MA in Food Studies

Study Food Systems, Culture, and Policy in New York City

The first master’s degree program in the US devoted to food scholarship, Food Studies at NYU Steinhardt employs approaches from the humanities and social sciences and prepares you to analyze the current American food system, its global connections, and local alternatives. You'll examine cultural, political, economic, environmental, and geographic approaches to food within local, urban, and global contexts.

This 40-credit master of arts program requires 19 credits in mandatory coursework that covers food systems, culture, and policy, as well as a research component. Beyond these requirements, you can take 21 credits in specialization modules (policy/advocacy, business/social entrepreneurship, media/cultural analysis), allowing you to dig deeper into your interests.

Our mission is to examine the ways in which individuals, communities, and societies produce, distribute, and consume food. Cities at the center of flows of people, produce, and media products, are the prime locus of our investigations.

Why NYU Food Studies?

• Learn from the best. Our faculty, prominent leaders in their field, teach and mentor students, while actively conducting research to stay engaged.
• Get insider access. Upon enrolling, students study with food professionals who serve as adjuncts and guest lecturers and are welcomed by food production companies, non-profit food organizations, publishers, public relations and marketing firms, magazines, food distributors, food producers, and educational institutions.
• Study abroad. We offer global coursework – and a program of study – in sites like Paris, Hong Kong, Puerto Rico, and Puebla, for students to gain an immersive experience in an international context.
• Be challenged. Students learn experientially, taking core and specialization courses, as well as interdisciplinary electives within Steinhardt, Stern School of Business, Wagner School of Public Service, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, or Tisch School of the Arts.
• Get ahead. We help interested students find internships in an array of potential employment sites and place them in positions where they can develop new skills and collaborate with potential employers.
• Gain practical skills. The program places an emphasis on the development of critical thinking and research which prepares students for situations they will encounter in the profession.

About NYU Steinhardt

NYU Steinhardt's one-of-a-kind integration of education, health, the arts, and media studies puts us at the heart of a movement: education for social change.

Steinhardt students are passionate about helping others.

Our mission is to advance knowledge, creativity, and innovation at the crossroads of culture, education, and human development. We exemplify NYU’s commitment to be of public service.

Our academic programs are ranked among the country's best.

NYU Steinhardt's master's programs in applied psychology, education, health, media, music and performing arts professions, and the arts and arts professions attract recent college graduates, established professionals seeking licensure or certification, and career changers. Our curriculum gives our students the opportunity to study abroad and experience hands-on learning.

Advanced certificate programs allow you to pursue study in specialized areas of applied psychology, education, music and performing arts, and physical therapy.

We also offer PhD programs that prepare graduates for careers in academic research and teaching, as well as professional doctoral programs for advanced practice in education fields, the arts, occupational therapy, and physical therapy.

We're redefining holistic education.

Our students belong to a strong and supportive community of scholars – a warm, nurturing environment that encourages the exploration of new ideas. Our faculty lead in their professional fields and collaborate across academic disciplines: teachers working with psychologists and health professionals, musicians with speech pathologists, educators with visual artists. They work with students to research topics like the effects of immigration on learning, childhood nutrition, and obesity, and how digital media is transforming social relationships. Our research institutes impact scholarship and policies around the globe.

At Steinhardt, learning takes place in and out of the classroom.

For more than a century, we’ve been building partnerships in our community: with local schools, families, community agencies, arts organizations, cultural institutions, and healthcare facilities. A Steinhardt education consists of rigorous classroom study as well as interning at New York City’s top media companies, clinical placements at renowned hospitals, or student teaching in one of the world’s most diverse school systems. It means unrivaled opportunities for professional training and career advancement.

We prepare you to lead in a global society.

Like the city, we call home, our faculty, students, and staff represents an extensive range of backgrounds, viewpoints, and perspectives. And though our roots go deep in New York, our work at home is influencing – and influenced by – our connections abroad. Every day, Steinhardt graduates continue to change the world.

NYU's International Rankings

• #7 – US News & World Report, Best Graduate Schools in Education
• #27 – Times Higher Education World University Rankings
• #29 – Academic Ranking of World Universities
• #52 – QS World University Rankings

School Timeline

Founded in 1890 as the School of Pedagogy, NYU Steinhardt was the first professional school devoted to teacher education to be established at an American university. The School's early mission was to educate school administrators and prepare men and women for work in colleges of teacher education. By 1921, the School was educating teachers at all levels and across all fields, including the arts and health, offering undergraduate through doctoral degrees. As the education field expanded, the School broadened its focus to incorporate new knowledge and scientific developments, and new programs emerged.