LONGVIEW, Texas — A Pine Tree High School student is one of about 16,000 students nationwide to be named a semifinalists for the 68th annual National Merit Scholarship Program.
PTISD senior Noah Sims made the cut for the East Texas area.
"These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for some 7,250 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $28 million that will be offered next spring," the NMSP said. "To be considered for a Merit Scholarship® award, semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition. About 95 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.
To compete for National Merit Scholarships, Semifinalists must advance to the Finalist level of the competition by fulfilling several additional requirements. A Semifinalist can become a Finalist and compete for a Merit Scholarship award in only one program year.
Requirements for Finalist standing To qualify as a Finalist, a Semifinalist must:
- continue to meet all requirements for participation in the competition;
- be enrolled in the last year of high school and plan to enroll full-time in college the following fall, or be enrolled in the first year of college if grades 9 through 12 were completed in three years or less;
- be fully endorsed for Finalist standing and recommended for a National Merit Scholarship by the high school principal (or school official designated by the principal);
- have a record of consistently very high academic performance in all of grades 9 through 12 and in any college courses taken;
- complete the NMSC® Online Scholarship Application (OSA) with all information requested;
- take an authorized administration of the SAT® or ACT®, earn scores that confirm performance on the PSAT/NMSQT® taken for program entry, and arrange for the National Merit Program to receive an official score report of the SAT or ACT taken; and
- provide any additional documentation and information that NMSC requests.
