Food Service and Nutrition Management

Overview

Are you working in the culinary industry and wanting to expand your skills and knowledge? This program is designed to make it convenient for you to continue working while you complete your studies.

There is a growing need for skilled workers with culinary, nutrition and operational business training to meet the needs of large-volume food service operations. This program focuses on the following areas to prepare you for success in institutional food services:

• Healthcare
• Clinical nutrition
• Large-batch cooking trends
• Business, like budgeting
• Supervisory skills
• Operational management skills, like strategic planning and workflow improvements

Study options

• Although this program's delivery is noted as synchronous online, most of your learning is completed independently (asynchronous). There is a total commitment of 2 schedule hours of class time, making it possible for you to continue working in the industry while you learn.

Choose NSCC

• Learn from instructors who bring industry experience to the classroom and share their knowledge in a supportive environment.
• We stay in close touch with industry partners, ensuring your courses are relevant, current and build the skills employers want.
• Apply your knowledge through a mandatory Capstone project, where you develop and implement a project plan relevant to your program.
• NSCC is proud of the strong working relationship with Sobeys, having a Sobeys Culinary Centre at each campus offering Food Service and Nutrition Management.

Other info

September 2025

Campus	Full time/part time	Delivery	Availability
eCampus	Full time	Synchronous online Delivered fully online with both non-scheduled and scheduled classes.	Seats available

Admission requirements

• Two-year diploma in Culinary Management or equivalent, or Red Seal Cook Certification.
  • High School Graduation Diploma plus minimum 5-years industry experience may be considered for admission to this program under NSCC’s PLAR policy. For detailed information on the PLAR policy as it relates to this program, visit the Candidate Assessment for Food Service and Nutrition Management page.
  • International students – Submit your official post-secondary documents for assessment. View English language requirements by country

Program requirements

• This program requires you to complete:
  • Allergen Training for the Foodservice and Food Retail Industry (TrainCan Inc.)
  • HACCP for the Food Service Industry (TrainCan Inc.)
  • Advanced Food Safety Certification
• Portfolio development – As part of your studies at NSCC, you develop a portfolio of your work; the portfolio captures your achievements and profiles your skills to employers.

Tuition, fees and program costs

In addition to annual tuition, there are program costs (books, tools, etc.) and student fees for College services, health and dental plans, your student association and parking.

View detailed program fees page(s). Please note that amounts on these pages are meant for planning purposes only. They don't represent final amounts owing.

• Food Service and Nutrition Management

Career options

Graduates from the Food Service and Nutrition Management program may find employment in the management of various areas of nutritional care and food preparation and food service in: 

• Hospitals
• Retirement homes
• Long-term care facilities
• Contract food service management companies
• Commercial/retail settings

Courses may include

These are some of the courses offered in this program. It is not a complete list and courses are subject to change in advance of the academic year.

Recognizing prior learning / transfer credits
If you have previous learning (course, employment, etc...) that's relevant to your program, you may be able to apply to earn credit. Not all programs are eligible. Learn about our recognizing prior learning (RPL) process.

FANM 4001 - Human Resources Management
This course provides an introduction to human resource management as it applies to food service and nutrition management. Students will learn human resource principles in directing staff in the health care field including job descriptions, performance standards, staffing, labour relations, recruitment and hiring, staff development, performance evaluation, ethics and cultural competence. This course is case study based where students will respond to client case studies by applying knowledge and course content.

FANM 4018 - Financial/Business Management
This course provides an introduction to financial and business management as it applies to food service and nutrition management. Students will learn financial management, information systems, accounting, budgeting, financial indicators and analysis, cost control systems, and forecasting. This course is case study based where students will respond to financial and business management scenarios by applying course content.

FANM 4021 - Food Systems Management
This course introduces food management systems in food service and nutrition management. Students will learn food production systems, procurement, inventory control, quality food production, menu planning, recipe development, costing, and standardization. This course is case study based where students will respond to organizational challenges with plans and solutions based on course material.

FANM 4045 - Professional Nutritional Management
This course introduces professional food service and nutrition management. Students will learn how to use communication skills and other tools to address topics such as conflicts of interest, confidentiality, patient-centered care, problem solving, decision-making processes, management styles and leadership skills. This course is case study based where students will respond to professional workplace scenarios by applying knowledge and course content.

FANM 4106 - Clinical Nutrition I
This course provides an introduction to clinical nutrition as it applies to food service and nutrition management. Students will learn about human body systems and the relationship between digestion and nutrition including micro-macro nutrients, nutrition, menu planning, cultural aspects of food, lifestyle and current issues.

FANM 4110 - Quality Management I
This course introduces quality management as it applies to food service and nutrition management. Students will learn policies, procedures, measuring quality, and risk management relevant to food service in health care facilities.

FANM 4215 - Quality Management II
This course provides a continuation in the study of quality management in food service and nutrition management. Students will learn safety and sanitation, auditing, accreditation, current legislation and provincial regulations. This course is case study based where students will respond to quality management challenges with plans and solutions based on course material.

FANM 4302 - Marketing and Promotion
This course provides an introduction to marketing and promotion in food service and nutrition management. Students will learn marketing, merchandising, health and wellness promotion and as part of the course will complete a marketing and promotion plan for a food service marketing project for an organization of their choice (project planning) based on course material.

FANM 4401 - Clinical Nutrition II
This course provides a continuation in the study of clinical nutrition as it applies to food service and nutrition management. Students will learn nutrition screening, client interviewing and counselling, documentation, nutrition care plans, nutrition challenges in long term care, nutritional supplements, regular, temporary and texture-modified diets.

FANM 4650 - Project Planning
This course provides project planning skills for food service and nutrition management. Students will learn basic project management by planning and completing a food service marketing project for an organization of their choice (marketing and promotion).

FANM 4700 - Capstone
This course provides an applied capstone learning experience for students at the end of their studies in professionalism in food service and nutrition management. Students will act on their project plan from the previous semester. As a largely independent project, students will have an advisor and the opportunity to apply their project to an organization of their choice.

SAFE 1000 - Introduction to WHMIS (Workplace Hazardous Materials Information Systems)
This course offers learners basic overview of WHMIS principles and establishes a solid foundation to support workplace-specific training on the safe storage and handling of controlled/hazardous products. Upon successful completion of the course, students receive basic WHMIS certification.

SAFE 1001 - Introduction to NS OH&S Act
This course offers students an introduction to the Occupational Health & Safety (OH&S) Act of Nova Scotia, which is required by any person employed in a Nova Scotia workplace. This is a generic, introductory course that provides basic knowledge of the Act for students and is considered to be the basis from which more specific training can be given.