• ST. LOUIS, MO, October 29, 2012 – The National Merit Scholarship Corporation has announced the names of the semifinalists for the National Merit Scholarship and the National Achievement Scholarship. SLPS is proud to recognize two students whose academic performance warrant a place in this year’s scholarship competition.

     National Merit Scholarship

    Sam Hunt, a student at Metro Academic & Classical High School, will join the nation-wide pool of semifinalists competing for some 8,300 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $32 million that will be offered next spring.

    Sam Hunt surpassed about 1.5 million juniors from 22,000 high schools from across the country that entered the 2013 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2011 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test, 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.

    National Achievement Scholarship

    Willow Pastard, a student at Metro Academic & Classical High School, will join the nation-wide pool of semifinalists competing for some 800 National Merit Scholarships worth more than $2.5 million that will be offered next spring.

    Willow Pastard surpassed more than 160,000 high school juniors from all parts of the United States who requested consideration in the 2013 National Achievement Scholarship Program when they took the 2011 Preliminary sat/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®). Semifinalists are designated within geographic regions and are the highest-scoring program entrants in the states that make up each region.

    To advance to the Finalist level in the competition, the Semifinalist and their high school must submit a detailed scholarship application in which they provide information about the student’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, and educational goals. Semifinalists must present a record of high academic performance throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay, and earn sat scores that confirm their PSAT/NMSQT performance.

    Conclusion

    Finalists for the National Merit Scholarship will be announced in February, and National Achievement Scholarship will be announced in January. Scholarship winners from both competitions will be named in April.  For more information please contact the Office of Public Information (314) 345-2367.

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