How we can help you!

The post-pandemic cultural shift & increased pressure on placements has meant that Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) have been more open to virtual, non-traditional practice placements to help unblock the bottleneck and achieve 1000 hours for all dietetic learners and the request for virtual PBL opportunities has significantly increased. Grow Dietitians was founded to support & grow practice placement opportunities for dietetic learners across the UK. We create placements to meet individual HEI’s practice education needs whilst actively promoting the diversification of dietetic careers beyond the traditional clinical route!

Our Placement opportunities

Charity / third sector

Ellie and Emily are proud to be active volunteers with BAPEN (British Association for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition), championing better nutritional care and raising awareness about malnutrition across the UK. We're passionate about involving the next generation of dietitians in this vital mission.

Students who take part in a virtual placement with BAPEN gain hands-on experience and the chance to make a real impact. Opportunities include:

Developing resources to support BAPEN’s mission and outreach. These currently include:
- Inclusive nutrition support for under-represented groups in the UK
- Eating well on a budget
- Sustainable nutrition support
Managing BAPEN’s pre-registration social media channels to amplify key messages
Contributing to nutrition-focused projects, such as:
- Surveys exploring healthcare professionals’ knowledge of malnutrition
- Analysis and reporting from UK Malnutrition Awareness Week (UK MAW)
- Creating resources for underrepresented communities
- Promoting sustainable practices in dietetic nutrition support
Joining BAPEN exec and/or Malnutrition Action Group (MAG) meetings to see national strategy in action
Collaborating with BAPEN’s communications team on live workstreams and campaigns

All our students present their work to BAPEN’s exec team & core groups at the end of their placement who take their work forward to make an impact.

Many of our students have gone on to present their work at the annual BAPEN conference—a brilliant platform to showcase their contribution and grow professionally.

Research

Our Research Placement offers student dietitians the chance to engage in meaningful, real-world research alongside experienced professionals in the field. Led by Emily, a specialist in qualitative research, this placement provides a supportive environment for students to develop essential research skills.

Students will have the opportunity to:

Assist with literature reviews, data collection, and thematic or statistical analysis
Explore qualitative research methods with expert guidance from Emily
Contribute to research design, methodology discussions, and ethical considerations
Support the creation of academic outputs such as posters, abstracts, or manuscripts (which in the past have been presented at BAPEN conference)
Present findings in meetings, workshops, or academic conferences (e.g. BAPEN conference)

Whether investigating patient experiences, evaluating services, or supporting innovation in dietetic education and care, this placement helps students build confidence in using evidence to inform practice—one research question at a time.

Peer enhanced e-placement (PEEP)

A virtual two-week placement led by Ellie Coles structured to facilitate the seamless transition from academic knowledge to its practical application. During this placement, students will engage in a series of scheduled workshops, projects, and simulated clinics. This hands-on experience is tailored to familiarise them with the intricacies of nutrition and dietetic practice, ultimately preparing them for their first placement in the NHS. This placement is thoughtfully designed, drawing from the evidence-based model of peer-enhanced e-placements (PEEP).

This is designed to be the first placement of the programme and is best delivered with a whole cohorts of learners & is co-hosted with Emily & associate Kara Roberts (Pause Nutrition).

FAQs

Participation in our practice education opportunities with Grow Dietitians comes at no cost to the student. We proudly accept the NHS England education tariff through your University. For Universities in Scotland, Wales & Ireland, please get in touch for more information on how we can work with you & your learners.
Yes! Our practice based learning leads and supervisors are all registered dietitians who have a breadth of experience hosting & supervising student dietitians on placements.
Hosting virtual placements for dietetic students enhances accessibility, scalability, and flexibility, enabling increased student capacity for all UK HEIs. It offers cost-effective, high-quality learning experiences, improves placement availability, reduces travel barriers, and supports diverse, real-world clinical scenarios.
Our learners have expressed that our opportunities have eased the financial burden, especially those ineligible for the bursary—such as international students. In addition to this, we have made it possible for learners with additional requirements to have accessible and rewarding practice based learning opportunities outside of the traditional PBL environment.
Our founders and primary educators are academic professionals & specialist dietitians with extensive experience in student training across various UK universities, the NHS, and private practice. Each brings unique but significant expertise in establishing and facilitating practice education opportunities.
We are actively involved in educational audits with all Universities we work with - we also try to share our audits where appropriate across Universities.