(02/27/2025) Blaine High School - Center for Engineering, Mathematics and Science (BHS) seniors Nawal Arafa and Sarrah Es-Sabha were recently announced as two out of 2,627 finalists to receive full four-year scholarships through the 2024 QuestBridge National College Match program. 

QuestBridge connects high-achieving high school seniors who demonstrate financial need and high potential for success with full four-year scholarships to 52 of the nation's top colleges. 

Arafa and Es-Sabha advanced from a field of 25,500 applicants, eventually dwindling to 7,288 finalists and 2,627 recipients.

“This opportunity truly means the world to me,” Arafa said. "Coming from an extremely low-income family, my ambitions have often felt limited by financial constraints. However, with this scholarship, the sky is truly the limit. I'm incredibly grateful not only for the chance to pursue my dreams without burdening my family but also for the ability to leave my mark on the world.”

"This opportunity means a lot to me because I never thought I would be able to go to a top college because of how expensive it is to go out of state,” Es-Sabha said. “Questbridge gives me the chance to not only step out of my comfort zone but to also explore a prestigious school that I thought I could only dream of going to."

Arafa will attend Washington University in St. Louis where she plans to major in Biology on a pre-med track. Es-Sabha will also pursue Biology and pre-med at Duke University, with the ultimate goal of a career in dermatology.

The pool of outstanding seniors to earn QuestBridge scholarships in 2024 have an average unweighted GPA of 3.94 and 92% are in the top 10% of their graduating class. The majority of this year’s recipients — 83% — are among the first generation in their families to attend a four-year college in the United States.