Student Testimonial: Melanie Gerrish
Online Anatomical Sciences Education Master’s Degree Graduate
“The deadlines are reasonable. [The program’s] not something that you can’t work around, even if you have a full-time job.”
A Military Veteran Finds Career Clarity at UF
Melanie “Lanie” Gerrish is a Summer 2025 graduate of UF’s online master’s degree in anatomical sciences education program. When we spoke, the Air Force veteran was preparing for two new anatomy teaching jobs near her home in Missouri.
Here’s how this flexible UF program helped Gerrish find her professional direction after leaving the military.
Why Pursue a Degree in Anatomical Sciences Education?
Gerrish felt the program structure of UF’s master’s degree in anatomical sciences education would give her more professional options.
“I chose the program itself because of the distinction of it being half science and half education,” Gerrish said. “That way it would open more career options. Because I wasn’t really sure what route I wanted to go as far as careers after the military.”
Why Gerrish Returned to UF for Her Master’s Degree
While in the Air Force, Gerrish finished her bachelor’s degree online through UF. Earning a UF master’s degree later made sense for many reasons:
“I already knew that UF was on top of making sure the programs were at the highest standards and communication was easy for online students, too,” she said.
As a returning UF student and military veteran, she also knew she’d have a streamlined application process:
“When I was looking for master’s programs, I honestly was like, ‘I’m gonna do UF again’ because it was easier to get accepted in a way, but also because I was already familiar with how UF was set up and all of my GI Bill information was already set up through them. It was just an easier transition versus going to another school.”
Building a Career in Anatomical Sciences Education
Although she wasn’t sure what she wanted to do at first, Gerrish was career-minded when she started UF’s program. How does she feel about the program after graduation?
“I felt like it opened up a wide variety of options for me,” she said. “And it’s obviously worked out because now I have adjunct positions lined up for teaching starting in the spring. So I’m happy with where it’s taking me.”
Gerrish will be teaching a diverse range of students in two different colleges using knowledge she gained in her UF program.
“Right now, I’m doing all of my onboarding training to start teaching in January,” Gerrish said. “The first school is a community college, and I’ll be teaching anatomy lectures and labs to students at the associate level. I’ll also be doing general biology labs for them. And the other is university-level, [where I’ll be teaching] anatomy and general biology labs.”
Easy Access to Professors and Resources
Gerrish certainly got the most out of UF’s online experience the second time around, from her self-paced schedule to the accessible faculty and resources.
“I could just pick up and go as I needed to,” she explained. “All the resources I needed were there. Honestly, every professor I had was always super easy to contact through email or Canvas and would answer any questions or lead me on the right route if I couldn’t access something. I got responses literally instantly most of the time.”
As an online student, Gerrish found she had quick access to resources like the UF library. And the flexible schedule and discussion boards made it easy to stay on track.
“Everything, honestly, was super easy to access and very easy to work around [your schedule], especially if you have appointments or whatever,” she noted. “Sometimes I used the discussion boards for certain classes. Some of the students would set up individual GroupMe text boards.”
Gerrish never found her program’s workload a problem.
“The deadlines are reasonable,” she added. “It’s not something that you can’t work around, even if you have a full-time job.”
Program Flexibility When She Needed It Most
Sometimes life takes unexpected turns, and students need flexibility. UF understands this. Gerrish saw this firsthand when she faced some personal challenges during her master’s program.
“I did take a year break from the program,” Gerrish said. “But once I got back into it, there wasn’t any sort of gap like I missed something or that something drastically changed. It was easy to jump right back into. It wasn’t really like I even took a break.”
Elevate Your Career With UF’s Online Anatomical Sciences Education Degree
Want to expand your career options? Inspire aspiring medical students and other healthcare professionals? An anatomical sciences education master’s degree helps you master anatomical and biomedical knowledge — and the skills to teach them effectively.
UF’s online program maintains the highest standards and allows you to pivot when life happens.
This degree has already led Gerrish to new job opportunities. Now see where it can take you. Start your application.
