So you think PSAT's don't matter? THINK AGAIN! over 36 million dollars in College Scholarships

The National Merit® Scholarship Program honors individual students
who show exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies. The program
does not measure the quality or effectiveness of education within a school, system, or state.Semifinalists Named in the 2010 National Merit® Scholarship Program
(Evanston, Illinois) Today officials of National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC)
announced the names of approximately 16,000 Semifinalists in the 55th annual National Merit
Scholarship Program. These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to
continue in the competition for some 8,200 National Merit Scholarships, worth more than
$36 million, that will be offered next spring. To be considered for a Merit Scholarship® award,
Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition.
About 90 percent of the Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, and approximately
half of the Finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship, earning the Merit Scholar® title.
NMSC, a not-for-profit organization that operates without government assistance, was
established in 1955 specifically to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program.
Scholarships are underwritten by NMSC with its own funds and by approximately 500 business
organizations and higher education institutions that share NMSC’s goals of honoring the
nation’s scholastic champions and encouraging the pursuit of academic excellence.
Note: This press release was distributed to news media
on September 14 with a list of Semifinalists to encourage
public recognition of these outstanding students. The
release is made available here to provide information
about the National Merit Scholarship Program, however
the names of Semifinalists are not posted on this Web site.
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Semifinalists in the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program
National Merit, Merit Scholarship, and Merit Scholar are federally registered service marks of National Merit Scholarship
Corporation. PSAT/NMSQT is a registered trademark of National Merit Scholarship Corporation and the College Board.
Steps in the Competition
More than 1.5 million juniors in about 22,000 high schools entered the 2010 National Merit
Scholarship Program by taking the 2008 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying
Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool
of Semifinalists, which represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the
highest scoring entrants in each state. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the
state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.
To become a Finalist, a Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record
throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by the high school principal, and earn
SAT scores that confirm the student’s earlier performance on the qualifying test. The Semifinalist
and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, which includes the
student’s essay and information about the Semifinalist’s participation and leadership in school
and community activities.
Approximately 15,000 Semifinalists are expected to advance to the Finalist level and it is
from this group that all National Merit Scholarship winners will be chosen. Merit Scholar designees
are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous
college studies, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference.
Merit Scholarship Awards
Three types of National Merit Scholarship awards will be offered in the spring of 2010.
Every Finalist will compete for one of 2,500 National Merit $2500 Scholarships that will be
awarded on a state representational basis. About 1,000 corporate-sponsored scholarships will
be provided by approximately 270 corporations and business organizations for Finalists who
meet their specified criteria, such as children of the grantor’s employees or residents of
communities where sponsor plants or offices are located. In addition, about 200 colleges and
universities are expected to finance some 4,700 college-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards
for Finalists who will attend the sponsor institution.
National Merit Scholarship winners of 2010 will be announced in four nationwide news
releases beginning in April and concluding in July. These scholarship recipients will join more
than 267,000 other distinguished young people who have earned the Merit Scholar title.