This master's programme trains you to apply music’s therapeutic potential to support emotional, cognitive, social and physical recovery. Grounded in a scientific, evidence-based approach, the curriculum covers contemporary therapy concepts and practical music therapy techniques used across prevention, acute intervention and rehabilitation. You will build both musical and clinical skills through manualised therapy concepts practised in small groups, with a clear emphasis on integrating research and clinical practice.
Teaching spans a range of therapeutic models—psychodynamic/depth-psychology, cognitive-behavioural, systemic and humanistic approaches—alongside authentic arts-therapy methods. The course aims not only to equip you with technique but also to develop your therapist identity: music therapy self-exploration and ongoing therapy supervision are used to support professional growth and reflective practice.
Music therapy is presented as a versatile health profession that complements standard care in many settings. The programme prepares graduates to work within medical and health-science contexts where music-based interventions are increasingly valued as part of holistic, patient-centred care.
Programme features (what you will learn and how)
Career and practice settings (where music therapists work)
Overview
This full-time, two-year master’s programme (120 ECTS) normally starts with the winter semester on 1 October and leads to a state-approved MA degree. Teaching is delivered by an interdisciplinary team working at the intersection of music therapy, medicine, psychology and music. The curriculum intentionally weaves together teaching, supervised practice and research so students develop both clinical competence and a reflective therapist identity (for example through music therapy experiential and self-experience groups).
Practical training and research opportunities
Practical learning is closely linked to everyday clinical work: students train at the on‑campus music therapy outpatient centre and complete clinical internships in cooperation with national and international partner facilities. Research is supported via an in‑house psychophysiology laboratory and collaborative projects, giving students the chance to learn research methods and contribute to scientific studies under faculty supervision. The programme emphasises small group teaching, competence-oriented assessment, five-week practice‑aligned units, mentoring, specially equipped music/PC studios, and an international exchange component.
Key modules and learning outcomes
Requirements and facts (programme-related)
This master’s program expects applicants to hold a relevant, state-recognised undergraduate degree and to demonstrate both artistic suitability and language ability. Admissions decisions also take into account a personal and artistic assessment, and the program reserves the right to approve individual exceptions on a case-by-case basis.
If you studied outside Germany, check whether your qualification is considered equivalent to the stated requirement and be prepared to supply documentation. Details about how the personal/artistic assessment is conducted and the exact English-language proof required are provided by the programme—contact the admissions office or consult the programme web page for those specifics.
Winter Semester (International)
There areno application deadlines, so you can apply at any time until all of the places in the programme have been filled.
Graduates are prepared for professional roles as music therapists in a wide range of clinical and educational settings, including psychiatry, psychosomatic medicine, neurology and rehabilitation, geriatrics, palliative and hospice care, paediatrics, intensive care units and psychosocial institutions for children and families. The programme’s clinical placements and supervised practice equip you to work alongside multidisciplinary healthcare teams and in prevention and education contexts such as music schools, youth centres and kindergartens.
In addition to clinical practice, the programme’s research components and access to the psychophysiology laboratory provide foundations for roles in applied research, project work or continuing academic study. Graduates may also pursue careers in programme coordination, teaching, and therapeutic service development within healthcare and community organisations.
Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg — Oldenburg
International Psychoanalytic University Berlin — Berlin
SRH University — Heidelberg
Leipzig University — Leipzig