It is a pleasure to welcome you to the School of Human Nutrition! We are now entering into the 2023-2024 academic year, and I would like to first congratulate you on behalf of the School on having been accepted to pursue your studies in Human Nutrition at McGill University. Our university is one of Canada’s oldest and most prestigious institutions and is among the top research-intensive academic institutions in the world, with more than 40,000 students, and 1,700 tenure-track professors. The School of Human Nutrition (SHN) is part of The Faculty of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (FAES) at the Macdonald Campus, which occupies 650 hectares in a beautiful waterfront setting on the western tip of the island of Montreal. It also sits in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, the second oldest community in Montreal's West Island.
The 21st century has brought unprecedented opportunities for research and discovery in Nutrition due to major advancements in fundamental and applied sciences. Modern Nutrition encompasses both traditional disciplinary boundaries by merging multiple disciplines under “one umbrella” to create a unified knowledge transfer system. This integrative “cell to society” approach translates foundational knowledge in many areas spanning metabolism, genetics, biochemistry, and physiology to clinical nutrition and dietetics, precision nutrition, community nutrition, Indigenous health, and food sovereignty and security. At McGill, we strive to learn, understand, and integrate basic foundational concepts to collaborate, translate and promote health and wellness from individuals to societies.
The School develops and cultivates this core knowledge by offering several programs and research opportunities. At the undergraduate level, we offer the degrees in Dietetics for those interested in clinical or professional practice, a BSc in Nutritional Sciences for those interested in the developing nutrition knowledge, and the double BSc Food Science/Nutritional Science degree for those interested in the physical and chemical properties of foods and their role in health and disease. These programs are linked to one another through vital core courses in Nutrition and Health, Human Metabolism and Nutrition, Nutrition through the Lifespan, that develop the core nutrition knowledge. The School is pleased to announce its new Honors Thesis program for undergraduate students interested in conducting research. Undergrads interested in research may apply for undergraduate summer awards, such as NSERC and the SHN and Brown Martlet Undergraduate Student Research Awards. At the graduate level, we offer strong MSc Thesis and MSc Applied graduate programs and a PhD degree in Human Nutrition. Many of our graduate students and postdoctoral fellows enjoy much success in these programs, having obtained prestigious awards from the Tri Agency, FRQ, and several more.
The School of Human Nutrition is invested in preparing its graduates to challenge and push the frontiers of discovery in Nutrition and Health.
We have a broad range of research expertise to tackle contemporary issues in modern nutrition and health to inspire, prepare, and mentor new generations of leaders in nutrition. The research expertise of the School of Human Nutrition is in the foundational sciences and clinical, epidemiological, and community nutrition. Research themes range from gene/nutrient interactions, metabolism, precision nutrition, and gut-microbiome host interactions to Indigenous Peoples’ nutrition and food safety and food security, nutritional status & food security in developing countries, medical nutrition therapy, and its clinical applications both in outpatient and in hospitalized patients. The members of our faculty are world-class scientists and academics that spearhead cutting-edge and groundbreaking research in nutrition. We have modern facilities to conduct research in these disciplines ranging from the Metabolic Flux Core and Tissue Culture Lab, Molecular Nutrition Lab and Mass Spectroscopy Facility to proprietary human gut models and other facilities to study the regulation of nutrient metabolism, nutrient-gene interactions, bioenergetics, and gut microbiome host interactions (Molecular Nutrition Laboratory). With the newly established Clinical Nutrition Research Unit (CNRU), we conduct research on harnessing the power of nutrition for recovery from surgery, prevention and management of chronic diseases, and on individuals behaviors for food preferences and decision making. The CNRU is in the heart of Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, a 10-minute walk from the Macdonald-Stewart Complex. The School also manages the Food and Nutrition Laboratories, which houses high-performance industry-standard equipment for advanced nutrition and food service training, including the development and evaluation of novel food products. The School has strong ties with the Centre for Indigenous Peoples’ Nutrition and Environment (CINE), which focuses on the needs expressed by Indigenous Peoples for participatory research and education to address their concerns about the integrity of their traditional food systems. CINE conducts world class community-based research on traditional food systems. The School is intricately linked to the Margaret A. Gilliam Institute for Global Food Security (IGFS) as well, which is focused on nutrition security and health in the global food production system. Finally, we have several ongoing initiatives and collaborations with partners in the McGill Faculty of Medicine, the Lady Davis Institute, and the Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education.Of course, being a student in the School is not only about taking courses and conducting research. The School is very fortunate to have students at the undergraduate and graduate levels that are active in cultivating student life and culture. Both undergrad and grad students belong to student societies, namely the Dietetics and Human Nutrition Undergraduate Society (DHNUS) and the McGill Macdonald Campus Graduate Student Society (MCGSS). We also have students at both levels serving as representatives on important university committees. These societies and committees provide additional support through mentorship programs, opportunities to meet professors and their collaborators in industry and the private sector, participate in university-wide committees, and gain access to news and developments on grants and other opportunities.
On behalf of the entire School and as Director of the School, I wish you a wonderful and fulfilling experience as a McGill student. My colleagues and I are looking forward to seeing you on campus, in our lectures, and our research labs.
Sincerely,
Ryan J. Mailloux
Associate Professor
Director of the School of Human Nutrition
