Master of Science in Nutrition and Integrative Health

The degree is designed for individuals who are entering the profession as a first or second career, with or without experience working in the healthcare industry. Students graduate as integrative health practitioners and educators who can work collaboratively to support individuals and groups with personalized evidence-based nutrition interventions and educational programs.

The Master of Science in Nutrition and Integrative Health program prepares students to deliver personalized nutrition care to optimize health and manage chronic health problems. The program provides a health and nutrition sciences foundation, builds students’ knowledge and skills in clinical assessment and evidence-based nutrition therapy, and culminates in real-world clinical experience. 

The program’s integrative approach addresses nutrition, sleep, stress, physical activity, relationships, and environment to identify the root causes of health imbalances. Students learn to develop personalized dietary and lifestyle interventions to support the whole person. 

Unique highlights of the program include whole-food cooking labs and clinical experience working with real clients. These experiential learning opportunities hone practical skills to be a competent clinical nutrition professional who is ready to practice upon graduation and seek board certification.

The program meets all educational requirements for the Certified Nutrition Specialist (CNS) certification. It also provides 250+ of the required 1000 hours of supervised practice experience (SPE), giving graduates a significant head start toward SPE completion.

Students complete the Master of Science in Nutrition and Integrative Health by completing core program credits and choosing one of two areas of concentration: Human Clinical Nutrition (47 credits total) or Herbal Medicine (57 credits total).

Transfer Credit Options

Students are encouraged to consider the following options to transfer credits to reduce their costs and time to degree completion at MUIH.

Students who have previously completed the following types of courses at other colleges and universities may be eligible to transfer those credits to MUIH and be exempt from taking some courses at MUIH: 

• Organic Chemistry – undergraduate or graduate courses
• Physiology – undergraduate or graduate courses
• Biochemistry – graduate courses
• Nutrition – graduate courses
• Research literacy – graduate courses

Students are exempt from taking MUIH’s ISCI522 Foundations in Organic Chemistry Course if they have completed CHEM250 Organic Chemistry I AND CHEM251 Organic Chemistry II from StraighterLine.

Students are exempt from taking MUIH’s ISCI547a Physiology I course if they have completed BIO201 Anatomy & Physiology 1 AND BIO202 Anatomy & Physiology II from StraighterLine.

Core Credits

Both areas of concentration of the Master of Science in Nutrition and Integrative Health include 42 credits of required core courses

• IHED637 Principles and Practices of Health Behavior and Self-Care (1.5 cr)
• ISCI522 Foundations in Organic Chemistry (3 cr)
• ISCI547A Physiology I: Healthy Function (3 cr)
• ISCI626 Nutritional Biochemistry (3 cr)
• ISCI631 Intro to Complementary and Integrative Health (1.5 cr)
• NUTR601 Redefining Nutrition (1 cr)
• NUTR612 Human Nutrition II: Micronutrients (3 cr)
• NUTR614 Human Nutrition I: Macronutrients (2 cr)
• NUTR635 Applied Clinical Nutrition I (2 cr)
• NUTR636 Applied Clinical Nutrition II (2 cr)
• NUTR646 Applied Clinical Nutrition III (2 cr)
• NUTR641 Life Cycle Nutrition (3 cr)
• NUTR651A Clinical Skills I (2 cr)
• NUTR651B Clinical Skills II (2 cr)
• NUTR6EX1 Nutrition MSNIH Comprehensive Exam (0 cr)
• NUTR723 Advanced Biochemistry and Laboratory Assessment (3 cr)
• RSCH601 Research Literacy in Integrative Health (3 cr)
• MUIH550 Academic Research and Scholarship (0 cr)
• MUIH500 University-Wide Orientation for New Students (0 cr)

Required Course Sets

Choose one of the following course sets for a total of 3 credits:

• NUTR-656C Clinical Strategies in Nutrition Care I and NUTR 654D Clinic II (1.5 cr)
• NUTR656C Clinical Strategies in Nutrition Care I (1.5 cr) AND NUTR656D Clinical Strategies in Nutrition Care II (1.5 cr)

Required Cooking Labs:

• NUTR681 Cooking with Whole Foods Lab I (0.5 cr)
• NUTR682 Cooking with Whole Foods Lab II (0.5 cr)

Choose 2 additional cooking labs from the following for a total of 1.0 credit:

• NUTR683 Cooking with Whole Foods Lab III (0.5 cr)
• NUTR684 Cooking with Whole Foods Lab IV (0.5 cr)
• NUTR686 Cooking with Whole Foods Lab VI (0.5 cr)
• NUTR687 Cooking with Whole Foods Lab VII (0.5 cr)
• NUTR688 Cooking with Whole Foods Lab VIII

Additional Program Requirements

• Complete MUIH500 University Orientation and MUIH550 Academic Research and Scholarship, a non-credit online training course on information literacy by the end of the first trimester.
• Complete the Serv-SafeTM Food Safety Manager Course from the National Restaurant Association. The course is offered by MUIH as NUTR501.
• In order to gain a perspective as a client in the client-practitioner relationship, students are required to become a client of an integrative nutritionist in their area or through the MUIH Student Teaching Clinic of  the Natural Care Center, for at least one nutrition consultation.
• Earn a passing grade on a comprehensive exam (NUTR 698) at the end of the academic program.

Course Descriptions

Course descriptions are available in the Academic Catalog.

Students who complete the Master of Science in Nutrition and Integrative Health will be able to:

• Articulate the foundational scientific principles of nutrition, including the interplay between nutrients, human physiology, and biochemistry
• Identify the role of nutrients, foods, and dietary supplements in human health; nutrient requirements, deficiencies, excesses, and sources; and factors that affect food quality and safety and nutrient status and requirements.
• Conduct a comprehensive nutrition assessment, incorporating a detailed health and lifestyle history, dietary assessment, nutrition-focused physical exam, and laboratory reports to interpret nutrition-related factors affecting health status and identify appropriate referrals.
• Provide safe and effective personalized medical nutrition therapy that incorporates whole foods, dietary supplements, and lifestyle changes and includes monitoring and evaluating progress
• Utilize motivational and counseling skills that honor cultural and personal identities, build partnerships with clients, and optimize meaningful change.
• Summarize the scope of practice for nutrition professionals, practice management skills for building a successful practice, and career and collaboration opportunities, with reference to the role of state and federal regulations and professional and credentialing organizations.

Program Format

Both areas of concentration of the program are offered in the online and hybrid formats. Click here to view MUIH’s definition of online, hybrid, and on-campus course and program formats.

Program Schedule

For trimester start and end dates, see the Academic Calendar.

Licensure

The Master of Science in Nutrition and Integrative Health program is designed to meet the educational requirements for nutrition licensure in Maryland, as well as for independent certification by the Board for Certification of Nutrition Specialists.

The licensure/certification boards in each state are responsible for establishing the requirements for licensure/certification for their state. For students who reside in a state other than Maryland, it is strongly recommended that you contact the appropriate licensing entity. Seeking information and guidance regarding licensure or certification requirements before beginning an academic program or seeking employment will give you the most up-to-date information and answer most questions.

The table under State Licensure Disclosures on the Student Consumer Information page represents the Nutrition Department’s evaluation of whether the MS Nutrition and Integrative Health program meets state-specific educational requirements for licensure or certification.

Additional requirements. Completing a program that meets educational requirements is typically only one part of the professional licensure requirements. Most states require individuals to meet additional requirements to qualify for licensure, including but not limited to supervised clinical experiences and passing of state or national exams. Other licensure requirements may include, but are not limited to, fees, background checks, references, etc.

Potential changes in requirements. Licensure information is reviewed and updated on a semi-annual basis. Students who plan to pursue licensure should be aware that state licensure requirements are subject to changes. All students are encouraged to routinely review and monitor licensing and certification requirements for the state where they intend to work/practice.

Independent Certification

The Master of Science in Nutrition and Integrative Health program is designed to meet the eligibility requirements of several national board certifications. At the time of this writing, MUIH complies with the requirements of each of the professional organizations listed below. However, boards do change their eligibility requirements. Please review certification requirements and contact the appropriate board for the most up-to-date information.

MUIH’s M.S. Nutrition and Integrative Health program is accredited by the Accreditation Council on Nutrition Professional Education (ACNPE), a programmatic accrediting agency for master’s degree programs in clinical nutrition. For more information, contact: ACNPE, 20 West 20th Street, Suite 204, New York, NY 10011; phone: 646-455-1149.

MUIH is one of only two master’s degree programs in clinical nutrition in the U.S. to hold such accreditation.

The Accreditation Council on Nutrition Professional Education (ACNPE) accredits master’s degree clinical programs in nutrition. It enhances the quality of learning by setting standards for knowledge and skills needed to practice advanced nutrition care safely and effectively. ACNPE’s accreditation standards ensure that graduates have met the high level of competency expected of a nutrition professional. ACNPE-accredited programs prepare graduates for a variety of career paths and professional opportunities. Graduates help to further public and professional understanding of the foundational role of nutrition – as an essential component of a collaborative healthcare system that aims to optimize health as well as to prevent and treat illness. Advanced nutrition professionals play a vital role in slowing the epidemic of obesity and chronic disease, positively impacting the high cost of healthcare. The vision of ACNPE is to further public understanding of the foundational role of nutrition in health, and to support the field of professional nutrition care as an essential component of a collaborative healthcare system. The mission of ACNPE is quality assurance; serving the public by accrediting master’s degree clinical programs in advanced nutrition offered by regionally accredited higher education institutions in the U.S. that demonstrate satisfactory compliance with ACNPE’s standards.

Eighty-five percent (85%) of recent M.S. Nutrition and Integrative Health graduates (2020-2023) who searched for nutrition-related employment or established their own nutrition-based business were working in the field within one year of graduation.

Graduates of MUIH’s nutrition programs are employed in a variety of settings including private practice; integrative group practices; nutrition clinics; health care systems; hospitals; community, non-profit, and outreach organizations; state and local health departments; school systems; culinary organizations; athletic and recreational organizations; and colleges and universities. Many graduates chose to have a portfolio career in which they have multiple positions and employers within one or more profession, rather than one full-time job. A portfolio career provides such individuals with variety in their work life and the opportunity to develop a wide and varied professional network.

This degree prepares students for careers as professionals, practitioners, consultants, researchers, entrepreneurs, writers and educators in the field of clinical nutrition. The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) indicates jobs for nutritionists and dietitians are projected to grow 7% from 2021 to 2031. The role of food in preventing and treating diseases, such as diabetes, is now well known. More dietitians and nutritionists will be needed to provide care for patients with various medical conditions and to advise people who want to improve their overall health.

View more about career opportunities.

Take a look at what our Master of Science in Nutrition and Integrative Health program offers and how MUIH is the choice for you!