Music Therapy - MA Graduate profile
Key information
This course can lead to careers in the following sectors
- Health and social care
- Education
- Special schools
- Nursing homes
- Hospice services
- Residential services for adults with intellectual disability
- Work in specialist services for people with acquired brain injury.
On graduating from the MA Music Therapy, Clara worked full time for two years with the Northern Ireland Music Therapy Trust. During her time there she worked with children and young adults with a range of disabilities in education and health settings. She set up a private practice in the Dublin region in 2011 providing music therapy services across a range of settings both in disability and older adult services. Clara has worked with St. Michael’s House, St. John of God’s and was involved in creating a permanent two-day Senior Music Therapy post in Tallaght University Hospital for Older Adult and Critical Care patients. She is currently in a four-day role as Senior Music Therapist at Highfield Healthcare mental health service in Dublin. As a singer songwriter, Clara Rose has independently released three albums and two E.Ps and performs regularly with her band across Ireland in music venues and at festivals. Clara recently qualified with an MSc in Psychotherapy from DCU and incorporates integrative psychotherapy with her music therapy approach.
Upon completion of the programme, he commenced a PhD under the supervision of Professor Hilary Moss, funded by Research Ireland. His doctoral research explored the use of music therapy to support language and communication rehabilitation in pre-verbal children following acquired brain injury. Alongside his research, James worked with Neurolinks Music Therapy, providing services to adults and children with neurological conditions and their families; Children's Health Ireland (CHI) at Temple Street, working within the neurosciences and palliative care teams, and later joined the cardiology team in CHI at Crumlin in 2025. James is now Senior Music Therapist at the National Rehabilitation Hospital, where he is leading the development of the first paediatric outpatient music therapy service in Ireland. He continues to work at CHI and is engaged in postdoctoral research at the University of Limerick with Prof Moss.
She works in Northern Ireland as part of a creative art therapy team in an organisation that provides counseling and creative arts therapy to children, young people and adults who are at risk of suicide, self harm, eating disorders, bereaved by suicide, who have suffered abuse and those who have trauma related difficulties. Lorraine also works with adults with acquired brain injury in a day centre in Belfast which provides services and support to survivors of brain injury in order to rebuild their lives. Along with this work, she provides group music therapy sessions in residential homes to older adults, many of whom have Dementia. Lorraine is a registered music therapist with the Health Professions Council in the UK and a member of the British Association of Music Therapists (BAMT).
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