Darshan Shah was eating lunch with his family when he checked his phone and saw the email that was about to change his life.
“I almost fell out of my chair,” said the Sarnia teen, recalling the moment he learned he’d won one of the most prestigious scholarships in the country. “I just started screaming…no way; there’s absolutely, no way.”
Shah, who graduates this month from Northern Collegiate, is among just 100 students from across Canada selected to the coveted Schulich Leader Scholarship, which recognizes students who plan to study STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics).
He’ll receive $120,000 over four years, to pursue an engineering degree at McMaster University.
“It was one of those surreal feelings… I’m still in that cloud-nine kind of shock,” Shah told The Journal this week at Northern, where he wrote his final exam and was congratulated by Lambton-Kent District School Board director John Howitt.
It’s believed Shah is the third student in board history to win the award; Joy Shah, (no relation) who is actually a family friend, won the Schulich back in 2017 upon graduation from Great Lakes Secondary School. In 2018, LCCVI’s Peter Matthews also won the award.
“It’s definitely a huge burden off of my shoulders,” said Shah, who wants to study software engineering and eventually launch his own company, with a focus on giving back to his community. He also wants to write a book someday.
“I think it will really allow me to focus on what I want to do for this world, and where I want to take my career.”
The Schulich Leader Award involves a vigorous application process. This year, out of a pool of 350,000 potential candidates across Canada, more than 1,400 students were nominated, with 100 recipients ultimately selected. Of those, 50 receive $120,000 to pursue an engineering degree and 50 receive $100,000 to pursue a science, technology or math degree at one of 20 Canadian partner universities.
“Every high school gets to nominate one person who we believe excels academically as well as leadership, creativity and charisma,” said guidance counsellor Todd Whitlock, who pointed to Shah’s academic excellence, but also, his wide range of involvement including co-prime minister on student council, LKDSB student trustee, and his role on a number of school committees and sports teams.
“We’ve had some very worthy applications in the past…we’ve even had some make the interview stages; but he’s the first to win, as far as I know.
“It’s pretty impressive,” Whitlock added. “He just has a lot of maturity… he gets excited when he talks about what he sees for himself in 10 years. I’m just really happy for him.”
Shah adds that it was his mother, Meghana, who convinced him to apply for the scholarship — even betting $100 that he would be selected.
She believed in him, even when he didn’t always believe in himself, Shah says, noting he was declined for a number of other scholarships and programs he’d applied for.
“I had zero confidence in getting this award,” he recalls, with a laugh. “But my mom was the one always pushing me and believing in me… she said, ‘I have a feeling you’re going to get this.’”
“I guess I would just tell people — honestly, just go for it,” said Shah, who starts his full-time summer job at Howell Data Systems next week. “You never know where you’ll end up.”
As for the bet?
Shah was true to his word and gave his mom that $100.
But she handed it right back.
“She said, ‘“I can’t take this,’” Shah laughed. “You just saved me so much money."