Senior Vanessa Horack has received a full ride scholarship to the University of Florida.

Horack was recognized as a National Merit Scholarship qualifier after taking the PSAT her junior year.  Approximately 50,000 juniors across the country qualify for this recognition, according to the Princeton Review.  Horack was one of 16,000 students selected as a semifinalist.  After this, she wrote an essay and completed an application in order to become one of the 15,000 National Merit Scholarship finalists.  

During the National Merit Scholarship application process, Horack listed the University of Florida as her top choice of school.  She received the University of Florida’s Benacquisto scholarship, which covers all costs and waives out of state tuition, which is approximately $28,000 per year.

“I was so excited when I found out about the scholarship because UF is a great school,” said Horack.  “They are among the top schools in the nation academically. The full ride is also an amazing bonus.”

Horack was drawn to the University of Florida because of their Zoology program.  She also hopes to join their Disney College Program, a program that offers career experience to college students at Disney, since her ideal job after graduation would be to work at the Animal Kingdom zoo in Disneyworld.

“My advice is to research which schools have the best programs for what you want to do and look at all of the programs they offer so you know the best places to apply. I would also suggest getting involved in scholarship websites because there are a lot of scholarships out there for everyone in all walks of life,” says Horack.