Aspiring Sarnia software engineer Darshan Shah won a $120,000 Schulich Leader scholarship
Aspiring Sarnia software engineer Darshan Shah won a $120,000 Schulich Leader scholarship.
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The 17-year-old Northern Collegiate graduate, who moved to Sarnia from Mississauga with his family when he was in first grade, said he almost fell over when he saw the email awarding him the scholarship.
“I just feel so honoured and grateful for this opportunity to get this money, and the ability to just focus on my studies, rather than having to worry about paying off my tuition and whatnot,” he said.
Shah was a four-sport athlete, a student trustee with the Lambton Kent District School Board, a student council leader and co-founder of Northern’s tutoring club.
He also received an Ontario volunteer service award for volunteering at the Sarnia Hindu Society.
He’s heading to McMaster University in Hamilton in the fall, where he’s interested in studying software engineering, he said.
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The scholarship fund, founded by entrepreneur and philanthropist Seymour Schulich, awards 100 scholarships a year, in partnership with 20 universities, to students pursuing studies in science, technology, engineering and math.
Schulich leaders “are entrepreneurial-minded and exemplify academic excellence and leadership, creativity and charisma, with strong consideration for financial need,” the scholarship website says.
“It’s one of those scholarships that everyone knows about just because of how much it’s worth, but … it’s so far out of reach that most people don’t even bother,” Shah said.
High schools can name one nominee, and selected applicants pitch themselves to universities, which select recipients for the scholarships, he said.
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Without the award, Shah said he likely would have had to work while studying.
Shah is currently interning with Sarnia software company Howell Data Systems, rewriting an application for Android, currently usable on iPhone Operating System.
“I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it,” he said, noting his career hopes are to create software that makes an impact.
“Software is the kind of thing that makes the world run right now, and there are many opportunities for growth and innovation.”
His father is a process and chemical engineer with Worley-Parsons in Sarnia, he said.
And his older brother is studying software engineering and business at Western, he said.
“He also inspired me quite a bit,” Shah said.
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