The Department offers the Master of Science (M.S.) and the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degrees in Food Science and Human Nutrition.
Graduate students can select from one of two options:
- Food Science
- Human Nutrition
M.S. degree students have a further option:
- Thesis option
- Non-thesis option (The department also offers an off-campus, extramural M.S.degree program in the Chicago area with a non-thesis option).
Additionally, the Department offers a Professional Science Master's degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition.
Ph.D. students are required to submit a thesis for their degree and must obtain an MS before applying for a Ph.D.
The Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition (FSHN) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has earned an international reputation for its distinguished faculty and world-class research programs that have educated some of the world's best food science and nutrition professionals. If food science is your interest, you can specialize in food chemistry, food microbiology, food packaging, biotechnology, or food processing and engineering. Human Nutrition students can specialize in clinical nutrition, community nutrition, nutritional aspects of exercise, sensory and instrumental evaluation of food quality or nutrition and disease interactions.
There is also the option of completing a Graduate Dietetic Internship. After completing an internship, you are eligible to take the American Dietetics Association exam to become a Registered Dietitian.
Many diverse research opportunities are available to you as a graduate student. FSHN faculty members and students are conducting a wide range of research. (View a listing of faculty research areas.) Our graduate training focuses on striking a balance between the fundamental and applied aspects of food science or human nutrition. We also encourage the development of written and oral communication skills through course work, seminars and group meeting presentations. After graduation, students are prepared for scientific and technical careers in industry, educational institutions, government agencies and health care facilities.
As a FSHN student, you will have access to excellent research facilities including fully equipped chemistry, microbiology, biochemistry and molecular biology laboratories; a food-processing pilot plant complex; a specialized soybean-processing plant; a bioprocessing/fermentation pilot plant; a sensory science lab; and a packaging laboratory. Teaching and research laboratories contain sophisticated analytical equipment, including GC/MS, HPLC/MS, NMR, a supercritical fluid chromatograph, a differential scanning calorimeter, high power ultrasound equipment, cobalt-60 irradiator, and texture analysis equipment. You can also explore many diverse interests at the third largest academic library in the country. Of interest to FSHN students is the recent opening of the ACES Library, Information and Alumni Center. It houses books and journals in the area of food science and nutrition, as well as providing technologically advanced information and communications services.