Moira Harr Named as National Merit Semi-Finalist

Officials from the National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) have announced the names of more than 16,000 Semifinalists in the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program. We are proud to announce that Marian has a Semifinalist among this distinguished group — Moira Harr!

More than 1.2 million juniors from approximately 20,000 high schools entered the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2025 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®). The nationwide pool of Semifinalists represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors and includes the highest-scoring students in each state.

Semifinalists now have the opportunity to continue in the competition for approximately 6,700 National Merit Scholarships worth nearly $24 million, which will be offered next spring.

To advance to the Finalist level, Semifinalists must fulfill several requirements, including submitting a detailed scholarship application with the support of a high school official. The application highlights the student's academic record, involvement in school and community activities, leadership abilities, honors and awards, and other accomplishments. Semifinalists must also maintain an outstanding academic record, submit an essay and earn qualifying SAT® or ACT® scores.

About 95 percent of Semifinalists are expected to attain Finalist standing, with approximately half of those Finalists earning a National Merit Scholarship and the distinguished title of Merit Scholar®.

National Merit Scholarship winners for 2027 will be announced in four nationwide news releases beginning in April and concluding in July.

Congratulations, Moira! We are so proud of you and wish you the best of luck as you continue in the competition!