About PhD in Food and Nutrition

PhD in Food and Nutrition is a 3-year doctorate degree program, the minimum eligibility for which is a Master’s degree in Food and Nutrition from a recognized college or university or its equivalent exam.

Ph.D. in Food and Nutrition is the study of Science and in this program, the primary focus is food, nourishment, nutrition, diet and their production, management, safeguarding, preservation, etc. The program helps to provide candidates with a wide range of both innovative practices and fundamental principles in the subject areas.

PhD in Food and Nutrition: What is it about?

The program is a propelled study of the procedures whereby the food that is devoured is utilized for sustaining the body. The practical coursework is gone for upgrading applicants' communication and teamwork skills, honing their scrupulousness or attention to detail and the capacity to precisely record comes about.

Food manufacturers, Sustenance makers, producers and retailers are basic businesses in the field, as likewise food technical service organizations and government offices that create food policy and required forms. Food and Nutrition postgraduates additionally work in a scope of regions in the land-based division, agriculture, horticulture, animal-related areas and fresh produce, retail, and food service.

With a mind-boggling uptick in the quantity of food production plants in the nation and beyond, the branch of study is increasing increasingly in importance, as far as food sustainably and utilization. Thus, the requirement for skilled professionals who can watch out for solid and healthy food production is additionally expanding, so a mass-scale sound and eco-friendly production of food can be affected.

PhD in Foods and Nutrition Eligibility

Candidates who want to take admitted in Ph.D. must have a post-graduate degree in Foods and Nutrition and its relevant discipline with at least 55% marks from a recognized university and must have passed the national-level entrance examination or university-level entrance examination. National-level entrance exams like UGC NET / UGC CSIR NET / GATE / SLET or University entrance exams consist of written tests and personal interviews.

Ph.D. in Food and Nutrition: Syllabus and Course Description

Macro/micronutrients and trace element

• Food sources – general and specific sources
• Essentiality and relevance– involvement in nutritional implications and biochemical reactions
• Analysis in food materials and assessment of nutrition
• Toxicity and deficiency - symptoms, levels, health management and their consequences

Body composition

• Methods of study
• Compositional changes during cycle of life
• Nutritional disorders
• Effect on body composition

Body water and fluid balance

• Body water compartments
• Regulating water balance
• Disorders in water balance

Energy metabolism

• Resting and Basal metabolism
• Influencing factors
• Methods to determine energy expenditure and requirements
• Thermogenesis
• Adaptation to altered intake of energy
• Food intake regulation

Computation Basis of Nutrient Requirement

• Latest concept of dietary recommendation
• WHO and RDA – ICMR
• Limitations and uses

Nutrition during lifespan

• Pregnancy
• Lactation
• Infancy
• Preschool age
• School-age and adolescent children
• Young adults
• Elderly

Processing of foods

• Wheat
• Millets
• Rice
• Fruits and vegetables
• Legumes
• Fats and oils
• Milk along with milk products
• Sugar and confectionaries
• Eggs, meat and fish
• Beverages

Meaning and concept of food quality

• Food Safety
• International and national food laws
• Food standards
• Governing bodies of food regulation
• Hazard analysis
• Critical control points of food processing
• Quality control

Sensory evaluation and product development

• Preservation of foods
• Techniques and Principles of Preservation
• Food concentration and dehydration
• Heat processing
• Cold preservation
• Chemicals and irradiation

The Benefits of a PhD in Foods and Nutrition

After completing a Ph.D. in Foods and Nutrition, a student is eligible to enter a faculty position in a university. The graduate program requires students to demonstrate scholarship and scholarly skills, such as critical thinking, communication, and problem-solving. This Ph.D. program provides a broad education in the field of nutrition and prepares students for a career in the field. All Ph.D. candidates will take two NUTR 699 courses to prepare for their thesis work.

To earn a Ph.D. in Foods and Nutrition, students complete a minimum of 64 semester credits. After completing the required coursework, students must take a preliminary exam that evaluates their knowledge of nutrition. If they pass the preliminary exam, they are admitted to candidacy for the degree. 

The Ph.D. in Foods and Nutrition prepares students for a professional career in the field of nutrition. The program requires a combination of research and coursework. Students interested in human nutrition are encouraged to take electives in molecular and cell biology, epidemiology, and biochemistry. The program requires proficiency in the fundamentals of food science, human nutrition, biochemistry, and physiology.

PhD in Food and Nutrition: Admission Process

The admission process for PhD in Food and Nutrition program may vary from college to college. Admission is offered on the basis of an interview held typically a month prior to the commencement of the semester. The interview may be accompanied by an entrance exam, if necessary.

Following are a few entrance tests that are conducted by some of the Food and Nutrition colleges in India:

• Babu Banarasi Das University Entrance Exam
• Gitam University Entrance Exam
• Punjab Agricultural University Entrance Exam
• University of Calcutta Entrance Exam
• University of Mysore Entrance Exam

PhD in Food and Nutrition Career Prospects

Career opportunities in Ph.D. in Food and Nutrition offer jobs roles in the region of the supply chain, purchasing, logistics as well as distribution. Candidates can apply for the profile of Development Scientist. Some other job profiles include Industrial Buyer, Retail Buyer, Production Manager and Quality Assurance, Manager. Scientific and Industrial sectors also employ such professionals, for example in the NHS and private healthcare, for roles a Nutritional Therapists.

• Food Scientist
• Food Technologist
• Quality Control Manager
• Nutrition Specialist
• Dietician