{"id":844,"date":"2024-10-04T14:52:53","date_gmt":"2024-10-04T14:52:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/?p=844"},"modified":"2024-10-04T14:52:53","modified_gmt":"2024-10-04T14:52:53","slug":"back-to-marshall-ashleighs-own-homecoming-to-earn-her-masters-degree","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/2024\/10\/04\/back-to-marshall-ashleighs-own-homecoming-to-earn-her-masters-degree\/","title":{"rendered":"Back to Marshall: Ashleigh’s own homecoming to earn her master\u2019s degree"},"content":{"rendered":"
When Ashleigh Reedy graduated from Marshall University with her bachelor\u2019s degree in social work in 2016, she felt she reached a significant milestone. She quickly joined the workforce, working at Prestera Health Services as a case manager. However, she began to realize her educational journey wasn’t finished.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d been working in the field for a few years,\u201d she said. \u201cBut then, in late 2022 and early 2023, some of the girls I worked with started encouraging me to go back to school to get my master\u2019s. They really stressed how much more opportunity there is with a master\u2019s degree in this field. I thought, \u2018You know what? I\u2019m going to do it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Ashleigh lives and works in rural Clay County, West Virginia, and going back to school for her master\u2019s degree in social work (MSW) came with logistical challenges.<\/p>\n

\n\t \u201cI work full time, and life is busy. Driving to campus wasn\u2019t really feasible, but Marshall\u2019s MSW program is completely online.\u201d <\/span>\n\n\t\t\t- Ashleigh Reedy<\/span>\n\t<\/div>\n\n

\u201cI work full time, and life is busy. Driving to campus wasn\u2019t really feasible, but Marshall\u2019s MSW program is completely online,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

The program allowed her to qualify for the advanced standing option, meaning she could fast-track her degree and finish her master\u2019s degree in three semesters.<\/p>\n

Though her return to academics came after several years working in the field, Ashleigh found the transition a bit intimidating.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was weird getting back into the habit of writing papers again and use APA style to cite sources\u2014things I hadn\u2019t done since 2015,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Her homecoming was more than just a return to learning, she said it was a deepening of her understanding of social work, especially within a clinical setting.<\/p>\n

\u201cI learned the steppingstones of different theories and different ways to interact with clients,\u201d she said. \u201cI think it bridged the whole experience of my career working in mental health and getting my master\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ashleigh officially transitioned in her role at Prestera Health Services this past Friday and now works as a therapist.<\/p>\n

\n\t \u201cThe degree has already opened up a few doors at work,\u201d she said. \u201cNow, I can potentially get different licenses and advance in my career. The sky\u2019s the limit.\u201d <\/span>\n\n\t\t\t- Ashleigh Reedy<\/span>\n\t<\/div>\n\n

\u201cThe degree has already opened up a few doors at work,\u201d she said. \u201cNow, I can potentially get different licenses and advance in my career. The sky\u2019s the limit.\u201d<\/p>\n

In trying to balance going back to school with a full-time job, Ashleigh said having a support system was vital to her success.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy husband really stepped up during those busy times when I had papers and exams. My coworkers and supervisors were also incredibly supportive, always offering advice and encouragement. Having that support made all the difference,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

For more information on completing your education at Marshall University, visit www.marshall.edu\/online<\/a>.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Ashleigh Reedy graduated from Marshall University with her bachelor\u2019s degree in social work in 2016, she felt she reached a significant milestone. She quickly joined the workforce, working at Prestera Health Services as a case manager. However, she began to realize her educational journey wasn’t finished. \u201cI\u2019d been working in the field for a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":945,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"image","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-844","post","type-post","status-publish","format-image","hentry","category-moments","post_format-post-format-image"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/844","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/945"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=844"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/844\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":851,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/844\/revisions\/851"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=844"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=844"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.marshall.edu\/moments\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=844"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}