National Merit Semifinalists

Earlier this month, the Semifinalists for the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program were announced. A remarkable 32 seniors from Arcadia High School qualified and will now have the chance to advance in a nationwide competition for scholarships given by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC).
Semifinalists are selected based on their performance on the PSAT. Administered every October, the PSAT is basically a condensed “warm-up” version of the much-feared SAT Reasoning Test. Don’t be fooled by the length of the PSAT, though. Semifinalist Stanley Yuan explains that though the PSAT may be shorter than its more well-known counterpart, it is actually “harder than the SAT because you can’t make mistakes. If you do, then you get docked heavily.”
For the high school juniors who don’t make commit such errors, however, the PSAT offers the chance to win a scholarship for college. Those who score at or above the minimum cutoff score in their state will achieve Semifinalist status, making them eligible to win up to $2,500 to go towards their college tuition.
As one may imagine, the National Merit Scholarship competition is highly competitive. Out of 1.4 million PSAT-takers, only 50,000 students will score high enough to receive any form of recognition. 34,000 receive Letters of Commendation in late September while 16,000 become Semifinalists. Both groups will be rewarded by being allowed to notify two colleges of their choice of their excellent testing performance.
For Semifinalists, the path towards winning a scholarship is far from over, and that means more work. In order to continue advancing in the competition, Semifinalists must fulfill a number of criteria, including earning an SAT score which reflects their success on the PSAT, maintaining good academic performance, procuring letters of recommendation from high school counselors, and completing an application. Ruodi Duan expressed surprise at the amount of work involved, saying, “I didn’t know there was a huge process. It’s essentially a repeat of college applications.”
After all the extensive paperwork has been completed (with ample assistance from the ever-hardworking counselors, of course), the Semifinalists will wait for another five months. In February, 15,000 Finalists will be announced. Then, one month after that, the National Merit Scholars will finally be selected based on their overall academic ability and other achievements. Typically, around 8,200 Scholars are named each year.
Not being selected, however, doesn’t necessarily disqualify a candidate from being a scholarship recipient. There are a number of Special Scholarships available for students who receive Commendation status or better.
For more information, visit http://nationalmerit.org.
Congratulations and best of luck to this year’s Semifinalists!

How to register for the PSAT:
This year’s PSAT will be administered on October 17th (you can unwind at Homecoming later that same day!). Sign ups begin in late September in front of the Music Building. Keep an eye out for more details on the Student Bulletin.

it's longer! yay!

Earlier this month, the Semifinalists for the 2010 National Merit Scholarship program were announced, and a remarkable 32 seniors from Arcadia High School made the cut. They will now have the chance to advance in a nationwide competition for scholarships given by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. The NMSC also sponsors the National Achievement Scholarship program, which rewards high-achieving Black American students. Our school boasts one Semifinalist this year: Wesley Tyner.
The Semifinalists for both programs are selected based on their performance on the PSAT. Administered every October, the PSAT is basically a condensed “warm-up” version of the much-feared SAT Reasoning Test. Don’t be fooled by the length of the PSAT though. Semifinalist Stanley Yuan explains, “Even though the PSAT is shorter than the SAT, it’s actually harder because you can’t make mistakes. If you do, you get docked heavily.”
For those who don’t commit such blunders, however, the PSAT offers the chance to win a scholarship for college. Those who score at or above the minimum cutoff in their state will achieve Semifinalist status, making them eligible to win up to $2,500 to go towards their college tuition.
As you may imagine, National Merit Scholar hopefuls face stiff competition. Over 1.4 million students take the PSAT each year, but only 34,000 receive Letters of Commendation in late September while 16,000 become Semifinalists. The National Achievement Scholarship Program recognizes 3,100 Outstanding Participants and 1,600 Semifinalists. Students in all four categories will be allowed to send the news of their excellent testing performance to two colleges of their choices.
For Semifinalists, the path towards a scholarship is far from over, and that means more work. In order to keep advancing in either competition, Semifinalists must earn an SAT score which corresponds with their success on the PSAT, maintain a high level of academic performance, and procure letters of recommendation from their high school counselors. They also need to fill out an application which includes an essay and a list of extracurricular activities, honors or awards received, and other notable information. Semifinalist Ruodi Duan expressed surprise at the amount of work required, saying, “I didn’t know there was a huge process involved. It’s basically a repeat of college applications.”
After completing all this paperwork (with ample assistance from the ever-hardworking counselors, the unsung heroes within this whole process), the Semifinalists will wait for another four to five months. In January and February, 15,000 Merit Finalists and 1,300 Achievement Finalists will be announced, respectively. Over the next few months, the scholarship recipients will be notified by mail. Typically, the NMSC names 8,200 National Merit Scholars and 800 National Achievement Scholars each year.
Not being selected, however, doesn’t necessarily disqualifying a candidate from receiving a scholarship. A number of Special Scholarships are available for students who received recognition from the NMSC but did not qualify as Finalists.
For more information on both scholarship programs, visit http://nationalmerit.org.
Congratulations and best of luck to this year’s Semifinalists!

How you can win a scholarship!

Although only Juniors are eligible for scholarships, Freshmen and Sophomores are welcome to take the PSAT’s as practice. This year’s PSAT will be administered on October 17th (you can unwind at the Homecoming Dance later that same day!). Sign-ups are in front of the Music Building during lunch only and will be from September 21st to October 2nd. Remember to bring Photo IDs and $30.00 (checks should be made out to “Arcadia Music Club”). Late sign-ups and walk-ins will be charged an additional $10.00.

Earlier this month, the Semifinalists for the 2010 National Merit Scholarship Program were announced. A remarkable 32 seniors from Arcadia High School qualified and will now have the chance to advance in a nationwide competition for scholarships given by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC).
Semifinalists are selected based on their performance on the PSAT. Administered every October, the PSAT is basically a condensed “warm-up” version of the much-feared SAT Reasoning Test. Don’t be fooled by the length of the PSAT, though. Semifinalist Stanley Yuan explains that though the PSAT may be shorter than its more well-known counterpart, it is actually “harder than the SAT because you can’t make mistakes. If you do, then you get docked heavily.”
For the high school juniors who don’t make commit [delete "commit"] such errors, however, the PSAT offers the chance to win a scholarship for college. Those who score at or above the minimum cutoff score in their state will achieve Semifinalist status, making them eligible to win up to $2,500 to go towards their college tuition.
As one may imagine, the National Merit Scholarship competition is highly competitive. Out of 1.4 million PSAT-takers, only 50,000 students will score high enough to receive any form of recognition. 34,000 [Write out numbers when at the beginning of a sentence or supply an initial word] receive Letters of Commendation in late September while 16,000 become Semifinalists. Both groups will be rewarded by being allowed to notify two colleges of their choice of their excellent testing performance.
For Semifinalists [don't capitalize semifinalists (and so forth throughout the article)], the path towards winning a scholarship is far from over, and that means more work. In order to continue advancing in the competition, Semifinalists must fulfill a number of criteria, including earning an SAT score which reflects their success on the PSAT, maintaining good academic performance, procuring letters of recommendation from high school counselors, and completing an application. Ruodi Duan expressed surprise at the amount of work involved, saying, “I didn’t know there was a huge process. It’s essentially a repeat of college applications.”
After all the extensive paperwork has been completed (with ample assistance from the ever-hardworking counselors, of course), the Semifinalists will wait for another five months. In February, 15,000 Finalists will be announced. Then, one month after that, the National Merit Scholars will finally be selected based on their overall academic ability and other achievements. Typically, around 8,200 Scholars are named each year.
Not being selected, however, doesn’t necessarily disqualify a candidate from being a scholarship recipient. There are a number of Special Scholarships available for students who receive Commendation status or better.
For more information, visit http://nationalmerit.org.
Congratulations and best of luck to this year’s Semifinalists!

How to register for the PSAT:
This year’s PSAT will be administered on October 17th (you can unwind at Homecoming later that same day!). Sign ups begin in late September in front of the Music Building. Keep an eye out for more details on the Student Bulletin.

Earlier this month, the semifinalists for the 2010 National Merit Scholarship program were announced, and a remarkable 32 seniors from Arcadia High School made the cut. They will now have the chance to advance in a nationwide competition for scholarships given by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. The NMSC also sponsors the National Achievement Scholarship program, which rewards high-achieving Black American students. Our school boasts one semifinalist for this competition: Wesley Tyner.
The semifinalists for both programs are selected based on their performance on the PSAT. Administered every October, the PSAT is basically a condensed “warm-up” version of the much-feared SAT Reasoning Test. Don’t be fooled by the length of the PSAT though. Semifinalist Stanley Yuan explains, “Even though the PSAT is shorter than the SAT, it’s actually harder because you can’t make mistakes. If you do, you get docked heavily.”
For those who don’t commit such errors, however, the PSAT offers the chance to win a scholarship for college. Those who score at or above the minimum cutoff in their state will achieve semifinalist status, making them eligible to win up to $2,500 to go towards their college tuition.
As one may imagine, National Merit Scholar hopefuls face stiff competition. Over 1.4 million students take the PSAT each year, but only 34,000 receive Letters of Commendation in late September while 16,000 become semifinalists. The National Achievement Scholarship Program recognizes 3,100 Outstanding Participants and 1,600 semifinalists. Students in all four categories will be allowed to send the news of their excellent testing performance to two colleges of their choices.
For semifinalists, the path towards a scholarship is far from over, and that means more work. In order to keep advancing in either competition, semifinalists must earn an SAT score which corresponds with their success on the PSAT, maintain a high level of academic performance, and procure letters of recommendation from their high school counselors. They also need to fill out an application which includes an essay and information about extracurricular activities, honors or awards received, or other notable achievements. Semifinalist Ruodi Duan expressed surprise at the amount of work required, saying, “I didn’t know there was a huge process involved. It’s basically a repeat of college applications.”
After completing all this paperwork (with ample assistance from the ever-hardworking counselors, the unsung heroes within this whole process), the semifinalists will wait for another four to five months. In January and February, the names of the 15,000 National Merit finalists and 1,300 National Achievement finalists will be announced. Over the months that follow, scholarship recipients will be notified by mail. Typically, the NMSC names 8,200 National Merit Scholars and 800 National Achievement Scholars each year.
Not being selected, however, doesn’t necessarily disqualify a candidate from receiving a scholarship. A number of Special Scholarships are available for students who received recognition from the NMSC but did not qualify as finalists.
For more information on both scholarship programs, visit http://nationalmerit.org.
Congratulations and best of luck to this year’s Semifinalists!

How you can win a scholarship!

Although only Juniors are eligible for scholarships, Freshmen and Sophomores are welcome to take the PSAT’s as practice. Many people find this to be an affordable and easy way of gearing up for the SAT Reasoning Test.
This year’s PSAT will be administered on October 17th (you can unwind at the Homecoming Dance later that same day!). Sign-ups are in front of the Music Building during lunch only and will take place from September 21st to October 2nd. Remember to bring a photo ID and $30.00 (checks should be made out to “Arcadia Music Club”). Late sign-ups and walk-ins will be charged an additional $10.00.

Earlier this month, the semifinalists for the 2010 National Merit Scholarship program were announced, and a remarkable 32 seniors from Arcadia High School made the cut. They will now have the chance to advance in a nationwide competition for scholarships given by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. The NMSC also sponsors the National Achievement Scholarship program, which rewards high-achieving Black [African?] American students. Our school boasts one semifinalist for this competition: Wesley Tyner.
The semifinalists for both programs are selected based on their performance on the PSAT. Administered every October, the PSAT is basically a condensed “warm-up” version of the much-feared SAT Reasoning Test. Don’t be fooled by the length of the PSAT though. Semifinalist Stanley Yuan explains, “Even though the PSAT is shorter than the SAT, it’s actually harder because you can’t make mistakes. If you do, you get docked heavily.”
For those who don’t commit such errors, however, the PSAT offers the chance to win a scholarship for college. Those who score at or above the minimum cutoff in their state will achieve semifinalist status, making them eligible to win up to $2,500 to go towards their college tuition.
As one may imagine, National Merit Scholar hopefuls face stiff competition. Over 1.4 million students take the PSAT each year, but only 34,000 receive Letters of Commendation in late September while 16,000 become semifinalists. The National Achievement Scholarship Program recognizes 3,100 Outstanding Participants and 1,600 semifinalists. Students in all four categories will be allowed to send the news of their excellent testing performance to two colleges of their choices.
For semifinalists, the path towards a scholarship is far from over, and that means more work. In order to keep advancing in either competition, semifinalists must earn an SAT score which corresponds with their success on the PSAT, maintain a high level of academic performance, and procure letters of recommendation from their high school counselors. They also need to fill out an application which includes an essay and information about extracurricular activities, honors or awards received, or other notable achievements. Semifinalist Ruodi Duan expressed surprise at the amount of work required, saying, “I didn’t know there was a huge process involved. It’s basically a repeat of college applications.”
After completing all this paperwork (with ample assistance from the ever-hardworking counselors, the unsung heroes within this whole process), the semifinalists will wait for another four to five months. In January and February, the names of the 15,000 National Merit finalists and 1,300 National Achievement finalists will be announced. Over the months that follow, scholarship recipients will be notified by mail. Typically, the NMSC names 8,200 National Merit Scholars and 800 National Achievement Scholars each year.
Not being selected, however, doesn’t necessarily disqualify a candidate from receiving a scholarship. A number of Special Scholarships are available for students who received recognition from the NMSC but did not qualify as finalists.
For more information on both scholarship programs, visit http://nationalmerit.org.
Congratulations and best of luck to this year’s Semifinalists!

How you can win a scholarship!

Although only Juniors [don't capitalize] are eligible for scholarships, Freshmen [don't capitalize] and Sophomores [don't capitalize] are welcome to take the PSAT’s as practice. Many people find this to be an affordable and easy way of gearing up for the SAT Reasoning Test.
This year’s PSAT will be administered on October 17th [Oct. 17] (you can unwind at the Homecoming Dance later that same day!). Sign-ups are in front of the Music Building during lunch only and will take place from September 21st [Sept. 21] to October 2nd [Oct. 2]. Remember to bring a photo ID and $30.00 [$30] (checks should be made out to “Arcadia Music Club”). Late sign-ups and walk-ins will be charged an additional $10.00 [$10].

Earlier this month, the semifinalists for the 2010 National Merit Scholarship program were announced, and a remarkable 32 seniors from Arcadia High School made the cut. They will now have the chance to advance in a nationwide competition for scholarships given by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. The NMSC also sponsors the National Achievement Scholarship program, which rewards high-achieving Black [it's what the website calls it] American students. Our school boasts one semifinalist for this competition: Wesley Tyner.
The semifinalists for both programs are selected based on their performance on the PSAT. Administered every October, the PSAT is basically a condensed “warm-up” version of the much-feared SAT Reasoning Test. Don’t be fooled by the length of the PSAT though. Semifinalist Stanley Yuan explains, “Even though the PSAT is shorter than the SAT, it’s actually harder because you can’t make mistakes. If you do, you get docked heavily.”
For those who don’t commit such errors, however, the PSAT offers the chance to win a scholarship for college. Those who score at or above the minimum cutoff in their state will achieve semifinalist status, making them eligible to win up to $2,500 to go towards their college tuition.
As one may imagine, National Merit Scholar hopefuls face stiff competition. Over 1.4 million students take the PSAT each year, but only 34,000 receive Letters of Commendation in late September while 16,000 become semifinalists. The National Achievement Scholarship Program recognizes 3,100 Outstanding Participants and 1,600 semifinalists. Students in all four categories will be allowed to send the news of their excellent testing performance to two colleges of their choices.
For semifinalists, the path towards a scholarship is far from over, and that means more work. In order to keep advancing in either competition, semifinalists must earn an SAT score which corresponds with their success on the PSAT, maintain a high level of academic performance, and procure letters of recommendation from their high school counselors. They also need to fill out an application which includes an essay and information about extracurricular activities, honors or awards received, or other notable achievements. Semifinalist Ruodi Duan expressed surprise at the amount of work required, saying, “I didn’t know there was a huge process involved. It’s basically a repeat of college applications.”
After completing all this paperwork (with ample assistance from the ever-hardworking counselors, the unsung heroes within this whole process), the semifinalists will wait for another four to five months. In January and February, the names of the 15,000 National Merit finalists and 1,300 National Achievement finalists will be announced. Over the months that follow, scholarship recipients will be notified by mail. Typically, the NMSC names 8,200 National Merit Scholars and 800 National Achievement Scholars each year.
Not being selected, however, doesn’t necessarily disqualify a candidate from receiving a scholarship. A number of Special Scholarships are available for students who received recognition from the NMSC but did not qualify as finalists.
For more information on both scholarship programs, visit http://nationalmerit.org.
Congratulations and best of luck to this year’s Semifinalists!

How you can win a scholarship!

Although only juniors are eligible for scholarships, freshmen and sophomores are welcome to take the PSAT’s as practice. Many people find this to be an affordable and easy way of gearing up for the SAT Reasoning Test.
This year’s PSAT will be administered on Oct. 17 (you can unwind at the Homecoming Dance later that same day!). Sign-ups are in front of the Music Building during lunch only and will take place from Sept. 21 to Oct. 2. Remember to bring a photo ID and $30 (checks should be made out to “Arcadia Music Club”). Late sign-ups and walk-ins will be charged an additional $10.