Career Suggestion

Nutritionist

Nutritionists teach patients and clients about the effects of food on their health, motivating them to make positive changes to their diet.

Average salary (a year)

£32000.0 to £48000.0 (starter to experienced)

Typical hours (a week)

37.0 to 40.0

You could work

between 8am and 6pm

You can get into this job through a university course,

University

You'll usually need a degree or postgraduate qualification approved by the Association for Nutrition .

Approved courses include:

  • food and nutrition
  • biochemistry
  • physiology
  • public health
  • health promotion

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 2 or 3 A levels, or equivalent, including biology or chemistry

  • a degree in a relevant subject for postgraduate study

More Information

  • equivalent entry requirements|https://www.gov.uk/what-different-qualification-levels-mean/list-of-qualification-levels
  • student finance for fees and living costs|https://www.gov.uk/student-finance
  • university courses and entry requirements|https://www.ucas.com/

Volunteering

You might want to get some paid or volunteering experience in the NHS . It could help you get a place on a university course.

You could also consider work experience in:

  • food safety
  • animal welfare
  • food poverty charities
  • sports and fitness
  • food manufacturing
  • university research laboratories

You can find more volunteering opportunities through The National Council for Voluntary Organisations and Do IT .

More Information

Career Tips

There are some short courses available to help you decide whether nutrition is the right career for you.

You could take:

Professional and Industry Bodies

After university, you can apply to join the UK Voluntary Register of Nutritionists which proves you're a qualified or experienced nutritionist.

Further Information

You can find out more about:

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • sensitivity and understanding
  • knowledge of biology
  • knowledge of teaching and the ability to design courses
  • to be thorough and pay attention to detail
  • the ability to work well with others
  • the ability to work on your own
  • thinking and reasoning skills
  • patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
  • to be able to use a computer and the main software packages competently

Restrictions and Requirements

You'll need to:

Day-to-day tasks

Your exact day to day tasks will vary depending on where you work.

Generally, as a nutritionist you might:

  • complete research to learn more about a certain area of nutrition
  • recruit volunteers to take part in your research
  • process and analyse biological samples
  • provide scientific advice on healthy eating
  • work with hospital patients, supported by doctors, dieticians and nurses

Working environment

You could work in an NHS or private hospital, in the community, at a GP practice, at a health centre or in a laboratory.

With experience or further training, you could:

  • specialise in an area, such as sports nutrition, public health or animal nutrition
  • supervise a team of nutritionists
  • manage whole projects or policies
  • find your own clients and become self employed

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