Food and Nutritional Sciences
A food and nutritional sciences degree from the university is accredited by the Association for Nutrition and offers you the chance to study nutrition alongside animal and plant production, food science and food safety, as well as biochemistry and physiology.
The skills you’ll develop during your degree will give you the skills to apply for a variety of jobs.
What skills will I gain during my degree?
You will develop your understanding of the science around nutrients and their effects as well as the social factors which influence nutrition.
A nutrition degree covers food production, food science, physiology, behaviour, psychosocial issues and legislation.
It also develops your skills in:
- scientific research and taking an evidence based approach
- scientific writing
- behaviour change and motivation
- interpreting data
- laboratory techniques
- giving presentations
- working as part of a team
- report writing
From your degree you will be developing skills such as communication, working effectively with others, digital competency and reflection – skills that are highly valued by employers.
Biosciences Core Graduate Competencies
You will also develop 12 competencies which have been divided into these four headings:
- Fundamental skills
- Interpersonal skills
- Personal aspiration and development
- Professional responsibility
Explore the Biosciences Core Graduate Competencies
It is also worth thinking about the skills you are developing outside of your degree such as part-time work, work experience, voluntary or student society involvement. These will be very useful for future job applications.
How can I develop my skills and experience during my degree?
Explore a Year in Industry
Some larger food companies offer year in industry placements that may be of interest to nutrition students, such as Nestlé and Marks and Spencer. These internships sometimes aren’t as specific as being ‘nutrition internships’ but can be related to your degree and give you a great experience of working in a large corporate food business.
For these types of internships you will find that applications will close in November or December for an internship to start the following summer, so do plan to apply early.
Get a summer internship
Summer internships are also a great way to gain experience, whether in science or non-science based roles. Search for roles:
My Career - internships from companies targeting Nottingham students
Nottingham Internship Scheme
Sources of vacancies for internships
Gain experience in the NHS
If you would like to gain experience working in the NHS, you can approach your local hospital.
While you are living in Nottingham you can apply for work experience placements in the East Midlands.
Unfortunately the hospitals do not have nutrition-specific opportunities, but experience of working with patients on various wards (for example, gastroenterology) could give you valuable experience of working in a hospital environment.
Work experience in the East Midlands - Health Education England
Explore summer research placements
If you have enjoyed the research elements of your degree so far, you might like to build further research and laboratory experience. This is particularly valuable if you are considering undertaking PhD after graduation.
Summer research placements through the School of Biosciences depend on the research being conducted, but it is worth approaching the academic staff working in the area of research that you are interested in as there may be an opportunity for you to work on a research project over the summer.
The Nutrition Society - Studentships
Royal Society of Biology Studentships
Explore volunteering opportunities
Volunteering is an excellent way to gain experience of working with different community groups or caring for others. You can also find experience working with food and cooking via Food Banks and community cafés.
Students’ Union Volunteer Centre
Opportunities being ad advertised by the Volunteer Center will vary year-by-year. Keep an eye out for anything related to food, health, or working with people in the local community.
Volunteering
Other volunteering opportunities
Nottingham CVS - volunteering at a cafe or food bank
Gain experience in teaching and education
You might be considering using your food and nutritional sciences degree to teach the next generation, or you might be interested in working as a Nutritionist for a contract catering company providing healthy school meals. Either way gaining experience in schools will be valuable.
There is information on how to gain teaching-related work experience here:
Career paths - Teaching
Graduate Prospects - volunteering in schools
Get into Teaching
Join the Nottingham Advantage Award
Another way to develop skills relevant to your career goals is to participate in Nottingham Advantage Award modules. There are many to choose from, including modules that give you the opportunities to work with community groups and local businesses. You might be particularly interested in the Nottingham Consultancy Challenge or the STEM Outreach Scheme.
Nottingham Advantage Award - find out more and explore the modules on offer
Please be aware that study abroad, compulsory year abroad, optional placements/internships and integrated year in industry opportunities may change at any time for a number of reasons, including curriculum developments, changes to arrangements with partner universities or placement/industry hosts, travel restrictions or other circumstances outside of the university's control. Every effort will be made to update this information as quickly as possible should a change occur.
What are the range of careers I could enter? Includes podcast
Food and nutritional sciences students move into a wide variety of jobs after graduation.
Jobs that are directly related to your degree include:
- Food technologist
- Health promotion specialist
- Nutritional therapist
- Nutritionist
Jobs where your degree would be useful include:
- Teaching
- Science communications
- Personal trainer
- Catering manager
- Dietitian*
- Health service manager
- Product/process development scientist
*Students interested in becoming a dietitian will need to study for a Postgraduate Diploma or a Masters in Dietetics that meets the Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC) registration requirements.
It’s worth bearing in mind that many careers are not degree specific, so you could look into a range of careers open to all graduates, particularly as job openings for nutritionists are limited. Roles open to graduates from all subjects include: management, finance and banking, marketing, retail, public relations, consultancy, sales, recruitment and business in a wide range of sectors.
Examples of employers who have recruited our nutrition and food science graduates
- Slimming World
- Weight Management Centre
- British Sugar
- Mondelez International
- Pitcher & Piano
Some of the jobs secured by our graduates:
- Assistant Product Developer
- Health Educator
- New Product Development Specialist
- Nutritionist
- Research Analyst
- Data Scientist
Understanding the food sector
In this podcast Dr. Emma Weston from the University of Nottingham gives:
- an overview of the sector
- an insight into the wide range of roles on offer and the degree disciplines recruited from
What are my further study options? Watch our webinar on PhD study
Over the past few years approximately 20% of food and nutritional sciences graduates have gone into further study after graduation. This could be to complete a Masters degree to further specialise (for example MSc nutrition and exercise science) or it could be to complete a research degree such as an MRes or PhD. Some graduates pursue a career in teaching and study a PGCE after graduation.
Find out more information on choosing further study, sources of funding and application support
Thinking about a PhD? How to get started and how to apply
In these two videos, Dr Judith Wayte from the University of Nottingham provides clear and wide-ranging advice on:
- how to get started: what to take into account, and how to gather relevant information
- on the application process and how to prepare for interviews
Login to SharePoint to watch the webinar
- Alumni: Email us to gain access to the webinar
Explore more...
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