Academic Spaces: the Nutrition and Food Science major

Curious about what your days might look like as a student in Colorado State’s Nutrition and Food Science (NFS) major? We recently visited some of the academic spaces for NFS and we have to say … we’re impressed. Our students are taking a deep dive into the hard science around food, how our bodies interact with food (and so much more) in this major. The spaces offer top-notch areas to do everything from experiment with cooking techniques to measure the nutrients in foods after cooking. Plus, it smells really, really good here.

Closeup of a student cooking fresh food in a teaching kitchen. Open book nearby.

Our Nutrition and Food Science students take a deep academic dive into the hard science around food, how our bodies interact with food (and so much more). The spaces offer top-notch areas to do everything from experiment with cooking techniques to measure the nutrients in foods after cooking.

Two students work in a learning kitchen. Photo angle is from the doorway of the lab.

Nutrition and Food Science students spend time in both lecture and labs, where hands-on learning is primo: industrial, high-tech kitchens along with fresh ingredients galore mean students are fully immersed in the learning process.

An industrial-size fridge holds all the fresh ingredients students need to create appetizing, healthy meals.

We’re a tiny bit jealous of this industrial-sized refrigerator, fully stocked with fresh ingredients and ready to roll with whatever our food science students decide to create.

STudents work in the learning kitchn with fresh ingredients and books that help them determine nutrients.

The Food Principles and Application class is housed in a large, professional kitchen with all the fixins. Students are given their own workspaces, cook stations, and have access to nearly any ingredient they’ll need to create and/or alter recipes to make them healthier, gluten-free, dairy-free, or to just offer more nutrients overall.

A student cooks on several stoves and prep spaces at once

This student is working on his final project, managing several meals, cooking appliances, and food-prep areas all at the same time. Imagine if your kitchen was this awesome. Can you see it? Can you SMELL it?

A student measures the pH in broccoli cooked three different ways.

This food science lab is all about cooking methods. You can cook broccoli in many different ways, but which is *the best* way to retain broccoli’s nutrients? Students boil, bake, fry, and steam broccoli in this lab, then measure the pH of the veggies to determine the amount of nutrients lost. Science is so tasty.

A nutrition professor guides students in a lecture class.

Sure, you’ll get your time in the fancy kitchen. But your classes are where you’ll get the down-dirty info on everything from how the teeny-tiny molecules in foods interact with your body’s chemistry to the science behind fad diets.

Two students prepare nutrition-packed smoothies in a small test kitchen.

Looking for smaller class sizes? The Medical Nutritional Therapy lab is limited to four students, and is perhaps the most hands-on lab we’ve seen yet. Here you’ll see students preparing meal-replacement smoothies for cancer patients — all with the goal of creating a recipe that looks good, tastes good, and provides a high dose of nutrients.

students taste test their smoothie creations.

What would a nutrition class be without testing your recipes? Skip lunch today; you’ve got nutrition lab!

Want to learn more about the major?

Learn about the areas you can study within the Nutrition and Food Science major, the classes you can take, and potential career paths after graduation.

EXPLORE THE MAJOR

Prairie Smallwood

Prairie Smallwood is a writer and content creator for the Office of Admissions at Colorado State University. She is passionate about education and exploration, and knows that going to college can be both an adventure and an overwhelming experience. She aims to create content that helps students through that journey — the wonderful, the scary, and everything in between.