Music therapy internship vs clinical externship

The differences between music therapy interns and clinical externships can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 6-12 months to become a music therapy internship, becoming a clinical externship takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a music therapy internship has an average salary of $36,844, which is higher than the $35,831 average annual salary of a clinical externship.

The top three skills for a music therapy internship include patients, occupational therapy and mental health. The most important skills for a clinical externship are patients, mental health, and patient care.

Music therapy internship vs clinical externship overview

	Music Therapy Internship	Clinical Externship
Yearly salary	$36,844	$35,831
Hourly rate	$17.71	$17.23
Growth rate	14%	9%
Number of jobs	111,846	63,061
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Average age	40	45
Years of experience	12	4

What does a music therapy internship do?

In a music therapy internship, an intern's duties primarily depend on the directives of a manager or supervising staff. Typically, they are responsible for gaining industry insights and practical experience while performing support tasks such as answering calls and correspondence, preparing and processing documents, conducting research and analysis, setting-up instruments and other devices, and running errands as needed. They may also assist and work with clients under the supervision of a therapist. Moreover, they must understand and adhere to the facility's policies and regulations, including its vision and mission.

What does a clinical externship do?

A clinical externship is a short medical student program directly mentored by professionals within their chosen career path in healthcare. Clinical externs work in various settings such as hospitals, a doctor's office, or clinics and work directly with patients to apply the knowledge and skills they acquired in the classroom. They will be graded and must pass the program to be able to graduate from medical school. Externs must request a letter of recommendation from their site supervisor when applying for jobs.

Music therapy internship vs clinical externship salary

Music therapy interns and clinical externships have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Music Therapy Internship	Clinical Externship
Average salary	$36,844	$35,831
Salary range	Between $22,000 And $61,000	Between $25,000 And $51,000
Highest paying City	-	Alameda, CA
Highest paying state	-	California
Best paying company	-	Genentech
Best paying industry	-	Education

Differences between music therapy internship and clinical externship education

There are a few differences between a music therapy internship and a clinical externship in terms of educational background:

	Music Therapy Internship	Clinical Externship
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 72%	Bachelor's Degree, 63%
Most common major	Psychology	Psychology
Most common college	Duke University	California State University - Long Beach

Music therapy internship vs clinical externship demographics

Here are the differences between music therapy interns' and clinical externships' demographics:

	Music Therapy Internship	Clinical Externship
Average age	40	45
Gender ratio	Male, 20.0% Female, 80.0%	Male, 25.8% Female, 74.2%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 4.7% Unknown, 3.7% Hispanic or Latino, 6.0% Asian, 9.6% White, 75.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 6.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.9% Asian, 3.1% White, 74.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6%
LGBT Percentage	14%	15%

Differences between music therapy internship and clinical externship duties and responsibilities

Music therapy internship example responsibilities.

Customize recreational therapy interventions with patients who have acquired either a traumatic brain injury or spinal cord injury.
Help with casting limbs and making splints.
Assist occupational therapists with fabricating splints for orthopedic conditions involving the upper extremities.
Develop and implement therapeutic activities for individuals, groups under direction of OTR/L.
Document all patient interactions through skil observation and coordinate information both verbally and electronically to supervising OTR/L.
Conduct initial assessments, document patient progress in group activities; discuss patients' progress in multidisciplinary therapy meetings.

Clinical externship example responsibilities.

Set up and manage new medical transcription department.
Manage large scale TMF inventory/file cleanup projects in preparation for FDA and EMA inspections.
Manage difficult or emotional patient situations, with compassion and professionalism.
Participate in multiple studies managing CTM activities for various therapeutic areas simultaneously including oncology, urology, transplant, and immunology.
Monitor EKG's, assess blood pressure, palpate heart rates, safely progress patients in exercise.
Perform manual data entry in CTMS, TMF, CRF imaging and various departmental databases.

Music therapy internship vs clinical externship skills

Common music therapy internship skills

Patients, 26%
Occupational Therapy, 8%
Mental Health, 7%
Individual Therapy Sessions, 6%
Group Therapy Sessions, 4%
Substance Abuse, 4%

Common clinical externship skills

Patients, 32%
Mental Health, 7%
Patient Care, 5%
Crisis Intervention, 4%
Vital Signs, 4%
Substance Abuse, 4%

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Healthcare Practitioner and Technical Industry
Music Therapy Internship
Music Therapy Internship vs Clinical Externship

Updated January 8, 2025

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