UK to offer master's degree in music therapy

The University of Kentucky will be the first higher education institution in the Commonwealth of Kentucky to offer a graduate degree in music therapy. The program, housed at the UK School of Music, was officially approved by the state's Council on Postsecondary Education earlier in November and will start accepting graduate students in the spring of 2012. UK faculty member and clinician Lori Gooding will serve as director of the master's program.

Beginning in the spring semester, UK will offer a master's degree in music therapy and a combined equivalency master's program. The master's degree will consist of a 30-hour degree program offering both thesis and clinical track options. Individuals without an undergraduate degree in music therapy will have the opportunity to pursue the combined equivalency-master's degree program, enabling them to complete all entry-level competencies not met at the undergraduate level prior to finalizing the master's degree requirements.

Students in the new UK program will learn a myriad of skills. "Our degree will be a combined research and practice orientation degree that will involve music therapy theory, advanced clinical skills, research skills, musical skills and clinical administrative skills," says Gooding.

The new music therapy graduate degree will give students in Kentucky the opportunity to pursue advanced study in the field. Students entering the program must have college-level training in music, so the program will attract students with undergraduate degrees in music therapy, as well as individuals with general music degrees or degrees in music education. Other students may have degrees in such fields as psychology and social work and minors in music. Graduates of the program will be able to pursue work as a music therapist not only in a hospital setting, but also in positions related to mental health, special education, rehabilitation, wellness, hospice, skilled nursing services at nursing homes or dementia care facilities and in private practice.

UK's music therapy program already holds a lot of promise. "I think our program has the potential to become a leading program for music therapy training, especially in the areas of physical and mental health care," says Gooding. "I think we have a unique opportunity to contribute to the field via research, which will enhance both the academic and clinical portions of the program. We also have the opportunity to develop specialized training in areas that currently do not exist in our field, which will also help move our program forward."

Excited about the interest in the master's program, Gooding is already looking ahead. "I would love to establish a doctoral degree program as part of the program, primarily because doctoral training in the field of music therapy is quite limited at this time."

Source: University of Kentucky