think becoming a Certified Fitness and Nutrition Consultant would be a better fit for me. My ideal place to work would be out of my home. I would like to counsel seniors on nutrition, possibly going into their homes or into Assisted Living Facilities to help them with their diet and plan their meals. I wouldn’t even mind helping them prepare the meals because I love to cook. Salary isn’t that important to me and I have even considered volunteering this service although it would help to make some money to pay off my student loans. I found out that I can become a Certified Nutrition and Wellness Consultant through the American Fitness Professionals Association. Even though I could save myself tons of money and just do this, I would still like to get my BS in Nutrition Science because I do not have a degree and would like to make use of my previous college credits. Besides if I am going to offer my services for hire, it would look better to also have a BS and not just a certification.
