Student benefits

Benefits to support dietitians of the future

We provide our student members with a tailored set of benefits and services to help supplement their course materials, provide them with support throughout their practice placement, and give them a head start with CPD and volunteering opportunities to prepare them for your future dietetic careers.  

Student members, log in to access your benefits.

Supplementing your course materials

PEN

Unlimited access to the huge evidence-based PEN system (worth £360) is provided as part of BDA membership. PEN keeps dietetic professionals and students up-to-date with the evidence base and the fast-paced world of dietetics.

Dietetics Today

The Official BDA members magazine, providing latest BDA and professional news, a clinical section, department focus, member case studies and pilots, volunteer corner, CPD reflection questions, upcoming courses and events, and much more.

Food Facts

Our Food Fact Sheets are written by dietitians to help you learn the best ways to eat and drink to keep your body fit and healthy.

Journal

Our e-zines

We provide our BDA member community with useful regular e-zines to keep them informed and aware of the latest news, views and research across the profession. 

Student shared resources

Useful resources developed and shared by BDA student members to be used whilst on placement, and for preparing for interviews

Book Series

Each title in this series is a comprehensive and critical review of key literature in its subject. Trustworthy, internationally-focused, and written specifically to meet the needs of a wide range of professionals. BDA Members get a 35% discount.*

The Manual

Now in its sixth edition, the bestselling BDA Manual of Dietetic Practice covers the entire dietetics curriculum, and is a core text for healthcare professionals to develop their expertise and specialist skills in the realm of dietetic practice. BDA Members get a 35% discount.

Helping you get ahead

Get involved in research

The BDA Research Symposium is the annual event that showcases the breadth of research across dietetics. This year's Symposium will be held in Birmingham on Wednesday 4 December 2024.

Lead your branch

Discover how you can get involved in a number of interesting volunteering opportunities with the BDA, you'll learn new transferable skills, meet new people, add to your CPD and advance your profession!

Join the conversation

Join us, promote the impact and value of dietetics on social media. Interact and engage with us, fellow members and the wider profession to ensure our collective dietetic voice is represented across all major social platforms.

 

Supporting you

Placement insurance

We provide our full, associate and student members with Professional Indemnity Insurance, which is suitable (and essential) liability cover for dietetic professionals in their day-to-day roles and is a mandatory and legal requirement of the HCPC.

Responding to your needs

After you graduate

Our support for you doesn't stop after you graduate, upgrade your membership to our Graduate Rate as soon you graduate, and save 50% on your membership cost, whilst ensuring you are safely covered by the right level of professional indemnity insurance and trade union support. 

 

It's even free for your first year of study* and just £40 (a huge 90% discount) for the rest of your time as a student!

Join us

Top rated Benefit

Student members can now join two of the BDA's 25 specialist groups (and 17 sub groups) free of charge (excluding the Freelance Specialist Group), giving them an insight into specialist dietetic areas to support their studies and into their future careers.

BDA specialist groups cover areas including paediatric, renal nutrition and older people, to obesity, diabetes, sport and parenteral and enteral nutrition, highlighting the wide diversity of the expert dietetic profession. Log in and join a group today

It’s never too early to engage with the dietetic community outside of university. It can be a hugely daunting prospect as it’s easy to imagine your contribution or voice will be ill-received because of lack of experience. 

The Obesity Specialist Group nominated me for the Student Champion award, which has shown me how valued and appreciated all voices and continuations are - and how open other RDs are to encouraging the development of the next generation, outside of an education setting. I hope it will inspire other students to get involved in specialist groups and other non-university opportunities.

Linsey Cockburn, 2021 Student Champion

*FREE STUDENT MEMBERSHIP relates to both Undergraduate and Postgraduate first year students only. Second, third and fourth year groups are provided with very heavily subsidised BDA membership (discounted by almost 90% at just £41.38 per year)