Nutrition

**There are two application paths available for certain doctoral programs. Depending on your objectives, you may apply directly to the Nutrition program or you may apply via the Biological and Biomedical Sciences application umbrella. Please visit program websites to determine the best fit for your objectives.

Programs Degrees Major Codes Admissions
Term Deadline
Doctoral PHD NUTR Fall* January 9, 2024
Master’s MS NUTR Fall* January 9, 2024
Fall Graduate School Fellowships December 12, 2023 (Recommended)
Director of Graduate Admissions Dr. Linda Adair (linda_adair@unc.edu) – PhD

Dr. Ian Carroll (ian_carroll@med.unc.edu) – MS

Graduate Coordinator U’Ronda Higgs (nutrition@unc.edu)
Address Department of Nutrition
CB# 7461, 245 Rosenau Hall
University of North Carolina
Chapel Hill, NC 27599
Website sph.unc.edu/nutr/unc-nutrition/
For degree handbooks along with admission requirements and prerequisites – www.sph.unc.edu/nutr/nutr-degrees.
Phone 919-966-7212
Test Requirements
GRE not required
Letters of Recommendation 3 – (combination of academic and professional)
International Applicants Only TOEFL or IELTS score (no more than two years old)
Other Requirements NOTE: If you are applying to the MPH Registered Dietitian or MPH Nutrition concentrations, please follow the program requirements listed under “Master of Public Health” (not “Nutrition”) on the previous page (gradschool.unc.edu/programs/).

In addition to the University’s required application materials, applicants should review the information below for additional expectations or application requirements.

  1. AREAS OF INTEREST/ SPECIALIZATION for ALL APPLICANTS:  Select ONLY ONE area of interest via the Area of Interest/Specialization drop-down box within the application.  ONLY ONE area of interest/specialization from the application will be considered.
  2. TRANSCRIPT(S) for ALL Applicants:  Please scan, upload, and view transcript(s) for legibility before you submit online application;
  3. RESUME for ALL Applicants (REQUIRED)

Statement of Purpose(REQUIRED)

The statement of purpose should address the specified issues below based on program (limit to 2-3 pages with no specific formatting).

IMPORTANT for MS and PhD Applicants – What prerequisite courses listed below have you taken or will be taking to meet our requirements for admission?  Please indicate course name and number, where course was completed, term taken, and grade.  If you have NOT taken a course, please indicate your detailed course plan for completing the course (name of university, course name and number, and term to be taken).  Please include this information at the end of your essay. NOTE: All prerequisites must be completed by the first day of class if offered admission.

  • Anatomy/Physiology
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Biochemistry
  • Human Nutrition

MS IN NUTRITION

Applicants must hold an appropriate baccalaureate degree from a four-year college or university, or its international equivalent with a 3.0 GPA or better. Applicants must secure a faculty match aligned with their research interests prior to being admitted. Requirements for becoming a Registered Dietitian (RD) are NOT met by this program; click here for information on the MPH-RD program.

Statement of Purpose (REQUIRED)

The statement of purpose should address the following issues (limit to 2-3 pages with no specific formatting).

  1. Why have you chosen our master’s of science program in nutrition?
  2. What are your career goals?  That is, what kind of work inspires you including the types of activities you hope to undertake in your career?
  3. What laboratory experience have you had?  Please describe in detail.

PHD IN NUTRITION

Applicants must hold an appropriate baccalaureate degree from a four-year college or university, or its international equivalent with a 3.0 GPA or better. Applicants must secure a faculty match aligned with their research interests prior to being admitted. To assist in this process, we recommend starting here: Nutrition Doctoral Program Information Request.

Statement of Purpose (REQUIRED)

The statement of purpose should address the following issues (limit to 2-3 pages with no specific formatting).

  1. A brief statement of what interest you most about the Nutrition doctoral program at UNC-CH.
  2. Specific aspects of nutrition, or research questions that interest you.
  3. Previous research or job experience. Please identify specific research skills
    (computer, laboratory methods, survey development, etc.). Applicants with prior research experience should describe in detail their research projects, including hypotheses tested, methods, results and conclusions. For data collection purposes, please provide the Number of Months of Prior, Full-Time Research Experience. For many individuals, this value will reflect months of summer research experience or full-time research experience following college. Do not include labs associated with a course (e.g. organic chemistry course with lab).
  4. Career goals upon completion of graduate studies.

*Only in unusual circumstances and after consultation with department is Spring or Summer admission considered.