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Food Science and Nutrition

Level 3 Food Science and Nutrition

Year 12:

Unit 1- Meeting Nutritional Needs of Specific Groups: The purpose of this unit is to develop an understanding of the nutritional needs of specific target groups and plan and cook complex dishes to meet their nutritional needs. Through this unit, you will gain an understanding of how to identify hazards and minimise risks when producing food to meet the nutritional needs of specific groups. You will learn about different types of nutrients and how those are used by the body to ensure you can plan a balanced nutritious diet. You will develop advanced skills for preparing, cooking and presenting nutritious dishes that meet specific needs.

Assessments are one written paper in June of year 12 and one piece of controlled assessment completed by April.

Year 13:

Unit 2 - Ensuring food is safe to eat. In this unit you will learn about food safety, how micro-organisms can affect food safety, how some foods can cause ill health in people that have intolerances or allergies and what controls need to be in place to minimise the risks. It is an 8 hour timed supervised assessment completed after May 1st in Year 13.

Unit 3 - Experimenting to Solve Food Production Problems. The aim of this unit is for learners to use their understanding of the properties of food in order to plan and carry out experiments. The results of the experiments would be used to propose options to solve food production problems, for example, why does ice cream freeze? How do I stop cream curdling? How do I make cakes rise? Why do salad dressings separate?

OR

Unit 4 - Current issues in consumer food choice. Students will have the opportunity to develop knowledge and understanding of issues that are currently affecting consumer food choice. Through an investigative study, you will learn about a range of consumer food choice issues and how key stakeholders are responding to these issues. The study will help you to develop the skills needed to effectively plan and carry out an individual research project.

If students complete only Year 12 (Unit 1) they will receive a Certificate in Food Science and Nutrition. Alternatively, continuing to Year 13 will award a Diploma in Food Science and Nutrition.  

Although this is a vocational Level 3 qualification, it is NOT a B-TEC (a common misconception).  
The weighting of this qualification is equal to an A-Level in terms of UCAS points, However, there is not an equivalent B or D grade. This qualification is awarded as: 
Distinction* - 56 points (A* at A Level)
Distinction - 48 points (A at A Level)
Merit - 32 points (C at A Level)
Pass - 16 points (E at A Level)