MCPS Students Named National Merit Semifinalists

More than 100 MCPS students were nominated as semifinalists in the 2026 National Merit Scholarship program. They will compete nationally for scholarships announced in the spring.

The MCPS semifinalists come from 12 high schools: Bethesda-Chevy Chase, Montgomery Blair, Winston Churchill, Northwest, Poolesville, Richard Montgomery, Sherwood, Springbrook, Wheaton, Walt Whitman and Thomas S. Wootton.

Semifinalists from MCPS were selected from among high school juniors who were top scorers on the 2024 PSAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test. About 15,000 semifinalists across the nation are expected to advance to the finalist stage of the competition.

Finalists will be considered for $2,500 National Merit scholarships, plus additional corporate-sponsored and college/university-sponsored scholarships that will be announced later in the school year.