Eleven Upper St. Clair High School seniors were recently named Finalists in the 2017 National Merit Scholarship Program. Paul B. Abrams, Amna Amin, Aditi Chattopadhyay, Devon D. Garcia, Macey A. Kaplan, Arushi Kewalramani, Tanmayee Mahajan, Malcolm T. Miller, Murphy S. Miller, Vicki Z. Wang and Claire K. Zalla were selected on the basis of their SAT scores, grades, essays and letters of recommendation.

In September 2016, these Upper St. Clair students were named Semifinalists in the competition for scoring in the top one percent of all juniors completing the PSAT in October 2015.

“This is such a fantastic accomplishment for our 11 seniors,” Dr. Louis Angelo, Upper St. Clair High School principal, said. “Advancing to Finalist takes an enormous amount of work and tenacity. We are so very proud of each of them.”

Founded in 1955, the National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships. High school students enter the National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the PSAT – the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test – during the fall of their junior year. Of the nearly 1.6 million entrants, the top one percent (nearly 16,000 students), qualify as Semifinalists – approximately 15,000 of whom advance as Finalists.

As Finalists, the Upper St. Clair seniors are now competing for National Merit Scholarships that will be offered and announced this spring. The program awards three types of scholarships: National Merit $2,500 Scholarships, Corporate-Sponsored Merit Scholarships and College-Sponsored Merit Scholarships.

All winners of Merit Scholarship awards are chosen from the Finalist group based on their abilities, skills, and accomplishments. A variety of information is available for selectors to evaluate including the Finalist's academic record, information about the school’s curricula and grading system, two sets of test scores, the high school official's written recommendation, information about the student’s activities and leadership and the Finalist's own essay.

According to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, “The National Merit Scholarship Program honors individual students who show exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies.” For more information regarding the National Merit Scholarship Program, visit: www.nationalmerit.org.