Nutritional Science, Dietetics Concentration, BS + Nutritional Science MS

Admissions Requirements
Graduate Standing Requirements
Program Requirements (141 units)
Advising Roadmap

The Nutritional Science Spartan Accelerated Graduate Education (SAGE) Scholars Program is designed to meet the needs of the student who has a baccalaureate degree and seeks advanced preparation in nutrition science, nutrition education, geriatric nutrition, and foodservice/restaurant management. The program is intended to prepare candidates to assume leadership roles in their profession and communities and to provide the opportunity to acquire a foundation for doctoral study.

Our Nutritional Science, MS graduates have earned doctorates, become college and university faculty, been employed in private, federal, and state research institutions, and have established their own private practice or consulting business. In the process of fulfilling requirements for the SAGE MS degree, students who have completed the dietetics concentration will meet the academic requirements of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) and the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) toward becoming a registered dietitian.

The Nutritional Science SAGE Program enables qualified students in the Bachelor of Science in Nutritional Science program to simultaneously complete the requirements for both the baccalaureate and master’s degrees. Students can progress from undergraduate to graduate status seamlessly, with a simplified application process and no application fee, and complete both degrees in a year’s less time as compared to completing them separately. This will provide significant cost savings to the student.

Total SAGE Program Units (BS + MS) 141

For more information, contact the SAGE Scholars Program Coordinator Dr. Xi Feng.

Admissions Requirements

Be enrolled in or have completed the undergraduate Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (100W/GWAR) prior to admission into the SAGE Scholars program;
Successfully completed a minimum of 60 Nutritional Science BS applicable units and not more than 120 undergraduate degree applicable units at the time of admission in the program;
Completed NUFS 106A and NUFS 100W with grades of “C” or better;
Minimum 3.0 cumulative SJSU GPA at time of admission;
Completed all lower-division work (designated 1-99, including lower-division general education courses and American Institutions courses).

Graduate Standing Requirements

Requirements for program continuation and advancement to candidacy in the graduate program, include:

Students must maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher. Students in the first four years of the program who do not maintain these standards will be removed from the SAGE Scholars program and returned to the non-SAGE BS in Nutritional Science program. In that event, students in the dietetics concentration will be eligible for the Nutrition and Dietetic Technician Registered (NDTR) credential.
Students may apply for the master’s program at that point like any other non-SAGE Scholars applicant.
Students are converted to graduate status when they have completed 120 SAGE program-applicable units. The following University Requirements are satisfied with required courses in the major: GE Area B and SJSU Studies Area S. Alternate courses that may satisfy these requirements are not counted in the calculation of the 120 SAGE program-applicable units.

Program Requirements (141 units)

Nutritional Science, Dietetics Concentration (120 units)

Students must satisfy all of the major and Undergraduate University Graduation Requirements , which includes unit, GPA, and residency requirements as well as the below identified General Education , American Institutions, Graduation Writing Assessment, and Physical Education requirements. Courses that meet Undergraduate University Graduation Requirements are noted with an area designation (see Course Note Abbreviations ).

University Requirements (35 units)

The Lower and Upper Division General Education requirements may be satisfied by coursework outlined below. To satisfy the Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement (GWAR) , students must pass NUFS 100W or PH 100W with a grade of “C” or better (“C-” not accepted).

GE Areas A, C, D/American Institutions (US123) , F, and SJSU Studies Area R or V (30 units)
Physical Education (2 units)

Major Preparation (24 units)

BIOL 66 - Human Physiology 5 unit(s) (B2+B3)
CHEM 1A - General Chemistry 5 unit(s) (B1+B3)
CHEM 30B - Introductory Chemistry 3 unit(s)
CHEM 132 - Introductory Biochemistry 4 unit(s)
CHEM 132L - Introductory Biochemistry Lab 1 unit(s)
NUFS 100W - Writing Workshop 3 unit(s) (WID)

Complete one course:

(UNVS 15 may be used in lieu of the statistics course required by this major.)

STAT 95 - Elementary Statistics 3 unit(s) (B4)
PH 67 - Introductory Health Statistics 3 unit(s) (B4)

Major Requirements (61 units)

Major Core (34 units)

NUFS 8 - Nutrition for the Health Professions 3 unit(s)
NUFS 20 - Sanitation and Environmental Issues in the Hospitality Industry 2 unit(s)
NUFS 31 - Professionalism in Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging 1 unit(s)
NUFS 101A - Food Science 4 unit(s)
NUFS 103 - Food Processing and Packaging I 2 unit(s)
NUFS 106A - Human Nutrition in the Life Span 3 unit(s)
NUFS 106B - Research Methodology in Nutrition and Food Science 3 unit(s)
NUFS 111 - Foodservice Production Management 3 unit(s)
NUFS 134 - Multicultural Complementary and Alternative Medicine 3 unit(s) (S)
NUFS 151 - Food Microbiology 2 unit(s)
NUFS 192 - Field Experience in Nutrition and Food Science and Packaging Technology 1-6 unit(s)
PKG 107 - Principles of Packaging 3 unit(s)
Complete one course:
- NUFS 139 - Hunger and Environmental Nutrition 3 unit(s) (R)
- NUFS 144 - Food Culture: Consuming Passions 3 unit(s) (V)

Dietetics Concentration (27 units)

NUFS 108A - Nutrition and Metabolism 3 unit(s)
NUFS 109 - Advanced Nutrition 3 unit(s)
NUFS 110A - Medical Nutrition Therapy 3 unit(s)
NUFS 110B - Medical Nutrition Therapy 3 unit(s)
NUFS 113 - Foodservice Systems: Mgmt & Proc 3 unit(s)
NUFS 114A - Community Nutrition for Majors 3 unit(s)
NUFS 190 - Nutrition Education and Counseling 3 unit(s)
Complete 6 units (or by Advisement):
- NUFS 21 - Culinary Principles and Practice 3 unit(s)
- NUFS 22 - Catering and Beverage Management 2 unit(s)
- NUFS 103L - Food Processing Laboratory 1 unit(s)
- NUFS 104A - Cultural Aspects of Food 3 unit(s)
- NUFS 105 - Current Issues in Nutrition 3 unit(s)
- NUFS 116 - Aging and Nutrition 3 unit(s)
- NUFS 123 - Nutrition for Sport 3 unit(s)
- NUFS 124 - Disordered Eating and Nutrition Therapy 3 unit(s)
- NUFS 180 - Individual Studies 1-6 unit(s)
- NUFS 194 - Entrepreneurial Nutrition 1 unit(s)
- SPAN 1A - Elementary Spanish 4 unit(s) (C2) OR SPAN 4A - Basic Spanish I 4 unit(s) (or by advisement)

Nutritional Science, MS (21 units)

Core Courses (18 units)

NUFS 201 - Colloquium in Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging 3 unit(s)
NUFS 217 - Issues in Nutrition, Food and Packaging 3 unit(s) (GWAR)
NUFS 257 - Biostatistics in Research 3 unit(s)
NUFS 295A - Research Methodology 3 unit(s)
Complete two courses:

Culminating Experience (3 units)

Plan B (Project)

For this plan, the student is required to complete NUFS 298 - Special Studies in Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging and submit a written project in publication format. A bound copy of the project must be submitted to the Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging Department and to the student’s project advisor.

NUFS 298 - Special Studies in Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging 1-6 unit(s) (3 units required)

Total Units Required (141 units)

The standalone Nutritional Science, MS program requires 9 units of courses in a Specialization Area. Students satisfy this requirement in this SAGE Scholars Program by completing 9 units from NUFS 108A , NUFS 109 , NUFS 110A , and NUFS 110B in the Nutritional Science, Dietetics Concentration BS program. These 9 credits are considered to count toward both the graduate and undergraduate degrees, thus allowing SAGE students to meet the minimum unit requirements for both degrees.

Documentation of a minimum of 450 hours of dietetics work/volunteer experience is required before applying for the Dietetic Internship. These hours must be completed before the application semester.

NUFS 220A - Advanced Medical Nutrition Therapy is a required course for SAGE students in the Dietetics concentration who will be planning for the SJSU Dietetic Internship.

To support student success, the SAGE program allows for extended enrollment to accommodate unforeseen circumstances or personal commitments. Students have the option to add an additional semester to ensure they complete all program requirements.