Intro to Food Science & Human Nutrition (FOOD20003)

Undergraduate level 2Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)

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Overview

Availability
Semester 1
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This subject introduces the basic concepts of both food science and nutrition. From a food science perspective, the subject will assist students in developing an understanding of the chemical structure and underlying nutritional biochemistry of food components, concentrating on carbohydrates, proteins and lipids, and how food processing affects these food components.  

From a nutrition perspective, the subject will assist students in developing an understanding of the nutritional aspect of food in the human body, covering basic physiological and biochemical processes.  There is a particular emphasis on the digestion, absorption, nutritional significance and health effects of the macro and micronutrients, and the basic biochemistry of energy metabolism.  Students will further explore the dietary concepts of energy balance and diet planning and the tools used in this process.

Intended learning outcomes

Upon completion of this subject, students will be able to:

  • Summarise the structural, physical and chemical properties of food components and apply this knowledge in a food industry application
  • Discuss how food relates to human physiology and interpret consequences of inadequate or excessive intakes
  • Analyse an individual's dietary intake against nutrient reference values and dietary guidelines
  • Determine an individual's anthropometry, energy requirements and potential health effects of imbalances

Generic skills

Upon completion of this unit, students should have developed:

  • A profound respect for truth, intellectual and professional integrity, and the ethics of scholarship
  • The capacity of independent critical thought, rational inquiry and self-directed learning and research
  • An ability to drive, interpret and analyse social, technical or economical information from multiple source
  • Skills in observation, critical analysis and report writing

Last updated: 29 April 2025

Eligibility and requirements

Prerequisites

None

Corequisites

None

Non-allowed subjects

None

Recommended background knowledge

One of:

Code Name Teaching period Credit Points
BIOL10002 Biomolecules and Cells
Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
BIOL10008 Foundational Biology: Life's Machinery
Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville)
Summer Term (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
BIOL10009 Biology: Life's Machinery
Not available in 2025
 12.5

AND

One of:

Code Name Teaching period Credit Points
BIOL10010 Foundational Biology: Life's Complexity
Semester 2 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
BIOL10011 Biology: Life's Complexity
Not available in 2025
 12.5

AND

One of:

Code Name Teaching period Credit Points
CHEM10003 Chemistry 1
Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville)
Semester 2 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
CHEM10006 Chemistry for Biomedicine
Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville)
Semester 2 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5
CHEM10007 Fundamentals of Chemistry
Semester 1 (On Campus - Parkville)
 12.5

Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)

The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.

Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home

Last updated: 29 April 2025

Assessment

DescriptionTimingPercentage

Diet record analysis

  • 150 words (equivalent)
Week 35%

Mid-semester test

  • 1 hours
Weeks 5-620%

Food science industry application

  • 500 words
Hurdle requirement: It is a hurdle requirement that students must complete this report		Week 815%

Nutritional assessment

  • 850 words (equivalent)
Hurdle requirement: It is a hurdle requirement that students must complete this nutritional assessment		Week 1120%

Examination

  • 90 minutes
During the examination period40%

Last updated: 29 April 2025

Dates & times

  • Semester 1
    Principal coordinatorFiona Kelly
    Mode of deliveryOn Campus (Parkville)
    Contact hours48 hours; 1 x 2-hour workshop per week for 9 weeks, 1 x 1-hour tutorial per week and 18 hours viewing recorded lectures during the semester
    Total time commitment170 hours
    Teaching period 3 March 2025 to 1 June 2025
    Last self-enrol date14 March 2025
    Census date31 March 2025
    Last date to withdraw without fail 9 May 2025
    Assessment period ends27 June 2025

    Semester 1 contact information

    kelly.f@unimelb.edu.au

What do these dates mean

Visit this webpage to find out about these key dates, including how they impact on:

  • Your tuition fees, academic transcript and statements.
  • And for Commonwealth Supported students, your:
       -  Student Learning Entitlement. This applies to all students enrolled in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP).
     

    Subjects withdrawn after the census date (including up to the ‘last day to withdraw without fail’) count toward the Student Learning Entitlement.

Last updated: 29 April 2025

Further information

Last updated: 29 April 2025