Traditional M.S.
This in-person program allows students to explore courses covering the complexities, social implications and nutritional impacts of the food system, chronic disease management, advanced research methods and community program development.
The skills and knowledge gained from this program will prepare you for careers in a variety of settings including healthcare, private practice, community organizations, education, government, industry, nonprofit and more. You will explore evidence-based strategies to improve the health of individuals and the communities where they live and will gain knowledge and experience to support and grow your career and reach in the field of nutrition.
Fast Facts
30
Credit Hours
0
GRE Requirements
18
Months
Customizable Program Choices
You will take core classes in nutrition and food systems, chronic disease management, advanced community program development, and global food diet and culture. Our M.S. program also allows flexibility in taking elective courses offered through our department and/or from other related disciplines. In DHN, we offer graduate elective coursework in obesity, food-related behaviors, culinary medicine and more. Our students also take elective courses from departments such as kinesiology and health promotion, communications, public health, sociology and sustainable agriculture. Make your graduate degree unique to your interests and professional goals.
Core Courses (12 Hours Total)
- Food Systems and Society
- Chronic Disease Management and Process
- Advanced Community Program Development
- Seminar in Nutrition and Food Systems
Guided Electives (6 Hours Total)
- Thesis Option: for in-person learning
- Research Methods in Nutrition and Food Systems
- Regression Analysis and Design of Experiments
- Non-Thesis Option: for online learning
- Global Foods, Diet and Culture
- Introduction to Evidence-Based Practice in Dietetics OR Research Methods in Nutrition and Food Systems
Free Electives (6-12 Hours Total)
- Based on your interests and professional goals, choose from a wide variety of courses offered in DHN and at the University of Kentucky. Make the program work for YOU.
- Elective courses can be used to earn a Graduate Certificate in Applied Nutrition & Culinary Medicine.
- Elective options available in DHN:
- Introduction to Culinary Medicine
- Food Related Behaviors
- Obesity and Food Insecurity Paradigm: From Cell to Society
Evidence-Based Practice Project Coursework (6 Hours Total)
With our traditional thesis-based option, students will work alongside their thesis chair who will guide them through the writing process in order to complete a written thesis as well as an oral defense. The topic of research will be tailored to personal interests and goals, and students will receive the support of their thesis chair every step of the way. Graduate students in this program are eligible for research and teaching assistantships, which may offset some costs of attendance. Explore the work of our program graduates in the thesis library.
Admissions Requirements
Admission to the M.S. in Nutrition and Food Systems program is selective and competitive.
- Students must have a relevant undergraduate degree from an accredited institution. A relevant degree includes nutrition science/dietetics, exercise science, biology, chemistry, nursing, public health or other health-science related degrees.
- Alternatively, the applicant may be asked to complete prerequisite courses such as nutrition, physiology or biology courses as deemed necessary by the DHN graduate program admissions committee.
- A minimum GPA of 3.0 is required, with conditional admittance considered.
- The GRE is not required to apply.
- Visit The Graduate School to start the application process, and enter program code NFSY for the Master of Science in Nutrition and Food.
- Upload copies of transcripts from all higher education institutions attended and self report cumulative GPA. If you are offered admission and decide to enroll, you will be required to submit official transcripts to UK Graduate School.
- Pay the online application fee: $65 for domestic applicants and $75 for international applicants.
- For applicants whose native language is not English, self-report English language test scores from one of the following testing services on the application when prompted.
- Send Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) scores directly to us from ETS, using UK Graduate School’s institution code R1837.
- Send International English Language Testing Service (IELTS) scores directly to us from IELTS, specifying the University of Kentucky Graduate School, Lexington, KY, as the recipient institution.
- Submit a professional writing sample. This can be a paper you have written for a previous class or for publication.
- Include three letters of recommendation.
- Upload your curriculum vitae (CV) or resume.
- Draft and submit a statement of purpose. This document should be one or two pages and can include your background, your preparation and your purpose for going to graduate school, your career goals, and your research and teaching experience.
Additional Opportunities
Graduate Research
Our program goal is to provide students with expertise in nutrition and food systems for applying practical and critical thinking skills to address nutrition-related problems in an evolving global society. Together, the student and their thesis chair discuss research interests and develop a thesis proposal, which is approved by the student’s thesis committee (a total of three members). In the last semester of the student’s program of study they will submit their written thesis to their committee, as well as the Graduate School, and defend their work during an oral defense.
Learn MoreAssistantships
Gain both experience and financial assistance with a graduate assistantship. Teaching and research assistantships are available for qualified students on a competitive application basis. Assistantships include a stipend and tuition scholarship. To be considered for an assistantship, applicants must apply to the graduate program by March 1 for admission the following fall semester and October 1 for admission the following spring semester. Each semester, current students must reapply for a graduate assistantship as they are awarded every semester based on performance.
Learn MoreLearn More & Apply
Effective January 1, 2024, the minimum degree requirement to be approved for eligibility for the registration examination for dietitians will change from a bachelor's degree to a graduate degree. This decision was made by the Commission on Dietetic Registration based on the recommendations of the Council on Future Practice Visioning Report (2012). Learn more.
See our Handbook
Learn more about the program and application process in our handbook.
See the HandbookConnect With Us
Department of Dietetics and Human Nutrition
204 Funkhouser Building
Lexington, KY 40506
859-257-3800
dhn@uky.edu
