Prerequisites for MS in Nutrition

Prior to entering the MS Nutrition Program, students must have successfully completed an undergraduate degree.

Prerequisite courses may be taken at any accredited college or university and must have a minimum of 3 credit hours.  All courses must be within 5 years of degree conferral. All courses, including online courses, taken at another university are subject to approval by BU’s Programs in Nutrition in consultation with the relevant BU college or department (i.e.: College of Arts and Sciences Chemistry Department).  A minimum grade of C is required.

At the time of application, prerequisites may be in progress or pending (e.g., planning to take in the summer), but must be completed before starting the MS Nutrition program. In these cases, applicants would be accepted conditionally to Boston University.

If you have any questions on whether a course you have taken (or plan to take) will fulfill a particular requirement, we encourage you to contact the Boston University Programs in Nutrition in writing at staniec@bu.edu and include an email attachment of the course description and course syllabus.  Please allow at least two business weeks for a decision. If a preapproval or waiver is granted by the Programs in Nutrition Admissions Committee, be sure to keep written confirmation for your records.

The following courses are required:  

1. General Chemistry: One course with a laboratory section. Course titled Life Science Chemistry may be acceptable. Content should include structure of atoms & molecules, quantum theory, chem. periodicity/bonding/formulas, stoichiometry, water, solutions, concentration, acids, bases, pH and buffers, gasses, reactions in aqueous solutions and thermochemistry and the first law of thermodynamics.  
2. Organic chemistry: One course with a laboratory section. Content should include structure, stereochemistry, functional groups, carbon- containing compounds, and reactions of biochemical interest. 
3. Biology 1 and 2 for full series:  Two courses with laboratory sections.  If course does not cover content in genetics, an additional course in genetics can meet the requirements AP courses may be acceptable. 
4. Human physiology: One course with laboratory sections. Course titled Systems Physiology may be acceptable.
5. Human Nutrition Science: One course intended for pre-health and nutrition majors with content including the scientific foundation of nutrition, digestion, macro- and micro-nutrients, metabolism, and the role of nutrition in human health and disease.
6. Biochemistry: One course with content including: structure/function with applications to medicine, nutrition, and biotechnology, including acid/base chemistry, protein structure, enzyme mechanisms, thermodynamics, and kinetics; nucleic acid structure/function and information transfer, carbohydrates and carbohydrate metabolism, lipids and lipid metabolism, and bioenergetics of oxidative energy metabolism.
7. Statistics 1: AP course may be acceptable. Content should include numerical and graphical summaries of univariate and bivariate data. Basic probability, random variables, binomial distribution, normal distribution. One- sample statistical inference for normal means and binomial probabilities.
8. Statistics 2: Content should include statistical modeling techniques, one- or two- sample inference for unknown means, proportions and variances, categorical data analysis, introduction to design of experiments and analysis of variance, analysis of simple and multiple linear regression models, non-parametric methods

Note:  As an alternative to the courses listed above, prerequisites for this program can be satisfied with a Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD) verification or a Foreign Dietitian Education (FDE) statement. While the DPD or FDE Verification Statement does not need to be submitted when applying, it must be completed and sent to the Program Director prior to the start of the academic program.

To help guide whether your courses will meet prerequisite requirements, the following courses at BU would be considered equivalent. Prerequisite courses do not need to be taken at Boston University.

Coursework from Spring 2020: Given the COVID-19 pandemic, we recognize that many colleges/universities moved to a pass/fail or credit/no credit system of grading for spring semester 2020.  Please know that we will accept prerequisite coursework taken and completed during spring 2020 in which a student received a “pass” or “credit” grade designation. We will not accept coursework for spring 2020 coursework graded “fail” or “no credit.”