The Future Graduate program is a competency-based education (CBE) program that measures learning by how well a student demonstrates the ACEND® Future Education Model (FEM) Graduate Degree Competencies, which define the minimum level of proficiency needed of nutrition and dietetics practitioners to function successfully in practice. The FEM Graduate Degree Competencies describe the essential synthesis of knowledge, skills, abilities, behaviors, and other characteristics in the seven units described below:
Unit |
Future Education Model Graduate Degree Competencies |
1-Foundation Knowledge |
Applies foundational sciences to food and nutrition knowledge to meet the needs of individuals, groups, and organizations. |
2-Client/Patient Services |
Applies the integrates client/patient-centered principles and competent nutrition and dietetics practice to ensure positive outcomes. |
3-Food System Management |
Applies food system principles and management skills to ensure safe and efficient delivery of food and water. |
4-Community & Population Health Nutrition |
Applies community and population nutrition health theories when providing support to community or population nutrition programs. |
5-Leadership, Business, Management, & Organization |
Demonstrates leadership, business and management principles to guide practice and achieve operational goals. |
6 -Critical Thinking, Research, & Evidence-Informed Practice |
Integrates evidence-informed practice, research principles, and critical thinking into practice. |
7-Core Professional Behaviors |
Demonstrates professional behaviors and effective communication in all nutrition and dietetics interactions. |
Competencies are covered repeatedly throughout the curriculum and build on previous knowledge and experience to progress from introductory to more advanced learning activities, thus providing students multiple opportunities to achieve the competencies at the expected depth and breadth of the competency.
Knows, Shows, Does
Another key tenet of CBE is that competence goes beyond just knowing information, but rather the student shows how to apply the knowledge or does so by performing it in practice. These levels of performance [knows (K), shows (S), does (D)] are designated for each competency and performance indicator by ACEND®. This is why supervised experiential learning are such an important part of the Graduate Program, as students are showing they can apply their knowledge and demonstrate competence.

Image Alt Text: Image Source: ACEND Competency-based Education Training Based on Miller's Pyramid of Clinical Competence. Top section of pyramid: Green section labeled "Does". Description: Daily patient care: assessed by direct observation in clinical settings (performance). Second layer of pyramid: Purple section labeled "Shows how". Description: demonstration of clinical skills: tested by OSCE, standardized patients, clinical exams, etc. (Competency). Third layer of pyramid: Orange section labeled "Knows how". Description: Application of knowledge tested by clinical problem solving, etc. Base section of pyramid: yellow section labeled "Knows". Description: Knowledge: tested by written exams. Two red multi-directional arrows to the left of the pyramid. One labeled Cognition at the base of the pyramid, the other labeled Behavior at the top of the pyramid.
Assessment of Student Learning and Competence
As is characteristic of CBE, attainment of competence occurs over time and may differ for each student. Assessment of student learning and competence is ongoing (formative and summative) so that feedback to the student is frequent and student-centered to support success throughout the program.