High school nutrition internship and research fellowship
This high school nutrition internship lets students in Grades 9 to 12 study what families eat and throw away, with a mentor who checks your method and results. You record food waste at home, compare meals with published nutrition and climate data and share practical tips with the families you study.
For school students interested in food and health, including those who take IGCSE Food and Nutrition, IB Biology or CBSE Home Science. Online, with field work near home and a parent or guardian present at every self-guided activity. The fellowship is paid because every student receives time and attention from senior researchers and leaders.
Why nutrition matters for sustainability
Every meal uses land, water and energy before it reaches the plate, and food that is thrown away wastes all of it. In a landfill, rotting food releases methane, a gas that traps heat in the air. A plate can also be full and still lack nutrients such as iron or protein. Nutrition science helps families eat well on their budget and waste less food.
In the zero waste housing societies Earth5R works with, kitchen scraps go into drum composters built from reused industrial containers. Earth5R also trains residents on segregation and composting and runs door-to-door household surveys. One of its flagship research projects, by a NASA and Columbia University scientist, studies climate change and basmati rice across the Gangetic Plain. As a fellow you link work like this to the food on your own family’s plate.
This work links to the UN Sustainable Development Goals: Goal 2, Zero hunger and Goal 12, Responsible consumption and production.
Available projects in this high school nutrition internship
Each project fits around school work and takes place near home. Your mentor shapes the final project with you.
Food waste diary at home
Weigh the food your household throws away each day for two weeks, sort it into types such as peels or leftovers, and find practical ways to cut the waste that could be avoided.
What students eat at school
Survey classmates about what they bring for lunch or buy at school, compare it with India’s published dietary guidelines and suggest simple swaps the canteen could try.
Climate footprint of a family meal
Use published research to compare the climate footprint of common home meals, from rice and dal to paneer dishes, and plan a week of lower-impact meals that stay nutritious.
Kitchen waste to compost
Set up a small compost bin at home or in your building with an adult, track how much kitchen waste goes in and use the compost to grow a few herbs or vegetables.
What you do in the field
- Keep a food waste diary with a kitchen scale
- Run a short survey on meals, with consent
- Read food labels and nutrition tables
- Compare meals using published nutrition and climate data
- Make simple charts of what you found
- Share tips with families and present in a research conversation
Skills you build
On a high school nutrition internship, you collect your own data near home with a parent or guardian, using the Earth5R app and data forms. Earth5R checks the data on its platform before it goes into your project report.
How a high school nutrition internship fits your school programme
For IB, IGCSE, CBSE and ICSE students. Your school decides what counts towards its own requirements.
IB CAS
A food waste campaign at school or a compost project in your building can form a CAS project with a service element. Your CAS coordinator decides whether it fits.
Extended Essay and IA
A Biology, SEHS or ESS Extended Essay or IA needs a focused question and data you collected. A food waste or diet study can supply both, if your supervisor approves.
MYP, IGCSE and CBSE projects
A diet or food waste study fits the MYP Personal Project, IGCSE Global Perspectives and project work in CBSE or ISC Home Science.
University applications
A food study with real household data gives you specific examples to discuss in a nutrition, dietetics or food science personal statement.
How the high school nutrition internship works
Every student moves through four phases. Your mentor checks each phase before you move on, and sessions pause during board exams.
Observe and Map
Go into the field near home, with a parent or guardian, and collect primary data for your project in Nutrition and Food Science.
Frame and Design
Find the root cause in your data and frame a problem worth solving, with your mentor.
Model
Build a working model, analysis or design for your solution, and test it.
Build and Deploy
Put your solution to work, measure the result and publish a verified record on earth5r.org.
Along the way you take part in research conversations with professors at MIT, Oxford, Cambridge, LSE and other universities, and ask your own questions. See how FIELDWORK works.
Where this can take you
University courses this leads to
- BSc in Nutrition
- BSc in Nutrition and Dietetics
- BSc in Food Science
- BSc in Food Science and Nutrition
- BSc in Human Nutrition
Careers in this field
- Nutritionist or dietitian
- Food scientist
- Public health nutrition officer
- Sustainability analyst at a food company
- Food systems researcher
Universities to aim for in Nutrition and Food Science
Nutrition and food science admissions tutors look for students who are comfortable with biology and chemistry and curious about everyday eating habits. A high school nutrition internship with FIELDWORK gives you a food study with household data, a report your mentor reviewed and a verified record on earth5r.org. Students use a high school nutrition internship to build a record of real work for applications to universities like these.
Wageningen University & Research
Netherlands · BSc Food Technology
Wageningen’s three-year BSc Food Technology is taught in English and builds from maths, chemistry, biology and physics to food subjects such as how emulsions and gels shape texture. Students learn to develop safe, healthy and sustainable food products, including work linked to the protein transition.
USA · Division of Nutritional Sciences
Cornell’s Division of Nutritional Sciences offers undergraduate majors in Nutritional Sciences, Global + Public Health Sciences and Human Biology, Health + Society. It also runs a dietetics programme for students who want to become registered dietitian nutritionists.
University of California, Davis (UC Davis)
USA · Department of Nutrition
UC Davis’s Department of Nutrition offers undergraduate majors in Clinical Nutrition and Nutrition Science. Its research spans food fortification, food systems, and global and community nutrition, alongside areas such as metabolism and gut health.
UK · Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Nutritional Sciences BSc
King’s teaches a three-year Nutritional Sciences BSc on how food intake affects human health, with lab sessions and a final-year research project. The course is accredited by the Association for Nutrition, and the research it highlights includes food insecurity, malnutrition and iron deficiency.
UK · Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences
Reading’s Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences teaches undergraduate nutrition courses and food science courses. Its research groups include the Hugh Sinclair Human Nutrition Research Group, and its sustainability work covers sustainable processing and the reduction of food waste.
USA · Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development, Nutrition and Food Studies (BS)
NYU Steinhardt’s BS in Nutrition and Food Studies has a Nutrition and Dietetics concentration on food, nutrition and health in society, and a Food Studies concentration on food culture and production. Food Studies includes a course on food systems and agriculture.
University of British Columbia (UBC)
Canada · Faculty of Land and Food Systems
UBC’s Faculty of Land and Food Systems teaches undergraduate programmes that include Food, Nutrition and Health, which runs from food production and processing to consumption and health. The faculty describes its undergraduate study as ranging from sustainability and climate change to food security.
Canada · School of Human Nutrition
McGill’s School of Human Nutrition offers Dietetics and Nutrition majors, and a concurrent programme that gives two bachelor’s degrees in food science and nutritional sciences in four years. Its research themes include Indigenous Peoples’ nutrition, food safety and food security.
National University of Singapore (NUS)
Singapore · Department of Food Science and Technology
NUS’s Department of Food Science and Technology teaches a primary major in food science and technology, with second majors in food science and nutrition. Its research groups include human nutrition and food processing and engineering, and it is home to the Bezos Centre for Sustainable Protein.
This list is for guidance. These universities offer undergraduate study in Nutrition and Food Science. Earth5R has no admissions arrangement with them, and admission decisions rest with each university. Students get help researching universities, scholarships and applications, depending on the programme.
What your fellowship fee pays for
An internship fellowship at Earth5R is time and attention from senior researchers and leaders. Each part below takes staff time and resources that we set aside for every fellow.
Live mentoring with experts
One-to-one mentoring in most fellowships, with regular check-ins on your project.
Dialogues with global researchers
Academics from international universities and renowned scientists, who answer your questions and discuss your work.
Support in the field
Guidance while you collect data and work on your project in the field.
References for your next step
References when you apply for jobs, higher studies and research programmes.
Your work, hosted for life
Your work and data stay on Earth5R’s website and servers for life, where universities and employers can check them.
Time from senior people
Each fellow receives time and attention from senior researchers and leaders, set aside for them.
Fee details available on request.
Choose your fellowship
The Multi-Year Fellowship can run from Grade 9 to Grade 12, with more scope each year.
The fee pays for live mentoring, dialogues with global researchers, support in the field, references and lifelong hosting of your work. Fee details available on request.
High school nutrition internship: common questions
Will I give diet advice in this high school nutrition internship?
Only general tips, such as how to store vegetables so less is thrown away, and only after your mentor checks them. Personal diet plans need a qualified dietitian, so your report describes patterns across households.
Will my child ask our family to change what we eat?
No. Your child records what the family already eats and throws away, with your agreement. Any ideas for change appear as suggestions in the report, and each family decides what, if anything, to try.
Can I do this project if my family is vegetarian or follows a special diet?
Yes. Any household diet works for a food waste or meal study. Your mentor helps you find nutrition and climate data for the foods your family eats, including vegetarian and vegan meals.
Is the high school nutrition internship paid?
Yes. FIELDWORK is a paid, mentored programme. The fee pays for live mentoring, dialogues with global researchers, support in the field, references and lifelong hosting of your work. Fee details are available on request.
Can my child do this high school nutrition internship online?
Yes. Mentoring sessions run online, and field work takes place near where you live.
Is a parent or guardian present during field work?
Yes. A parent or guardian is present at every self-guided field activity. Online sessions are for students.
Does FIELDWORK pause during board exams?
Yes. Sessions pause during board exams, so the fellowship fits around school work.
What do students get at the end?
A certificate, a letter of recommendation, a project report and a verified profile on earth5r.org, where universities can check the work.
Related subjects for school students
Already at university? See the Nutrition and Food Science internship fellowship for university students.
Apply for a FIELDWORK fellowship in Nutrition and Food Science
This high school nutrition internship is for students in Grades 9 to 12. Work on a live Earth5R project with a mentor, take part in research conversations with global researchers, and build a verified record of your work. Fee details available on request.
