APPLICATION OF RESEARCH AND PROFESSIONAL SKILLS IN NUTRITION, FOOD AND EXERCISE SCIENCES - 2025/6

Module Overview

This Module provides a broadly-based review of current methods employed in experimental nutrition, food science and sport & exercise sciences, with hands-on practical aspects in statistics, epidemiology, study design, physical activity assessment and dietary intake measurements, as well as experience in scientific writing and critical reviews. Statistics will be at the level of simple (e.g. descriptives and correlations) and more complex (t-test, Mann Whitney U test, Wilcoxon Matched Pairs, ANOVA, Friedman Test, Repeated Measures ANOVA and Regression). Statistics will be assessed through a piece of coursework analyzing data from either a Nutrition & Health dataset or an Exercise & Health Dataset from original published papers.

The Module will also provide an opportunity to develop professional skills, attributes and awareness of appropriate conduct/practice crucial to working in the sectors of Food, Nutrition, Dietetics or Sport. This module will also help with preparation for employability, including presentations and discussions on career options. Both professional skills and employability will be assessed through a piece of coursework on Case Studies and a digital LinkedIn page. Each Coursework will be worth 50% of the marks.

Module provider

School of Biosciences

Module Leader

LANHAM-NEW Susan (Biosciences)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 6

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Semester 1

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

none

Module content

Indicative content includes:
¿ Overview of key aspects of scientific study design.
¿ Description and practical application of epidemiological studies
¿ Be able to undertake a critical analysis of the design and implementation of intervention projects and statistical analysis of datasets.
¿ Understand the application and background to epidemiology and it¿s implications for public health nutrition and physical activity
¿ Asessment and practical experience of physical activity methodology and dietary assessment tools
¿ Overview and practical use of different experimental techniques in nutritional science and sport & exercise sciences including practical Statistical Coursework feedback and revision tutorials
¿ To prepare students for employability. Key concepts to include professional skills, employability readiness, self-awareness, impression management, individual brand, physical digital brand of the self.
¿ This module includes integrated teaching with other module/content (e.g. MHUM013 ¿ Nutrition professionalism in Practice). Alongside external speakers, including current practitioners and the professional bodies (e.g. AfN).

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

n/a

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate critical thinking, understanding of the taught topics and extra reading Thus, the assessment strategy for this Module consists of:

1) Coursework Practical on Statistics (Submission of a brief report with practical analysis of a dataset and simple/applied Statistics in either Nutrition & Food Sciences or Exercise Sciences). 

2) Coursework on Professional Skills with respect to how they will align to the requirements and code of conduct of their profession: 1) Case Studies and 2) Digital Linked-In Profile. Marked by members of the Module Team and PGR Demonstrators.

Formative assessment and feedback: Feedback on Case Study Answers, Linked-In Page and Statistics coursework - (one-to-one feedback, as requested) Generic post-coursework feedback (on-line)

Module aims

• To provide a broadly-based review of current methods employed in experimental nutrition, food science and sport & exercise sciences including experience in scientific writing and critical reviews
• To provide an understanding of the terms epidemiology and nutritional epidemiology, introduce the important scientific concepts in study design, research protocol development and calibration of methods of investigation as well as practical experience in physical activity and dietary intake assessment
• To introduce the important design strategies and interpretation of nutritional and physical activity epidemiological studies and other relevant data and databases together with an understanding of key statistical issues including sampling, study size and statistical power, application of statistical methods for analysis and evaluation of data.
• To prepare students for employability. Key concepts to include professional skills, employability readiness, self-awareness, impression management, individual brand, physical digital brand of the self.

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to: Provide pre-recorded lectures by research and practical active experts in the field of research methods and professional skills. Consolidating knowledge, expanding and connecting content with weekly tutorial sessions. The learning and teaching methods include: ¿ Pre-recorded lectures available on-demand via SurreyLearn Weekly tutorials ¿ Careers workshops tailored to each of the four Degree disciplines including Nutrition, Food Science, Dietetics, Sport & Exercise Sciences ¿ Sessions for advice on scientific writing, data analysis and visualization, and the critical appraisal of evidence ¿ Practical training on presentation of physical and digital self ¿ Use of external speakers, including current practitioners and the professional bodies (AfN, BASES , HCPC/BDA, IFST-  Role plays and scenario/case study discussions in discipline-specific groups.

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: BMS3110

Other information

Employability:
This module from an employability perspective will provide the student with key skills in analytical methods (such as how to assess an individual's dietary intake and physical activity levels); quantitative analysis (using datasets
from actual published scientific work) and it will also teach them in the areas of critical thinking and scientific writing. These combined will equip them with important skill sets for future employment and will boast their employability prospects. Students will be exposed to external speakers outlining specific roles and qualities of nutritionists in the workplace, including their own personal journey. The module also exposes students to the professional standards, ethics, and code of conduct for Associate nutritionists (ANutr) and awareness of the Association for Nutrition – the professional body of nutrition. This also includes the importance of developing and maintaining your own continuous professional development (CPD) and building a professional portfolio as a way to work towards Full registration status (RNutr). The tasks and assessments within the module are designed to further develop transferable skills, particularly in relation to the appropriate application of nutrition knowledge and communication with non lay audiences, including building trust and empathy with individuals who may have specific nutrition and other non-nutrition issues.

Global and cultural capabilities:
The programme and module has a strong cohort from around the world; with a mix of students from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Students will be integrating through the module and engaging with one
another. 

Digital capabilities:
students are encouraged to work together in groups, utilising collaborative tools (Whatsapp, Teams, Zoom) to communicateStudents will become proficient in the use of a number of digital tools. These include experience of using statistical programmes for analysis of data and appropriate graphical packages as well scientific publication platforms such as PubMed and Embase through our teaching of methods for systematic reviews and metaanalysis. These will also use dietary assessment packages (such as Nutritics) and learn what are the most update digital platforms for assessing food patterns, dietary intake and physical activiity levels. Thus, students will become competent at using these tools and platforms.

Resourcefulness and resilience:
Students will develop their resourcefulness (independent critical thinking) and resilience within this Module. There is a clear focus on critically analyzing datasets within the Module through the Coursework Assessment,
and within the Written Examination with respect to specific questions on critical reviews of scientific papers and analytical methods. For these individual assessments, students will be supported by formative feedback and will
be fully supported by group drop-in sessions and 1:1 coaching. This will assist them through the challenging areas to support their growth in resourcefulness and resilience. Therefore, they will be better prepared for roles
Page: 4 of 6 in science (Nutritional Science and Exercise Science), as Health Professionals or working within Industry, Government or Charity organizations.

Sustainability:
Issues surrounding sustainability of scientific research and data collection and the impact of these activities will be covered in the Module. Taking this understanding into the workplace (such as the Food Industry, the Health
Service, Government and Charity Organizations, Education [primary/secondary] sets the scene for better equipped students in scientific and health professional employment roles.

Programmes this module appears in

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2025/6 academic year.