COURSE CURRICULUM

The Master’s program in Nutrition and Exercise Science at Southeast Missouri State University is a graduate-level, interdisciplinary degree designed to prepare students for advanced careers in health promotion, clinical wellness, sports performance, and disease prevention. The program integrates advanced study in nutrition science, exercise physiology, and health behavior, allowing students to understand how diet and physical activity interact to influence human health across the lifespan. It is structured for students who already have a background in allied health or related fields and want to specialize in evidence-based nutrition and exerciseinterventions.The core curriculum begins with foundational and advanced science courses such as Pathophysiology: Implications for Nutrition and Exercise Science and Vitamin Metabolism, which provide a deeper understanding of how nutrients and physiological systems affect health and disease. Students also complete Physiology of Exercise, Cardiovascular Exercise Physiology, and Exercise in Health and Disease, which focus on how the body responds and adapts to physical activity in both healthy and clinical populations. Research skills are developed through Research Design and Evaluation and Introductory Behavioral Statistics, preparing students to critically analyze scientific literature and conduct their own studies.Professional development is supported through the Seminar in Nutrition and Exercise Science and an Internship experience, where students apply classroom knowledge in real-world settings such as wellness programs, rehabilitation centers, or sports performance facilities. Depending on their career goals, students may choose a thesis track involving independent research or a non-thesis track with additional internship and elective coursework.Elective options allow further specialization in areas such as sports nutrition, community nutrition, aging, exercise testing, health promotion, and fitness program design. Courses like Nutrition Counseling, Nutrition in the Life Cycle, and Health Promotion Programs help students tailor their degree toward specific professional pathways.Overall, the program prepares graduates to become skilled professionals capable of designing, implementing, and evaluating nutrition and exercise programs that improve health outcomes and enhance human performance in a variety of settings.