Through this American Music Therapy Association–approved degree, you’ll combine practical clinical experiences; advanced course work in music therapy methods, theory, and research; and a unique focus on your personal growth to prepare you to work with the full range of people you’ll see as a music therapist.
Request InfoDegree Details
Official Degree Title
Master of Arts in Music Therapists
Licensure or Certification
Format
Full-time or Part-time
Credits
48–60
Start Date
Fall
Application Deadline
Your program will range from 48 to 60 units, based on your experience and background, and you can choose to study full or part time depending on your schedule. You will learn how to design and implement a treatment plan for clients across the life span with a diversity of physical, cognitive, and emotional challenges; how to employ a wide range of methods employing improvised and composed music to meet the needs of clients in individual and group therapy; and how to work within a music psychotherapy framework to meet the holistic needs of clients in medical, educational, and rehabilitative settings.
Our internationally recognized faculty are active clinicians who continue to innovate and contribute to the profession through conference presentations and publications. Their extensive experience guides their instruction, which equips you to succeed long after graduation.
You will apprentice with leading professionals in music psychotherapy in the heart of New York City, beginning in your very first semester and lasting for the duration of the program. You’ll put theory to practice through supervised internship and observation opportunities in area schools, medical and psychiatric hospitals, shelters, drug rehabilitation centers, prisons, and special facilities for the homeless, elderly, developmentally disabled, and terminally ill. You’ll also have access to the Nordoff-Robbins Center for Music Therapy, where you can actively engage with innovative clinical and research practices.
Our program is highly selective in order to keep our classes small and the training individualized. The student to faculty ratio is about 4 to 1. Class size varies from 5 to 18 students according to the design and goals of each course.
The degree is approved by the New York State Education Department and qualifies you for Licensure in Creative Arts Therapy (LCAT) after graduation and 1,500 hours of post-graduate supervised practice. The degree is also approved by the American Music Therapy Association (AMTA) and upon graduation qualifies a student to apply for national certification in music therapy (MT-BC).
When you finish the degree, you will also have developed your own advanced specialization in an area of music psychotherapy in which you would like to pursue your music therapy career.
Questions
If you have any additional questions about our degree, please feel free to contact us at jfb3@nyu.edu.
Professional Licensure Disclosure
Music Therapy is an on-campus program that places students in supervised field experiences within New York State (NYS). NYU is authorized pursuant to the State Authorization Reciprocity Agreement (SARA) to enroll students in supervised field experiences in the SARA states and territories. For further details regarding NYU's SARA membership please visit the NYU State Authorization website. SARA requires universities to disclose to applicants and students whether programs that lead to professional licensure meet the educational requirements for licensure in those states in which students are doing learning placements.
If you are interested in having a placement or gaining licensure in a state other than New York, please contact Ken Aigen (ka5@nyu.edu).
The NYU Steinhardt Music Therapy Program meets the educational and professional licensure requirements for licensure as a Creative Arts Therapist (LCAT) in New York state. The LCAT is a license unique to New York State. NYU Steinhardt has not been able to make a determination with respect to the educational and professional licensure requirements for the following states and territories:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
- American Samoa
- Guam
- Northern Mariana Islands
- Puerto Rico
- US Virgin Islands
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