'A college degree will always open more doors': How Keith Wynn empowers non-traditional students like himself
LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 9, 2024) — For Keith Wynn, the assistant director of Transfer Recruitment at the University of Kentucky, the path to higher education was not a traditional one.
“In high school I was certainly not the best student. I didn’t take it seriously at all, so I dropped out of high school,” Wynn said. “After a few years of doing things like working in tobacco fields and delivering pizzas and things like that, I realized I wanted to do more.”
Determined to change his future, Wynn took the GED.
“For many years I did not want to admit that I had a GED. I would only disclose it if I needed to disclose it,” Wynn said. “There is a stigma associated with it because it is incredibly hard to go back and finish something that you didn’t finish to begin with.”
But he didn’t stop there. Imagining the possibility of pursing his undergraduate degree, Wynn also took the ACT and applied for college.
“I went to Morehead State University, changed my major seven or eight times because even though I was in college finally, I still had no idea what I wanted to do,” he said. “I also took some classes concurrently at Maysville Community College and then became a full transfer into Morehead and graduated from there in 2007.”
After college, Wynn became an admissions counselor where he discovered his passion for being in a student-centered field.
Wynn now helps transfer students, like himself, in their higher education journeys.
“When you are able to help somebody take a step that’s going to lead them down a road they never thought they would be able to go down, that is tremendously rewarding,” he said.
Wynn leads his students with the advice he wishes he could give his younger self.
“Do not limit yourself; do not put a ceiling above you where there does not need to be a ceiling. You can literally change the entire course of your family’s history by being the first one to take that step.”
He encourages his students to be proud of their non-traditional journeys and to reach out if they need help.
“Looking back, the GED is actually a more impressive accomplishment in my opinion, just because of the various hurdles you have to overcome in order to get it.”
Wynn wants transfer students to understand their value and the opportunities that await them at UK.
“We have over 200 degrees at UK, and we do not have a single bachelor’s degree that a transfer student cannot apply for and get admitted to — they have the same academic opportunity as any first-time freshman,” said Wynn. “What I will always argue is that a college degree will open more doors for you.”
See more about Wynn and his journey in the video above.
Find information about transfer admission at UK here.
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