The music therapy clinical intern: performance skills, academic knowledge, personal qualities, and interpersonal...

The music therapy curriculum consists of two distinct parts: the academic phase and the internship. The music therapy student must apply for a clinical internship during the last year of the academic phase, and the student is expected to evolve from student to professional music therapist during the internship phase. The present study sought to determine the skills, knowledge, and qualities clinical training directors considered most important for a prospective intern to possess. The sample population of the survey consisted of 25 clinical training directors from the Great Lakes Region. Results of the survey indicated that piano skills, knowledge of psychology, emotional maturity, and the ability to express needs and feelings were considered most important for the prospective intern to possess.