Students enrolled in the MSDI Program participate in supervised practice during the first year of the combined program. Supervised practice rotations provide students with experience in community, food service, clinical, and specialty practice settings. Students practice and apply principles and skills in dietetics and nutrition to real situations under the guidance of professionals in the field. Supervised practice generally occurs Tuesdays through Fridays each week throughout the Dietetic Internship part of the combined program. 

Supervised practice experiences are coordinated with Monday didactic course topics. Generally, the supervised practice rotations at the beginning of the Dietetic Internship focus on nutrition education, public health, retail food service management, and patient food service management. Later in the program, rotations provide students with experience in basic clinical nutrition. Specialized dietetic practice and unique patient populations are addressed during the last supervised practice rotations. The Program Director, Supervised Practice Coordinators, and Administrative Program Coordinator make supervised practice rotation schedules for each individual student.  

MSDI students will be primarily placed at the VA Portland Health Care System, OHSU Hospital, or other Portland area facilities. Primary placement sites for MSDI students are determined by the Program Director, Master's Program Director, and the Master's Program Coordinator. Students are assigned to a primary placement site for the majority of their supervised practice; however, several external rotations give students the opportunity to experience working in a variety of other settings, which may include rural locations. Students may complete one rural rotation during their supervised practice rotations in locations such as Klamath Falls, Warm Springs, Madras/Bend, Redmond, and Pendleton. Distance between the students' primary placement and practice sites may vary and extended distances may occur. 

Example of Combined MS/DI Rotation Schedule 

Sample of Supervised Practice Sites 

HIV Day Center
KinderCare Education
Oregon Food Bank
Oregon Health Authority (Oregon State WIC)
Oregon Health &Science University
OSU Ext. Portland SNAP-Ed
Our House of Portland
Shriners Hospital
SPOON Foundation
VA Portland Health Care System