In the Division of Nutritional Sciences , College of Agriculture and Life Sciences .
In addition to the major requirements outlined below, all students must meet their college graduation requirements: Agriculture and Life Sciences Graduation Requirements
A major in Nutritional Sciences focuses on the complex interrelationships of food patterns, nutritional status, and health. This field draws upon chemistry, biology, and the social sciences to understand questions such as: How are nutrients used by the body? What factors influence human food choice? What nutrients and dietary patterns are recommended to promote growth, maintain health, or reduce the risk of chronic disease? Students in this program may also fulfill the courses required for didactic training in dietetics toward becoming a Registered Dietitian, which will enable them to be employed as nutrition counselors, clinical nutritionists, sports nutritionists, or administrators of food and nutrition services. Students also may prepare for medical school and other types of advanced degree programs through this major. This major is offered by the Division of Nutritional Sciences . More information about this major can be found on the Division’s webpage, which includes descriptions of all of the majors that are offered.
Major Requirements
Major Learning Outcomes
Upon graduation with the Nutritional Sciences major, students should be able to:
- Integrate knowledge from the biological and social sciences to address nutrition and health problems facing indivdiuals, societies and governments.
- Demonstrate an understanding of the complex and evolving nature of scientific knowledge in the promotion of health and the etiology and prevention of disease.
- Demonstrate the ability to access and critically evaluate scientific information from the primary research literature to investigate the influences of nutrition and other environmental factors in human health and disease.
- Develop positions on nutrition-related health issues.
- Communicate positions on nutrition-related health issues to colleagues and lay/target audiences.
- Demonstrate knowledge of ethical principles, considerations and dilemmas relevant to the research and practice of nutrition.
Additional information:
- All coursework for this major is in person, in Ithaca, unless otherwise noted.
- No prerequisite courses are necessary before declaring the Nutritional Sciences major.
- All major requirements must be taken for a letter grade.
- A passing grade must be earned to meet major requirements within a course.
The requirements listed below pertain to all students matriculating in August 2023 and January 2024.
Courses taken to fulfill requirements 1-12 must be taken for a Letter Grade. DNS students may not use courses to fulfill more than one requirement, even though DUST indicates otherwise for CALS students.
Overall Credits (REQUIRED):
- Total: 120 credits
- Agriculture and Life Sciences: 55 credits
- 9 credits from outside the major (anything but NS courses)
1. Introductory Chemistry (8 credits)
(a) CHEM 2070 - General Chemistry I (4 cr) AND CHEM 2080 - General Chemistry II (4 cr) 1
(b) A score of 5 on the Chemistry exam AND CHEM 2080 - General Chemistry II (4 cr) 2
(c) A score of 5 on the Chemistry exam AND CHEM 2150 - Honors General and Inorganic Chemistry (4 cr) 3
1 Students interested in pre-health tracks should not use AP or IB credit to fulfill part of the introductory chemistry requirement. It is strongly recommended that students with pre-health interest take both CHEM 2070 and CHEM 2080 .
2 Students may use an AP Chemistry score of 5 or an IB Chemistry score of 6 or 7 to place out of CHEM 2070 . Pre-health (e.g. pre-med) students should not use AP scores to fulfill chemistry requirements. Students who take CHEM 2070 forfeit AP or IB credit.
3 Students should only select option (c) if they are very strong in chemistry and are not considering a pre-health (e.g. pre-med) track.
2. Introductory Biology (8 credits)
Choose one of the following labs:
(a) BIOG 1500 - Investigative Biology Laboratory (2 cr) OR
(b) BIOSM 1500 - Investigative Marine Biology Laboratory (3 cr)
AND choose two out of the three lecture options1:
(a) BIOMG 1350 - Introductory Biology: Cell and Developmental Biology (3 cr)
(b) BIOG 1440 - Introductory Biology: Comparative Physiology (3 cr) OR2
BIOG 1445 - Introduction to Comparative Anatomy and Physiology, Individualized Instruction (autotutorial) (4 cr)
(c) BIOEE 1610 - Introductory Biology: Ecology and the Environment (3 cr) OR2
BIOEE 1780 - An Introduction to Evolutionary Biology and Diversity (3 cr)
1 Students may use an AP Biology score of 5 to place out of one introductory biology lecture. Pre-health (e.g. pre-med) students should not use AP scores to fulfill biology requirements.
2 Cannot take both courses within one category to fulfill this requirement.
3. Organic Chemistry Lecture (3-8 credits)1
Choose one of the following:
(a) CHEM 1570 - Introduction to Organic and Biological Chemistry (3 cr, not for pre-health) OR
(b) CHEM 3530 - [Principles of Organic Chemistry] (4 cr, not for pre-health) OR
(c) CHEM 3570-3580 Introductory Organic Chemistry (3 cr each, must take both, CHEM 3570 alone will not fulfill the requirement) OR
(d) CHEM 3590-3600 Organic Chemistry (4 cr each, must take both, CHEM 3590 alone will not fulfill the requirement)
1 Students interested in pre-health tracks should take a two-course sequence of organic chemistry lectures (option c or d above), in addition to an organic chemistry lab.
4. Organic Chemistry Lab (2-4 credits)
(a) CHEM 2510 - Introduction to Experimental Organic Chemistry (2 cr) OR
(b) CHEM 3010 - Honors Experimental Chemistry I (4 cr)
5. Physiology (3-4 credits)
Choose one of the following1:
(a) NS 3410 - Human Anatomy and Physiology (4 cr) OR
(b) BIOAP 3110 - Principles of Animal Physiology (3 cr)
1 Pre-health students should also consider taking NS 3420 - Human Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory (2 cr).
6. Biochemistry (4-6 credits)
Choose one of the following:
(a) NS 3200 - Introduction to Human Biochemistry (4 cr) OR
(b) BIOMG 3300 - Principles of Biochemistry, Individualized Instruction (4 cr) OR
(c) BIOMG 3310 - Principles of Biochemistry: Proteins and Metabolism (3 cr) AND BIOMG 3320 - Principles of Biochemistry: Molecular Biology (2 cr) OR
(d) BIOMG 3310 - Principles of Biochemistry: Proteins and Metabolism (3 cr) AND BIOMI 2900 - General Microbiology Lectures (3 cr) OR
(e) BIOMG 3350 - Principles of Biochemistry: Proteins, Metabolism, and Molecular Biology
7. Nutritional Sciences Core Courses (16 credits)
(a) NS 1150 - Nutrition, Health, and Society (3 cr)
(b) NS 2450 - Social Science Perspectives on Food and Nutrition (3 cr)
(c) NS 3450 - Introduction to Physiochemical and Biological Aspects of Foods (3 cr)
(d) NS 3310 - Human Nutrition and Nutrient Metabolism (4 cr)
(e) NS 3320 - Methods in Nutritional Sciences (3 cr)
8. Advanced Electives in Nutrition (9 credits)
At least 9 credits of NS courses at the 3000 level or above. Note: May include NS 3410 only if BIOAP 3110 is used to fulfill the physiology requirement.
Note: May include no more than a total of 3 credits from NS 4000 - Directed Readings , NS 4010 - Empirical Research , NS 4020 - Supervised Fieldwork , and NS 4990 - Honors Problem . May not include NS 3200 , NS 3980 , NS 4620 , or NS 4030 - Teaching Apprenticeship .
Economic Influences on Human Nutrition
Nutrition and Global Health (3 cr)
NS 4450 / NS 6455, AEM 4450 / NS 6455 Toward a Sustainable Global Food System: Food Policy for Developing Countries (3 cr)
NS 4480 - Economics of Food and Malnutrition (3 cr)
NS 4570 - [Health, Poverty, and Inequality: A Global Perspective] (3 cr)
Nutrition and Public Health
NS 3600 - Epidemiology (3 cr)
NS 4300 - Proteins, Transcripts, and Metabolism: Big Data in Molecular Nutrition (3 cr)
NS 4500 - Public Health Nutrition (3 cr)
NS 4600 - Explorations in Global and Public Health (3 cr)
Food Quality and Food Service Management
NS 4880 - Applied Dietetics in Food Service Systems (4 cr)
Human Health and Nutrition
NS 3150 / PSYCH 3150 - Obesity and the Regulation of Body Weight (3 cr)
NS 3420 - Human Anatomy and Physiology Laboratory (2 cr)
NS 4200 - Diet and the Microbiome (3 cr)
NS 4410 - Nutrition and Disease (4 cr )
NS 4420 - Implementation of Nutrition Care (3 cr; enrollment restricted – priority to Dietetics students)
Nutritional Biochemistry
NS 4300 - Proteins, Transcripts, and Metabolism: Big Data in Molecular Nutrition (3 cr)
NS 6310 - Micronutrients: Function, Homeostasis, and Assessment (2-4 cr)
NS 6320 - Regulation of Macronutrient Metabolism (4 cr)
Psychological and Social Influences on Human Nutrition
NS 4250 - Nutrition Communications and Counseling (3 cr)
9. Communications (9 credits)
Complete 9 credits of courses in written and oral expression, at least 6 of which must be written expression. Select courses from First-year Writing Seminars and COMM or ENGL classes as per CALS distribution requirements. Note: Potential courses to fulfill this and any CALS distribution requirement may be found in “DUST.”
10. Social Sciences and Humanities (12 credits)
Complete 12 credits, including four courses of at least 3 cr each:
- The four chosen courses must include at least 3 different categories from the following list: Cultural Analysis (CA), Human Diversity (D), Foreign Language (FL), Historical Analysis (HA), Knowledge, Cognition, and Moral Reasoning (KCM), Literature and the Arts (LA), and Social and Behavioral Analysis (SBA).
- At least one course must be in Human Diversity (D).
11. Calculus/Advanced Math (3-4 credits)
Choose one of the following:
(a) MATH 1105 - Finite Mathematics for the Life and Social Sciences (3 cr)
(b) MATH 1106 - Modeling with Calculus for the Life Sciences (3 cr)
(c) MATH 1110 - Calculus I (4 cr)
(d) MATH 1120 - Calculus II (4 cr)
(e) A score of 4 or higher on the AB or BC Calculus AP Exam 1,2
1 CALS students who earned a 4 or 5 on the AB Calculus AP Exam and complete MATH 1106 , MATH 1110 , or equivalent forfeit their AP credit. CALS students who earned a 4 or 5 on the BC Calculus AP Exam and take MATH 1106 , MATH 1110 , MATH 1120 , MATH 1910 , or equivalent forfeit their AP credit.
2 See below under Statistics.
12. Statistics (3-4 credits)
Choose one of the following:
(a) STSCI 2150 - Introductory Statistics for Biology (4 cr) (recommended) OR
(b) PUBPOL 2100 - Introduction to Statistics (4 cr) OR
(c) AEM 2100 - Introductory Statistics (4 cr) OR
(d) BTRY 3010 - Biological Statistics I (4 cr) OR
(e) ILRST 2100 / STSCI 2100 - Introductory Statistics (4 cr) OR
(f) MATH 1710 - Statistical Theory and Application in the Real World (4 cr) OR
(g) PSYCH 2500 - Statistics and Research Design (3-4 cr) OR
(h) SOC 3010 - [Statistics for Sociological Research] (4 cr)
(i) A score of 4 or 5 on the Statistics AP Exam1,2
1 CALS students who earned a 5 on the Statistics AP Exam and complete an introductory statistics course listed above or equivalent forfeit their AP credit.
2 NS-CALS students must take either Calculus/Advanced Math or Statistics at Cornell unless they have earned a score of 3 or higher on the BC Calculus AP Exam. Students in this case may use AP credit for both Calculus/Advanced Math and Statistics.
13. Electives (Variable)
Any courses that are not taken in Areas 1-14 above, count as Electives. Students interested in pre-health tracks or graduate study in biological, medical, or exercise sciences should take a two-course series in physics [PHYS 1101 AND PHYS 1102 - General Physics II (autotutorial)] OR [PHYS 2207 AND PHYS 2208 - Fundamentals of Physics II ].
14. Physical Education Requirement (2 courses)
Physical Education must be completed in order to graduate. However, physical education does not count toward college and university minimum credit requirements for full-time status, nor does it count towards the 120 credits required for graduation. External transfer students are exempt from this requirement.
15. Swim Test Requirement
A successful swim test must be completed in order to graduate. External transfer students are exempt from this requirement.