By Kierra Long
For the first time in the school’s 16-year history 10 students qualified as semi-finalists for the National Merit Scholarship. About 1.5 million juniors take the PSAT each year, a standardized test that high school students who are pursuing a college career path must take. About 50,000 qualify for the Merit Scholarship and only 16,000 qualify for the semi-finals. This is a scholarship offered yearly by the National Merit Corporation, a non profit organization recognizing student excellence.
“I am very impressed and proud of our scholars but also our school as a whole. Our entire student body and staff work in unity to be the best version of us we can be and make Coronado better as a school. Students here have an exceptional work ethic and drive to challenge themselves with rigorous courses,” Principal Piccininni said.
The Merit Scholarships offer four-year awards, varying anywhere from $500 to $10,000 per year for college, or single-payment awards ranging from $2,500 to $5,000. Qualifications are determined by the corporation.
“When I went to take the PSAT, I was hopeful that I would qualify for the scholarship, but I was never 100 percent confident. After I got my results back and compared them to previous years, I thought I had a pretty good shot,” Jack Damiani, senior, said.
The National Merit Scholarship Corporation demands students score above a 1,400, landing them in the top one percentile of scores in the United States, then they can be admitted into the scholarship’s semifinals. Although it is mandatory for sophomores to take the PSAT through school, juniors retake it, as this is when they may begin to think about preparation for college and become interested in the nation wide testing. The results of scores can open scholarship doors and opportunities. Becoming a potential scholarship winner can cause candidates to rethink their post high school plans.
“I had originally just planned on going to UNLV, but now I’ve vastly broadened my horizons,” Caitlin Miller, senior, said.
In order to become a finalist, all semi-finalists must submit a detailed application which includes essays and information regarding extracurricular activities, achievements, awards, and leaderships. All finalists must maintain an outstanding GPA and be endorsed by a school administrator. Awards are announced from March through June.
