Dietetic Specialist - Outpatient

University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center; Houston (TX); On-site; USD 44,000 - 66,000; Full time

Job summary

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is seeking a Dietetic Specialist to support patient-centered nutrition care in the Clinical Nutrition-Outpatient Department. You will coordinate scheduling, assist with patient education, and collaborate with Registered Dietitians, physicians, and care teams to ensure timely and accurate dietetic services.

Requirements include an associate's (or bachelor's) degree in nutrition or a related field and required dietetic certifications.

Qualifications

• Associate's Degree in nutrition or related field required.
• DTR (Dietetic Tech) or CDM certification required.

Responsibilities

• Direct Patient Care and Scheduling: schedule patient appointments and coordinate care.
• Home Enteral and DME Support: educate patients and coordinate equipment and orders.
• Operational Support and Documentation: handle varied documents and improve workflow.
• Productivity and Performance: meet 24–36 daily interactions with defined benchmarks.
• Clinical Practice and Professional Development: maintain competency and participate in development activities.

Skills

Scheduling

Communication

Clinical support

Team collaboration

Education

Associate's Degree in Nutrition or related field

Bachelor's Degree in Nutrition or related field

Job description

The Dietetic Specialist role at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center supports patient-centered nutrition care through coordinated scheduling, communication, and clinical support activities. The Dietetic Specialist works within the Clinical Nutrition-Outpatient Department and plays a critical role in ensuring patients receive timely, accurate, and well-coordinated dietetic services. The Dietetic Specialist partners closely with Registered Dietitians, physicians, and interdisciplinary care teams to support access to care and continuity across the patient experience.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center is a leading institution focused on cancer care, research, education, and prevention. UT MD Anderson is internationally recognized for its commitment to excellence, innovation, and compassionate care. The Dietetic Specialist contributes directly to this mission by supporting clinical operations, patient education, and workflow efficiency. The Dietetic Specialist role is reviewed for FY26 and is essential to maintaining high-quality nutrition services.

The ideal candidate for the Dietetic Specialist role has an associate's or bachelor's degree in nutrition or a related field, holds required dietetic certifications, and demonstrates strong organizational, communication, and patient coordination skills. Experience supporting patient care workflows, handling complex documentation, and working collaboratively under supervision in a clinical environment is highly valued.

This position offers an annual salary range of $44,000.00 - $55,000.00 - $66,000.00, which equates to an hourly range of approximately $21.15 - $26.44 - $31.73 based on a 40-hour work week. The work location is onsite. The typical work schedule is Monday - Friday from 8am 4:30pm.

Why Us?

Working at UT MD Anderson allows team members to directly support life-saving care while growing professionally in a collaborative, mission-driven environment. This role contributes to improving patient access, enhancing care coordination, and supporting innovative clinical workflows, while offering stability, professional development, and work-life balance within a nationally recognized institution.

• Employer-paid medical coverage starting day one for employees working 30+ hours/week, plus optional group dental, vision, life, AD&D, and disability insurance.
• Accruals for PTO and Extended Illness Bank, plus paid holidays, wellness, childcare, and other leave options.
• Tuition Assistance Program after six months of service and access to extensive wellness, fitness, and employee resource groups.
• Defined-benefit pension through the Teachers Retirement System, voluntary retirement plans, and employer-paid life and reduced salary protection programs.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center offers excellent benefits, including medical, dental, paid time off, retirement, tuition benefits, educational opportunities, and individual and team recognition.

This position may be responsible for maintaining the security and integrity of critical infrastructure, as defined in Section 113.001(2) of the Texas Business and Commerce Code and therefore may require routine reviews and screening. The ability to satisfy and maintain all requirements necessary to ensure the continued security and integrity of such infrastructure is a condition of hire and continued employment.

It is the policy of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center to provide equal employment opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, disability, protected veteran status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by institutional policy or by federal, state, or local laws unless such distinction is required by law. http://www.mdanderson.org/about-us/legal-and-policy/legal-statements/eeo-affirmative-action.html

Responsibilities

Direct Patient Care and Scheduling

• Accurately schedule patient appointments from the patient appointment desk, schedule orders work queue, and in-basket messaging.
• Coordinate and schedule patient appointments considering patient demographics, preferences, and other scheduled services.
• Communicate appointment details, preparation instructions, and scheduling updates to patients, families, physicians, and care teams in person, by phone, mail, online applications, or in-basket messaging.
• Assist with patient screening under the supervision of a Registered Dietitian.

Home Enteral and DME Support

• Provide patient education on home enteral processes.
• Coordinate durable medical equipment support and process orders for timely delivery.
• Relay enteral nutrition and DME-related information accurately and promptly.

Operational Support and Documentation

• Handle and process a complex and varied series of documents and situations.
• Support department-wide implementation of new tools, support structures, and operational models to improve access to care and workflow efficiency.

Productivity and Performance Expectations

• Meet productivity standards of 24-36 interactions per day, with below and above expectations defined accordingly.
• For DME-focused responsibilities, manage an average of 7-7.5 patients per day, with performance benchmarks clearly defined.

Clinical Practice and Professional Development

• Maintain competency and professional development related to nutrition trends, research, policy, certifications, and standards of practice.
• Participate in formal and informal staff development activities.
• Provide supervised learning experiences for new employees, students, interns, and observers.
• Actively participate in department workgroups, projects, meetings, and assigned tasks.

EDUCATION

• Required: Associate's Degree Food, Nutrition, Health, Culinary Arts or related field
• Preferred: Bachelor's Degree Nutrition or related field.

WORK EXPERIENCE

• Required: None
• May substitute required education degree with additional years of equivalent experience on a one to one basis.

LICENSES AND CERTIFICATIONS

• Required: DTR - Dietetic Tech, Registered Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR). ''or''
• Required: CDM - Certified Dietary Manager Association of Nutrition and Food Professionals (ANFP).

Additional Information

• Requisition ID: 183342
• Employment Status: Full-Time
• Employee Status: Regular
• Work Week: Days
• Minimum Salary: US Dollar (USD) 44,000
• Midpoint Salary: US Dollar (USD) 55,000
• Maximum Salary : US Dollar (USD) 66,000
• FLSA: non-exempt and eligible for overtime pay
• Fund Type: Hard
• Work Location: Onsite
• Pivotal Position: Yes
• Referral Bonus Available?: No
• Relocation Assistance Available?: No