Master of Science in Food Science and Nutrition Top Colleges, Syllabus and Scope

M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition is a 2-year postgraduate course in the field of food production and development. The course offers an advanced learning in the discipline of food science to familiarize eligible candidates in the science of food safety and nutrition.

Students enrolled to the course are taught on an advanced level about the importance of health, food quality and safety, and mechanisms to tackle growing food production and management. It involves components of study designed to familiarize students with the intricacies involved in food production and processing, starting from growing, harvesting and up to cooking and consuming. The course includes fundamental and related lessons in Chemistry, Biology, Nutrition, and also Chemical Engineering. Students are taught about:

• the ways whereby food gets its flavor and relevance in terms of health benefits
• the processes that are common to all food production plants
• the means of improving and maintaining food quality.

Successful postgraduates of the course can work in food production units as Managers or Food Analysts. They are employed in sectors of product development where they are required to design and create sustainable food products. Another important aspect of their job is managing food quality control, which is a mandatory department across almost all food production chains whereby the standards of quality set by the concerned authority are strictly complied with.

Professionally, such postgraduates work to improve and accelerate growth or production processes of developing new foods. They oversee and monitor those processes to prevent and treat contamination or other food adulteration issues. As Food Scientists, they work for large corporations and government agencies.

The course is also offered in the distance education mode in India.

The average course fee in India ranges between INR 10,000 and 90,000 for the total duration. The average annual salary offered to successful postgraduates of the course in India ranges between INR 5 and 8 lacs.

M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition: Course Highlights

Listed below are some of the major highlights of the course

M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition: What is it About?

With an increase in the global concern regarding sustainable food quality and healthy living, and in advancements in technology, people today view health as the most important aspect of their lives.

Nutrition is linked to food science and covers dietetics under its regime. Healthy nutrition is a prerequisite for not only old agers, toddlers, adolescents, pregnant women, but everyone on a whole. A balanced and nutrient-rich diet plays a major role in promoting sound health and overall well-being of individuals. The habit of good diet improves the quality of life while languid and poor diet invites morbidity and diseases.

Recent changes in the lifestyle of the urban population has caused an increasing need for trained Nutritionists and Dieticians to align the going erratic food habits. Nutritionist and Dieticians are required as counsellors in nursing homes, community health programs, and formal health care agencies, among others.

With an overwhelming uptick in the number of food production plants in the country and beyond, the discipline is gaining more and more relevance, in terms of food sustainably and consumption. Consequently, the need for skilled professionals who can keep a watchful eye on healthy food production is also increasing, so that a mass-scale healthy and eco-friendly production of food can be effected.

M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition: Who should opt?

Ideal candidates for the course would possess the following skills:

• Knowledge of a range of sciences and their applications to food
• Good business, IT, analytical and numerical abilities
• Meticulous attention to detail, particularly in areas of health, safety and hygiene.
• Good communication skills.

Top Institutes offering M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition

Listed below are some of the top institutes offering the course in the country with the corresponding locations and fees charged by each.

Eligibility for M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition

Candidates wishing to pursue the course are required to fulfil the below-mentioned minimum eligibility criteria.

Graduation completed from a recognized university in any of:

• Home Science
• Nutrition
• Dietetics
• Food Science
• Biology
• Chemistry
• Biochemistry
• Microbiology
• Clinical Biochemistry
• Life Sciences
• Home Sciences
• Biotechnology
• BNYS (Naturopathy)
• BAMS (Ayurveda)
• A minimum aggregate score of 50% at the level of graduation.

M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition: Admission Process

Admission to the course is based on the candidate’s performance in a relevant institutional/ State/ national-level entrance exam. Students qualifying the exam with the set minimum eligible cut-off score are invited for the subsequent round of counselling, based on which, the final selection is made.

The counselling process (if involved) consists of rounds of Group Discussion and Personal Interview, wherein the candidate’s general aptitude for the course is examined, and a merit list is made, allotting seats to the qualifying candidates.

Some institutes in India also provide admission to eligible candidates based on their obtained merit at the level of graduation.

Some of the major entrance exams conducted in the country for admission to the course are listed below.

• GATE- Food Technology Entrance Exam
• AIJEE- All India Joint Entrance Exams
• IIS- The Indian Institute of Science entrance exams
• IIT- Indian Institute of Technology Entrance Exam
• IICPT- Indian Institute of Crop Processing Technology Entrance Exam
• AIJEE- All India Joint Entrance Exams
• CFTRI- Central Food Technology Research Institute
• Allahabad University Entrance Exam
• University of Madras Entrance Test

M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition: Syllabus and Course Description

A semester-wise breakup of the course’s syllabus is tabulated below

M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition: Career Prospects

Some of the popular professional avenues open to successful postgraduates of M.Sc. in Food Science and Nutrition are listed below with the corresponding salaries offered for the respective positions.

Candidate must have passed B.Sc. Nutrition, Food Service Management and Dietetics / B.Sc. Clinical Nutrition and Dietetics / B.Sc. Home Science or any Science Graduate with PG Diploma in Nutrition and Dietetics or PG Diploma in Catering Technology from a recognized university/ institution.