Drawing on responses from 81 leaders representing 68 specialist music programmes in 25 countries, the research offers one of the most extensive international examinations to date of how musically gifted children are educated, protected and supported. The findings, led by Guadalupe López-Íñiguez of the Sibelius Academy at the University of the Arts Helsinki and developed with Professor Gary E. McPherson of the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, suggest that there is no single global model for gifted music education. That distinction is technically important because specialist music education differs from ordinary extracurricular instruction. The new research does not claim that contemporary specialist programmes reproduce those experiences universally. Subject of Research: PeopleArticle Title: Issues and Approaches to Gifted Education in Specialist Music Programs Globally: Insights From Institutional LeadersWeb References: https://doi.org/10.1177/02614294251360614References: López-Íñiguez, G. and McPherson, G. E., Gifted Education International, DOI: 10.1177/02614294251360614Keywords: gifted children, music education, specialist music programmes, child wellbeing, safeguarding, artistic excellence, music psychology, performance pressure, caring leadership, gifted education