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Music therapy internship skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted experts

Chelsea Waddelow,

Chelsea Waddelow

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical music therapy internship skills. We ranked the top skills for music therapy interns based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 26.3% of music therapy internship resumes contained patients as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a music therapy internship needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 music therapy internship skills for your resume and career

1. Patients

Here's how music therapy interns use patients:

Planned treatment strategies and protocol for patients with Psychiatric Disorders, Neurological and Orthopedic Disorders, and Disorders in Pediatric population.
Conducted initial assessments, documented patient progress in group activities; discussed patients' progress in multidisciplinary therapy meetings.

2. Occupational Therapy

Here's how music therapy interns use occupational therapy:

Provided Occupational Therapy evaluation, intervention, and documentation services to a 6-7 patient caseload at an inpatient intensive rehabilitation hospital.
Assisted occupational therapists and behavior analysts with their appointments and learned how to properly manage an occupational therapy session.

3. Mental Health

Mental health is the state of wellbeing in which an individual can cope with the regular stresses and tensions of life, and can work productively without having any emotional or psychological breakdown. Mental health is essential for a person of any age and helps them make the right decisions in their life.

Here's how music therapy interns use mental health:

Provided home-based mental health services including individual and family therapy, crisis intervention and parent education to court involved families.
Participated in continuing education seminar dedicated to sensory processing disorders and mental health implications, and a HIPPA training seminar.

4. Individual Therapy Sessions

Here's how music therapy interns use individual therapy sessions:

Assisted in individual therapy sessions and crisis management techniques.
Led individual therapy sessions with outpatient children and adolescents, as well as family sessions with their parents and siblings.

5. Group Therapy Sessions

Here's how music therapy interns use group therapy sessions:

Observed and facilitated group therapy sessions regarding employment, healthy relationships, and managing triggers.
Lead weekly group therapy sessions for adult males living in a transitional housing program after incarceration

6. Substance Abuse

Here's how music therapy interns use substance abuse:

Implemented substance abuse- relapse prevention class including conducting assessments, planning and implementing programs- facilitating classes.
Discussed and addressed issues ranging from depression, bullying/intimidation, schizophrenia and substance abuse within therapy.

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7. Traumatic Brain Injury

Here's how music therapy interns use traumatic brain injury:

Level 2 Clinical Fieldwork at a Post-Acute Traumatic Brain Injury Facility
Worked with patients recovering from stroke, amputation, spinal chord injury, and traumatic brain injury at Moss Rehab.

8. Patient Care

Patient care entails the diagnosis, recovery, and control of sickness as well as the maintenance of physical and emotional well-being through the use of healthcare providers' services. Patient care is described as services provided to patients by health practitioners or non-professionals under guidance.

Here's how music therapy interns use patient care:

Assessed and conducted individual medical music psychotherapy sessions as part of outpatient care in Radiation Oncology and the Pediatric Emergency Room.
Co-led expressive therapies groups, provided individual therapeutic contact, suggested expressive therapies interventions and assisted with patient care.

9. Music Therapy

Here's how music therapy interns use music therapy:

Provided individual and group music therapy for children, adolescents and young adults with autism, developmental disabilities and emotional disturbances.
Used a variety of music therapy techniques including modified melodic intonation therapy, improvisation, songwriting, and music and imagery.

10. Therapy Intern

Here's how music therapy interns use therapy intern:

Designed a Therapeutic Recreation Therapy internship policies and procedures manual for the facility.
Completed Recreational Therapy Internship in an acute psychiatric hospital primarily working with adults.

11. Developmental Disabilities

Here's how music therapy interns use developmental disabilities:

Planned, scheduled, implemented, and evaluated 1:1 home/community-based therapy -Children/Adults with developmental disabilities -Programmed group recreational activities on site
Supported speech pathologists and developmental specialists at a preschool camp for children with developmental disabilities or speech needs.

12. Physical Therapy

Here's how music therapy interns use physical therapy:

Conducted an in-service for the Physical Therapy Department to educate on the benefits of dance/movement therapy.
Developed, implemented and assisted in new program/techniques to enhance physical therapy services as directed.

13. Recreational Therapy

Here's how music therapy interns use recreational therapy:

Spearheaded specialized recreational therapy assistance for the homeless veteran program as a key intern team member.
Facilitated/Implemented both group and individual recreational therapy interventions; including experience in aquatics and community outings.

14. Mental Illness

Here's how music therapy interns use mental illness:

Engaged clients with co-occurring substance addiction and mental illness in individual therapy and created collaborative treatment plans for.
Provided individual therapy and group therapy to a dual diagnosed population with chronic mental illness and intellectual disability.

15. Family Therapy Sessions

Here's how music therapy interns use family therapy sessions:

Provided clinical assessment, facilitated play and family therapy sessions for children, adolescents and families.
Conduct individual and family therapy sessions with a host of presenting problems and psychosomatic symptoms.

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What skills help Music Therapy Interns find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on music therapy internship resumes?

Chelsea Waddelow

Adjunct Professor, Meredith College

I expect all of the basic proficiencies required by the Certification Board as a bare minimum. Musically, I like to see an area of specialization that will make you stand out. For clinical skills, the ability to produce accurate, thorough, and professional documentation in a very short amount of time is a top priority. Non-musical or non-clinical skills that I would look for include knowledge of a second language, especially ASL or the second language most commonly used in the job area, multicultural awareness and sensitivity, and excellent attention to detail.

What soft skills should all music therapy internships possess?

Chelsea Waddelow

Adjunct Professor, Meredith College

I would list the top three here: empathy, excellent verbal communication, and highly developed ethical decision-making.

What hard/technical skills are most important for music therapy internships?

Chelsea Waddelow

Adjunct Professor, Meredith College

While all music therapists must be competent in piano, guitar, voice, and percussion before being certified, true excellence in at least one area is very important. It is also essential to have good technical knowledge of music-based apps and the ability to learn different documentation systems quickly.

What technical skills for a music therapy internship stand out to employers?

Dr. Edward Kahler Ph.D.

Associate Dean, Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Arts and Humanities, Professor of Music/Director of Music Therapy, West Texas A&M University

Yes all of our music therapy students must do a six-to-nine-month music therapy internship at a facility of their preference. Many of the internships are very competitive and our students do very well securing them. The interns work full time (often unpaid) with a music therapist for the entire time. After the internship they must take a national certification exam to practice as a professional music therapist. A very interesting item. I have a current intern who will finish up in April. She has just received two job offers prior to finishing her internship. That is an example of how well our students do entering the profession.

Do you want to know more?

List of music therapy internship skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for a music therapy internship resume and required skills for a music therapy internship to have include:

Patients
Occupational Therapy
Mental Health
Individual Therapy Sessions
Group Therapy Sessions
Substance Abuse
Traumatic Brain Injury
Patient Care
Music Therapy
Therapy Intern
Developmental Disabilities
Physical Therapy
Recreational Therapy
Mental Illness
Family Therapy Sessions
Discharge Planning
Crisis Intervention

Music Therapy Sessions
Intake Assessments
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Treatment Sessions
ADL
Co-Lead
Therapeutic Interventions
Veterans
Therapeutic Services
CVA
Group Supervision
Art Therapy
Anger Management
Cerebral Palsy
Physical Disabilities
Community Resources
Team Planning

Alzheimer
Bipolar Disorder
ICU
Autism Spectrum Disorder
ADHD
Discharge Summaries
Domestic Violence
IEP
Community Outings
MDS
Developmental Delays
Individual Clients
DBT
PTSD
Eating Disorders
Adaptive Equipment

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

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