Music Therapy is a profession that has been growing in demand. We highly recommend that you read all of the relevant articles on MajoringInMusic.com to get a good sense of what this profession is about and what is required of you as a student in order to become a music therapist. Archives for Music Therapy

All of the schools we work with that offer music therapy are linked on each of these articles. Click on at least a few of these schools and then click on their application and audition links. This will give you an idea of what you’d need to be prepared to do in order to be accepted to schools that offer music therapy. You’ll see that you’re required to audition on a primary instrument. Though the bar isn’t as high as it would be for a performance major, applicants still need to show proficiency on their instrument. Note that as a music therapy student, you’ll also need to take classes and pass proficiency exams on voice, guitar and keyboards as these are the most utilized instruments in this profession.

You may also find this article of interest as it indicates additional ways people can use music in therapeutic and healing environments: https://majoringinmusic.com/music-for-comfort-or-healing/

Read all of the articles on MajoringInMusic.com about music therapy in order to get a firmer grasp on what it takes to apply, audition, be accepted and then work in this field. Once you’ve selected schools where you’d consider applying, be sure to read their websites carefully about their audition requirements. Also look for their information about transferring. You’ll want to find out whether there’s any chance of getting credit for any classes you’ve already taken at your CC.

With a music degree, you can apply for an Equivalency Program offered by many schools with music therapy programs. It’s shorter in duration than a bachelor’s degree. Some Equivalency Programs lead directly to a master’s degree. See this article for more information: Music Therapy Equivalency Program

Great question. We posed it to some of the participating schools with music therapy programs on MajoringInMusic.com. They all have their own unique standards for acceptance. Some seek to fill ensemble seats through prospective student auditions, so that will be a prime focus in their decisions about who they admit. Others schools require all applicants to first meet a specific threshold. Once meeting that, a music therapy applicant would not be held to as high a level of musical and technical competence as a performance major.

We asked Baldwin Wallace Conservatory, where music therapy is one of several programs offered, for help in answering your question. They told us that Bachelor of Music students continue studying their primary instrument via private lessons and ensembles. We suspect this will be the case in other B.M. degree music therapy programs as well.

Look at the European Music Therapy Confederation’s website as well as the American Music Therapy Association’s list of “Worldwide Music Therapy Organizations” and “International Music Therapy Associations.” You can compare the international requirements for certification to those listed on the AMTA’s websites for US schools. If you still have questions, we recommend you contact AMTA headquarters directly.

Since schools in the U.S. abide by the regulations of the American Music Therapy Association, there will be similarities in curricula at each of the schools. We would not be concerned about a BM vs. BS degree – schools don’t necessarily name their degrees in the same way. Instead, we recommend creating personal criteria for making a decision, based on factors such as faculty, location, facilities, music environment, cost, etc. A final visit to schools under consideration may be useful if a decision is difficult to reach. See “10 Considerations for Visiting Music Schools”.

In view of what you say here, before you go any further, read this article if you’re considering music therapy as a career: Equivalency Program in Music Therapy.

A music theory degree (like any music degree that is NOT in Music Therapy) will set you up to take the Equivalency Program in Music Therapy offered by several schools. See our article: Equivalency Program in Music Therapy. That said, we wonder if you’d be accepted as a music theory major without being able to read music. Talk with your current school to see if it’s even an option.

Be sure to check the requirements for applying and auditioning at various schools with Music Therapy programs if you are considering transferring schools. Note that all expect you to pass proficiency exams in voice, keyboard/piano, and guitar in order to graduate. While you would get training in all of those, a background in guitar plus at least one other instrument would be helpful before you start a Music Therapy program.

We hope you’ll read all of the articles about music therapy here on MajoringInMusic.com, as well as visit the website of the American Music Therapy Association. You’ll find very useful information and answers to questions you didn’t even know you had! With another year to go in high school, you still have time to improve your piano skills before audition time next year. As a music therapy major, classes in voice, piano, and guitar will be part of your program so that you can pass the necessary proficiency tests before you graduate. These are the areas of music used most often in music therapy. Having some background in one or more of these areas will be very useful. But don’t feel you have to be a master of all three in order to apply!