The National Merit Scholarship Corporation announced this year’s National Merit $2500 Scholarship winners including Crown Point High School Senior Sarah Leitzel. Designation as a finalist in this prestigious competition also triggers eligibility for a number of other scholarships.
“I took practice tests and linked up my previous SATS,” Leitzel said. “I used Khan Academy to see what I needed to focus on to be prepared and make sure I had enough time for each section. I encourage underclassmen to keep working really hard because it pays off.”
The 2,500 Merit Scholar designees were chosen from a talent pool of more than 15,000 outstanding Finalists in the 2024 National Merit Scholarship Program. National Merit $2500 Scholarship winners are the Finalists in each state judged to have the strongest combination of accomplishments, skills, and potential for success in rigorous college studies.
Leitzel has demonstrated her potential for success throughout her career at Crown Point High School and hopes to use her interest in science and talents to help people. She plans to attend Indiana University Bloomington to study bio-chemistry and eventually pre-med to pursue a career in the medical field.
“My mom’s a doctor, and I’ve always respected what she does. I specifically want to work with people who don’t have access to adequate health care. I lived in Zambia for two years, so I saw the health care disparity and the value of good health care. There are even places in the the US where people are not getting the health care they need. I want to help those people,” Leitzel said.
These Scholars were selected by a committee of college admissions officers and high school counselors, who appraised a substantial amount of information submitted by both the Finalists and their high schools: the academic record, including difficulty level of subjects studied and grades earned; scores from the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®); contributions and leadership in school and community activities; an essay written by the Finalist; and a recommendation written by a high school official.
This year’s National Merit Scholarship Program began in October 2022 when high school juniors took the PSAT/NMSQT, which served as an initial screen of program entrants. Last fall, the highest-scoring participants in each state, representing less than one percent of the nation’s high school seniors, were named Semifinalists on a state-representational basis.
Even fewer than the top one percent in the nation actually won this scholarship.
Note: Information about the National Merit Program is from a press release distributed to news media on May 7.
