Examining the accessibility of MA Music Therapy training in the United Kingdom for ethnic minority communities

Abstract

A recent report by the British Association for Music Therapy, in light of the global Black Lives Matter and anti-racism protests, highlighted the lack of diversity within the UK music therapy profession and MA training courses. Motivated by personal experience while training and observations of being a minority in a largely White cohort, this research examines some of the possible factors that could contribute to this lack of diversity. This article reports on a small research project undertaken as part of my studies for my MA Music Therapy. Three participants were interviewed for the study, each from different ethnic minority groups, and asked questions pertaining to their experiences while studying, in relation to race, accessibility, diversity and culture. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to contextualise their interview responses. The research findings highlighted barriers to accessibility of training such as a biased application process, lack of dialogue about race on training courses or within music therapy and the complexities of race and music therapy. This article provides suggestions of ways in which diversity in music therapy can be improved such as evaluating the curriculum and increasing cultural awareness.