Music Therapy Equivalency Program

Baldwin Wallace offers the music therapy equivalency program for students who have earned a bachelor's degree in music from a regionally accredited, recognized institution.

In this non-degree program, a student completes all music therapy core courses as well as non-music courses required by the American Music Therapy Association.

Music Therapy Equivalency

Music Therapy Curriculum

Courses for the music therapy equivalency are a total of 20 credits. Classes are offered Tuesday and Wednesday evenings and Saturdays. Coursework for the music therapy equivalency program can take two years to complete. Please note that this does not include the six-month, full-time internship.

Required classes include music theory, music history and literature, large group ensemble and applied instrument lessons. Most students have completed the majority of these requirements as part of coursework taken for previous music degrees.

Additional courses are required in psychology, sociology, biology and education. Coursework from a student's undergraduate degree is reviewed for equivalency and credit is applied accordingly.

Introduction to Music Therapy
Recreational Music/Programming & Leadership*
Beginning Practicum*
Practicum II*
Advanced Practicum*
Music Therapy with Developmental Disabilities
Music Therapy in Psychiatry and Rehabilitation
Program Development and Administration in Music Therapy
Psychology of Music
Research Seminar in Music Therapy
Six-month internship upon completion of all course work*

*Denotes class consisting of hands-on field experience

Internship Placement

After completion of all required coursework, a student can then apply for an internship placement. Internships are under the supervision of board-certified music therapists and are typically offered through renowned local healthcare organizations, including Cleveland Clinic and MetroHealth. Internships take place over the course of six months and are considered full-time.

National Certification Exam

Upon completion of the program, a student is eligible to sit for the national certification exam administered by the Certification Board for Music Therapists.

Apply for Admission

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Submit Official University Transcripts

Please submit official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended. To be considered official, transcripts must be sent directly from the college/university you attended to the Baldwin Wallace University office of admission.*

Electronic transcripts should be submitted to admit@bw.edu.
Paper copies should be sent to:

Admission Office
Baldwin Wallace University
275 Eastland Road
Berea, OH 44017

*BW transcripts for current or former students will automatically be obtained by the office of admission at no cost.

Colleges and Universities Attended Outside the United States

Candidates with degrees earned from foreign institutions must have a course-by-course evaluation completed with degree verification by an approved credential evaluation service as part of the BW application process. BW has approved the following credential evaluation services: Education Credential Evaluators, Educational Perspectives, SpanTran and World Education Services (WES). This evaluation must be sent directly to BW from the credential evaluation service to be considered official.

Provide a Resume

As part of the selection process, please submit a current resume or summary of your work history. The resume may be submitted within the online application, or you may submit it separately to the BW admission office at graduate@bw.edu.

Your resume or work summary should also include:

Academic degrees
Musicianship experience
Leadership and community involvement
Employment history (if applicable)

Complete a Musicianship Assessment

Upon initial application review, eligible candidates may then be invited to complete a musicianship assessment. This assessment will be conducted by the assistant professor of music therapy. During this assessment, candidates will be asked to exhibit their vocal and musical skills by singing and playing an instrument. Candidates will also undergo an interview during their musicianship assessment.

Please note that students cannot move forward to the admission stage without completion of the musicianship assessment.

For further information regarding the musicianship assessment, please contact Kara Caine, assistant professor of music therapy, at (440) 826-3176 or kcaine@bw.edu.

Questions about the admission process? Please contact our Admission Office at (440) 826-8012 or graduate@bw.edu.

Tuition

$834 per credit hour.
The program is 20 credit hours.

Contact

Graduate & Professional Studies Admission

(440) 826-8012, graduate@bw.edu

Music Therapy

Kara Caine, MME, MT-BC
Director, Cleveland Music Therapy Consortium
Assistant Professor of Music Therapy
(440) 826-3176, kcaine@bw.edu