Montgomery, Ala. - The National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) has announced its first group of National Merit Scholars for 2010, including 13 Alabama public school students who have won corporate-sponsored National Merit Scholarships. Approximately 1,000 students nationwide have won National Merit Scholarships financed by some 200 companies, foundations, and other business organizations. By the conclusion of this year’s competition – the 55th annual, about 8,400 academic champions will have achieved Finalist standing and won National Merit Scholarships totaling over $36 million.
Corporate sponsors provide National Merit Scholarships for Finalists who are children of employees, residents of communities they serve, or have plans to pursue college majors or careers encouraged by sponsors. Most of these scholarships are renewable for up to four years of college undergraduate study and provide annual stipends ranging from $500 to $10,000. Some scholarships provide a single payment between $2,500 and $5,000. Recipients may use scholarships at regionally accredited U.S. colleges and universities of their choice.
More than 1.5 million high school juniors from over 22,000 schools nationwide entered the 2010 National Merit Scholarship competition by taking the 2008 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT). Alabama’s scholarship winners were selected from students that met scholarship sponsors’ criteria, as well as requirements for Finalist standing in the National Merit Scholarship Program, including:
· Outstanding academic record
· Endorsement and recommendation by school official
· SAT scores that confirm performance on qualifying test (PSAT/NMSQT)
· Written essay and detailed scholarship application providing information about extracurricular activities, awards and leadership positions
Established in 1955 to conduct the annual National Merit Scholarship Program, NMSC is a not-for-profit corporation that operates without government assistance. For more information, contact Eileen Artemakis at 847-866-5100 or mediainfo@nmerit.net or visit www.nationalmerit.org.
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