Nov 05, 2025  
2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2025-2026 Undergraduate Catalog

Nutritional Sciences, B.S.


Minimum number of credits required to graduate:  124

Minimum cumulative GPA required to graduate:  2.0

Minimum number of credits to complete the major:  72

 

School: School of Nursing and Health Sciences

Department: Nutrition and Public Health

Learn more about the program

 

The Nutritional Sciences major introduces students to the important role that nutrition plays in human health and wellness. Required courses explore the fundamentals of nutritional science, the public health applications of nutrition in the community, the clinical dimensions of human nutrition, and nutritional perspectives within the food services industry. Students enrolled in the Nutritional Sciences major are prepared for entry-level positions in the health and wellness and food services fields.

Graduates of this major are encouraged to continue their education in graduate programs designed to maximize career options and mobility in the growing field of human nutrition. For those with advanced degrees, employment opportunities exist in dietetics, research, teaching, food service, community and clinical nutrition fields, with growing prospects in the public health and nutrition education areas.

Major Requirements


A B.S. degree in Nutritional Sciences is awarded to students who complete a minimum of eighteen courses (72 major credits). Courses required in this major are listed below. 

Nutrition


Complete the following required courses:

Biology


Complete the following required course:

Chemistry


Complete the following required course:

Mathematics


Complete the following required course:

Required Elective Courses


Complete the elective requirements as specified below.

Nutrition and Human Performance Dual Degree B.S./M.S.


The 5-year Nutrition track allows students to receive a Bachelor of Science in Nutritional Sciences and a Master of Science in Nutrition and Human Performance in five years (162 credits). The students will complete three years of prerequisite courses for a pre-professional education, including all liberal studies core requirements (at least 108 credits) by the end of the spring semester of their third year.

The remaining 16 credits required for the Bachelor of Science degree (124 credits) will be earned through graduate level courses taken in the Fall of the Master of Science in Nutrition and Human Performance (traditionally year 4 Fall semester).

The MS in Nutrition and Human Performance will be awarded at the end of the fifth year of study with the completion of 38 graduate credits.

Students will formally apply to the graduate program (MS Nutrition & Human Performance) in early spring of their third year, in order to be officially admitted into the program.

Students in other majors interested in applying into the 3+2 (five-year accelerated program) may apply, although additional coursework may be needed to stay on track.

Students who do not matriculate into the MS Nutrition & Human Performance program will use their fourth year to complete their undergraduate degree in Nutritional Sciences.

The academic requirements to be in good academic standing to be considered for the Direct Entry MS in Nutrition & Human Performance are as follows: 

  • A minimum of a 3.0 cumulative overall GPA

  • At least a B or better in all prerequisite courses:

    • Biochemistry

    • Human Anatomy

    • Human Physiology 

    • Chemistry I

    • Organic Chemistry I

    • Microbiology 

    • Statistics

    • Introduction to Nutrition  

    • Exercise Physiology

  • Completion of at least 108 undergraduate credits, including all liberal studies core requirements before the start of the B.S. to M.S. Professional Phase begins (traditionally year 4 Fall semester).

Students officially apply to the Direct Entry MS in Nutrition & Human Performance Programs by February 1st of their junior year. The application requirements are as follows: 

  • A minimum of a 3.0 cumulative overall GPA (this includes any courses transferred in)

  • At least a B or better in all prerequisite courses that have been completed. Students may have up to two pending prerequisite courses at the time of application, but these courses must be completed prior to the start of the B.S. to M.S. Professional Phase (traditionally year 4 Fall semester). If prerequisites are pending at the time of application, students are considered for provisional admission.

  • Personal Statement

  • Resume

  • Students must complete at least 108 undergraduate credits, including all liberal studies core requirements, before the start of the B.S. to M.S. Professional Phase begins (traditionally year 4 Fall semester).

In order for an accepted student to continue with the program after the Fall semester senior year (UG), they must meet the following academic standards in the B.S. to M.S. Professional Phase (traditionally year 4 Fall semester): 

  • Attaining a minimum of a B or better in all coursework

  • Meeting all designated ACEND competencies at the minimum required level in each of the graduate courses taken as part of the program.

Students will earn their BS and MS in Nutrition & Human Performance at the successful completion of 162 credits, and all program requirements specified by the Program Director. Students will have their BS degree conferred before the start of the B.S. to M.S. Professional Phase begins (traditionally year 4 Fall semester and after 124 credits).

Students may, at any time, either by their own choice or failure to meet the academic requirements, exit the accelerated course of study. At the undergraduate level, they may continue majoring in Nutritional Sciences, or another major. Students would need to complete the minimum required credits in the designated major and meet all graduate requirements in order to graduate with a bachelor’s degree.

Nutrition and Human Performance Dual Degree B.S./M.S. Major Requirements

A B.S. degree in Nutritional Sciences is awarded to students who complete a minimum of sixteen courses (64 major credits). Courses required in this major are listed below.