Congrats to Julia Smith

Congratulations to Julia Smith, Class of 2019, National Merit Semi-Finalist
Posted on 10/09/2018
Congratulations to Julia Smith, Class of 2019, National Merit Semi-FinalistCongratulations to Schenectady High School Senior Julia Smith who is a National Merit Semi-Finalist, which means she scored in the top 1% on the PSAT, and puts her in the running to become a finalist and earn a scholarship.  

Congratulations to Julia SmithThe National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1955.  High school students enter the program by taking the preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which serves as an initial screen of approximately 1.6 million entrants each year.

In early September, about 16,000 students, or approximately one-third of the  high scorers were notified that they are qualified Semifinalists. 

Smith scored nearly perfect, with a 1580 out of a possible 1600, on the SAT exam, and 35 out of 36 on the ACT.

Smith is hoping to earn status as a finalist and to win one of the 8,600 scholarships that will be awarded.  

Different types of scholarships are offered.  

National Merit $2500 Scholarships provide a single payment of $2500.   
A long list of about 230 corporations, foundations and businesses also sponsor corporate merit or special scholarships through the program as part of their educational philanthropy.  

In addition to her transcript, SAT scores and information on activity and leadership roles, Smith must submit a personal essay as part of the NMSC application.   She's working on that now and is writing about someone she met in middle school who had a lasting impact on her. 

When talking about her experience as a student in Schenectady, Smith said, "Schenectady shaped me.  There are so many opportunities here."   She said it was through the International Baccalaureate Program that she learned about linguistics, an area in which she wants to major next year in college.  


Click here for the Daily Gazette article:  Schenectady High rolls out school-wide SAT testing (October 09 2018)
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