The PhD program in Nutrition provides graduate students the opportunity to engage in intensive study and research in the following areas: nutritional genomics, nutritional physiology, cellular and molecular nutrition, nutritional biochemistry, and nutritional epidemiology. While a variety of research topics are available, the department's strength in nutritional studies is related to diabetes and obesity. For a full listing of research areas and faculty interests click here.

The PhD degree requires a minimum of 60 semester hours of graduate course work beyond the bachelor's degree. Of the 60 hours, a minimum of 30 semester hours must be graded (eg. A, B, C) course work at the 7000-level and 8000-level. In addition, 21 of those 30 graded hours must be completed while registered as a doctoral student in the PhD program at Auburn University. All doctoral students also must complete a minimum of 30 hours of additional course work that may include ungraded courses, 6000-level courses, research and thesis hours, and research and dissertation hours. A maximum of 4 semester hours of research and thesis from a completed master's program may be counted. All doctoral students must complete a minimum of 10 hours of research and dissertation (NTRI 8990).

Required Core Courses *

• NTRI 7500 Minerals (3) NTRI 7510 Vitamins (3)
• NTRI 7520 Macronutrients: Integration and Metabolism ( 4)
• NTRI 7280 Lab Methods in Nutrition (3)
• NTRI 7050 Methods of Research (2)
• NTRI 8950 Doctoral Seminar* * (1)
• NTRI 7530 Human Nutrient Metabolism (3)
• STAT 7000 Experimental Statistics I (3)
• STAT 7010 Experimental Statistics II (3)
• NTRI 8970 Advanced Topics in Nutrition (1-6)
• NTRI 8990 Research and Dissertation (10)

*Core courses may be substituted if equivalent courses have been taken as part of a Master's degree program

**Student is required to enroll in this class at least twice for the doctoral degree.

The information presented on this web page is presumed to be accurate. However, should a discrepancy be found with current graduate school policies, the graduate school is recognized as the official source of information. Refer to the Auburn University Bulletin under the Graduate School or the Graduate School Web Page for additional information about the PhD degree or graduate school policies.

Need additional information?

For further questions about the Nutrition PhD program, contact:
Ramesh Jeganathan, Ph.D.
Graduate Program Director
Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Wellness
101F Poultry Science Building, 260 Lem Morrison Dr.,
Auburn University, AL 36849-5606
E: jeganrb@auburn.edu
O: (334) 844-3840