CHAMPAIGN, IL (Chambana Today) – Two students from Unit 4 schools have been chosen as Semifinalists in the 70th annual National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC®). Centennial senior Evan Sauer and Central senior Aiden Warner are among the students who have an opportunity to compete for 6,870 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $26 million that will be offered next spring. Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements to advance to the Finalist level of the competition.
Over 1.3 million juniors in 21,000 high schools entered the 2025 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2023 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®) as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state.
To become a Finalist, the Semifinalist and a high school official must submit a detailed scholarship application, in which they provide information about the Semifinalist’s academic record, participation in school and community activities, demonstrated leadership abilities, employment, and honors and awards received. A Semifinalist must have an outstanding academic record throughout high school, be endorsed and recommended by a high school official, write an essay, and earn SAT® or ACT® scores that confirm the student’s earlier performance on the qualifying test.
From over 16,000 Semifinalists, more than 15,000 are expected to advance to the Finalist level, and in February they will be notified of this designation.