Compensation and Benefits Survey 2015

Abstract

About the Survey Over the years, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has received many requests from members for objective, reliable information about industry norms for pay and benefit levels for the dietetics profession. The Academy responded to members' needs in 2002 by commissioning the Dietetics Compensation & Benefits Survey, the most comprehensive survey of its type in the profession up to that point. To continue to provide this valuable resource, the Academy has funded updates of that original extensive survey in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, and now in 2015, building on the strengths of the initial effort and improving it with several refinements. The 2015 survey was conducted across a probability sample drawn from the population of all domestic active category Academy members (N=51,909) plus all domestic nonmembers maintaining current registration as an RDN or NDTR (N=42,277). To preserve confidentiality, an outside research firm was contracted to collect data via Internet and mail survey from June 4 through September 28, 2015. The 2015 survey carries forward a key feature of the prior efforts, presenting results not only at the level of registration (RDN, NDTR), but also in terms of the specific jobs (including nontraditional jobs) nutrition and dietetics practitioners hold. A key question asked respondents to identify the one position (from a set of 59 core positions) that most closely matched their actual employment. These data represent the specific jobs that account for an estimated 93% of dietetics employment. From the sample of 30,958, contacted via Internet and regular mail, 6,385 usable responses were received—a 21% response rate. The margin of error for the 4,555 practicing RDNs is ±1.4%; for the 636 practicing NDTRs, ±3.5%. Results are in for the seventh edition of the most comprehensive survey of dietetics compensation available, and the news for most nutrition and dietetics practitioners is positive. The Compensation & Benefits Survey of the Dietetics Profession 2015, sponsored by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (Academy), shows that both registered dietitian nutritionists (RDNs) and nutrition and dietetics technicians, registered (NDTRs) experienced wage gains exceeding the rate of inflation since the 2013 survey. RDN median annualized wages are now at $63,700, up from $60,000 in 2013; NDTR median annualized wages have advanced to $42,000, from $40,000 2 years ago. Wage gains varied by specific dietetics position. The importance of increased education and job responsibility to increased compensation is apparent. And nutrition and dietetics practitioners continue to receive attractive benefits packages. Over the years, the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics has received many requests from members for objective, reliable information about industry norms for pay and benefit levels for the dietetics profession. The Academy responded to members' needs in 2002 by commissioning the Dietetics Compensation & Benefits Survey, the most comprehensive survey of its type in the profession up to that point. To continue to provide this valuable resource, the Academy has funded updates of that original extensive survey in 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, and now in 2015, building on the strengths of the initial effort and improving it with several refinements. The 2015 survey was conducted across a probability sample drawn from the population of all domestic active category Academy members (N=51,909) plus all domestic nonmembers maintaining current registration as an RDN or NDTR (N=42,277). To preserve confidentiality, an outside research firm was contracted to collect data via Internet and mail survey from June 4 through September 28, 2015. The 2015 survey carries forward a key feature of the prior efforts, presenting results not only at the level of registration (RDN, NDTR), but also in terms of the specific jobs (including nontraditional jobs) nutrition and dietetics practitioners hold. A key question asked respondents to identify the one position (from a set of 59 core positions) that most closely matched their actual employment. These data represent the specific jobs that account for an estimated 93% of dietetics employment. From the sample of 30,958, contacted via Internet and regular mail, 6,385 usable responses were received—a 21% response rate. The margin of error for the 4,555 practicing RDNs is ±1.4%; for the 636 practicing NDTRs, ±3.5%.