The Doctoral Programme in Music Therapy

Completed PhD dissertations

Current PhD researchers

Current Budget and proposed Financial Support

Department of Communication and Psychology Resources

International Research Networks and Profiles

Management and internal Regulations

National Research Network

Phd Board

Planned Developements for the Future

Supervisors and quality Supervision

The goal of the Doctoral Programme is to train researchers with sufficient theoretical, technical, methodological and applied clinical research knowledge in the field of music therapy research to assure scientific rigor. This requires critical assessment through peer review, supervised research studies and research courses to provide knowledge and expertise.  The research school promotes research within theoretical and clinical areas:  The fundamental principles of research into music therapy including theories and methods to describe, analyse, interpret and evaluate method and process in music therapy. In the present research milieu both qualitative and quantitative research is undertaken, investigating process and outcome. The development of an advisory board of supervisors from Sweden, Norway, United Kingdom and Australia has allowed the Doctoral Programme to incorporate both paradigms. Applied clinical research is actively encouraged, alongside theoretical and historical studies.

Research within the clinical area, in particular research methodology, is directed towards both process and outcome research. Clinically based research is increasingly demanded by health care organisations deciding and Evidence-Based medicine (EBM) calls for a hierarchical range of evidence to be presented supporting the efficacy of an intervention. Clinical fields that have been the focus of doctoral research to date include mental health and acute psychiatry, psychosis, pervasive developmental disorder, autism, learning disability, brain trauma and neuro-rehabilitation. The research milieu in the music therapy doctoral programme at Aalborg University aims to promote the accumulation of such evidence and scientific knowledge.

The doctoral programme in music therapy is centred within the science of music therapy, promoting both process and outcome research. PhD projects may be based on both theoretical and empirical clinical work. The doctoral programme has been developed on a strong foundation, and has attracted researchers from all over Europe, the Middle East and Australia with the intention of promoting new scientific areas within music therapy. In 1997 funding was provided by the Faculty of Humanities for the awarding of Scholarship Grants to students from Denmark and abroad to undertake PhD level research while continuing their clinical work. This initiative has resulted in the registration of students from Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Austria, Israel, Korea, United Kingdom and Australia, who are at different stages of completion. At the present time, this is the only European PhD programme specialising in music therapy.  

The Doctoral Programme in Music Therapy at Aalborg University is defined as an international school, because the initiatives by the Faculty of Humanities in establishing a scholarship programme has resulted in mature, international specialists in clinical music therapy and music therapy training choosing to register for doctoral research. Therefore the cohort of doctoral researchers since 1995 has included clinicians and educators from Germany, Belgium, Norway, Israel, Austria, Australia, Korea and the United Kingdom, giving the programme an international perspective from its inception. These scholarships have provided grants for research costs, travel costs, costs of courses, and supervision, - but not salaries.  The milieu has benefited from this international expertise (as most of these scholarship students are at a high level in their own clinical field). They are mixture of full-time and part-time students, usually numbering between 5-7, and together with a smaller number of full-time fellowship students a dynamic milieu has emerged to support a wide range applied research in different clinical fields.

The Doctoral Programme currently works within the recommended objectives of post-graduate research training in the Nordic countries (Norfa, 2001), the Common Nordic principles for post-graduate research training (Siggaard Jensen et al, 2003) and the Nordic research training: Common objectives for international quality (Aasland & Nilsen (Eds), 2003), which have both national and international aspects to ensure an international benchmark. The training, both through supervision and courses, enables students to carry out independent research in defined areas, and produce dissertations demonstrating a high level of skill. Students gain confidence in their chosen area, are encouraged to exchange knowledge and publish articles during and after their registration in order to disseminate the results of their research. International collaboration through both students and trainers, gives the Doctoral Programme an international profile, enables students to keep up with developments in their own fields, and build up international contacts. The requirement on the students to present their research during courses, together with supervision and consultancy, ensures the students gain an independent and critical approach to using methods of scientific research and discovering new knowledge. The students’ critical perspective on research is particularly noted in their ability to reflect on the limitations of their studies, and in the public defence. The graduate school requires Master's level qualifications on entry, and examination is through a public defence with a board of external examiners consisting of qualified researchers and university professors from the national and international scientific community.

References
Oslo:NorFa (2001) Forskeruddannelse i Norden: Utfordringer og samarbejdsmuligheter (research training in the Nordic countries: Challenges and opportunities for collaboration).

Siggaard Jensen, H. (et. al.) (2003) Report from a NorFa Working group. Postgraduate research training in the Nordic countries: Towards common objectives and common means. In: A.Aasland & M.M.Nilsen (Eds) Nordic research training: Common objectives for international quality. NorFa - ISBN 82-996264-1-2

Aasland, A. & Nilsen, M. (2003) Nordic research training: Common objectives for international quality. NorFa - ISBN 82-996264-1-2