Nutritional Science (AGLS)

Nutritional science looks at the connection between diet and health. Students learn how diet can play a crucial role in the cause, treatment, and prevention of many diseases.  There are degree program focuses within nutritional science:

• Pre-health and research coursework prepares students for work in research laboratories, graduate study in nutrition or biological sciences, or entrance into health professional programs, such as medical, dental, physician assistant, and pharmacy schools. Students gain a strong science education along with human nutrition expertise. 
• Health coach and nutrition and wellness coursework prepares students for work positions in program planning and evaluation for community, public health, non-profit, and corporate wellness programs addressing the growing public interest in nutrition, wellness, and preventative health. Students learn about the role of nutrition and healthy eating for disease prevention and wellness. 

The department also offers a nutrition minor.

Student Learning Outcomes

Upon graduation, students should be able to: 

• Communicate effectively in their field of study using written, oral, visual and/or electronic forms.
• Demonstrate proficiency in ethical data collection and interpretation, literature review and citation, critical thinking and problem solving.
• Participate effectively in a group or team.
• Integrate creativity, innovation, or entrepreneurship in ways that produce value.
• Describe sociocultural competence relative to diversity, equity and/or inclusion.
• Explain how human activities impact the natural environment and how societies are affected.
• Meet program specific learning outcomes for the Nutritional Science major.

Degree Requirements

Administered by the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition

• Pre-Health and Research Program Focus
• Health Coach Program Focus
• Nutrition and Wellness Program Focus

PRE-HEALTH AND RESEARCH PROGRAM FOCUS

Total Degree Requirement: 120 cr.

Students must fulfill International Perspectives and U.S. Cultures and Communities requirements by selecting coursework from approved lists. These courses may also be used to fulfill other area requirements. Only 65 cr. from a two-year institution may apply to the degree which may include up to 16 technical cr.; 9 P-NP cr. of electives; 2.00 minimum GPA.    

International Perspectives: 3 cr.

U.S. Cultures and Communities: 3 cr.

Communications and Library: 13 cr.

ENGL 1500	Critical Thinking and Communication	3
ENGL 2500	Written, Oral, Visual, and Electronic Composition	3
Select from:		3
ENGL 3020	Business Communication
ENGL 3090	Proposal and Report Writing
ENGL 3140	Technical Communication
LIB 1600	Introduction to College Level Research	1
SPCM 2120	Fundamentals of Public Speaking	3
Total Credits		13

Humanities and Social Sciences: 6-12 cr.

Select Humanities courses from approved list		3
Select Social Science course from approved list		3
If HSCI student, select:		6
Additional Humanities course
Additional Humanities or Social Science course

Ethics: 3 cr.

FSHN 3420

World Food Issues: Past and Present

3

Mathematical Sciences: 6-12 cr.

Select at least 3 credits from:		3-8
MATH 1400	College Algebra
MATH 1430	Preparation for Calculus
MATH 1600	Survey of Calculus
MATH 1650	Calculus I
MATH 1650 & MATH 1660	Calculus I and Calculus II
Select at least 3 credits from:		3-4
STAT 1010	Principles of Statistics
STAT 1040	Introduction to Statistics
Total Credits		6-12

Physical Sciences: 13 cr.

CHEM 1770	General Chemistry I	4
CHEM 1770L	Laboratory in General Chemistry I	1
CHEM 1780	General Chemistry II	3
CHEM 1780L	Laboratory in College Chemistry II	1
CHEM 2310	Elementary Organic Chemistry	3
or CHEM 3310	Organic Chemistry I
CHEM 2310L	Laboratory in Elementary Organic Chemistry	1
or CHEM 3310L	Laboratory in Organic Chemistry I
Total Credits		13

Biological Sciences: 24-29 cr.

BIOL 2110	Principles of Biology I	3
BIOL 2110L	Principles of Biology Laboratory I	1
BIOL 2120	Principles of Biology II	3
BIOL 2120L	Principles of Biology Laboratory II	1
BIOL 2550	Fundamentals of Human Anatomy	3
BIOL 2550L	Fundamentals of Human Anatomy Laboratory	1
Select at least 3 credits from:		3-4
BIOL 2560 & 2560L	Fundamentals of Human Physiology and Fundamentals of Human Physiology Laboratory
or BIOL 3350	Principles of Human and Other Animal Physiology
BIOL 3130	Principles of Genetics	3
Select at least 3 credits from:		3-6
BBMB 3010	Survey of Biochemistry
BBMB 3160	Principles of Biochemistry
BBMB 4040 & BBMB 4050	Biochemistry I and Biochemistry II
MICRO 2010	Introduction to Microbiology	2-3
or MICRO 3020	Biology of Microorganisms
MICRO 2010L	Introductory Microbiology Laboratory	1
or MICRO 3020L	Microbiology Laboratory
Total Credits		24-29

Food Science and Human Nutrition: 30 cr.

FSHN 1100	Professional and Educational Preparation	1
FSHN 1670	Introductory Human Nutrition and Health	3
FSHN 2650	Nutrition for Active and Healthy Lifestyles	3
FSHN 3600	Advanced Nutrition and the Regulation of Metabolism in Health and Disease	3
FSHN 3610	Nutrition and Health Assessment	2
FSHN 3620	Nutrition and Health Throughout the Lifecycle	3
FSHN 4670	Molecular Basis of Nutrition in Disease Etiology and Health Promotion	3
FSHN 4920	Research Concepts in Human Nutrition	2
Select at least 10 additional credits from:		10
FSHN 2030	Contemporary Issues in Food Science and Human Nutrition
FSHN 2140 & FSHN 2150	Scientific Study of Food and Advanced Food Preparation Laboratory (or FSHN 1150 lab)
FSHN 2420	The US Food System
FSHN 2670X	Clinical Perspectives on Human Nutrition and Health
FSHN 3010	Nutrigenomics: From Basic Science to Translational Impact
FSHN 3640	Nutrition and Prevention of Chronic Disease
FSHN 3650	Obesity and Health
FSHN 3670	Medical Terminology for Health Professionals
FSHN 4300	U.S. Health Systems and Policy
FSHN 4600	Global Nutrition, Health and Sustainability
FSHN 4610	Medical Nutrition and Disease I
FSHN 4630	Community Nutrition and Health
FSHN 4640	Medical Nutrition and Disease II
FSHN 4660	Nutrition Counseling and Education Methods
FSHN 4900C	Independent Study: Nutrition
FSHN 4990	Undergraduate Research
NUTRS 5010	Biochemical and Physiological Basis of Nutrition: Macronutrients and Micronutrients
NUTRS 5040	Nutrition and Epigenetic Regulation of Gene Expression
BIOL 3140	Principles of Molecular Cell Biology
CHEM 3320	Organic Chemistry II
CHEM 3320L	Laboratory in Organic Chemistry II
PHYS 1310 & 1310L	General Physics I and General Physics I Laboratory
or PHYS 2310 & 2310L	Introduction to Classical Physics I and Introduction to Classical Physics I Laboratory
PHYS 1320 & 1320L	General Physics II and General Physics II Laboratory
or PHYS 2320 & 2320L	Introduction to Classical Physics II and Introduction to Classical Physics II Laboratory
Total Credits		30

Electives: 2-25 cr. Select from any university coursework to earn at least 120 total credits. Students planning to apply to health professional programs should review entrance requirements and select appropriate courses as electives.

Concurrent B.S. and M.S. Program: Well-qualified students in Nutritional Science, pre-health and research option, who are interested in graduate study may apply for concurrent enrollment in the Graduate College to simultaneously pursue both a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in Nutritional Science and a Master of Science (M.S.) degree in Nutritional Sciences. For more information, refer to www.fshn.hs.iastate.edu

HEALTH COACH / NUTRITION & WELLNESS PROGRAM FOCUS

Total Degree Requirement: 120 cr.

Students must fulfill international perspectives and U.S. cultures and communities requirements by selecting coursework from approved lists. These courses may also be used to fulfill other area requirements. Only 65 cr. from a two-year institution may apply to the degree which may include up to 16 technical cr.; 9 P-NP cr. of electives; 2.00 minimum GPA.

International Perspectives: 3 cr.

U.S. Cultures and Communities: 3 cr.

Communications/Library: 10 cr.

ENGL 1500	Critical Thinking and Communication	3
ENGL 2500	Written, Oral, Visual, and Electronic Composition	3
LIB 1600	Introduction to College Level Research	1
SPCM 2120	Fundamentals of Public Speaking	3
Total Credits		10

Humanities and Social Sciences: 12-15 cr.

Select Humanities course from approved list		3
PSYCH 1010	Introduction to Psychology	3
or PSYCH 2300	Developmental Psychology
SOC 1340	Introduction to Sociology	3
FSHN 3420	World Food Issues: Past and Present (this course can also meet the IP requirement)	3
If HSCI student, select additional Humanities course		3

Mathematical Sciences: 6-8 cr.

Select at least 3 credits from:		3-4
MATH 1400	College Algebra
MATH 1430	Preparation for Calculus
MATH 1600	Survey of Calculus
MATH 1650	Calculus I
Select at least 3 credits from:		3-4
STAT 1010	Principles of Statistics
STAT 1040	Introduction to Statistics
Total Credits		6-8

Physical Sciences: 5 cr.

CHEM 1630	College Chemistry	4
or CHEM 1770	General Chemistry I
CHEM 1630L	Laboratory in College Chemistry	1
or CHEM 1770L	Laboratory in General Chemistry I
Total Credits		5

Biological Sciences: 18-19 cr.

BIOL 2110	Principles of Biology I	3
BIOL 2110L	Principles of Biology Laboratory I	1
BIOL 2120	Principles of Biology II	3
BIOL 2120L	Principles of Biology Laboratory II	1
BIOL 2550	Fundamentals of Human Anatomy	3
BIOL 2550L	Fundamentals of Human Anatomy Laboratory	1
BIOL 2560 & 2560L	Fundamentals of Human Physiology and Fundamentals of Human Physiology Laboratory	3-4
or BIOL 3350	Principles of Human and Other Animal Physiology
MICRO 2010	Introduction to Microbiology	2
MICRO 2010L	Introductory Microbiology Laboratory	1
Total Credits		18-19

Food Systems: 8 cr.

FSHN 2420	The US Food System	3
FSHN 3420	World Food Issues: Past and Present (course shown above)	3
FSHN 4420	Issues in Food and Society	2
Total Credits		8

Food Science and Human Nutrition: 34 cr.

FSHN 1010	Food and the Consumer	3
FSHN 1100	Professional and Educational Preparation	1
FSHN 1110	Fundamentals of Food Preparation	2
FSHN 1150	Food Preparation Laboratory	1
FSHN 1670	Introductory Human Nutrition and Health	3
FSHN 2030	Contemporary Issues in Food Science and Human Nutrition	1
FSHN 2640	Fundamentals of Nutritional Biochemistry	3
or BBMB 3010	Survey of Biochemistry
FSHN 2650	Nutrition for Active and Healthy Lifestyles	3
FSHN 3610	Nutrition and Health Assessment	2
FSHN 3640	Nutrition and Prevention of Chronic Disease	3
FSHN 3650	Obesity and Health	3
FSHN 4300	U.S. Health Systems and Policy	2
FSHN 4450	Strategies for Personal Food Waste Reduction	1
FSHN 4630	Community Nutrition and Health	3
COMST 4500B	Special Topics in Communication Studies: Health Communication	3
Total Credits		34

Additional courses for Health Coach Program Focus: 18 credits

KIN 2580	Principles of Physical Fitness and Conditioning	2
KIN 3580	Exercise Physiology	3
KIN 4580	Principles of Fitness Assessment and Exercise Prescription	4
PSYCH 1010	Introduction to Psychology	3
or PSYCH 2300	Developmental Psychology
PSYCH 4220	Counseling Theories and Techniques	3
PSYCH 4850	Health Psychology	3
Total Credits		18

Select additional electives to reach 120 total semester credits.

Additional courses for Nutrition & Wellness Program Focus: 18-30 credits of electives

At least 9 credits of electives must be 3000-4000 level courses. Select from any university coursework to earn at least 120 total credits.

NOTE: 

Students are encouraged to pursue a minor, such as:

• Communication studies
• Culinary food science
• Entrepreneurship
• Environmental studies
• Event management
• Exercise science
• Global health
• Health promotion
• Hospitality management
• Human development and family studies
• Leadership studies
• Sustainability

Go to FSHN courses.

Nutritional Science, B.S.

Program Focus: Health Coach¹, Nutrition & Wellness²

First Year
Fall	Credits	Spring	Credits
FSHN 1100	1	FSHN 1010	3
FSHN 1670	3	CHEM 1630 or 1770	4
MATH 1400, 1430, 1600, or 1650	3-4	CHEM 1630L or 1770L	1
BIOL 2110	3	BIOL 2120	3
BIOL 2110L	1	BIOL 2120L	1
ENGL 1500	3	Course based on program focus:	3
LIB 1600	1	PSYCH 1010 or 23001
		Elective2
	15-16		15
Second Year
Fall	Credits	Spring	Credits
MICRO 2010	2	FSHN 2030	1
MICRO 2010L	1	FSHN 2420	3
FSHN 2640	3	FSHN 2650	3
BIOL 2550	3	BIOL 2560 and 2560L, or 3350	3-4
BIOL 2550L	1	FSHN 1110	2
ENGL 2500	3	FSHN 1150	1
Course based on program focus:	2-3
KIN 25801
Elective2
	15-16		13-14
Third Year
Fall	Credits	Spring	Credits
FSHN 3640	3	FSHN 3420	3
PSYCH 1010 or 2300	3	FSHN 3610	2
SPCM 2120	3	FSHN 3650	3
STAT 1040 or 1010	3-4	COMST 4500B	3
Course based on program focus:	3	Humanities (HSCI) or elective (AGLS)	3
KIN 35801		Course based on program focus:	3
Elective2		PSYCH 48501
		3000-4000 level elective2
	15-16		17
Fourth Year
Fall	Credits	Spring	Credits
FSHN 4420	2	FSHN 4450	1
FSHN 4630	3	FSHN 4300	2
Humanities	3	Course based on program focus:	3
SOC 1340	3	KIN 45801
Course based on program focus:	3	3000-4000 level elective2
PSYCH 42201		U.S. Cultures and Communities	3
3000-4000 level elective2		Electives (choose electives to total at least 120 credits)	4-6
	14		13-15

1, 2

Courses for program focus: Health Coach¹, Nutrition & Wellness²

Note:

This sequence is only an example. The number of credits taken each semester should be based on the individual student's situation. Factors that may affect credit hours per semester include student ability, employment, health, activities, and grade point consideration.

Nutritional Science, B.S. 

Program Focus: Pre-Health & Research

First Year
Fall	Credits	Spring	Credits
FSHN 1100	1	FSHN 1670	3
CHEM 1770	4	CHEM 1780	3
CHEM 1770L	1	CHEM 1780L	1
BIOL 2110	3	BIOL 2120	3
BIOL 2110L	1	BIOL 2120L	1
ENGL 1500	3	MATH 1400, 1430, 1600, or 1650	3-4
LIB 1600	1
Humanities	3
	17		14-15
Second Year
Fall	Credits	Spring	Credits
CHEM 2310 or 3310	3	FSHN 2650	3
CHEM 2310L or 3310L	1	BBMB 3010 or 3160, or BBMB 4040 and 4050 the next year	3
BIOL 3130	3	Social Science	3
STAT 1010 or 1040	3-4	Humanities (HSCI) or elective	3
ENGL 2500	3	Elective*	3
SPCM 2120	3
	16-17		15
Third Year
Fall	Credits	Spring	Credits
BIOL 2550	3	BIOL 2560 and 2560L, or 3350	3-4
BIOL 2550L	1	FSHN 3610	2
FSHN 3600	3	FSHN 3620	3
FSHN 3420	3	Humanities/Social Sci. (HSCI) or elective (AGLS)*	3
MICRO 2010 or 3020	2-3	Additional course from approved list**	3
MICRO 2010L or 3020L	1
Elective*	3
	16-17		14-15
Fourth Year
Fall	Credits	Spring	Credits
FSHN 4920	2	FSHN 4670	3
Additional course from approved list**	3	ENGL 3020, 3090, or 3140	3
Additional course from approved list**	3	U.S. Cultures and Communities (if not already taken) or elective*	3
Additional course from approved list**	1	Elective*	3-4
Elective*	3	Elective*	3
Elective*	3
	15		15-16

*

Choose elective courses to total equal to or greater than 120 credits.

**

 Select at least 10 additional credits from: BIOL 3140; CHEM 3320, CHEM 3320L; FSHN 2140 with lab (FSHN 1150 or FSHN 2150); FSHN 2030, FSHN 2420, FSHN 2670X, FSHN 3010, FSHN 3640, FSHN 3650, FSHN 3670, FSHN 4300, FSHN 4600, FSHN 4610, FSHN 4630, FSHN 4640, FSHN 4660, FSHN 4900C, FSHN 4990; NUTRS 5010, NUTRS 5040; PHYS 1310 or PHYS 2310/PHYS 2310L; PHYS 1320 or PHYS 2320/PHYS 2320L.

Note:

This sequence is only an example. The number of credits taken each semester should be based on the individual student's situation. Factors that may affect credit hours per semester include student ability, employment, health, activities, and grade point consideration.  

More information on the Nutrition minor can be found here: http://catalog.iastate.edu/collegeofagricultureandlifesciences/foodscienceandhumannutrition/#undergraduateminortext.

The Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition offers a Master of Science (M.S.) and Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Nutritional Sciences. More information can be found here: https://www.grad-college.iastate.edu/academics/programs/apresults.php?id=84.