Music Therapy Students Awarded First Internship Stipend from Children’s Music Fund

Two students from Berklee’s Music Therapy program have been announced as the inaugural recipients of the Children’s Music Fund(Opens in a new window) Music Therapy Internship Sponsorship. Audrey Creevey and Rose Koo will receive a stipend to help them complete their clinical internships at UCLA Health, a first-of-its-kind sponsorship that will cover their living expenses as they work toward becoming board-certified music therapists.

“Music therapy has such a positive effect on children experiencing difficult medical circumstances,” said Dr. Raffi Tachdjian, MD, MPH, founder and president of Children’s Music Fund and associate professor of pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. “Its healing benefits are research-backed, so it’s important for families to know about this natural form of treatment and that it is available to them. As a result of the funding we're sponsoring for two music therapy interns, children and their families at UCLA Health will receive more than 2,000 hours of music therapy.”

Throughout the internship, Creevey and Koo will work under Berklee alum Jenna Marcovitz BM ’12, who serves as director of music therapy for integrative medicine at UCLA Health and has been a longtime advocate for supporting internships with competitive stipends. In addition to helping patients manage pain, neurological conditions, trauma, high levels of emotional distress, and palliative care needs through music therapy, Creevey and Koo will contribute to research that further quantifies its measurable health outcomes.

“Working with children and their families every day, we know firsthand how beneficial music therapy is to patient health outcomes,” said Marcovitz. “Music therapy interns take on a full caseload of more than 20 patients and work side by side with a multidisciplinary team, including physicians, bedside nurses, and social workers. The funding provided by Children’s Music Fund establishes the support necessary for these students to show up empowered and emotionally nurtured, ready to guide the lives of these children and families.”

Aspiring music therapists are required to complete 1,000 hours of work in a full-time internship at an approved site before they are eligible to sit for the board certification exam. Typically, these internships do not offer compensation, which can present an overwhelming financial challenge to interns who often relocate to different sites in order to finish their internship.

"We are thrilled to work with leading organizations and our dedicated alumni, who continue to advance educational and clinical training opportunities at top medical institutions,” said Dr. Joy Allen, chair of Berklee’s Music Therapy Department. “These collaborations provide our students with exceptional internships and vital funding, ensuring they meet rigorous training requirements while shaping the future of music therapy with excellence and innovation."

To learn more about Children’s Music Fund and to donate in support of its mission visit thecmf.org(Opens in a new window).

About Children's Music Fund

Children's Music Fund provides music therapy to children with chronic conditions or life-altering illnesses, such as different forms of cancer, blood disorders, lung/heart/kidney disease, autism, rare diseases, and immune deficiencies to help improve their quality of life. Engaging children in music therapy helps reduce pain, fear, and anxiety, and provides a much-needed coping mechanism to improve their mental well-being while undergoing medical treatment, during hospitalization, and throughout their lives. The organization connects eligible children and young adults to board-certified music therapists who provide a personalized treatment plan at home and in hospitals, gifts musical instruments in support of those receiving music therapy services, as well as conducts and sponsors research on music therapy to further innovate the field and work to integrate music with medicine. Children’s Music Fund is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and member of the American Music Therapy Association.