Human Nutrition - Taught Programme

Programme Details

PROGRAMME LENGTH
MSc 12 months full-time

Aims

The programme aims to provide training in human nutrition for graduates in life sciences that will equip them for future careers in academic institutions, hospitals, industry or national and international agencies. The MSc course was established in 1986 in collaboration with the Rowett Research Institute, one of the leading and oldest nutrition research institutes in Europe, which merged with the University of Aberdeen to become the Rowett Institute of Nutrition and Health in 2008. The MSc programme is unique in its emphasis on research training applying basic biological, molecular sciences and public health research methods to human nutrition, with a choice of specialism of Metabolic Nutrition, Molecular Nutrition or Public Health Nutrition. The main focus of the programme is on the relationship between diet, health and disease, nutritional mechanisms involved in disease development and dietary interventions for disease prevention.

Contact Information

Postgraduate Secretary
Graduate School
College of Life Sciences & Medicine

Syllabus

First semester (Sept- January):

All students take four core courses and generic skills training. These taught courses are based on lectures, laboratory practical classes and individual assignments. The topics covered include dietary assessment, macronutrients, energy balance and metabolism, micronutrients, nutritional status and body composition, nutrition throughout the lifecycle, diet and disease, computing and applied statistics.

• Foundations of Human Nutrition
• Assessment of Nutritional Status
• Nutrition and Health
• Applied Statistics
• Computing

Successful completion of the above four courses is required for the Certificate in Human Nutrition. Students continuing to the Diploma and MSc progress to the courses listed below.

Second semester (January – August):

Specialist taught course (January – March)

MSc and Pg Diploma students follow a 6-week taught course that includes lectures and practical classes and exercises to give understanding and first-hand experience of their chosen specialism selected from Metabolic Nutrition, Molecular Nutrition or Public Health Nutrition.

Metabolic Nutrition: This specialism includes teaching on relationships between nutrition, health and disease at the metabolic level. There are lectures and practical classes on laboratory research methods (including immunoassay, chromatography, mass spectrometry and proteomics), gene-nutrient interactions, nutrition epidemiology, study design, research ethics and clinical nutrition.

Molecular Nutrition: This specialism includes teaching on relationships between nutrition, health and disease at the molecular level, state of the art technologies applied to molecular approaches to nutrition, including genomics, proteomics and metabolomics, nutrition and cellular signalling, molecular epidemiology, epigenetics and issues relating to nutrigenomics and society/bioethics and commercialisation.

Public Health Nutrition: This specialism includes teaching on relationships between nutrition, health and disease at the Public Health level , specialist teaching on survey methods, nutrition epidemiology, nutrition interventions in the community, nutrition policy, communicating nutrition advice at a population level, and a community nutrition attachment.

Research Project (MSc April – August, PG Diploma April – May): On successful completion of the specialist taught course, MSc students continue with an 18-week supervised original research project chosen to reflect the student's specialism, particular interests and training needs.

Pg Diploma students carry out a 6-week supervised literature review this is a literature review on a topic chosen by the student in consultation with an appointed supervisor.

The main fields of study for each specialism are as follows:

Metabolic Nutrition

• Macro and Micro Nutrient Metabolism
• Obesity and Body Composition
• Gene-Nutrient Interactions
• Free Radicals, Antioxidants,
• Phytochemicals
• Cancer Prevention
• Lipids in Vascular
• Immune Function
• Sports nutrition
• Diet and physical activity
• Gut microbiota
• Development and validation of biochemical markers of nutrition status

Molecular Nutrition:

• Molecular biology
• Genomics, proteomics and metabolomic techniques applied in nutrition research
• Gene-diet interactions
• Cellular signalling mechanisms at a molecular level
• Gut microbiota
• Model systems
• Nutrition and molecular epidemiology
• Molecular nutrition and health/disease
• Nutrigenomics and society/bioethics
• Commercialisation, entrepreneurship, molecular nutrition in industry

Public Health Nutrition:

• Nutrition Interventions in the Community and Nutrition Policy.
• Dietary assessment in large-scale population surveys.
• Relationship between diet and chronic disease, eg cardiovascular disease, cancer, obesity, and bone disease.
• Design and evaluation of nutrition and lifestyle interventions.
• Energy balance and behavioural nutrition.
• Development and validation of measures of diet and physical activity.
• Diet and behaviour change
• Food Security

Many projects are carried out at the Rowett Institute for Nutrition & Health, where excellent facilities for human and laboratory studies are available. Several students have carried out their MSc project out-with Aberdeen, in a recognised laboratory in the UK or overseas. Collaborative projects with industrial or community organisations can also be arranged

Assessment

Assessment is carried out through continuous assessment (essays, laboratory practicals and individual and group presentations) and by written examinations in January and March. The MSc project is assessed by thesis and oral presentations of the project protocol and findings, and all students have an oral examination. The PgDip literature review is assessed by thesis: oral examination is only required for borderline pass/fail candidates.

Teaching

Teaching is delivered in the form of lectures, tutorials, seminars and practical sessions.

Requirements

Degree in Medicine or second-class Honours degree in Biological Sciences, or equivalent research or field experience.

Minimum 2.2, 60% or GPA 2.4/4 or 3.0/5 overall

International applicants must also meet the English Language Requirements of the University.

Fees

Full details of tuition fees is available here

Funding

Prospective students should visit the University's Postgraduate Funding Database. 

No Boundaries. Just Possibilities.

Thanks to additional funding from the Scottish government this programme has funded places for Scottish and EU Students. More Information.  

University of Aberdeen Alumni Discount Scheme

The University of Aberdeen is very pleased to offer a 20% discount on postgraduate tuition fees for all alumni who have graduated with a degree from the University of Aberdeen.  More Information can be found here.