To understand nutrition, students usually have to study chemistry, biology, anatomy, physics, pathology and biochemistry. These courses help you to learn what makes up important nutrients, how our body works, how different muscles and organs use specific nutrients and how diseases develop on a cellular level. Science courses are useful to anyone considering a career in nutrition.
A large area of nutrition professions requires social interaction, education and involvement. Private nutritionists deal with concerned clients one-on-one, while community dietitians focus on the needs of a large social group. Also, management in nursing homes and hospitals requires special courses to oversee large-scale meal planning and preparation. Classes these professionals would find in their college career include product development, food safety, communications, statistics and public health nutrition.
Fitness and nutrition go hand-in-hand, with more and more studies showing that exercise is integral to living a health lifestyle. Classes involving sports- and fitness-related nutrition include health and wellness, sports nutrition, exercise assessment, exercise physiology and weight management.
Depending on what degree you ultimately hope to attain, there are specialty nutrition courses available. If you plan on working with older people, you'll need to take a course on geriatric nutrition. Counselors may want to take courses on eating disorders, female health or vegetarian nutrition to understand the needs of different people they counsel. Management dietitians need to understand how economic and social factors affect people in large groups and may take courses on community nutrition.