Frequently Asked Questions

Absolutely! It's important to us that our programs are the right fit for our students! You can book a call with our enrollment team to have all your questions answered directly.

You can also register to join an info session. Carley, the founder of Oh Baby, shares more about our programs, what life is like as a student, and all the options available to you as a Certified Nutrition Consultant.

View our academic calendar for upcoming group program start dates.

We offer the opportunity to enroll as a self-start student and begin your studies right away, or to join one of our group cohorts.

Enrolling as a self-start student means:

• You will begin your studies immediately rather than waiting until a scheduled start date to begin your program.

• You have a recorded orientation call rather than participating live.

Otherwise, self-start students have the same learning experience as those in a group cohort. This includes the same:
• amount of time to complete their program,
• opportunities for community interaction,
• and access to our live “office hours”.

We accept self-start students on an ongoing basis. However, as we have limited space for these enrollments, accepted students will have 14 days to register in their program.

Many of our prospective students assume that client consultations are the only way to work in this field. While consultations are a great way to use your certification, there are so many other opportunities to share this knowledge, serve your community, and generate an income as a Certified Nutrition Consultant. Yes, client consultations, but we also have students who:

• Hold seminars and webinars.

• Create custom and/or set meal plans.

• Write articles for various publications.

• Write books or eBooks, either informational or recipes.

• Run a postpartum food delivery service.

• Created products, such as superfood powders for mothers.

• Consult with other businesses in product development.

• Share their expertise at paid speaking events.

• Host events, retreats, or summits, virtual or in person.

• Open their own brick-and-mortar health center for mothers.

The best part is that you’re able to choose when and where you work. We have graduates who have been able to replace their corporate salaries and mothers who choose to work just a few hours a week, while generating additional income from their families doing something they love.

Oh Baby School of Holistic Nutrition is proud to have an incredibly diverse student base with women joining us from all around the world. We attribute this to the fact that we’re currently the only school specializing solely in the certification of holistic nutrition for pregnancy, postpartum, and babies. Clearly, this support for mothers and babies is much-needed worldwide.

To date, we have Oh Baby graduates in over 47 countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Netherlands, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, Israel, Kuwait, Liberia, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, Brazil, Ecuador, and Mexico.

All graduates receive the designation of Certified Nutrition Consultant, which can be used internationally. As a professional regulating body, Oh Baby School of Holistic Nutrition ensures that our certified graduates adhere to a certain code of ethics, scope of practice, and guiding principles, which are standardized regardless of where they hold their practice.

We’ve yet to have a single graduate report that they’ve been unable to use their certification to practice within the full scope of their designation. However, we encourage prospective students to become familiar with the requirements for practicing and acquiring liability insurance in their individual regions. Our Business Development course also covers the necessary information to help ensure that all of our graduates adhere to their local business rules and regulations. Please don't hesitate to reach out if you have any additional questions.

Oh Baby School of Holistic Nutrition is officially a proud member of The Holistic Council! The Holistic Council protects and promotes holistic health professionals and is available to support OBN students and graduates with regulatory guidance and assistance so they can thrive as Certified Nutrition Consultants.

If you have any questions regarding your specific local practice laws and regulations, we encourage you to contact the Holistic Council directly for further insight.

Great question! General nutrition certifications are wonderful for building a solid foundation of knowledge. You typically learn about a wide breadth of different health concerns but with much less depth in each one. As such, many of our students with prior nutrition certifications have shared that they didn’t feel like an expert in any one area. Therefore, it really depends on who you want to support in your practice.

Our certification programs focus exclusively on nourishing fertility, pregnancy, postpartum, and babies. The information we provide is very unique and truly isn’t being taught anywhere else. Our courses go into great depth and our graduates are recognized as leading experts in maternal health. We have many nutritionists, dietitians, and naturopaths join us to niche down, specialize in something they’re passionate about, and offer more value to their clients.

Our programs provide you with everything you will require and no prior education is necessary, with the exception of a high school diploma or equivalent. All our students are given ample support to ensure they have the confidence and knowledge necessary to build a successful career as a Certified Nutrition Consultant.

While our curriculum is rooted in traditional wisdom, it is thoroughly backed by modern science and heavily cited with studies and review articles. Our learning materials have been co-created by our founder, Carley Mendes, who has over 15 years of experience as a Registered Holistic Nutritionist, specifically supporting mothers and babies. As well as:

• Curriculum designers, to help shape our learning process and ensure our students can effectively comprehend and retain the material.

• Certified health practitioners: We have also had several other professionals in the field review and contribute to our curriculum, including naturopaths, midwives, lactation consultants, nutritionists, and dietitians.

• A team of researchers to ensure our material is scientifically supported.

View our curriculum.

Our courses are 100% online and can be accessed from anywhere in the world.

Each weekly module contains a mix of video lessons, required reading material, client resources and handouts, assignments and quizzes to help you excel in your chosen specialty, and supportive interaction with our exclusive online community.

Each Certification Course also includes:

• Client Trials, which are key learning components of each certification course. Client Trials provide the opportunity to apply the knowledge and skills you have gained during practice consultations with volunteer “clients".

• A final exam to assess your comprehension and ensure you’ve obtained fundamental knowledge of the core concepts presented throughout the course.

There are several ways to get support as you work through the learning material. Each weekly module includes a discussion board where you'll be able to ask questions. You will receive ongoing, interactive support from our evaluators who will provide extensive, personalized feedback on all of your assignments, client trials, and exams. Our exclusive online student group is another great way to engage with your fellow students. We have an incredible community and there is such power that comes from supporting one another.

You can expect to spend an average of 6+ hours completing the course material each week. However, there are many opportunities to dive much deeper, if you have time. For example, each weekly module includes a list of recommended resources you can explore. These can include various podcasts, blogs, studies, books, or even TED talks that relate to the week’s learning material. Each module also includes recorded Q&As that are optional to review. Finally, our curriculum is heavily cited with scientific studies and review articles throughout, allowing you to invest more time on the topics you have a particular interest in.

Please note that these additional resources are all optional to review as a way to enrich and deepen your studies. You’ll have ongoing access to the curriculum after graduating, so you can always stick to the required materials while working towards your certification and then revisit the additional resources at any point in the future.

Self-paced means there are no ongoing weekly or monthly deadlines. As such, you can progress through the course material on your own schedule, without worrying about any imposed due dates.

While all of our programs are self-paced (both for self-start students and those in a group cohort), it’s important to note that you do not have an unlimited amount of time to complete your certification. The one deadline we enforce is your graduation deadline, which is the last day you can submit any remaining coursework required for certification.

Our courses are designed for busy parents and professionals, so we provide ample time to complete your program. However, if you have not completed your program by your graduation deadline for any reason, you can purchase a monthly extension plan for as long as needed.

• Please note that the terms “self-paced” and “self-start” are not interchangeable at OBN. All our programs are self-paced, whereas only some of our students are self-start, while others are part of a group cohort. View our FAQ “What is the difference between enrolling as a self-start student or joining a group cohort?” for more information.

This will vary by student and entirely depends on how much time you dedicate to your studies each week! As our programs are self-paced, you can work through the course material on your own schedule, as long as you submit all your coursework by your graduation deadline (the timeline allotted to complete your certification).

Here are the shortest and longest possible timelines for each certification program:

• Master II Certification: Students can graduate in 13 months but have up to 19 months to complete the program.

• Master I Certification: Students can graduate in 8 months but have up to 15 months to complete the program.

• Advanced Certification: Students can graduate in 6 months but have up to 10 months to complete the program.

• Single Certification: Students can graduate in 4 months but have up to 7 months to complete the program.

While these courses are self-paced, there is a lot of information to absorb. New content is released weekly, so the soonest you will be able to complete the program is 4 months (Single Certification), 6 months (Advanced Certification), 8 months (Master I Certification), or 13 months (Master II Certification).

Graduates have lifetime access to all program material, so you’ll always be able to reference the curriculum and view all content updates after completing your program.

Please note that you must graduate and receive certification to maintain this access. Therefore, those who do not successfully complete their program, for any reason, lose access to the program material after their graduation deadline has passed. However, a monthly extension plan can be purchased at this time to maintain access and complete your program.

If you sign up for our monthly payment plan, the initial payment is deducted on the day you register. The remaining payments will be deducted every 30 days. There is an additional fee associated with processing our monthly payment plans.

First and foremost, we are very mindful that there is no one way of eating that works best for everyone, and thus maintain a flexible perspective. At Oh Baby, we believe in holistic nutrition that prioritizes real foods and is rooted in both traditional wisdom and modern research. Our philosophy is a nutrient-dense, whole foods approach. We promote balance, which includes a combination of fruits and vegetables, complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, high-quality proteins, and traditionally fermented (probiotic) foods.

Plant-based eating: While our curriculum doesn't cater exclusively to plant-based diets, it does include specific guidance on how to support clients who choose veganism or vegetarianism. Furthermore, we work collectively with our community of graduates to help pair clients with the best consultants to meet their needs.

Fantastic! All you have to do is pick your program, select your courses, and finalize your enrollment here.