Degree acquired in Japan usable in Australia?

Hello, my girlfriend lives in Japan and got a degree there majoring in Food and Nutritional Science. She is wondering if her degree would be usable to get a job in Australia as a nutritionist. Might this be the case?

Many thanks,
Thor

To be honest - this is probably not the best forum for this question.

Contacting a membership group is normally the best - think CPA but for nutritionists. They should be able to tell her more.

https://www.nsa.asn.au/

You need to check degree equivalence with the Australian authorities. From memory (when I was looking at it 20+ years ago) there is a framework that seemed to rely of things like the status of the university and the content of the degree course. Buried in one of those Canberra department websites.
https://www.aqf.edu.au/
https://internationaleducation.gov.au/services-and-resources/Pages/qua...
(and yes, that is more an Australian question than one for a Japanese forum.)

degree is different from national licence.

Hi Ken,

I used to work for a membership organisation in Australia and these groups will authorise overseas qualifications. Some were easy like NZ or the UK, others were much more challenging. You only go through a university if your qualification is not accepted or needs more language or regulatory specific qualification.

My experience is that it won't be accepted, but the group name I gave is the exact people who can answer accurately.

For somewhere like NZ there is no requirement/qualification to become a nutritionilist, but Australia has a couple of organizations that they could join. I noted on one site they discuss not only a good science degree, but also experience.
In order to gain recognition and registration as a professional nutritionist by peak bodies such as the Nutrition Society of Australia or the Dietitians Association of Australia you will require a Bachelor of Science or other suitable degree qualification with a major strand of study in health or nutrition science with honours plus a minimum of three years professional experience or ongoing postgraduate level study.

in Japan, qualifications have done by the government (and/or prefectures), not by certain organizations. also laws request some companies and organizations to hire qualified nutritionists. there are some human resource recruiting for that purpose. I think she asked that point, whether nutritionists can work in other countries as same as in Japan, as qualified specialists, whose positions are granted by foreign governments.

@ken
qualifications have done by the government (and/or prefectures), not by certain organizations
Depends on the qualification.

I am saying about "nutritionist", of course.

The Nutrition Society of Australia seems to be an association for nutritionists, something similar in Japan is ‰h—{Žm‰ï. they are not an organization for nutritionist qualification. (they don't give qualification.)

is there official qualification scheme for nutritionist, which is useful (or essential) for job hunting in Australia ? that is the point OP asks.
are there legal regulations for staffing nutritionist for business in Australia ?

As mentioned in my first post - the best people to contact are the Nutritionist Society of Australia.

There is no official regulatory body in Australia to become a nutritionist. That is why in a country such as Australia it's important to join a membership organisation such as this.

I used to work for a membership organization for the insurance and financial services industry. Degrees and other certifications were required - but the membership groups were seen as being pivotal as it was seen as a "self regulating body". These membership bodies would have specific professionals who would certify degrees and qualifications from other countries. That's why you contact them first - as they will tell you what your degree is worth and what other qualifications are necessary.

then, is there any legal regulation which forces to hire a Nutritionist who is a member of the association ?

when such regulations are there, how is the balance of supply and demand of nutritionists. if nutritionists are too many, compared with the job positions, she has less possibility to have a job, even after being a member.

You, oh no your girl friend, should search asking appropriate people of Australia directly what Ken mensioned. If she is Japanese and a Japanese speaker, she should have enough English skills (having a boy friend doesn't mean that her English is good enough to work in Australia) and she should be independent (be able to do things by herself). I think nutrition science itself is different depending culture, even people in the same country insist totally different
theory. If non of specific degree/qualification is not legally required in Australia, I hope your girl can find an employer who has the same theory in nutrition science.

A quick Google search led to this, which seems to answer all of your questions: https://www.nsa.asn.au/about-us/faqs/ It doesn't seem like there are any restrictions on the type of degree, as anyone can call themselves a nutritionist in Australia (it is dieticians who need to be properly accredited and registered).

But, going back around the circle, the OP will need to find out their degree equivalency in Australia. That would be for work in any field as they may not simply land a job in nutrition, and employers will want to know what the qualification is actually worth (equivalent to).
I went through that process many years ago when dealing with Government departments and applying for some regulatory licenses in Victoria (and then later in NSW and others).
If they then want to work in the field of nutrition employers may want someone covered by the self-regulating bodies that operate in that space, and there are more than enough links in the above posts to point the OP in the right direction.