NEW ROCHELLE, NY –The Ursuline School proudly announces that 5 seniors have been named Semifinalists in the 2016 National Merit Scholarship Competition and 8 seniors have been named National Merit Commended Students on the basis of their outstanding PSAT/NMSQT scores.
More than 1.5 million juniors in more than 22,000 high schools took the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. The 16,000 Semifinalists are the highest scorers in each of the 50 states and are in the top 1% of U.S. high school seniors. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.
These talented seniors placed among the top 5% of the more than 1.5 million students who entered the 2016 competition by taking the 2015 Preliminary SAT or the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®) last year.
The National Merit® Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1955. High school students enter the National Merit Program by taking the PSAT/NMSQT and by meeting published program entry and participation requirements.
The press release from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation notes that in order to advance to Finalist status, the Semifinalists now must submit detailed scholarship applications that include their academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, as well as honors and awards received.
Finalists will be announced in February 2016. National Merit Scholarship winners are selected from among the Finalists. Three types of National Merit Scholarships will be offered in spring 2016. There will be 2,500 National Merit $2500 Scholarships, approximately 1,000 corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarships, and about 190 colleges and universities are expected to finance some 3,900 college-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards for Finalists who attend the sponsor institution.
Congratulations to our Commended Students: Hannah Devaney, Monica Diaz, Sheila Dolan, Mariana Garza, Kimberly Laguatan, Allyson Mauch, Katherine Poletti, and Marie Pugliese.
“The young men and women being named Commended Students have demonstrated outstanding potential for academic success,” commented a spokesperson for NMSC. “These students represent a valuable national resource; recognizing their accomplishments, as well as the key role their schools play in their academic development, is vital to the advancement of educational excellence in our nation. We hope that this recognition will help broaden their educational opportunities and encourage them as they continue in their pursuit of academic success.”