About

"Nutrition is not a discipline, it is an agenda."

— The late Jean Mayer, former president of Tufts University and founder of Tufts' School of Nutrition, now the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.

This statement is the backbone of the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. Established in 1981, it is the only graduate and professional school of nutrition in North America. Its mission is to improve the nutritional well-being of people worldwide through:

• the creation of new knowledge
• the application and dissemination of evidence-based information and
• the education and training of future leaders in the field

This mission is fulfilled by bringing together experts from the areas of clinical nutrition, social and public policy, and biomedicine. Faculty at the school include  biomedical scientists, economists, epidemiologists, nutritionists, physicians, political scientists and psychologists who focus on a myriad of issues with the common thread of nutrition and its role in fostering the growth and development of human populations.

From its first class of 17, the school has matured into a current student body over 200, with both students and alumni representing 34 countries. Programs of study draw upon the strength of Tufts University's interdisciplinary approach which involves Tufts' seven other schools, the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging and the Frances Stern Nutrition Center. There are also several one-of-a-kind master's degree programs in the Friedman School that take advantage of this cross collaboration.

View the Friedman School Organization Chart.

The school's rigorous curriculum, research, applied programs and internships provide its students with the opportunity to make significant contributions to the nutrition and health of all populations. In other words, graduates of the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy truly make a difference in the world.