Gannon University held its sixth annual on-campus full-tuition scholarship competition Saturday.
Eighty-seven students from California, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, New York, New Jersey, Ohio and Texas entered the competition with the hopes of winning.
Thomas Camillo, director of Undergraduate Admissions, said that there were a lot of students with great ideas who participated in the competition this year.
“We had a really good representation of students this year,” Camillo said. “It was exciting to know that students were so willing to make the trek up here.”
Students are chosen to participate in the competition based on their academic strengths, high-school GPA and their test scores.
“The goal is to try to bring mentally strong students into the competition,” Camillo said. “We want them to show us their potential.”
This year, Gannon was able to award eight full-tuition scholarships to the students who exhibited the most achievement, not only in the classroom, but outside of it as well.
“We challenge students,” Camillo said. “Not just in academics, but we try to get them to show us the real them. We want to know about their passions and their interests and how they can incorporate them into Gannon’s community.”
For the competition, students were asked to present an original creation that shows what they plan to do after college graduation. Students who applied submitted photos, drawings, poems, PowerPoints and other projects.
In addition, students were asked to explain how their submission demonstrates what they hope to achieve at Gannon. Submissions were judged based on creativity, originality, relevance, presentation and explanation.
Participants who do not receive a full, four-year tuition scholarship will receive a financial aid award of $1,500.
Those who do receive a full-tuition scholarship will only be responsible for extra fees, books and supplies and room and board, if they choose to live on campus.
Students also had the opportunity to tour campus and get answers to their questions about enrollment and financial aid.
“It’s really been a fun experience for everyone,” Camillo said.
Winning students will be announced Friday. All other students will be notified next week.
SAMANTHA GRISWOLD
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