Healthcare Practitioners and Technical · Holland code SAI

Music Therapists

Plan, organize, direct, or assess clinical and evidenced-based music therapy interventions to positively influence individuals' physical, psychological, cognitive, or behavioral status.

Also called: Board Certified Music Therapist (MT-BC), LCAT (Licensed Creative Arts Therapist), Music Therapist, Neurologic Music Therapist, Public School System Music Therapist, Therapist.

O*NET 29-1129.02

At a glance

US median annual pay: $77,930; Middle half earn $58,850 to $105,760. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: Bachelor's Degree; 73% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 4 of 5; Considerable preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Design or provide music therapy experiences to address client needs, such as using music for self-care, adjusting to life changes, improving cognitive functioning, raising self-esteem, communicating, or controlling impulses.
Design music therapy experiences, using various musical elements to meet client's goals or objectives.
Sing or play musical instruments, such as keyboard, guitar, or percussion instruments.
Communicate with clients to build rapport, acknowledge their progress, or reflect upon their reactions to musical experiences.
Customize treatment programs for specific areas of music therapy, such as intellectual or developmental disabilities, educational settings, geriatrics, medical settings, mental health, physical disabilities, or wellness.
Establish client goals or objectives for music therapy treatment, considering client needs, capabilities, interests, overall therapeutic program, coordination of treatment, or length of treatment.
Document evaluations, treatment plans, case summaries, or progress or other reports related to individual clients or client groups.
Assess client functioning levels, strengths, and areas of need in terms of perceptual, sensory, affective, communicative, musical, physical, cognitive, social, spiritual, or other abilities.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Active Listening4.1 / 5
Reading Comprehension4.0 / 5
Speaking4.0 / 5
Critical Thinking4.0 / 5
Learning Strategies3.8 / 5
Monitoring3.8 / 5

Knowledge areas

Psychology4.9 / 5
Therapy and Counseling4.9 / 5
Fine Arts4.8 / 5
English Language4.1 / 5
Customer and Personal Service3.9 / 5
Sociology and Anthropology3.9 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic23
Investigative53
Artistic63
Social71
Enterprising25
Conventional36

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

aromatherapist · DE Aromatherapeut/Aromatherapeutin · FR conseiller en aromathérapie/conseillère en aromathérapie
complementary therapist · DE Therapeut Komplementärmedizin/Therapeutin Komplementärmedizin · FR praticien de médecine alternative/praticienne de médecine alternative
speech and language therapist · DE Sprachtherapeut/Sprachtherapeutin · FR orthophoniste
occupational therapist · DE Ergotherapeut/Ergotherapeutin · FR ergothérapeute
recreational therapist · DE Aktivierungstherapeut/Aktivierungstherapeutin · FR ludothérapeute
art therapist · DE Kunsttherapeut/Kunsttherapeutin · FR art thérapeute

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Occupational therapists (2222)56,000 employed
Psychotherapists and cognitive behaviour therapists (2224)53,300 employed
Podiatrists (2256)16,200 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Professionals”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Professionals, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€61,714
Germany	€59,529
Ireland	€56,877
Austria	€55,374
Netherlands	€53,595
Sweden	€43,567
France	€41,515
Spain	€35,735
Italy	€33,649
Portugal	€26,072
Poland	€14,380

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

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