Dietetic Post Graduate Internship

Hi, I'm Jasmine and I'm super proud of my brother Chris for graduating with his Bachelors of Science in Dietetics. He will officially be graduating on June 12, 2022 with a 3.8 GPA. Unfortunately, he will not be able to walk due to covid, but he was accepted into a nine month dietetic internship program at Seattle Pacific University. Only about 50% of students who graduate go on to get accepted to any dietetic internship program.

 

To be eligible to sit for the exam for dietitian nutritionists, he must complete a minimum of 1200 professional hours in his field. This internship allows him to do exactly that. The downside is that in pursuing this profession, he has to pay out of pocket for this internship, unlike other internships in the medical and wellness field. Trippy right? I had to research this myself, and alas it is true. This unpaid internship not only requires interns to pay, but there are additional costs such as travel, housing, and meals that are not included in the internship.

 

I'm sure you're asking, "well, why would anyone even want to be a dietitian?" Chris has always had a strong connection and love to food as our whole family has. Growing up, our mother worked as a flight attendant and at one point simultaneously held a position at IBM. Even though she worked a lot, she always made sure we had a nutritious, balanced meal that included protein, veggies, and a carb. She was very particular about her food and as we watched her cook and prepare meals it's something that we naturally picked up eventually learning and cooking ourselves. Even the weekends we spent with our great grandmother, she was always adamant about cooking at home. We spent many weekends in the kitchen with her shelling peas, washing greens, and everything in between.

 

Now Chris in particular really started experimenting in the kitchen, just creating and cooking whatever popped into his head drawing from not only our mother and great grandmother, but our father's Jamaican roots. Even in his exploration of food, he not only thinks about taste he thinks about nutrient density of the food -- the ratio of beneficial ingredients in a food in proportion of energy content, weight, etc. His goal is to always find the best balance of the two.

 

A simple childhood love evolved into a passion and drive for Chris and how he could help bring quality food to people's lives. How he could help individuals of all socioeconomic status find the best options and have access to better options. He wants to help people heal themselves through food. He wants people to connect and knit strong relationships to food. He wants to educate people and help them cultivate a positive relationship with food. And ultimately empower people through food.

 

Where your donation is going specifically: The plan is to help with tuition, books and supplies, student membership with the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, the non-refundable deposit, travel, and liability insurance. Currently, he works two jobs and this internship will be a third job. I want him to be able to have the resources he needs so he can have time to do his internship, study, do homework and anything else that will be required of him in these nine months. He has worked hard the last four years paying for his undergraduate degree out of pocket and with help of a loan. I just want to help my brother and give him a moment to breathe and celebrate the victory of his graduation.

 

Thank you so much and you can check out all the information for the program Chris was accepted into below:

SPU Nutrition & Dietetics Internship

 

Fun facts about Chris: He's a marathon runner, was in a band, can play guitar, and is an independent hip-hop artist who has produced his own album and is featured on other albums too.

 

Find him on IG for some no bs fitness

tips: @davidontstop