Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions

Music Therapy Description

Our Master's Degree Program in music psychotherapy is designed to accommodate mature students who seek a credential in music therapy for the first time as well as students already certified in music therapy who wish to develop specialized skills beyond the competencies that are gained in an entry-level training program. The length of the program will vary from 48 to 60 credits based on the student's experience and background and can be taken full time or part time based on the needs of the student. Our program is highly selective in order to keep our classes small and the training individualized.

Our students come from diverse cultural and academic backgrounds to study and apprentice with leading professionals in music psychotherapy. We seek students who share our excitement for the practice of music therapy and demonstrate readiness for training based on a belief in the power of music for therapy and healing, personal maturity, sensitivity to others, a deep love of music making, and openness to self-exploration. Students prior to application must have earned a bachelor’s degree in music therapy or a related field of study such as, but not limited to, music education, music performance, psychology, etc.

The Master's degree program is divided into three stages:

Stage I

Because our students enter this first stage of training from a variety of backgrounds, this stage is individually tailored for each student and involves completing and/or strengthening each student’s entry level competencies for the practice of music therapy as defined by the AMTA. This stage requires different amounts of course work for certified or registered music therapists and students from non-music therapy backgrounds. The course work includes Clinical Music Foundations, Music Therapy Foundations, and Psychological Foundations. Each student is involved in hands on supervised fieldwork from the beginning of the program in order to best integrate the theoretical skills and knowledge that are offered during this stage.

Stage II

At this stage, the student enters the Advanced Specialization Track of the program. Each student identifies a particular population, age group and/or music therapy approach in which to specialize. All music, music therapy, and psychology coursework is now oriented to further the student's specialization.

Stage III

This stage is the time when each student builds their own unique treatment approach and a theoretical framework for their chosen clinical specialization. This work is done in area clinics and hospitals with the guidance of NYU's excellent advanced supervision staff. The final project synthesizes all of the student's training.

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Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions - 35 W. 4th Street, Suite 777 - New York, NY 10012 - (212) 998-5424