Eight Guilderland High School students who were selected as 2022 National Merit Scholarship semifinalists in the fall have now advanced to the finalist level of the competition. The eight GHS students are Joanna Chen, Michael Cheng, Colleen Grimshaw, Abhishikth Nadella, Tianli Qu, Grace Wei, Michael Wong and Ian Zhang.
The National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1995. Approximately 1.5 million high school students enter the program each year, with approximately 16,000 high school seniors nationwide named as semifinalists. These academically talented high school seniors have an opportunity to continue in the competition for 7,500 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $30 million, that will be offered this spring.
All winners of the Merit Scholarship awards are chosen from the finalist group based on their abilities, skills and accomplishments, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin or religious preference. A variety of information is evaluated: the finalist’s academic record, information about the school’s curriculum and grading system, Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT) Selection Index score, the high school official’s written recommendation, information about the student’s activities and leadership and the finalist’s own essay.
These students entered the competition as high school juniors by taking the PSAT/NMSQT, which served as an initial screen of program entrants. Students with the highest PSAT/NMSQT Selection Index qualify for recognition.
Congratulations to these students on this impressive achievement and continued good luck in the competition!
