Advanced Certificate in Nutritional Counselling

Learn both nutritional science and food coaching as a career foundation, or for professional development. For those working in health or food industries: broaden your knowledge to enhance your work possibilities.

Course Code: VRE014
Fee Code: AC
Duration (approx) Duration (approx) 900 hours
Qualification Advanced Certificate
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Learn to advise people on their Food and Nutritional Needs 

Recent research in nutrition and health services indicates there is an increasing need for counsellors to have specialist knowledge in the area of nutrition, weight loss and children's nutrition whilst still maintaining professional counselling skills and practice. 

Health promotion in education is also another huge development area and requires people who know the facts about nutrition and also understand the importance of counselling.

This course is suitable for:

  • People seeking to develop counselling skills to use in conjunction with nutritional advice.
  • People inspired to educate people about improving health through nutrition. 
  • Counsellors, fitness instructors, health professionals or life coaches looking to broaden and develop their skills.
  • People with a passion for wellbeing.

 

 

Modules

Core ModulesThese modules provide foundation knowledge for the Advanced Certificate in Nutritional Counselling .
 Industry Project I BIP000
 Food Coaching VRE110
 Human Nutrition 1 BRE102
 Human Nutrition II BRE202
 Human Nutrition III BRE302
 
Elective ModulesIn addition to the core modules, students study any 4 of the following 13 modules.
 Counselling Skills I BPS109
 Introduction to Psychology BPS101
 Counselling Techniques BPS206
 Food Preparation - Foundations of Cooking BRE212
 Nutrition for Weight Loss BRE210
 Professional Practice in Counselling BPS207
 Therapeutic Nutrition BRE211
 Children's Nutrition BRE304
 Food Processing and Technology BSS301
 Gut Microbiome Management (Human) BSC311
 Life Coaching BPS305
 Sports Nutrition BRE303
 Weight Loss Consultant BRE307
 

Note that each module in the Advanced Certificate in Nutritional Counselling is a short course in its own right, and may be studied separately.


WHAT'S IN THE COURSE MODULES?

Human Nutrition I

The nine lessons are as follows:

  1. Introduction to Nutrition
  2. The Digestive System
  3. Absorption & Enzymes
  4. Energy Value and Foods
  5. Carbohydrates and Fats
  6. Proteins
  7. Vitamins and Minerals
  8. Water
  9. Nutrient Disorders

Human Nutrition II

There are eight lessons is as outlined below:‑

  1. Cooking And Its Affect On Nutrition
  2. Food Processing And Its Affect On Nutrition
  3. Recommended Daily Intake Of Nutrients
  4. Vitamins
  5. Minerals
  6. Planning A Balanced Diet
  7. Assessing Nutritional Status And Needs
  8. Timing Of Meals, And Needs For Special Groups

Human Nutrition III

This course is divided into eight lessons as follows:.

  1. Problems With Eating
  2. Dental Problems
  3. Fibre and Bowel Diseases
  4. Different Ways of Eating
  5. Food Toxicity A
  6. Food Toxicity B
  7. Detoxification/Body Cleansing
  8. Consulting/Giving Advice

Life Coaching

This course is approved by the Association of Coaching in the UK and qualifies you yo join that professional body.

  1. Introduction: Nature & scope of life coaching
  2. Individual perceptions
  3. A well-balanced life
  4. Coaching processes
  5. Coaching skills
  6. Coaching & physical well-being
  7. Coaching & psychological well-being
  8. Coaching success
  9. Goal-setting
  10. Review and adjustment

Popular Electives

Children's Nutrition

There are 10 lessons in this module as follows:

  1. Introduction to Child Nutrition
  2. Nutrition for Pre-Pregnancy
  3. Nutrition in Pregnancy
  4. Nutrition in Infants
  5. Nutrition in Childhood
  6. Nutritional Concerns
  7. Healthy Eating Behaviours
  8. Issues in Child Nutrition
  9. Childhood Obesity
  10. Diet Plans

Sports Nutrition

There are 9 lessons as follows:

  1. Introduction to Human and Sports Nutrition
  2. Energy
  3. Energy in the Athlete’s Body
  4. The Training Diet
  5. The Competition Diet
  6. Fluids
  7. The Athlete’s Body Composition
  8. Weight Management
  9. Training for Size and the Use of Sports Supplements

Nutrition for Weight Loss

There are nine lessons in this course as follows:

  1. Understanding Obesity -Causes, genetics, lifestyle, exercise, eating habits, affect of pregnancy, medical conditions, diseases, water, changes at different stages of life (adolescence, menopause, etc). Evaluation of Weight status & Body Composition
  2. Nutrition Basics: revision of the basics, discussion of food sources, organic/inorganic, not just what you eat but how and when you eat, healthy digestion...
  3. Diets - Fads, Fiction and Fact: A review of a range of popular approaches to Weight Control – Starvation, Ketogenic Diets, Dieting. Crash diets, supplements, cleansing/elimination diets, Low carb diets, sweeteners, fat substitutes; Dangers
  4. Preventing Obesity
  5. Treating Obesity
  6. Modifying Eating Behaviour
  7. Restricting Calorie Intake
  8. Medical Conditions: Hormones, Drugs, Eating Disorders
  9. Planning a Diet 

     

Introduction to Understanding Food and Nutrition

In the main, ingredients used in cooking are derived from living things. This includes meat, eggs, and dairy products derived from animals and vegetables, fruits, grains and nuts come from plants and mushrooms and the yeast derived from fungi. In the process of cooking we also utilise water and minerals such as salt.

Going back in time the food we originally consumed was obtained by hunting and gathering and then over time to basic farming and fishing processes. While today’s farming processes are more complicated utilising intensive farming and industrial processes.

The food we eat is composed of nutrients - proteins, carbohydrates and fats in addition to water and minerals. Cooking involves a manipulation of the chemical properties of these molecules. We shall now look at these nutrients in more detail but please note that nutritional information is covered in greater depth in other courses.

Protein

Protein serves a number of essential functions in the human body. It is needed to build and repair muscles, to make hair and skin, fight against infections and to carry oxygen in our blood. Proteins are made up of building blocks called amino acids. There are twenty different amino acids, and while our body can make some of them, there are eight amino acids that our body can't make.

These are called essential amino acids and the only way we can get them is through the food we eat. It is important to eat a variety of protein foods every day to make sure your body gets all of the essential amino acids. Protein itself is derived from edible animal material such as from muscle, offal (internal organs), milk and eggs.

These animal sources are all good sources of protein that have all eight essential amino acids. Protein is also found in smaller amounts in plant foods such as legumes (beans and peas) and in nuts and seeds. These plant sources can lack some of the essential amino acids and it is therefore important for vegetarians to eat a good variety of plant foods to ensure they get all the amino acids the body needs. Cooking denatures protein which means that it changes the structure of protein. In doing so the taste and acceptability of the product is increased e.g. a cooked egg tastes better than a raw egg and is more appealing.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates provide our bodies with the most efficient source of energy. Carbohydrates come in two forms - starches (also named complex carbohydrates) and sugars (simple sugars). Starches are found in foods such bread, rice, pasta, cereals and potatoes, while sugars are found in fruit and vegetables and also in foods such as sweets, soft drinks and cakes. Carbohydrates are an essential part of a healthy diet and should make up 50% of our daily calorie intake. When planning meals we must therefore ensure adequate intakes. The majority should come from complex carbohydrates, preferably the wholemeal varieties, as well as a large intake of fruit and vegetables.

Fats

Fats are found in most foods, it is either present in foods from the beginning (such as in meat and cheese), or it's been added in cooking. Fat supplies essential nutrients such as fat-soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids (EFAs) which are thought to have a positive effect on heart health and the immune system. Fat can itself be divided into two main groups - saturated and unsaturated. Saturated fat is generally solid at room temperature and can usually only be found in animal sources such as in butter, hard margarine, cheese, whole milk and anything that contains these ingredients like cakes, biscuits, chocolate and pastries Fat is an essential component of good cooking helping the ingredients in food, come together for texture, and flavour.


You Will also Learn about Counselling



The aim of counselling is to provide the client with a more satisfying experience of life. Everyone has different needs, so counselling can be concerned with many different aspects of a person’s life.

The role of the counsellor is to facilitate the person’s resolution of these issues, whilst respect their values, personal resources, culture and capacity for choice. Counselling can provide people with a regular time and space to talk about their problems and explore difficult feelings in a confidential and dependable environment.

 

Counsellors do not usually offer advice, but instead give insight into the client’s feelings and behaviour and help the client change their behaviour if necessary. They do this by listening to what the client has to say and commenting on it from a professional perspective. Counselling covers a wide spectrum from the highly trained counsellor to some one who uses counselling skills as part of their role, for example, a nurse or teacher.


Online and Telephone Counselling

In today's world, counselling increasingly involves interaction with client via telephone or online.
Telephone and online/email/chat counselling are not done face-to-face, but will have many things in common with face to face counselling.

Telephone and email support may be appropriate for situations when a client wants to –

  • Discuss ways of solving a problem.
  • Find the energy to address a problem.
  • Understand the psychological aspects of a situation better.
  • Discuss ways to modify the client’s behaviour.
  • Discuss ways to modify the behaviour of others in certain situations.
  • Generate new ideas or gain fresh perspectives.
  • Access specialist knowledge and guidance.
  • Build on progress already made in face to face sessions with a counsellor.


 

 
Since 1999 ACS has been a recognised member of IARC (International Approval and Registration Centre). A non-profit quality management organisation servicing education.
Since 1999 ACS has been a recognised member of IARC (International Approval and Registration Centre). A non-profit quality management organisation servicing education.
ACS is a Member of the Complementary Medicine Association.
ACS is a Member of the Complementary Medicine Association.
Member of Study Gold Coast Education Network.
Member of Study Gold Coast Education Network.
ACS Global Partner - Affiliated with colleges in seven countries around the world.
ACS Global Partner - Affiliated with colleges in seven countries around the world.

How can I start this course?

You can enrol at anytime and start the course when you are ready. Enrolments are accepted all year - students can commence study at any time. All study is self paced and ACS does not set assignment deadlines.

Please note that if a student is being assisted by someone else (e.g. an employer or government subsidy), the body offering the assistance may set deadlines. Students in such situations are advised to check with their sponsor prior to enrolling. The nominal duration of a course is approximately how long a course takes to complete. A course with a nominal duration of 100 hours is expected to take roughly 100 hours of study time to complete. However, this will vary from student to student. Short courses (eg. 100 hrs duration) should be completed within 12 months of enrolment. Certificates, Advanced Certificates and Awards (eg. over 500 hours duration) would normally be completed within 3 -5 years of enrolment. Additional fees may apply if a student requires an extended period to complete.
If a student cannot submit their assignments for 6 months to ACS, they should advise the school to avoid cancellation of their student
registration. Recommencement fees may apply.

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What do I need to know before I enrol?

There are no entry requirements that you need to meet to enrol in our courses, our courses are for everyone.
If you are under 18, we need written permission from your parent/ guardian for your enrolment to continue, we can arrange that after you have enrolled.

You don’t need to purchase any additional resources to complete our courses.

We aim to teach you the essentials without you having to purchase any specific computer program.
We recommend that you have access to a word processing program, such as Microsoft Word or Google Docs, so that you can easily complete and submit your assignments.

You sure can. We are here to help you learn whatever your abilities.

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We recommend that you are able to browse websites, send emails and conduct online research. You will need to be able to type and submit your assignments.
If you have limited computer skills, we can make special arrangements for you.

This is possible, it depends on the institution. We recommend that if you would like to use our courses that you contact the institution first. Our Course Handbook is a good resource for this.

Our courses are written in English and we only have English speaking academic staff. If you can read and complete your assignments in English, our courses are ideal for you.

Our courses are designed to build knowledge, hands on skills and industry connections to help prepare you to work in the area, running your own business, professional development or as a base for further study.

This course is aimed at providing you with a solid understanding of the subject. It has been designed to take 600 hours, which includes your course reading, assignment work, research, practical tasks, watching videos and more. When you complete the course, will have a good understanding of the area/ industry you want to work in.

It’s up to you. The study hours listed in the course are a rough guide, however if you were to study a short course (100 hours) at 10 hours per week, you could finish the course in 10 weeks (just an example). Our courses are self-paced, so you can work through the courses in your own time. We recommend that you wait for your tutor to mark and return your assignment before your start your next one, so you get the benefits of their feedback.

The course consists of course notes, videos, set tasks for your practical work, online quizzes, an assignment for each lesson (that you receive feedback from your tutor from) and ends in an exam (which is optional, if would like to receive the formal award at the end), using our custom built Learning Management System - Login.Training.

Our courses are designed for adults to gain professional development and skills to further their careers and start businesses.

Our custom online learning portal allows you to conduct your learning online. There may be practical tasks that you can do offline. You have the option of downloading your course notes or print them to read later.

There is also the option to pay an additional fee for printed course notes and or USB (availability limited to location and deliverability).

Yes, if you don’t have access to the internet, you can receive the course as paper notes or on a USB stick for an additional fee. We can also make alternative arrangements for you to send your assignments to us.

We offer printed notes for an additional fee. Also, you can request your course notes on a USB stick for an additional fee.

Yes, your tutor is here to help you. Simply post any questions you have in your login.training portal or contact the office and we can pass on a message to your tutor.

We are more learning focussed, rather than assessment focussed. You have online quizzes to test your learning, written assignments and can complete an exam at the end of the course (if you want to receive your certificate). You will not receive a pass/ fail on your course work. If you need to add more details on your assignment, we will ask you to resubmit and direct you where you need to focus. If you need help, you can ask your tutor for advice in the student room.

Each module (short course) is completed with one exam.

Exams are optional, however you must sit an exam if you would like to receive a formal award. You will need to find someone who can supervise that you are sitting the exams under exams conditions. There is an additional cost of $60 incl. GST for each exam.
More information is here

There are practical components built into the course that have been designed to be achieved by anyone, anywhere. If you are unable to complete a task for any reason, you can ask your tutor for an alternative.

When you complete the course work and the exams (8-9 exams) and you will be able receive your course certificate- an Advanced Certificate. Otherwise, you can receive a Letter of Completion.

You can bundle the short courses to create your own customised learning bundle, Certificates or Advanced Certificates. More information is on this page.

Yes, our courses are built to be applicable for people living anywhere in any situation. We provide the fundamentals, and each student can apply their own unique flair for their own interests, region and circumstances with the one-on-one guidance of a tutor. There is also a bit of student directed research involved.

Employers value candidates with industry skills, knowledge, practical skills and formal learning. Our courses arm you with all of these things to help prepare you for a job or start your own business. The longer you study the more you will learn.

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ACS Distance Education have been educating people for over 40 years.

We are established and safe- we have been in education for over 40 years.
We are focused on developing innovative courses that are relevant to you now and what you will need to know in the future.
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We are connected to many industry bodies and our staff participate in continuous improvement and learning activities to ensure that we are ahead of what learning is needed for the future.

Our courses are not accredited by the Australian Government. However many of our courses are recognised and held in high regard by many industry bodies.

Our courses are written by our staff, who all have many years experience and have qualifications in their speciality area. We have lots of academic staff who write and update our courses regularly.


How do I enrol my staff/ sponsored students?

Yes, you can do a request for a bulk enrolment and request an invoice on our Invoice Request Form

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We can arrange bulk discounts for your course enrolment, please get in touch with us to discuss your needs.

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Course Contributors

The following academics were involved in the development and/or updating of this course.

Jade Sciascia

Biologist, Business Coordinator, Government Environmental Dept, Secondary School teacher (Biology); Recruitment Consultant, Senior Supervisor in Youth Welfare, Horse Riding Instructor (part-completed) and Boarding Kennel Manager.
Jade has a B.Sc.Biol, Dip.Professional Education, Cert IV TESOL, Cert Food Hygiene.





Tutors

Meet some of the tutors that guide the students through this course.

Andrew Williams

Andrew Williams BSc (Hons), PgDip Eng, MSc, CEng MIET, CMgr FCMI

Andrew has extensive experience across the engineering and building services industries, with specialisms in refrigeration and energy management, with professional recognition as both a Chartered Engineer and Chartered Manager.

This experience includes working in consulting and leadership roles right through to being hands on to deliver projects and outcomes for large scale organisations and within startup and scale up environments.

He has adapted his experience to integrate with new technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT) to allow for a data driven perspective to be applied to problem solving and is actively using Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence to solve real world problems.

Graham Anderson

Graham Anderson B. Mech Eng (hons) Dip. Health

Graham has spent his life in the farming and agriculture industry, particularly carving a niche in the avocado sector with experience ranging from tissue culture, to nursery management to fruit marketing. He has an engineering qualification and an extensive range of mechanical skills which are now diversifying to an understanding of our internal mechanics in health and psychology with qualifications underway.

Alexander O'Brien

Alex was born and raised in Cork, in the Republic of Ireland. Having been trained in Architecture, Permaculture, Mechanical Engineering, Ceramics, Furniture Design/Construction, Sustainable building and Art,Craft and Design, his knowledge base is broad. Much of his professional work has been designing and making nature inspired spaces, creative reuse of materials, permaculture and natural ecology regeneration.

That being said, in his own words, "....my real passion is teaching. I adore sharing my knowledge and experience. Seeing students progress, and learning, that is my soul food."'

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