Undergraduate Majors and Minors: Consumer Foods

 

• Major Overview
• About the Consumer Foods Major
• About the Consumer Foods Minor
• Career Opportunities
• Internships
• Other Learning Opportunities

Flexible and personal best describe the Consumer Foods curriculum. Students with a wide range of interests are easily accommodated. Preferred courses to meet the university-wide requirements emphasize the chemical and biological sciences and statistics. The social sciences, including psychology, economics, and anthropology, also play a strong role in the Consumer Foods major.

• Food Preparation and Ingredients
• The Food Industry
• Food and Consumer Choices
• Food Theory
• Food Sanitation and Safety
• Quantity Food Production
• Foodservice Management
• Foodservice Purchasing
• Food Equipment and Kitchen Planning
• Cultural Aspects of Foods and Nutrition
• Food Communication
• Nutrition

Although all students take a core group of foods-related courses, individual students select among the remaining foods-related courses to meet their personal professional interests. Individuals' career interests determine specific courses selected to meet Communication, Problem Solving, and Equipment requirements.

Supporting Coursework

Student professional interests also determine supporting coursework. Food Science, Management, Consumer Economics, Child and Family Studies, Media/Communications and Health Promotion are some of the possibilities. Each student confers with his/her advisor to tailor a sequence of supporting courses and electives to meet his/her career goals.

• Entrance Requirements (Online Bulletin)

The relationship among foods, nutrition and health serves as the cornerstone of the Consumer Foods program of study. Consumer Foods majors apply knowledge about foods and food ingredients to food selection, preparation, home processing, storage and serving of safe food to the consumer. Appearance, flavor, and textural influences on consumer willingness to eat food products is explored. Cultural, religious, lifestyle, geographic and economic influences on consumer food choices are also examined.

Sample Course Plan for Consumer Foods Majors

In Consumer Foods, students apply knowledge about foods and food ingredients to food selection, preparation, home processing, storage and serving of safe food to consumers across the lifespan. Food quality, as well as the effects of culture, lifestyle and economics are explored.

Child and Family Studies, Media/Communications, Consumer Economics, Health Promotion, Food Science, and Management majors, to name a few, may find that a Consumer Foods minor will allow them to tailor their academic background to meet specific career goals.

The minor in Consumer Foods requires a minimum total of 18 credit hours with 13 credit hours met through specific courses. Students select among the remaining courses based on their professional interests. In addition to courses in the Department of Foods and Nutrition, approved courses from other departments may fulfill up to 3 credit hours. Students must meet all prerequisites for the courses selected.

For more information, contact:

Dr. Ruthann Swanson
Associate Professor
Department of Foods and Nutrition
rswanson@fcs.uga.edu
706-542-4834.

Recent surveys project that foods-related careers will be among the top job prospects in the 21st century. Salaries are competitive. Food service and nutrition education, and business-- consumer affairs, marketing and sales, test kitchens and quality control-- are just some of the possible career paths. Consumer Foods graduates also use this major as a stepping stone to graduate school and culinary arts programs. Recent graduates have been employed by Aramark Food Service Corporation; The UGA Cooperative Extension Service; Coca-Cola, Inc.; Keebler Foods, Inc. and Sysco Food Services, Inc.

Internships allow qualified students to apply classroom experiences to real life and "try-on" various careers in Consumer Foods. In today's competitive job market, many employers require work experience. Opportunities range from food service to consumer research to consumer education. Recent internship locations have spanned Georgia, the United States and North America.

Foods And Nutrition Education Internships

Foods and nutrition consumer education is the career goal of many Consumer Foods majors. Interns work with both children and adults. Target audiences are diverse and include low-income consumers, low-literacy individuals, college students and the general public. Locations range from urban Atlanta to rural Georgia.

Recent sites include UGA Cooperative Extension Services, UGA Health Services, and the UGA College of Family and Consumer Sciences' Office of Communications.

Food Service Internships

Food service internships are popular with our culinary arts oriented students. Sites range from small local bakeries to international corporations. Several recent graduates used their Consumer Foods degrees as a stepping stone to specialized degrees in Culinary Arts-where they completed an accelerated program. Many large food service corporations require an undergraduate as well as culinary arts degree for career advancement.

Recent sites include Marriot, Inc. and Radisson Hotels, Inc., both international companies; and Jennings Mill Country Club, a local food service operation.

Research/Product Development Internships

Several interns have been active members of USDA research teams, developing research protocols and collecting and analyzing data. Sensory evaluation plays a major role in these experiences. Interns assist with training and administering descriptive sensory panels. Other Consumer Foods interns have completed sensory research and marketing internships in the private sector, where they have been involved in product and brand development efforts.

These sites include Peryam and Knoll, a sensory research marketing firm and Chik-Fil-A brand development, a fast-food chicken enterprise.

Publix Visiting Practitioner Program

Established in 1999 with a donation from Publix Supermarket Charities, this program affords students an excellent opportunity to interact formally and informally with practicing professionals. These professionals bring the “real world” to campus, enhancing student awareness of various sectors of the foods and nutrition world as well as the workplace skills needed for professional success.

Culinary Arts Cooperative Program

Food service oriented students can easily combine their UGA Consumer Foods degree with their love of Culinary Arts. A cooperative program has been established with The Art Institute of Atlanta. Students who have earned a bachelor’s degree in Consumer Foods can transfer credit and complete a degree in Culinary Arts in one year without the hassle of placement tests and course equivalency evaluations. This Culinary Arts program is accredited by the American Culinary Federation.