MSc Dietetics interviews

As part of the admissions process for our MSc Dietetics (pre-registration) programme, all shortlisted applicants will be required to attend an interview.

Our interviews will be carried out online, using Microsoft Teams, with staff within the School of Chemistry, Food and Pharmacy and registered health professionals. Interviews are expected to be held in April and June for September 2026 entry. The interview is an opportunity for you to meet staff and further discuss your application and why you are interested in becoming a dietitian. 

Applicants will be informed in March 2026 whether they have been shortlisted for interview.

1. If you are shortlisted for interview, you will receive an email inviting you to book an interview slot. You should follow the instructions in this email to book a suitable date and time for your interview. 
   
   
2. Closer to the date of your interview (at least 48 hours before the date of your interview), a Microsoft Teams meeting invitation will be sent to you via email. Once you have received this, please follow the listed steps.      
   1. Open the email containing the Microsoft Teams meeting invitation and select ‘Accept’ followed by ‘Send the Response Now’ to accept the meeting invitation.
   2. Once you have accepted the meeting invitation, you will need to go to the date and time of your interview in your email calendar to access the meeting invitation. 
   3. At the time of your interview, please open the meeting invitation in your email calendar and select the ‘Join the meeting now’ link, which is located at the end of the meeting invitation, to join your online interview.  
   4. We are aware of an issue affecting a small number of candidates using the browser version of MS Teams to connect to their interview, which prevents them from joining the Microsoft Teams session. We would strongly recommend using the latest version of the Microsoft Teams app for both Windows and Mac where possible. If it is not possible to use the app, please use Google Chrome or Microsoft Edge and, for Mac users, avoid using Safari. Further information on how to join a Microsoft Teams meeting without a Microsoft Teams account is available on the Microsoft Support website.
   
   If you haven't received your Microsoft Teams invite 48 hours before your interview or Teams isn't available in your country, please email dieteticsadmissions@reading.ac.uk. Please note that, occasionally, our emails could arrive in your junk/spam folders – please check your junk/spam folders carefully for the email containing the Microsoft Teams meeting invitation before contacting us.
   
   
3. When you join the interview, a recording will be started. This recording is carried out for safeguarding purposes and to ensure that the interview process is fair. Recordings will be held securely and members of the School staff will have access. Recordings are retained until 31 August 2026, or for 90 days, whichever is shorter. The recording will not be shared for any purposes other than safeguarding and quality assurance unless required by law. Please note that candidates are not permitted to make their own recordings of their interview. If this concerns you, please let the interviewer know.
   
   
4. You must show a photo ID on camera for verification (for example passport, driving licence, or ID card).
   
   
5. The interview will take a maximum of 30 minutes and will involve questions of three different types:
   1. General questions about your interest in the programme, understanding of a dietitian's role, and relevant experience. 
   2. Questions to explore your experiences in various settings, which demonstrate key personal attributes that are important when working in health care.
   3. Situational judgement questions that describe educational or heath care scenarios and ask you to explain how you would approach them.
      
      
6. Interviews will be held in late Spring 2026.
   
   
7. You are permitted to have a chaperone present with you in the room during the interview, who would typically be a parent/guardian, teacher, or another family member. However, chaperones are not permitted to discuss answers to questions with you or otherwise interfere with the interview process at any time.
   
   
8. At any time during the interview, you may request that your interviewer repeat or clarify a question if you feel this is needed. This does not affect the mark awarded for your performance and you will not be penalised for this. You may also request that a question is shown on-screen as text in addition to it being read by an interviewer.

Please contact us if you may require any specific adjustments to be made to accommodate a disability or other circumstances. We will consider all requests on a case-by-case basis.  

For the interview, please be prepared to talk about your own experiences and personal attributes that you feel would make you an excellent healthcare professional. You might want to think about what has motivated you to apply and why you aspire to become a dietitian.

You will need examples of how you have responded to and worked in different situations, e.g. within a team or as a leader, or where you have needed to demonstrate other professional skills such as empathy or effective communication. The interview will also involve a discussion of a situational judgement scenarios. 

Shortly before your interview, you will receive an email from the Department with a Microsoft Teams invite.  

If you have any other queries about the interview process, please contact us at dieteticsadmissions@reading.ac.uk. 

For further information about our programmes and studying at the University of Reading, please visit our courses page.