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Studies & Degrees in Nutrition and Health

Nutrition and health is the study of how food and nutrients affect the human body, and of how diet can prevent or help to treat disease. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) sums up the work of dietitians and nutritionists as planning and conducting food service or nutritional programmes to help people lead healthy lives.

A degree in this field combines basic science (chemistry, biochemistry, physiology, microbiology) with food science, dietetics for healthy and ill people, public health nutrition and food service management. Students learn to assess a person's nutritional needs, design diets and menus, counsel clients and read scientific evidence. Supervised practice in hospitals, schools, care homes or companies is part of most programmes that lead to a professional title.

Qualifications and levels

The subject is taught at several levels, and in many countries the title of dietitian is protected by law. The route to it differs by country.

  • Spain: dietitian-nutritionist (dietista-nutricionista) is a regulated profession that requires the official bachelor's degree (grado), with a study plan of 240 ECTS credits (Order CIN/730/2009). The Grado en Nutrición Humana y Dietética of the Universidad del País Vasco (EHU) lasts four years, has 240 ECTS credits and includes compulsory external placements. Vocational training (FP) has a separate higher-level title, Técnico Superior en Dietética.
  • United States: dietitians and nutritionists typically need a bachelor's or master's degree and supervised training, usually an internship, and many states require a licence. Since 1 January 2024 a graduate degree is the minimum for the registration examination for dietitians, according to the Commission on Dietetic Registration.
  • United Kingdom: "dietitian" is a title protected by the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC). The Dietetics and Nutrition BSc (Hons) at London Metropolitan University has placements in years two, three and four, and graduates are eligible to apply to join the HCPC register.
  • Canada: the BSc (Nutr Sc) Dietetics Major at McGill University takes 3.5 years (115 credits) and includes 40 weeks of internship. It is recognised by the Quebec regulatory body, and in Quebec the titles dietitian and nutritionist are both protected.

Master's degrees (clinical nutrition, sports nutrition, public health nutrition, food science) and doctorates follow for those who want to specialise or do research. Many private centres also sell short courses in nutrition. These lead to the centre's own certificate, not to a degree, and do not give access to a regulated profession.

Where to study it

SpainExchange lists 41 active schools for this subject: 17 in the United States, eight in Spain, three in Canada, two in the United Kingdom and two in Germany. The Netherlands, Australia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Ethiopia, Russia, Brazil and Argentina have one each.

In Spain the official degree is taught mainly in Spanish. EHU teaches it at its Faculty of Pharmacy on the Álava campus, in Spanish, Basque and English, with 50 places and a public price of €18.92 per credit for first enrolment (according to EHU, 2026). The Universidad CEU Cardenal Herrera, a private university, teaches its four-year, 240 ECTS degree on campus in Alfara del Patriarca (Valencia), in Spanish. The other Spanish schools in the list are mostly private training centres and online schools, so check on each school's site which of the three kinds of qualification it offers: the official grado, the FP title or its own certificate.

In the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia teaching is in English. Before choosing a foreign programme, ask the professional regulator of the country where you want to work whether the degree is accepted for registration. Recognition is not automatic across borders.

Careers

Graduates work as clinical dietitians in hospitals and clinics, as community and public health nutritionists, in food service management, in the food industry, in sports nutrition, in private practice and in research and teaching.

In the United States, dietitians and nutritionists held about 86,300 jobs in 2025, according to the BLS. Hospitals were the largest employer, with 27% of jobs. The BLS projects employment to grow 8 percent from 2025 to 2035. These figures apply to the United States only.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between a dietitian and a nutritionist?

It depends on the country. In the United Kingdom "dietitian" is a protected title regulated by the HCPC. In Spain the regulated profession is dietitian-nutritionist, and in Quebec both titles are protected and equivalent.

How long does it take to become a dietitian?

In Spain the official degree takes four years (240 ECTS credits). The McGill programme takes 3.5 years including 40 weeks of internship. In the United States a graduate degree has been required since 1 January 2024 to sit the registration examination for dietitians.

Can I work as a dietitian with a short course in nutrition?

No, not where the profession is regulated. In Spain the dietitian-nutritionist profession requires the official bachelor's degree; a private centre's certificate does not replace it.

Is the degree taught in English in Spain?

Mostly not. The degrees at EHU and CEU Cardenal Herrera are taught in Spanish, and EHU also lists Basque and English among its teaching languages.