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Cottage Health
Santa Barbara, California

Clinical Dietitian III

DietitianIncludes callFull-Time

Listed compensation

$94K–$143K

The week · per this posting · weekdays assumed

Ask the employer about the work setting, weekend coverage, nights and shift pattern and time off.

Posted 6mo ago

Job Description

Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital seeks a Clinical Dietitian III for their SBCH Nutrition department responsible for providing direct patient care or education to patients, to be a subject matter expert related to clinical nutrition conditions, to precept interns, and to mentor Clinical Dietitian I and Clinical Dietitian II.

Cottage Health is a leading acute care hospital system, located on the central coast of California, widely known for our superior patient care, innovation, medical research and education. Our health system operates primarily in Santa Barbara, Ca, since 1888, and consists of three acute care hospitals, a Rehabilitation Hospital, multiple clinics and a multi-site Urgent Care system.

Our mission is to serve the central coast communities with excellence, integrity, and compassion. Every day we touch thousands of lives in many different ways, resolute in our mission to put patients first. We take pride in helping our patients get back to living their lives - in the places they love.

Cottage Health is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Cottage Health applicants are considered solely based on their qualifications, without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion, age, gender, transgender, gender expression and identity, national origin, ancestry, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, military status or any other classification protected by law.

This policy applies to all aspects of the relationship between Cottage Health and an applicant or employee. Cottage Health is committed to upholding discrimination-free hiring practices.

We strive to cultivate an environment where exceptional people bring diverse perspectives and find belonging, support and connection to their work.

Any Cottage Health applicants who require assistance or reasonable accommodations during the application process may request the need for accommodation with the Recruiter.

If you're already a Cottage Health employee, please apply on this link only.

Key Responsibilities

The Clinical Dietitian III provides direct patient care and education while serving as a subject matter expert in clinical nutrition. They are also responsible for precepting interns and mentoring junior clinical dietitians.

Requirements

Candidates must hold a Bachelor's degree and a Registered Dietitian credential, with at least 5 years of clinical experience. Proficiency in basic computer skills is required, with preference given to those experienced in nutrition software and Epic systems.

Qualifications

Education
Bachelor degree
Experience
5+ years of experience

Key Skills

Patient educationSubject matter expertiseComputritionFood processorMs wordClinical assessment

Dietitian Career Context

Of the 50 active Clinical Nutrition listings this role was benchmarked against, 16% are remote, 18% have no call, 86% require no weekends.

In California, the Clinical Nutrition weighted monthly median benchmark on WeekdayDoc is ~$93k (329 salary observations; 656 listings), vs ~$78k nationally (2,411 salary observations; 8,257 listings). Monthly aggregates cover 2026-01-01 through 2026-10-01; these are not the modal's selected comparable-job medians.

The cost-of-living index for California is 110.7 (US average = 100; BEA Regional Price Parities (2024)), so the posted ~$119k midpoint carries the purchasing power of roughly $107k in an average-cost state. 63.6% of California clinicians report burnout symptoms in WeekdayDoc's Burnout Index (2026-01 data).

Top Dietitian Jobs

24 matches · ranked by pay

Salary Distribution24 jobs · 17 employers

2
<$80k
4
$80k-85k
4
$85k
9
$90k-115k
5
$115k+

Annual compensation range

Benefits & Perks22 jobs · 17 employers

401k / retirement match
91% this job
CME allowance
41%
Relocation assistance
23%
Sign-on bonus
14%
PSLF eligible
9%

Share of similar jobs offering each benefit

#1

Registered Dietitian-PACE

Neighborhood Healthcare · Riverside, California

$88k-$128k
#2

Regional Registered Dietitian

Medical Nutrition Therapy Associates · Baltimore, Maryland

$100k-$125k
#3

Dietitian

$83k-$122k
#4

Regional Dietitian Wellbeing Director- Allergen Management

$110k-$120k
+ 22 more · ranked by pay

Work-life snapshot

median 6.0this job 3.3
Better work-life than 20% of Clinical Nutrition (Dietitian) listings

Listing-based score, 0–10, across 3,193 comparable listings. Shaded area = the share scoring below this one.

  • Includes call

Living in Santa Barbara

Typical 3-bedroom home value
$1.91M
Typical market rent
$3,692/mo
Residents’ average commute
17 min
Metro price indexU.S. average = 100
108.8
State income tax
Up to 13.3%
Sources & methodology

Sources: Zillow home values (Aug 2026), Zillow market rents (Aug 2026), U.S. Census ACS 2024 five-year.

BEA 2024 · Santa Maria-Santa Barbara, CA metro prices. Housing figures are city-level.

City-level figures. Not a cost-of-living guarantee.

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About Cottage Health

Hospitals and Health Care
Santa Barbara, California
1,001-5,000 employees

Benefits & Perks

Health insurance
Dental
Vision
Retirement plan
Paid time off