Bachelor of Science (Nutrition)

In a world where food is both a basic human need and an increasingly visible aspect of popular culture, graduates with expertise in nutrition and the science of food have a vital role to play. In this course you will learn about how food and nutrition can affect the health and wellbeing of global populations by understanding the science behind foods and the role of nutrition in health.

The first year of the degree explores fundamental sciences linked to food and human nutrition. You will develop knowledge in physiology, biochemistry and biomedical sciences alongside an introduction to health and food behaviours. The second year builds on these foundations while also exploring the effects of dietary nutrients on health and human development across the life cycle, food chemistry and food processing. You will evaluate the latest scientific literature in the fields of nutrition and food science and relate this to developments in the discipline area. In the second year of the course you will choose between two streams: Nutrition or Food Science.

The Nutrition stream further develops your understanding of the evidence behind the associations between diet and health outcomes. You will explore the social and cultural influences that impact dietary decisions within the population, and conduct a nutrition research project. Graduate nutritionists typically undertake further study to specialise in a professional area, including dietetics, research, food science and technology, health promotion or teaching.

In the Food Science stream you will focus on the nature and chemical composition of foods, ingredient behaviour under different processing conditions, and the application of this knowledge of food science to improve the safety and quality of food. Nutrition and food scientists are also involved in the research and development of new food products and new technologies in the processing of foods. You will also undertake a work placement with an external organisation which may be a government, research or food industry organisation.