The Student News Website of Susquehannock High School,   Glen Rock, Pennsylvania.

SHS Courier

Breaking News
The Student News Website of Susquehannock High School,   Glen Rock, Pennsylvania.

SHS Courier

The Student News Website of Susquehannock High School,   Glen Rock, Pennsylvania.

SHS Courier

Lesko makes National Merit Scholarship Finals

Senior Ellie Lesko

The National Merit Scholarship is an academic competition students can enter by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), enabling students, such as senior Ellie Lesko, to compete for recognition and scholarships.

According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, the requirements to enter the National Merit Scholarship competition are to take the PSAT/NMSQT test by the third year of high school, to be a U.S. citizen, and to progress normally towards graduating high school with plans to attend college full-time the following year.
The test is given to about 1.5 million kids a year, and of that 1.5 million, 50,000 of the highest tests scorers are chosen for either recognition or as a semi-finalist. In February, 15,000 of the semi-finalists are notified that they have moved on to the finalist standing.
This year, senior Ellis Lesko has made it as far as a finalist in the National Merit Scholarship Corporation competition.
“I am excited about the possibility of winning a scholarship because it will help me to attend college with as little money spent on the part of my parents and myself possible, allowing me to graduate with a bachelor’s [degree] with no debt,” said Lesko.
Lesko scored in the 99th percentile on the PSAT, which got her to semifinalist status. She then had to fill out an application which included an essay, letters of recommendation, and SAT scores to be in the running as a finalist, but it wasn’t easy.
“It took a lot of motivation to get to the point where opportunities such as this were a possibility,” said Lesko. “I ended up taking the SAT three times to get my highest possible score to help my chances of getting into colleges and being in the running for scholarships, such as this one.”
Starting in the beginning of March until mid-June, the National Merit Scholarship Corporation will be notifying about 8,300 of the finalists that they have won a scholarship, according to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation website.
“I hope I get picked as a scholarship recipient because any money towards my undergraduate education will make my long-term goals of graduate work and starting my own research lab easier to reach,” said Lesko.
There are three types of scholarships available to students.
There is the National Merit $2500 Scholarship, a single payment scholarship awarded on a state representative basis. Winners for these scholarships are chosen regardless of financial situations or college or major choices.
Another scholarship up for grabs is the Corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship. This is a scholarship that corporate sponsors designate to children of their employees or members, community residents where the corporation is affiliated, or a finalist with career/major plans that the sponsor encourages, according to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation states.
The last of the National Merit Scholarship Corporation’s offered scholarships is the College-sponsored Merit Scholarship. Finalists can win this scholarship by notifying the National Merit Scholarship Corporation that they have been accepted into one of the sponsor colleges and that the college is their first choice. The sponsor-college officials will then pick the winners of the scholarship for their respective schools. This scholarship is renewable for four years of undergraduate study at the college.
“I would prefer to win one of the corporate scholarships because I qualify for more scholarships in this category than in the college-sponsored category,” said Lesko. “[The corporate-sponsored scholarships] would allow me more flexibility with my college choice because it would not be college-specific.”
Whether Lesko gets picked for the scholarship or not, many here at Susky are cheering her on in the hope that she is chosen.
More to Discover
Activate Search
Lesko makes National Merit Scholarship Finals