BSc (Hons) Nutrition
DURATION
3 up to 4 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
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EARLIEST START DATE
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TUITION FEES
GBP 13,450
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
Scholarships
Explore scholarship opportunities to help fund your studies
Introduction
"Due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, examinations may be replaced by an alternative form of assessment during the academic year 2021/2022. Please refer to the Programme Specification on these pages for further details."
Why choose this course?
- The University of Hertfordshire was awarded TEF Gold (2018), the highest possible standard for teaching in the UK.
- Active research community.
- Accredited by the Association for Nutrition. On graduation, you become a Registered Associate Nutritionist and can use the ANutr qualification.
- Major focus on employability. All students undertake a 2-week work experience as part of their degree which contributes to academic credits.
- Optional 12-month industrial placement or study abroad overseas at one of our world partner universities as part of a 4-year degree.
- Practical experience in the brand-new state-of-the-art Science, Diet, and Sports Performance labs.
Other additional opportunities include:
- The dedicated student support from the School of Life and Medical Sciences Academic Support Unit.
- Teaching is complemented by lectures from visiting lecturers from the industry.
- Active student-led Nutrition and Dietetics Society.
What's the course about?
This degree is accredited by the Association for Nutrition and explores in detail the scientific basis of nutrition, health promotion, and disease prevention. On graduation, you will become a Registered Associate Nutritionist and you can play an influential role in educating the public, promoting healthy eating, and developing healthier food. In the first year, you’ll study basic nutrition, food science, and psychological concepts and develop a fundamental understanding of human physiology, biochemistry, and cell biology. You’ll then move on to study more specialised areas such as disease pathophysiology, metabolism, and how nutrition can play a key role in health and disease prevention throughout the lifecycle. You will also study modules related to the food industry and employability including the role of the nutritionist in foodservice. In your final year, you will undertake a two-week work experience and will study public health nutrition, sports nutrition, behaviour change, and contemporary topics in nutrition. You will also undertake a final-year research project. You’ll also have the exciting opportunity to choose from study abroad or take a year-long work placement in the industry.
Your main campus is College Lane
This is where the creative arts, science, and health-related subjects are based. This means you’ll share the campus with future nurses, scientists, artists, and more. You can use the common rooms to relax with friends, work out in the 24-hour gym or have a drink in our on-campus pub or cafes. We also have restaurants for you to eat in or grab something on the go. Our Learning Resources Centres are open 24/7, which means you can study whenever suits you best. Want to pop over to the other campus? You can take the free shuttle bus or walk there in just 15 minutes.
This course includes the options of:
- Work placement
- Study abroad
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Admissions
Scholarships and Funding
Curriculum
What will I study?
Throughout the course, you will be taught by experienced and enthusiastic registered nutritionists and dietitians, expert biosciences researchers, and industry professionals and you will benefit from our specialist brand new state-of-the-art Science, Diet, and Sports Performance labs.
Teaching is delivered over 3-5 days with 12-25 contact hours a week which normally include lectures, workshops, seminars, and practical lab sessions. In addition, up to twenty additional hours a week of self-directed study is required.
A combination of traditional and innovative teaching approaches are used, including:
- Large and small group lectures and workshops
- Workshops, seminars, and tutorials
- Practical classes
- Problem-based learning
- Work-based learning
- Visits to external nutrition and food organisations
- Digital tools (CANVAS)
- Electronic Voting Systems
- Online Reading lists
- Digital Assessment
A combination of assessment methods is used, including:
- essays
- abstracts
- lab reports
- poster and oral presentations
- vivas (verbal examinations)
- case studies
- group projects
- multiple-choice questions
- objective structured clinical examination (OSCE)
- dissertations
- exams
Throughout your studies, you will have access to some of the best study facilities in the UK.
At the beginning of the programme you will also be allocated a personal tutor who will provide support and academic guidance throughout your course. You will also have a placement and a study abroad tutor to support you with placement search and study abroad application, respectively.
Available student prizes
There are exciting opportunities to get a prize based on the best performance. Each year all students registered on the BSc (Hons) Nutrition are eligible for generous cash prizes offered by Vitabiotics. The prizes are supported by a University of Hertfordshire alumnus. Prizes are awarded at the end of the academic year for second and final-year students with the best academic performance.
Level 4
- Food Science, Safety and Systems II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Introduction to Biochemistry and Metabolism II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Professional Practice for Nutrition II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Human Physiology (Nutrition and Dietetics) II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Cell Biology II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Food Science, Safety and Systems II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Psychology and Sociology II 15 Credits II Compulsory
Level 5
- Food Quality Assurance II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Research Methods for Nutrition II 0 Credits II Compulsory
- Pathophysiology and Pharmacology II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Biochemistry and Metabolism 2 II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Food Service Management for Nutritionists II 0 Credits II Compulsory
- Clinical Nutrition II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Nutrition Health and Disease II 30 Credits II Compulsory
Level 6
- Work Experience in Nutrition II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Nutrition Research II 30 Credits II Compulsory
- Behaviour Change II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Sport & Performance Nutrition II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Public Health Nutrition Interventions II 15 Credits II Compulsory
- Public Health Nutrition Policy II 0 Credits II Compulsory
- Nutrition Year Study Abroad II 0 Credits II Optional
- Nutrition Placement Year II 0 Credits II Optional
Study abroad
An opportunity for an amazing experience, which will help make you stand out from the crowd. With more and more companies working internationally, the experience of living in another country can make a great impression on future employers.
This course offers you the opportunity to enhance your study and CV with a sandwich year abroad. The University has partnerships with over 150 universities around the world, including the USA, Canada, Asia, Africa, Australia, South America and closer to home in Europe.
If you study abroad between your second and third year of study, you’ll pay no tuition fee to the partner university and no tuition fee to us either. We’ll ask you to make your decision in your second year, so there is plenty of time to think about it.
Work placement
Graduate with invaluable work experience alongside your degree and stand out from the crowd.
This course offers you the opportunity to enhance your study and CV with a work placement sandwich year. It’s a chance to explore career possibilities, make valuable contacts and gain sought after professional skills.
Our dedicated Careers and Employment team are here to help guide you through the process. Examples of employers that have offered a sandwich placement to our students in the past include:
- BeeZee Bodies
- Glaxo Smith Kline (GSK)
- MRC: Human Nutrition Research (now known as Elsie Widdowson Laboratory)
If you take up a work placement between your second and third year of study, at the University of Hertfordshire you’ll pay no tuition fee for this year. We’ll ask you to make your decision in your second year, so there is plenty of time to think about it.
This is one of the few courses that require students to undertake a two-week work experience as part of their studies. This will give you the opportunity to develop transferable skills that will enhance your employability as a future associate registered nutritionists. Work experience can take place either in the UK or internationally.
Examples of employers that have offered work experience to our students in the past include:
- Action on Sugar - Student Work experience
- Alatoni – QA technician
- BeeZee Bodies – Nutritional programme coordinator
- Coeliac UK - Student Work experience
- Community Food Enterprise – Student Volunteer
- Enfield Catering services - Student Work experience
- First Steps Nutrition – Student Work experience
- Hatfield Food Bank – Student Volunteer
- Hertfordshire Catering Limited – Nutrition Intern
- Hertfordshire Independent Living Services - Community Malnutrition Screening Volunteer/Nutrition & Wellbeing Team Placement Student
- Lidl – Quality Assurance administrator (internship)
- LiveWell Luton – Weight management programme assistant
- MoreLife - Physical/lifestyle Leader
- Mytime Active – Nutritional programme assistant
- Norse Nutrition – Catering compliance support
- Premier Nutrition - Work placement assistant nutritionist
- Steamplicity - QA technician
- Sufra Food Banks and Kitchen
- Thrive Tribe - Healthy Weight Assistant Intern
- University of Hertfordshire: Food Hertfordshire – Foodservice assistant
Examples of international work experience include:
- Dasman Diabetes Institute - Student Work experience
- Peking Union Medical College Hospital - Student Work experience
- Projects Abroad - Nutrition Intern
Program Tuition Fee
Career Opportunities
What's next for my career?
The continuing interest in the investigation between nutrition and health indicates an increase in career opportunities for nutrition graduates. There are many opportunities in charities and social enterprises that promote healthy eating. Most of the major food manufacturers and retailers employ nutritionists for either improving the nutritional quality of existing products and/or developing new products with health-enhancing properties. There are also opportunities in the food service industry (e.g. wholesalers and catering companies). In addition, there are a variety of careers for nutritionists in the community and in governmental and non-governmental public health units.
In these roles, you will be able to develop and implement health policies and programmes and promote healthy eating to the public. Opportunities for nutritionists also arise in research, education, and journalism. Once you gain at least 3 years of experience after you graduate you can become a registered nutritionist and you may consider setting up your own consultancy business and work as a freelancer.
There are many opportunities for registered associate nutritionists including working in public health where you can educate people to make healthier choices; the food industry where you can provide nutritional information and help develop healthier products and clinical nutrition where you can advise on diets to reduce the risk of chronic disease. Opportunities also exist in sports nutrition, animal nutrition, consultancy, research, education, or journalism.