Human Nutrition and Health with Foundation Year

Please check the Sheffield Hallam University website for the latest information.

Course summary

• Study food, ingredients and diets in nutritional terms.

• Discovering their impact on cells, tissues and organs.

• Explore the impact of food, diet and lifestyle on health and wellbeing.

• Learn how to design nutrition and public health initiatives.

• Understand how food impacts society, people and the planet.

This Association for Nutrition accredited course provides the knowledge, skills and experience you’ll need to improve individuals’ health, wellbeing and performance – and more broadly, to benefit society and the planet. You’ll develop and reflect on the professional skills you’ll need to work in the nutrition sector.

How you learn
All our courses are designed around a set of key principles based on engaging you with the world, collaborating with others, challenging you to think in new ways, and providing you with a supportive environment in which you can thrive.

This course is suitable if you don't meet the entry requirements for our BSc Human Nutrition and Health course, or if you just want extra preparation before starting degree-level study. This varied and intellectually stimulating course allows you to bring theoretical studies to life. You’ll reinforce your understanding through practicals, consultancy projects and applied learning activities, working alongside external partners ranging from schools to voluntary sector organisations.

Our award-winning teachers have experience working in public health, sports and exercise nutrition, and food consumption behaviours. They’re actively involved in applied and impactful research – you’ll get to understand the latest trends in human nutrition and health and apply your knowledge to live projects in collaboration with external partners.

In each year of study you’ll have the opportunity to engage with live projects and professional work opportunities. You can apply to access placements, volunteering opportunities and work experience through our relationships with external partners – such as schools, councils, sport clubs and food manufacturers.

You’ll develop an in-depth knowledge of food composition and ingredients. This includes how our bodies use nutrients to grow and perform throughout the lifecycle – and how to enhance wellbeing and communicate effectively about nutrition and health. Throughout the course you’ll develop as a reflective practitioner – learning how to evaluate information and make sound, ethical, evidence-based decisions and recommendations. With these skills you’ll develop into a career-ready and well-rounded nutrition professional.

You learn through

• lectures, seminars and workshops

• practical sessions in our food science and nutrition labs, development kitchens and sensory suite

• webinars and competitions

• live projects with schools, voluntary sector organisations and food businesses

• independent study and group work

Applied learning - Work placements
You’ll have the opportunity to undertake a year-long work placement in between your second and third years. This gives you relevant sector experience to prepare you for your future career – and allows you to graduate with an Applied Professional Diploma to add to your CV.

Live projects
Live projects are embedded within every level of your course – culminating in a final-year consultancy project with an external partner. Here you’ll get to use all the skills, knowledge and experience you’ve gained throughout the course.

Networking opportunities
Graduates are invited regularly to come and meet our current students. Here you can get a critical insight of different career options while starting to build your own professional network. You’ll also benefit from our professional body memberships – which give you access to professionals in the sector as well as opportunities to interact with students from other institutions.

Module and assessment information for future years is displayed as currently validated and may be liable to change. When selecting electives, your choices will be subject to the core requirements of the course. As a result, selections may be limited to a choice between one of two or more specified electives in some instances.

You will be able to complete a placement year as part of this course. See the modules table below for further information.

Year 1
Compulsory modules

Contemporary Issues
Introduction To Business
Organisation Management And Delivery 1
Organisation Management And Delivery 2
Self And Stakeholder Management
The Practice Of Business In The Events, Food, Hospitality And Tourism Industries

Year 2
Compulsory modules

Applied Academic Skills
Food Choice: People And Planet
Fundamentals Of Food And Nutrition: Composition, Safety And Nutrient Function
Physiology And Biochemistry For Nutrition

Year 3
Compulsory modules

Applied Nutrition: Populations, Policy And Practice
Nutrition And Health In The Digital Age
Nutrition In Health And Disease: Meeting Specific Needs
Personal And Professional Development

Year 4
Optional modules

Placement Year

Final year
Compulsory modules

Food And Nutrition Consultancy Challenge
Food And Nutrition Research
Wellbeing Service Provision

Elective modules

Global Issues In Nutrition And Health
Issues In Sports Nutrition