Rate My Professor Kat McFerran

Professor Kat McFerran, also known as Katrina Skewes McFerran, is Professor in Music Therapy in the Faculty of Fine Arts and Music at the University of Melbourne. She completed her PhD at the University of Melbourne in 2001 and has served as a researcher and academic leader in music, dance, and drama therapy since 2004. Currently, she heads the Creative Arts Therapies Research Unit (CAMTRU) as Co-Director and was appointed Director of the Researcher Development Unit in July 2022, following roles as Associate Dean for Research, Student Wellbeing, and Diversity and Inclusion. An international expert on music, wellbeing, and young people, McFerran has supervised 26 PhD researchers to completion in music, dance, and drama therapy and leads the PhD seminar for creative arts therapies. Her research examines music therapy's role in promoting resilience, social engagement, and mental health among adolescents and youth, including studies on autism spectrum disorder, mood regulation, and bereavement.

McFerran has authored five books, including Adolescents, Music and Music Therapy: Methods and Techniques for Clinicians, Educators and Students (2010) and Therapeutic Uses of Rap and Hip-Hop (2012), alongside 35 book chapters and over 130 refereed journal articles. Notable publications include 'Family-centred music therapy to promote social engagement in young children with severe autism spectrum disorder: A randomized controlled study' (2014, Child: Care, Health and Development), 'Development and validation of the Healthy-Unhealthy Music Scale' (2015, Child and Adolescent Mental Health), and 'Music use for mood regulation: Self-awareness and conscious listening choices in young people with tendencies to depression' (2019, Frontiers in Psychology). She has secured four major grants from the Australian Research Council for investigations into music, youth, wellbeing, and resilience. In 2025, she was inducted into the Australian Research Council's College of Experts. Her work has significantly influenced music therapy practices in schools, mental health settings, and clinical populations through empirical studies and practical frameworks.