Basic Facts about the National Merit Scholarship Program

Knowing to Basic Facts about the National Merit Scholarship Program

The National Merit Scholarship Program is one of the two scholarship programs conducted by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC). This program is open to all high-school students all over the United States.

Looking for National Merit Scholarship Program

Students who are interested to join in the competition for the scholarships should meet the following requirements:

- have to be a full time high-school student and is planning to enroll as a full time college student immediately after graduation in high-school

- a United States citizen or permanent resident who has applied for or is planning to apply for US citizenship at the earliest possible time, or a non-US citizen who applied for permanent residency with the intention of becoming a citizen and has not been denied application

- have to take the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) at their school, in their junior year in high-school or 11th Grade. A home-schooled student can also avail as long as the test is taken at a local school or in a location approved by the NMSC.

Learning to National Merit Scholarship Program

Interested students are advised to inform their school's guidance councilor of their intention to participate in the competition for the National Merit Scholarship Program.

 

There are around 1.5 million entrants nationwide with only 50,000 selected who will then be eligible to become Semifinalists. These 50,000 are the ones who garnered top scores in the PSAT/NMSQT. About one/third of the 50,000 (around 16,000 students) will be chosen to be Semifinalists, these are the students who ranked highest among those who pass the tests from their state. Principals of the schools with Semifinalists will be notified and the qualified student needs to comply the additional requirements needed to be selected as Finalist. The student is also expected to maintain a high academic standing and be active in activities both in and out of school.

 

From the 16,000, 15,000 will be chosen as Finalists and will receive a Certificate of Merit as recognition in reaching the final stage. There will be 8,200 winners for the Merit Scholarship awards, who are found to have excelled in their achievements and skills.

 

Under the National Merit Scholarship Program, there there three Merit Scholarship awards that a successful Finalist can belong to: the National Merit $2,500 Scholarship, the Corporate-Sponsored Merit Scholarship and the College-sponsored Merit Scholarship.

 

The amount provided by the National Merit Scholarship Program will be used to pay for the scholar's undergraduate education in any college or university accredited by the accrediting commission on higher education.

 

National Merit Scholarship Corporation is the organization that facilitates the examination and selection process for the National Merit Scholarship Program. It is a non-profit, private organization which was established in 1955. NMSC is in partnership with multiple corporations and colleges. Currently, it has provided 360,000 scholarships to 2.9 million students. Information about NMSC and the National Merit Scholarship Program can be found in www. nationalmerit.org. National Merit Scholarship Program

A Brief Guide in National Merit Scholarships

Knowing to A Brief Guide in National Merit Scholarship

The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) is a private, non-profit organization that conducts a yearly competition for highly qualified high-school graduating students across the United States to avail scholarship programs for college. There are two programs under the NMSC: the National Merit Scholarship Program and the National Achievement Scholarship Program.

Looking for National Merit Scholarship

The National Merit Scholarship Program is open to all high-school students who are US citizens or permanent resident. The National Achievement Scholarship Program, on the other hand, is open only to African Americans. Although the two programs may be distinct, the overall criteria, eligibility and process of selection for both programs are the same.

Learning about National Merit Scholarship

To qualify for the scholarship programs, a high-school student in his or her junior year (11th Grade) has to pass a qualifying exam known as PSAT/NMSQT (Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test). Yearly, around 1.5 million students take the exam and only the top 50,000 with the highest score (around 200 or more) will move on to the next level. Of the 50,000, only 16,000 will become semifinalists, while the remaining 34,000 will receive letters of commendation, but will also be eligible as candidates for Special Scholarships which are given by sponsoring corporations.

 

The list of students who became Semifinalists will then be checked and those that rank highest per state will be selected to advance to Finalist status. The number of students may vary per state, and may change each year. Once a student is notified that he or she is a Semifinalist, the student has to display consistent academic excellence in his or her senior year and must be active in volunteer or extra curricular activities. The Semifinalist should be endorsed and recommended by any official of his or her high-school and will be asked to submit an essay.

 



Once all requirements are submitted, the Semifinalists will then be reviewed and the Finalists will be chosen. There will be 15,000 Finalists chosen which will be divided into two groups, the Merit Scholarship winners (around 8,200 of them) and the Special Scholarship Recipients (remaining 1,300).

 

There are three types of Merit Scholarship Awards:

1. The National Merit $2,500 Scholarships, which is available to any passing Finalists

2. Corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarships, which are given to their employees' children, or Finalists who resides in the community where the company operates or Finalists whose career path is in accord with what the corporate sponsor encourages.

3. College-sponsored Merit Scholarships, which are given to Finalists who has chosen that particular college as his or her first choice. To qualify for this, Finalists need to inform beforehand the NMSC their first choice college before a designated deadline.

 

The Special Scholarship Recipients are students who pass a qualifying criteria provided by a sponsoring corporation and who was able to submit an entry form.

 

Additional information and schedules can be found in the NMSC's website, www.nationalmerit.org. National Merit Scholarship