Unit Synopsis
This unit provides a critical and practical exploration of contemporary public health nutrition, addressing the complex socioecological, cultural, and systemic factors that influence food supply, food security, and population health in Australia and globally. Students will develop advanced skills to critically evaluate existing policies and regulatory frameworks, including the application of national nutrition guidelines and food standards. A key focus is placed on promoting equity and ensuring culturally safe practice when analysing and addressing nutritional issues in diverse and vulnerable communities, particularly among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Practical application is emphasised through conducting data analysis on consumption trends and learning to design, implement, and evaluate evidence-based community nutrition promotion initiatives. The unit culminates in the ability to communicate professional research and strategies to foster healthier food environments and drive positive public health change.
Details
| Level | Undergraduate |
|---|---|
| Unit Level | 3 |
| Credit Points | 6 |
| Student Contribution Band | SCA Band 2 |
| Fraction of Full-Time Student Load | 0.125 |
| Pre-requisites or Co-requisites |
Prerequisite: NUTR12002 or NUTR12001
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework). |
| Class Timetable | View Unit Timetable |
| Residential School | No Residential School |
Unit Availabilities from Term 1 - 2026
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Assessment Tasks
| Assessment Task | Weighting |
|---|---|
| 1. Report | 20% |
| 2. Project (applied) | 40% |
| 3. Essay | 20% |
| 4. Presentation | 20% |
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).
Past Exams
All University policies are available on the Policy web site, however you may wish to directly view the following policies below.
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of policies are available on the Policy web site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Source: Unit Coordinator and Head of Course self reflection, SUTE feedback.
The unit’s learning content, structure, and assessment tasks may require revision to better align with student learning needs, with consideration given to updating topics and incorporating alternative areas if appropriate.
Consider reviewing the unit’s weekly content delivery, overall structure, and assessment tasks to ensure they align with student learning needs. This may include revising weekly learning booklets, updating lecture materials, and incorporating alternative or updated assessment topics where appropriate.
The unit structure and assessment tasks were reviewed and revised in 2026. All assessments were redesigned to strengthen the integration of cultural diversity and culturally responsive considerations throughout the unit.
Source: Unit Coordinator and SUTE feedback.
Students valued the applied nature of the assessment tasks, particularly the opportunity to collect and analyse real data. They noted that preparing a written report and oral presentation based on their own findings enhanced their understanding and supported the development of practical, transferable skills.
Maintain the applied focus of assessment tasks, ensuring students continue to engage in data collection, analysis, and presentation activities that build practical skills and reinforce real-world application of knowledge.
The applied focus of the assessment tasks was retained, with students continuing to engage in activities involving data collection, analysis and presentation. These components were incorporated into the revised assessment tasks to support the development of practical skills and the application of public health nutrition concepts.
Source: SUTE quantitative data, unit coordinator reflection
Incorporation of learning booklets to provide additional content to support assessment tasks.
Review and revise learning content and consider incorporation into a learning booklet.
In Progress
Source: Unit coordinator reflection
AI security risk in relation to assessment tasks.
Continue to review and refine assessment tasks to ensure they remain authentic and robust in the context of generative artificial intelligence, with opportunities for students to demonstrate their individual application, analysis and interpretation of public health nutrition concepts.
In Progress
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- Critically evaluate socioecological, cultural, and systemic factors influencing food supply, food security, and public health nutrition policy in Australia and globally.
- Analyse and apply nutrition guidelines, food standards, and regulatory frameworks to address the needs of diverse populations, with specific attention to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and vulnerable groups.
- Assess and apply food consumption trends and nutrition-related health issues in at-risk communities to propose evidence-based, culturally safe strategies to promote equity in public health nutrition.
- Conduct and communicate research and data analysis on current public health nutrition issues, demonstrating skills in systematic inquiry, interpretation, and professional reporting.
- Design and evaluate community nutrition promotion initiatives that incorporate principles of health promotion, culturally responsive practice, and effective group education.
Learning outcomes of this unit are linked to the following domains of the 2021 Dietitians Australia (DA) National Competency Standards for Dietitians in Australia:
Domain 1: Professional Practice
Domain 2: Expert Practice
Domain 3: Research Practice
Domain 4: Collaborative Practice
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Report | • | ||||
| 2 - Project (applied) | • | • | |||
| 3 - Essay | • | • | • | ||
| 4 - Presentation | • | • | • | ||
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | • | • | • | • | • |
| 3 - Critical Thinking | • | • | • | • | • |
| 4 - Information Literacy | • | • | • | • | |
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | • | ||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | • | • | • | • | • |
| 8 - Ethical practice | • | ||||
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 10 | |