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Music therapist
Hours
30-40 per week
Starting salary
£25,050 + per year
If you have a high level of musical ability and would like to use your communication skills to help people improve their lives, this could be the job for you.
Music therapists use music and sound to help improve people's emotional wellbeing, relieve stress and improve confidence.
In this job you will need to be able to relate well to all kinds of different people. You will also need to be non-judgemental and enjoy helping people.
To get into this job you will need a Masters qualification in Music Therapy. To get onto this course you will need a diploma or degree in Music, or a degree in Psychology or Education.
WorkDesc
The work
As a music therapist, you would encourage clients to try different instruments and use their voices to explore sound and communicate through music, which can help them to:
- express themselves
- develop insight and create ways of relating to other people
- become aware of their feelings
- interact with other people more confidently
- bring about positive changes in their lives.
You would hold group and one-to-one therapy sessions, which would involve you and your clients playing, singing, listening and improvising together.
Your clients could include children or adults with learning disabilities, emotional or behavioural problems, speech and language difficulties, mental health problems, and those recovering from addictions.
You would work closely with other health care professionals such as nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, psychologists and speech and language therapists.
HoursDesc
Hours
Your typical working hours would be between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday, although some jobs may involve evening or weekend sessions. Part-time and freelance work is common.
Depending on your client group, you could work in various settings such as schools, hospitals, prisons and day centres. You may need to travel between different locations during your working day.
IncomeDesc
Income
- Music therapists can earn between £25,500 to £34,200 a year
- With experience, this can rise to around £46,600 a year.
Figures are intended as a guideline only.
EntryRequirementsDesc
Entry requirements
To work as a state-registered music therapist, you need to complete a Masters qualification accredited by the Association of Professional Music Therapists (APMT) and recognised by the Health Professions Council (HPC). Check the APMT and HPC websites for details of approved courses.
To get on to a Masters in Music Therapy, you will usually need a three-year diploma or graduateship from a college of music, or a degree in music from a university. You may be accepted with a degree in education or psychology, as long as you have a high standard of musical ability. Check with course providers for exact entry details.
Many institutions will also expect you to have experience of working with children, people with mental health issues or learning disabilities. You should contact the voluntary services coordinator at your local NHS Trust for information on voluntary opportunities.
With some NHS Trusts, you could start out as an assistant therapist. For this role, you may not need any qualifications, but relevant paid or voluntary experience would be useful (check NHS Jobs for vacancies).
You may have an advantage if you have a background in an area such as teaching, community or social work. A career as a professional musician would also be helpful.
TrainingAndDevelopmentDesc
Training and development
Once you are on an approved course, you will cover areas such as psychology, early infant development, psychodynamics, psychiatry, and the theory of music therapy. You will develop clinical music skills and attend work placements in hospitals, schools and other centres in the community, working with adults and children.
As a registered and practising music therapist, you will receive regular supervision from an experienced therapist who is trained as a supervisor.
You can keep your professional skills and knowledge up to date by attending short courses or workshops and becoming involved in research.
SkillsAndKnowledgeDesc
Skills and knowledge
To be a music therapist you should have:
- excellent communication skills
- the ability to relate to people from all backgrounds
- a high level of musical ability and knowledge of different styles of music
- a genuine desire to help people
- a non-judgemental attitude
- creativity, intuition and imagination
- a flexible and adaptable approach
- patience and commitment
- emotional strength and the ability to cope with challenging situations
- respect for confidentiality
- an interest in psychology.
MoreInformationDesc
More information
Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM) 
10 Stratford Place
London
W1C 1AA
Tel: 020 7629 4413
www.ism.org
NHS Careers
PO Box 376
Bristol
BS99 3EY
Tel: 0345 60 60 655
www.nhscareers.nhs.uk
Health Professions Council
Park House
184 Kennington Park Road
London
SE11 4BU
Tel: 020 7582 0866
www.hpc-uk.org
British Association for Music Therapy (BAMT)
24-27 White Lion Street
London
N1 9PD
Tel: 020 7837 6100
info@bamt.org
www.bamt.org
Health Learning and Skills Advice Line
Tel: 08000 150850
OpportunitiesDesc
Opportunities
You will find most opportunities in the NHS – visit the NHS Jobs website for vacancies. You could also find work with local authorities, voluntary organisations, the Prison Service, or in private practice.
Many posts are part-time or temporary, and often depend on organisations gaining funding for particular projects. This could mean that you combine work as a music therapist with another job role, or have more than one employer.
With experience, you could go on to lead a team of therapists or manage a music therapy unit.
Job profiles are based on the latest information supplied to us by industry bodies, such as Sector Skills Councils. Please be aware that with the introduction of the Qualifications and Credit Framework there has been, and will continue to be, changes to vocational qualifications. For more information, please check with industry bodies directly.
We do not accept responsibility for the content of external sites.
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Related industry information
Industry summary
The health sector is represented by Skills for Health Sector Skills Council, which comprises three sub‐sectors:
- National Health Service (NHS)
- Independent Healthcare Sector (such as private and charitable healthcare providers)
- Third Sector (healthcare) (such as small local community and voluntary groups, registered charities, foundations, trusts, social enterprises and co‐operatives)
The health sector is made up of hospitals, doctors’ surgeries, dental practices, the ambulance service, nursing homes, residential care homes, complementary medicine and a huge range of other health related activities, from sight tests in opticians to research in medical laboratories. Most people in the health sector work in the publicly funded National Health Service (NHS), which includes:
- primary care (organisations which the public goes to first) – Doctors/General Practitioners (GPs), NHS Walk in Centres, NHS Direct, Out of Hours Emergency Care
- secondary care (organisations which the public are referred onto) – Ambulance Trusts, NHS Trusts/hospitals, NHS Foundation Trusts/hospitals, Mental Health Trusts, Care Trusts (provide joint health and social care activities)
NHS policy in England is directed from the centre by the Department of Health. Local organisations, known as Primary Care Trusts (PCTs), are in charge of providing and commissioning services, controlling the majority of the budget. PCTs are overseen by 10 regional organisations called Strategic Health Authorities (SHAs).
The independent sector includes companies and charities that offer hospital and specialist services usually after referral from a doctor. Operations and other work are carried out in private hospitals, independent treatment centres, mental health units and hospices.
Key facts:
- The health sector is the largest employer in the UK, representing 5.5% of the working age population of the UK and 7.3% of the working age population that are currently in employment.
- It is estimated that the sector employs over 2 million people, including:
- over 1.5 million people in the NHS (72%)
- over 0.5 million people in the Independent Healthcare sector (26%)
- almost 40,000 in the voluntary sector (2%)
- 56% of the workforce has a higher education qualification (or equivalent).
- The age profile for the sector shows an older than average workforce, which is due in part to the fact that it takes some professions a long time to train and can mean that people enter the sector later.
There is a varied list of jobs in the sector ranging from a diverse number of clinical roles, to support and infrastructure staff, for instance: Allied Health Professionals (AHPs); Ambulance Staff; Dental Staff; Doctors/Medical staff; Nursing staff; Midwifery Staff; Healthcare Scientists; Health Informatics Staff; Management; Wider Healthcare Team; Complementary Therapists.
National and regional data
High proportions of the health sector workforce are located in:
- London
- South East
- North West
East Midlands - The health sector employs 131,515 people, which accounts for 7% of all employment in the region.
- The East Midlands employs 8% of the total health sector workforce for England.
- The private sector accounts for 29% of all employment across the sector or 41,200 employees.
- Between 2007 and 2017, the total requirement for workforce will be approximately 133,000 people. This is the total of the predicted expansion plus replacement demand.
East of England - The health sector employs 164,720 people, which accounts for 7% of all employment in the region.
- The East of England employs 9.8 % of the total health sector workforce for England.
- The private sector accounts for 30% of all employment across the sector or 52,300 employees.
- Vacancies in the health and social work sector account for 14% of all industry vacancies.
- Between 2007 and 2017, the total requirement for workforce will be approximately 103,000 people. This is the total of the predicted expansion plus replacement demand.
London - The health sector employs over 249,524 people, which accounts for 6% of all the employment in the region.
- London employs 15% of the total health sector workforce for England.
- The private sector accounts for 33% of all employment across the sector or 78,500 employees.
- Vacancies in health and social work account for 12% of all industry vacancies.
- Between 2007 and 2017, the total requirement for workforce will be approximately 146,000 people. This is the total of the predicted expansion plus replacement demand.
North East - The health sector employs 89,201 people, which accounts for 8.7% of all employment in the region.
- The North East employs 5.3 % of the total health sector workforce for England.
- The private sector accounts for 25% of all employment across the sector or 23,800 employees.
- Vacancies in the health and social work sector account for 12% of all industry vacancies.
- Between 2007 and 2017, the total requirement for workforce will be almost 46,000 people. This is the total of the predicted expansion plus replacement demand.
North West - The health sector employs 251,960 people, which accounts for 8% of all employment in the region.
- The North West employs 15% of the total health sector workforce for England.
- The private sector accounts for 23.5% of all employment across the sector or 59,200 employees.
- Vacancies in the health and social work account for 11% of all industry vacancies.
- Between 2007 and 2017, the total requirement for workforce will be approximately 133,000 people. This is the total of the predicted expansion plus replacement demand.
South East - The health sector employs 264,071 people, which accounts for 7.1% of all employment in the region.
- The South East employs 15.7% of the total health sector workforce for England.
- The private sector accounts for 23.5% of all employment across the sector or 59,200 employees.
- Vacancies in the health and social work sector account for 12% of all Industry vacancies.
- Between 2007 and 2017, the total requirement for workforce will be approximately 164,000 people. This is the total of the predicted expansion plus replacement demand.
South West - The health sector employs 182,187 people, which accounts for 8.2% of all employment in the region.
- The South West employs 10.8 % of the total health sector workforce for England.
- The private sector accounts for 30% of all employment across the sector or 60,700 employees.
- Vacancies in the health and social work sector account for 12% of all Industry vacancies.
- Between 2007 and 2017, the total requirement for workforce will be approximately 105,000 people. This is the total of the predicted expansion plus replacement demand.
West Midlands - The health sector employs 168,746 people, which accounts for 7.2% of all employment in the region.
- The West Midlands employs 10% of the total health sector workforce for England.
- The private sector accounts for 25% of all employment across the sector or 43,000 employees.
- Vacancies in the health and social work sector account for 9% of all industry vacancies.
- Between 2007 and 2017, the total requirement for workforce will be approximately 108,000 people. This is the total of the predicted expansion plus replacement demand.
Yorkshire and the Humber - The health sector employs 182,848 people, which accounts for 8.2% of all employment in the region.
- Yorkshire and the Humber employ 10.9 % of the total health sector workforce for England.
- The private sector accounts for 24% of the total health care workforce or 42,000 employees.
- Vacancies in health and social work account for 11% of all industry vacancies.
- Between 2007 and 2017, the total requirement for workforce will be approximately 97,000 people. This is the total of the predicted expansion plus replacement demand.
Northern Ireland - The health sector employs 61,300 people.
- Northern Ireland employs 3% of the total health sector workforce.
- 81% of the workforce is female.
- 26% of the workforce is aged 35‐44 years.
- 96% of the workforce is white.
- 10% of the workforce reports a disability.
- 48% of the workforce is in Associate Professional and Technical occupations.
- 23% of organisations in the health and social work sector report vacancies.
Scotland - The health sector employs 201,500 people.
- Scotland employs 10% of the total health sector workforce.
- 78% of the workforce is female.
- 30% of the workforce is aged 45‐54 years.
- 95% of the workforce is white.
- 14% of the workforce reports a disability.
- 39% of the workforce is in Associate Professional and Technical occupations.
- 23% of organisations in the health and social work sector report vacancies.
Wales - The health sector employs 114,900 people.
- Wales employs 6% of the total health sector workforce.
- 74% of the workforce is female.
- 34% of the workforce is aged 45‐54 years.
- 94% of the workforce is white.
- 18% of the workforce reports a disability.
- 40% of the workforce is in Associate Professional and Technical occupations.
- 27% of organisations in the health and social work sector report vacancies.
[N.B. Data derived from Labour Force Survey, 2008‐2009, Annual Business Inquiry, 2007, and Northern Ireland Census of Employment, 2007]
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