The National Merit Scholarship Corporation recognized two Perry Meridian High School seniors, Benjamin Owen and Joseph Carper, as semifinalists for the National Merit Scholarship.

The students were nominated for the scholarship because they excelled on their PSAT junior year, scoring close to the maximum of 1520.

Around 50,000 students qualify as participants, while only about 16,000 move on to the semifinals. The finalist group is a slightly smaller cut, usually pulling 15,000.

“I wasn’t really thinking about the scholarships at the time,” Owen says. “But it’s nice now.” 

Owen and Carper say they knew about the scholarship before taking their PSAT but did not let that knowledge weigh too heavily on their decisions. Both say they did not study for the PSAT, nor did they intend to score highly solely to qualify for National Merit.

And despite attaining semifinalist status for the scholarship, neither student totally agrees with the “merit” portion of its name.

Owen is skeptical because the test is based on high school material, some of which is learned years prior to taking the test for students in advanced classes. He is taking Calculus BC this year, the highest math class Perry offers, meaning he took Geometry in eighth grade. 

He claims that material from years before might not be as fresh for a student who took it sophomore year.

Carper also questions the “merit” portion of the National Merit Scholarship. He cites his peers who scored lower than he did as a main reason.

“There are people that are smarter than me that didn’t get it,” Carper says. “Just because they didn’t do very well on the PSAT.”

In order for semifinalists to advance to the finals, they must submit an SAT score no later than Dec. 31, 2019. 

Other requirements to advance to finalist standing include endorsements from the principal, earning “very high” grades in classes with college material  and maintaining those high grades. 

The students must plan to attend college full time after high school in order to remain eligible for the scholarship.