MS in Nutrition

• Earn a Bachelor’s Degree: Complete a minimum of a bachelor’s degree from a US regionally accredited college or university or foreign equivalent.
• Complete a Didactic Program in Dietetics (DPD): Successfully complete an ACEND-accredited DPD either concurrently or after earning bachelor’s degree.
• Earn a Master’s Degree: Enroll in the TWU combined Master’s Dietetic Internship. Students in freestanding ACEND-accredited Dietetic Internships can also combine their supervised practice with an MS at TWU.
• Complete a minimum of 1000 supervised practice hours: Complete one of the TWU ACEND accredited Dietetic Internships in either Denton or Houston.
• Pass the national board examination administered by the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR).

Texas Woman's Nutrition and Food Sciences Department offers Dietetic Internships on the Denton and Houston campuses. Visit our Master’s Dietetic Internship Programs page for more information.

• Texas Woman's Nutrition and Food Sciences offers the only School Nutrition Specialist (SNS) Internship program in the state. The program is also one of only three approved by the School Nutrition Association nationwide. This highly selective program available in Denton and Houston prepares you to assess the nutritional needs of diverse populations, especially school-aged children at risk or of limited income. 
• Learn more about the School Nutrition Specialist (SNS) Practicum.

At TWU, you have the opportunity to participate in research with faculty in any of the on-campus laboratories. Research possibilities include:

• Food and nutrition literacy and public health nutrition
• Dietary assessment of the US population
• Food security 
• Pediatric obesity and developmental disorders 
• Nutritional strategies to prevent and manage cardiometabolic disease
• Behavioral interventions to improve cardiometabolic health in older adults
• Molecular and physiological aspects of selenium and selenoproteins
• Vitamin A metabolism regulation and impacts on hair, skin cancer, and metabolic disease
• Regulation of reverse cholesterol transport by bioactive compounds
• Lipid metabolism and mitochondrial function in cancer and metabolic disease
• Food flavor analysis, health benefits, and consumer testing
• Foodborne pathogen detection and control

• Dietetics
  • Thesis (Houston and Denton)
    • 12 credit hours of required coursework
    • 12 credit hours of supervised practice
    • 6 credit hours of thesis coursework
    • Total credits: 30
  • Coursework-Only Option (Houston and Denton)
    • 15 credit hours of required coursework
      • Capstone Seminar during final semester
    • 9 credit hours of elective coursework
    • 12 credit hours of supervised practice
    • Total credits: 36
• Thesis Option (Houston and Denton)
  • 13 credit hours of required coursework
  • 11 credit hours of elective courses in major
  • 6 credit hours of thesis coursework
  • Total credits: 30
• Coursework-only Option (Houston, Denton, or 100% online)  
  • 15 credit hours of required coursework
  • Capstone Seminar during final semester
  • 15 credit hours of elective courses in major
  • Total credits: 30

A full list of courses and requirements are available in the course catalog.

Program Contact

Helen Everts, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
nutrfdsci@twu.edu
940-898-2639

Application Deadlines

Fall — June 15
Spring — October 1
Summer — April 1

Admission Requirements

• Undergraduate semester credit hour prerequisites, including:
  • Chemistry, including Organic and Biochemistry (9-12 hours)
  • Human Anatomy and Physiology (3-4 hours)
  • Introduction to Nutrition (3 hours)
  • Upper-level Nutrition, Advanced Nutrition: Macronutrients and Micronutrients and Nutrition through the Lifecycle (6-9 hours)
• Minimum 3.25 GPA on a 4.0 scale for the last 60 undergraduate semester credit hours and all post-baccalaureate and graduate semester credit hours.

Applicants who meet the above criteria with exception of GPA may qualify for provisional admission if they have at least a 3.0 GPA (4.0 scale) on the last 60 undergraduate semester credit hours. If the applicant has previously earned graduate credits from TWU or another regionally accredited graduate program, the first 12 credit hours completed will be considered in lieu of the last 60 undergraduate hours.

Begin by reviewing your program's website to see if there are additional admission requirements and application deadlines prior to applying.  

1. Apply online.
   Apply to Graduate Programs  via the TWU Online Graduate Application Portal following instructions below.  
2. Submit transcripts to TWU.
   • Domestic Applicants must submit official transcripts for each college or university attended, both undergraduate and graduate. See the Information on Transcripts website for more details. Original transcripts for each college/university attended must be submitted, even if referred to on another schools transcripts.
   • International Applicants are now required to provide an evaluation prepared by a NACES or AICE member evaluation service. International transcripts should not be sent directly to TWU. See the International Admissions website for more details.
3. Submit Recommendation Requests
   If your program requires you to submit names for recommendations you will need to do it in the application. List of programs-majors.  
4. Pay the application fee.
   The $50 fee ($75 fee for International applicants), which applies to all new and returning applicants, can be paid by:
   1. Credit card - Pay Online through the application as the last step before submitting the application. The second portion of the application will not be available until the application fee has been received.
   2. Fee Waivers - Graduate applicants who are certified McNair Scholars are eligible for a McNair Scholar Application Fee Waiver. TWU Alumni may be eligible for the Alumni Advantage Fee Waiver. Check your eligibility here: https://twu.edu/alumni-advantage/. If eligible submit the request using the Application Fee Waiver Submission
   3. Following fee payment return to the application dashboard where supplemental application documents can be uploaded. The online application will list which documents are needed to fulfill the program admission requirements. You can also check the program's website.
5. Submit Program supplemental documents
   1. Review the specific requirements for your intended program to identify any supplemental materials needed for your application.

Watch for emails from your new program/department that may come to your TWU email address.

For more information or assistance with the application or graduate admissions, visit the Graduate Admissions website.

Students who wish to apply for a Graduate Assistantship must meet the General Criteria for Appointment of Graduate Assistants.