Functional Nutrition Concentration

General concentration primary image

Academics

Elevate your career with a 36-credit-hour Master of Science in nutrition and integrative health, focusing on functional nutrition and wellness. Designed for flexibility and growth, this degree’s functional nutrition concentration offers an in-depth understanding of integrative health practices.

Note: This degree concentration does not lead to the registered dietitian credential. Those interested in becoming a registered dietitian should visit the Registered Dietitian with Dietetic Internship webpage.

For this degree path, please choose the Functional Nutrition (formerly the General Nutrition/Integrative Health concentration) when applying, not the registered dietitian concentration.

Flexible, Distance-education Program

Wherever life takes you, this program adapts to your needs. Choose between a fully online format or hybrid livestream classes, allowing you to balance education with your lifestyle.

Who should consider the general concentration?

  • Students wishing to complete an MS before applying to non-degree-granting dietetic internship programs
  • Registered dietitians seeking advanced knowledge in integrative and functional nutrition
  • Students pursuing other advanced degrees in the health care field to deepen their expertise
  • Individuals preparing for careers in private practice, college teaching, health care, community agencies or industry roles

Application Process

Apply online and be admitted to SFA’s Graduate Studies. The process is explained on the Office of Research and Graduate Studies website. In addition to the application, official transcripts conferring the bachelor’s degree and any additional undergraduate or graduate work from the colleges/universities attended must be sent to ORGS.

For this degree path, please choose the General Nutrition/Integrative Health concentration when applying, not the registered dietitian concentration.

The graduate school’s minimum GPA requirement is 2.5 overall. You must meet these requirements to have clear admission to the program. Note that this requirement is lower than the minimum GPA required to be admitted to the program. Please see the section “Admission Requirements” on the following page for the program-specific requirements.  

Financial aid will not be available until you submit all documents and obtain clear admission. Graduate students admitted under probationary status (GPA below 2.5 overall) are not eligible for financial aid. Graduate students must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better to be eligible for financial aid.

Admission Requirements

The program has a rolling entry in fall, spring or summer. Students entering the MS program must have the following:

  • A bachelor’s degree from an accredited United States institution*
  • A GPA of at least 3.0 overall and in any graduate work already completed
    • Students with a GPA of less than 3.0 will be considered on an case-by-case basis.
  • A background in nutrition or related science and/or meet the prerequisite coursework for admissions (described below)

*International students must provide an official credential evaluation of foreign transcripts from all post-secondary schools attended showing all courses taken and grades received, as well as proof of English proficiency. Please contact the Office of International Programs at oip@sfasu.edu for more information on international student admission requirements. This program is solely given online/distance. The Office of International Programs can determine your visa status when you apply and provide you with the next steps.

Prerequisites for Admission Consideration:

  1. Completed bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution
  2. Completion of specific coursework (or equivalent), including:
    • Introductory Nutrition
    • Cell Biology
    • Human Physiology
    • Nutritional Biochemistry (preferred but not required)
  3. Graduate statement of purpose (1,000-word minimum): 
    • How did you become interested in functional nutrition and integrative health? Establish that you have had a long-term interest in this area.
    • Discuss your experiences in the nutrition field and how these experiences have prepared you for advanced practice in the field.
    • What are your future goals and how will this degree help you achieve them?
    • What attracted you specifically to SFA and this program?  
  4. Résumé

Program Curriculum

The functional nutrition concentration for the MS in nutrition and integrative health requires completion of 36 hours of nonthesis graduate credit.

All graduate courses are fully online or have hybrid Zoom-enabled offerings and are 3 credit hours. Students will not be required to live in the area.

Pre-requisites for many of the NUTR courses are an introductory nutrition course, anatomy and physiology course(s), statistics:

Required Graduate Courses (24 credit hours):

  • NUTR 5335 Integrative and Functional Nutrition I
  • KINE 5350 Introduction to Research in Health and Kinesiology
  • NUTR 5339 Integrative and Functional Nutrition II
  • NUTR 5350 Functional Nutrition Assessment
  • NUTR 5332 Public Health Nutrition
  • NUTR 5349 Women's Health Nutrition
  • NUTR 5321 Private Practice in Health and Wellness
  • HMSC 5355 Literature Review in Human Sciences

Focused Graduate Electives (choose 3 hours):

  • NUTR 5329 Nutrition for Sports
  • NUTR 5365 Integrative Pediatric Nutrition
  • NUTR 5345 Advanced Nutrition and Human Metabolism

Graduate Electives (9 Hours from AGRI, BIOL, HDFS, HMSC, HUSC, KINE, NURS, NUTR, PCOU, SOCW)

The advisor will work with you to determine a list of courses related to your goals and field of study.
For a full list of the courses, descriptions, modalities and semesters typically offered, please see the graduate student handbook.