Gupta, Hong finalists for National Merit scholarship
Senior Aditya Gupta works on homework in his first period IB Philosophy class.
March 18, 2014
Tracy High seniors Aditya Gupta and Inyoung Hong have moved on to the finalist level in the competition for a National Merit Scholarship. Each year, the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) awards 8,000 students a National Merit $2,500 scholarship.
Students initially qualify for a National Merit Scholarship based on their performance on the Preliminary SAT (PSAT), a smaller version of the SAT that students take in their sophomore and junior years of high school.
“One of the things I really like about National Merit is that it offers $2,500 for doing well on the PSAT,” Hong said. “This rewards students for studying early and not procrastinating.”
According to the NMSC’s official website, the material evaluated when choosing which students will be awarded scholarships includes “the Finalist’s academic record, information about the school’s curricula and grading system, two sets of test scores, the high school official’s written recommendation, information about the student’s activities and leadership, and the finalist’s own essay.”
Gloria Miller, the counselor for Gupta and Hong, was responsible for sending in the required information to the NMSC as well as providing a recommendation for both students.
“Both students come highly recommended from me,” Miller said. “From the outset, they have been committed to their education and they both have outstanding academic records.”
Miller sees Gupta and Hong as very deserving students not just because of their grades but also because of their involvement in other activities.
“Both have exceptional, outstanding GPAs and have maintained them since freshman year, but they both give back to the school and the community,” Miller said. “Aditya is very involved in extracurricular activities, such as tutoring students in math. Inyoung was a Girl Scout for five years and is very passionate about art.”
Gupta and Hong were selected to move on the highest possible level of the competition from a pool of 15,000 semifinalists. Winners are chosen regardless of their family’s financial need, their college choice, or future plans.
“Just knowing that I’m in the top 15,000 seniors in the country is rewarding,” Gupta said.
The NMSC also gives out corporate scholarships to children of parents who work for certain companies as well as institution-specific awards for students who have chosen to attend certain universities.
“I think that being a National Merit finalist has given me a ton of opportunities,” Gupta said. “Since I am a finalist I’m guaranteed a half-tuition scholarship to the University of Southern California.”
Receiving a National Merit scholarship is something that both Gupta and Hong argue would greatly improve their ability to get a good education after graduating from high school.
“Twenty-five hundred will go a long way in paying for college,” Hong said. “Any amount of money will help. It’s nice because the money is pretty much guaranteed once you get a certain score on the PSAT.”
Gupta hopes to be awarded a scholarship as well, especially because he feels it will greatly help his family.
“I have a younger brother who is a freshman,” Gupta says. “Any money will be helpful for my family because they have another child to put through college after me.”
