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Nutritionist

Alternative titles for this job include

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)

£31,000 Starter

to

£47,000 Experienced

Typical hours (a week)

37 to 40

You could work

between 8am and 6pm

How to become

Explore the different ways to get into this role.

How to become

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

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 volunteering opportunities through The National Council for Voluntary Organisations and Volunteer by 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:

What it takes

Find out what skills you’ll use in this role.

What it takes

Skills and knowledge

You'll need:

  • sensitivity and understanding
  • knowledge of biology
  • knowledge of training and educating
  • 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:

What you’ll do

Discover the day to day tasks you’ll do in this role.

What you'll do

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.

Career path and progression

Look at progression in this role and similar opportunities.

Career path and progression

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

Current opportunities

Find apprenticeships, courses and jobs available near you.

Current opportunities

Apprenticeships In England

We can't find any apprenticeship vacancies in England for a nutritionist right now.

The Find an apprenticeship service can help you with your search, send alerts when new apprenticeships become available and has advice on how to apply.

Courses In England

Access to HE: Science

  • Provider: ACTIVATE LEARNING
  • Start date: 11 September 2025
  • Location: Guildford

Access to Biomedical Science

  • Provider: HEART OF YORKSHIRE EDUCATION GROUP
  • Start date: 01 September 2025
  • Location: Not known
Find courses near you

Jobs In the United Kingdom

The Find a job service can help you with your search for jobs and send alerts when new jobs become available.

Search further careers

Related careers

Skills assessment

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