Young adulthood represents a formative stage of life marked by autonomy, identity development, and the shaping of long-term behavioural patterns—including dietary habits. Higher education institutions, while primarily focused on academic development, also serve as critical environments for fostering personal growth, health literacy, and responsible lifestyle choices. In this context, nutrition education—particularly in non-formal forms such as workshops, awareness campaigns, and online resources—plays a key role in guiding students toward healthier food-related behaviours.

This study investigates the impact of various educational and demographic factors on students’ dietary habits using a multifactorial analysis of variance (ANOVA). The research involved 350 university students across undergraduate and graduate programmes at the University of Rijeka, encompassing both health-related and non-health-related study fields.

The study assessed how variables such as gender, level and orientation of study, year of study, and nutrition knowledge influence dietary quality indicators, including total daily energy intake, macronutrient balance, and adherence to the Mediterranean diet. The multifactorial ANOVA approach enabled the identification of significant main and interaction effects, highlighting the complexity of behavioural determinants in this population.

These findings contribute to higher education by demonstrating how targeted nutrition education—especially in flexible, non-formal formats—can positively shape students’ dietary habits during a critical phase of personal development. The results offer practical insights for student support services, curriculum designers, and educators seeking to promote wellbeing and health literacy across disciplines.

Keywords: Nutrition education, university students, dietary habits, multifactorial ANOVA, health behaviour, non-formal learning, higher education.