SENIOR NAMED NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP FINALIST

February 8, 2020

Jonathan Raju, a member of Notre Dame Prep's Class of 2020, has been named a finalist in the 2020 National Merit Scholarship Program. He now will compete for about 7,600 scholarships worth more than $32 million that will begin to be awarded in the spring.

Three types of scholarships will be offered by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, including about 2,500 awarded by state allotments, 1,000 corporate-sponsored scholarships and more than 4,000 sponsored by 200 colleges and universities.

Scholarship winners will be announced beginning in April and concluding in July. 

The National Merit® Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1955. High school students enter the National Merit 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 — and by meeting published program entry and participation requirements.

This year's merit scholarship awards divided into three types:

• National Merit® $2500 Scholarships
Every Finalist competes for these single payment scholarships, which are awarded on a state-representational basis. Winners are selected without consideration of family financial circumstances, college choice, or major and career plans.

• Corporate-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards
Corporate sponsors designate their awards for children of their employees or members, for residents of a community where a company has operations, or for Finalists with career plans the sponsor wishes to encourage. These scholarships may either be renewable for four years of undergraduate study or one-time awards.

• College-sponsored Merit Scholarship awards
Officials of each sponsor college select winners of their awards from Finalists who have been accepted for admission and have informed NMSC by the published deadlines that the sponsor college or university is their first choice. These awards are renewable for up to four years of undergraduate study.

More than 30,000 students across the country applied last year for the National Merit Scholarship program.

Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org

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About Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy
Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. Notre Dame Preparatory School enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame's middle and lower schools enroll students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. All three school are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDPMA is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School and Marist Academy, visit the school’s home page at www.ndpma.org.