Wissahickon Student Named College-Sponsored National Merit Scholar

AMBLER, PA — A Wissahickon High School student has been named a college-sponsored National Merit Scholar, joining a select group of elite students from around the nation.

Justin Pak, of North Wales, has a probable career field of dentistry. His scholarship is from the University of Florida.

The college-sponsored scholarships mark the third and final round winners of various types of National Merit Scholarships this year. They're given to students who have committed to a specific institution.

This is separate from the winners of the National Merit $2,500 scholarship in mid-May, and the corporate-sponsored scholarship winners announced in April.

A total of 45 students in Pennsylvania were among the winners of the college-sponsored scholarships announced this week, which range from $500 to $2,000 annually for four years of undergraduate study.

Selection for the 2026 National Merit scholars began in Oct. 2024, when about one percent of students nationally taking the PSAT were selected as semifinalists.

From that field of around 16,000 semifinalists, around 15,000 met the academic standards required to continue to the finalist level of competition.

The group was further whittled down to about 6,700 students nationwide who have earned the "merit scholar" title this spring.