Two Permian High School students are not only among the top 10, but they are also Dell Scholars.
Both Dhruvkumar Patel and Isabel Garza were accepted into the University of Texas at Austin.
Dell Scholars at UT Austin receive a $20,000 scholarship over their time in college that can be applied toward their cost of attendance, the Dell Scholars website says.
“Funds are available to scholarship recipients for up to six years to reduce debt and are offered alongside the program’s core support services,” the site detailed.
Nationally, the site said, 500 Dell Scholars are selected each year to receive a scholarship “plus lots of non-monetary supports.”
The students have to meet certain income, grade and test score levels to get the scholarship.
Garza, 17, had not settled on where she was going to college as of May 9.
“I thought that it was like really exciting for me because it’s a lot of money,” Garza said.
She found out she won the scholarship in March via email and she was hoping it was real.
Her family thought the scholarship was a good opportunity for her.
The last few days of school are going well for Garza.
“It’s just lots of AP exams … for college credit, hopefully. So it’s less classes I have to take when I decide where I’m going,” Garza said.
She added that she would advise students who want to try for a Dell Scholarship to go for it, because it won’t hurt them if they don’t get it.
“But if you do get it, then you’re going to see the rewards of it. There’s no harm in trying,” Garza said.
Garza had four years of varsity cheer, two of which she was the captain, and four years of varsity track.
She was also in academic societies and clubs, a member of the junior and senior board and participated in Ector County ISD’s strategic planning process.
The junior and senior boards are like another form of student council to help plan things on campus. Junior prom was the big event and then senior year you pick the graduation announcements and senior gift to the school, Garza said.
Patel, 18, plans to attend UT Austin and major in neuroscience.
“I want to become a neurosurgeon and find better treatments for cancer or cures,” Patel said.
When he found out about the Dell Scholarship, Patel said he thought it was like a normal award. When he got more information, he realized it was going to be very helpful.
“… I’m lucky to like have gotten it because they offer a lot of help and aid with the counseling and then they also help with computers …,” Patel said.
Patel said he decided on neuroscience to help fulfill his father’s dream.
“… I wanted to be something that’s more impactful in the world. I chose the brain because it’s interesting how they do the surgeries because someone sits down and they open their brain and they give them something that they like and they keep playing it. When they stop, they know that some something they did was wrong. When they get back to playing, it’s correct and successful …,” Patel said.
Patel said he is doing what no one else in his family has.
“… I’m grateful that I got a chance to go to UT because in my family my brother and my family they didn’t really get to go to college and accomplish high standards. But my brother became a cybersecurity analyst here, so that was good. I’m basically doing what no one in my family has done and especially to go to Austin and get the opportunity to do the neuroscience program which is No. 1 in Texas. I feel really grateful for that,” Patel said.
Permian High School College and Career Advisor Jennifer Perkins said having two students as Dell Scholars is extremely rare.
“… I believe it’s been about five years since we’ve had our last one, so this is a great thing for them and a great thing for Permian and UT Austin …,” Perkins said.
Perkins said the UT Dell Scholarship winners would have to go to UT Austin. If they were “regular” Dell Scholars, they could take it anywhere.
