Four Thomas Jefferson Seniors Among Final National Merit Scholars

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced 900 final college-sponsored scholarship winners Monday, July 17. Of those, four go to Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology.

All four plan to continue studying the sciences, but they will be heading to different areas of the U.S. Both Abhishek Mishra and Aditi Sundararaman will attend University of Maryland to study computer science. Christine Wang is attending Purdue University to study aerospace engineering. Diana Zavela will study engineering at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland.

In June, 3,200 additional college-sponsored scholarships were announced, including seven TJHSST seniors.

The three new winners are among ten chosen from Virginia. Financed by 182 colleges and universities, the scholarships provide between $500 and $2,000 each year for up to four years of an undergraduate program. The sponsoring colleges include 103 private and 79 public institutions in 44 states and DC.

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Earlier in the spring, winners of corporate-sponsored and $2,500 National Merit Scholarships were announced. The 900 new college-sponsored scholarships brings the total to 4,000. In all, 7,500 high school seniors will receive $32 million in National Merit Scholarships, sponsored by both corporations and higher education institutions.

Students were entered into the competition by taking the Preliminary SATs as juniors. In the fall, 16,000 semifinalists were named, representing less than 1 percent of the country's seniors. Semifinalists submitted additional applications with an essay, information about extracurricular activities, leadership positions and awards, and a recommendation from a school official.

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