Oxford Brookes University

What you'll study

This full-time, pre-registration master's combines core biomedical and nutritional science with applied dietetic practice, professional skills and research training. Teaching typically covers:

• Foundations of Human Nutrition and Metabolism – macronutrients and micronutrients, digestion and metabolism, nutritional assessment methods.
• Clinical Dietetics – disease-specific dietary management (e.g. diabetes, renal disease, oncology, gastroenterology), enteral and parenteral nutrition.
• Life Course and Community Nutrition – maternal and infant nutrition, paediatrics, ageing and public health approaches to population nutrition.
• Professional Practice and Communication – counselling skills, motivational interviewing, cultural competence and interprofessional working.
• Practice Placements – multiple supervised clinical placements across hospital, community and specialist settings to develop assessment, treatment planning and multidisciplinary team skills.
• Research Methods and Dissertation – research design, statistics, critical appraisal and an independent dissertation or applied project.
• Food Studies and Public Health – food systems, nutrition policy, health promotion and service delivery models.

Learning is delivered through lectures, small-group tutorials, practical laboratory sessions, simulated clinical skills training and assessed workplace-based learning. Assessment methods include written exams, case-based assessments, objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs), placement portfolios and a research dissertation.

Entry requirements

Applicants are normally expected to hold a UK upper second-class honours degree (2:1) or international equivalent in a relevant subject such as human nutrition, biomedical science, healthcare sciences or a closely related discipline. Applicants with strong relevant experience and evidence of capability may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

• Prior study should include underpinning human science topics such as physiology, biochemistry and/or nutrition.
• Relevant paid or voluntary experience in healthcare, social care or community settings is highly desirable and should be detailed in the application.
• Applicants must meet English language requirements; international applicants will need an approved English language qualification at the level required for postgraduate healthcare training.
• Successful applicants must complete occupational health screening, an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check (or international equivalent) and any required immunisations before placement commencement.
• Selection includes academic references and an interview process (which may include scenario-based or practical elements).

Career prospects

Graduates are prepared to register as dietitians with the statutory regulator and to practise as autonomous healthcare professionals. Typical career destinations include:

• NHS hospital dietitian roles across acute and specialist services (e.g. renal, oncology, paediatrics).
• Community and primary care dietetics, including health visiting and long-term condition management.
• Public health and health promotion roles within local authorities or non-governmental organisations.
• Private practice and consultancy, including corporate health, sports nutrition and weight-management services.
• Research and academic posts, or further study such as clinical doctorate or PhD programmes.

The programme emphasises transferable skills—clinical reasoning, communication, audit and research literacy—that support career development, portfolio careers and opportunities in leadership or service development.

Why study at Oxford Brookes University

Oxford Brookes offers a clinically focused pre-registration dietetics programme with strong links to local NHS Trusts and community services, ensuring diverse, supervised placement experiences. The university provides modern simulation facilities and nutrition laboratories for practical skills development, together with small-group teaching and dedicated academic support from staff active in clinical practice and research.

Students benefit from interprofessional learning opportunities within the health and life sciences faculty, careers and employability services, and a campus environment close to the wider health and research community in Oxford. The programme’s professional orientation prepares graduates for immediate entry into practice and ongoing professional development within dietetics and related fields.