Earlier this month, officials of National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC^®) in Evanston, Illinois announced the names of more than 16,000 twelfth-graders from across the country who are semifinalists in the 70th annual National Merit Scholarship Program; it is a distinction held by less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors. Pennington’s Shreya Mookherjee ’25, Anirudh Suren ’25, and Siyi Yang ’25 are among the semifinalists who will continue on in the competition in pursuit of nearly 7,000 scholarships offered this spring, which collectively total over $25 million.

NMSC^® was established in 1955 with the following goals: honoring the nation’s scholastic champions and encouraging the pursuit of academic excellence. According to the organization, “Merit Scholar designees are selected on the basis of their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college studies, without regard to gender, race, ethnic origin, or religious preference.”

To become a finalist, the semifinalist must submit a detailed scholarship application with the help of the school official recommending them for consideration; the application includes detailed information about their academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, and employment, as well as any and all honors and awards received. Additionally, semifinalists must write an essay and earn SAT® or ACT^® scores that confirm the student’s earlier performance on the qualifying test. 

The scholars all expressed their gratitude for this program, which acknowledges their hard work and sacrifice. "I'm really happy to see all of my efforts pay off," said Mookherjee, a sentiment echoed by classmate Yang: "As someone who doesn't really participate in a lot of competition-based activities, it's really great to have this affirmation of all the work I have done." Suren concurred, adding, "I am just ecstatic to have the opportunity to be a part of this program."

In recognizing the students, Director of College Counseling Adam Materasso said, “Being named a National Merit Semifinalist goes beyond that one test. We are proud of our three semifinalists as they pursue academic excellence on a daily basis and raise the level of discourse in the classroom. Please join me in congratulating them on this tremendous honor."