Alex Scott didn’t expect to be part of the University of Kentucky Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD), which celebrates its 50th accreditation anniversary this year, but this academic program became “a really good fit” for the 2019 graduate.  

A Lexington native, Scott didn’t want to go far for college, so she enrolled at UK. But during her freshman year, she questioned whether her original major was the right choice. 

Her adviser asked Scott about her interests. Science and food were at the top of the list, so the adviser recommended dietetics.  

“I had never heard of a dietitian before; I didn’t really know what that was,” Scott said.  

Once she took an entry-level nutrition class, she fell in love.

‘At the forefront of nutrition and health’  

UK’s DPD is a four-year undergraduate program in the UK Department of Dietetics and Human Nutrition that provides a comprehensive, evidence-based education in food, nutrition and management. The program prepares students for supervised practice and leads to eligibility for students to take the credentialing exam to become a registered dietitian nutritionist.  

The program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics, a status first gained at UK in 1974.  

“Accreditation ensures the quality of nutrition and dietetics education of our students, which in turn, helps our profession advance and expand,” said Julie Plasencia, associate professor and DPD director. “Since our profession became accredited, we have stayed at the forefront of nutrition and health by addressing timely nutrition issues such as nutrition security.” 

Plasencia called the program “a jumping board” for students, which was Scott’s experience—through UK, she learned what options she had as a dietetics student and became equipped to reach her goals.  

“UK did a really good job of showing us the different paths that we can work down,” Scott said.  “How you can take that experience and use it to start working more toward the community or food service or sports nutrition—whatever you’re interested in.”  

After completing her bachelor’s degree then her master’s in nutrition and food systems, Scott matched with DPD for her internship. 

Once again, her experience was tailored to her interest, which she had learned was community-oriented work. Over the course of seven months, she was placed with a health department, a school and a rural hospital.  

“They did a really good job of helping me identify what I was interested in, then put me in those areas so that I was able to see it,” Scott said.  

Plasencia, who was Scott’s adviser in the master’s program, said Scott developed vital skills throughout her time at UK and “learned a lot about herself.”  

"Alex is one of those students who truly gets the saying, ‘You get what you put into it.’ Her earnest efforts have led to her success in her current job,” Plasencia said.

‘I just got super lucky’ 

After completing her internship and becoming a registered dietitian, Scott began her role as Southeast Regional Director of Nutrition for the Kentucky Cattleman’s Association at the beginning of 2024. 

Scott serves the beef industry through a health professional e-newsletter that she created, nutrition-focused social media posts and other forms of community outreach and education. In addition to Kentucky, she also serves the eastern region, including Tennessee, West Virginia and Michigan.  

As a registered dietitian, she is well-positioned to help both beef producers and health care professionals understand the value of knowing beef’s nutritional profile.   

“Health professionals and agriculture can come together to really work on improving not just knowledge on where our food comes from but also those health outcomes that are related to food,” Scott said.  

As a former fine arts major, Scott is thrilled that she is still able to be creative in her job.  

“As a dietitian, we wear so many hats,” she said. “So I get to do things that allow me to be creative every day."  

During her internship, she had learned more about how a dietitian could work in the agriculture industry. Even though she didn’t have previous agriculture experience, she was interested in an agriculture-related role—so she was “super lucky” to get this role with the Cattleman’s Association.

‘The spirit of our program’ 

Even now, Scott still maintains relationships with the DPD faculty at UK, from former professors who check in on her to continuing to work with Plasencia on journal articles about her research.  

“The staff is really what makes that program so unique and effective,” she said.  

The program gives students opportunities to network with not only faculty but also registered dietitians through guest speakers and attending local events.  

“Alex made the most of those connections, and now she is giving back by doing guest talks in our classes,” Plasencia said.  

Next year, Scott will play another significant role in the program that helped get her where she is today, when she hosts a UK dietetic intern at the Kentucky Cattleman’s Association.  

“I’m really excited to be able to give back to the program in that way and show someone who’s interested in ag and nutrition the kind of positions that they can create for themselves,” Scott said.  

Plasencia said this is “the spirit” of DPD.  

“We give our students the tools to be successful and, in turn, they give back to our programs by sharing their experiences, knowledge and time with students,” she said.  

To learn more about the UK Didactic Program in Dietetics, visit https://dhn.ca.uky.edu/dp.  

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Writer: Bailey Vandiver, bailey.vandiver@uky.edu 

The mission of the University of Kentucky’s Department of Dietetics and Human Nutrition in contributing excellence in learning, discovery, and engagement is to promote healthy lifestyles through sustainable, nutritionally‐sound, food choices and regular physical activity; enhance the well‐being of people through meaningful nutrition education, research, and service experiences; and expand economic opportunity by generating and sharing knowledge of human nutrition, dietetics, and food systems. 

The Didactic Program in Dietetics and the Accelerated Coordinated Program is celebrating 50 years of accreditation, demonstrating a commitment to providing high-quality education and enabling faculty to innovate and grow. 

The Martin-Gatton College of Agriculture, Food and Environment is an Equal Opportunity Organization with respect to education and employment and authorization to provide research, education information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function without regard to economic or social status and will not discriminate on the basis of race, color, ethnic origin, national origin, creed, religion, political belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, marital status, genetic information, age, veteran status, physical or mental disability or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.