National Merit Scholarship Program

PSAT- Qualities you for National Merit Scholarship Program

• What is it?

~It is a predictor for what you will make on the SAT.

~It measures critical reading, math & writing skills.  You will not have to recall facts from literature, history, or science, or complete math formulas.  This test measures your reasoning and critical thinking.

• Why do you need to take the PSAT?

~If you are interested in applying for the Kentucky Governor’s Scholar Program, it is recommended that you take the PSAT and the ACT.

• When is it? TBA 

• Contact the guidance office for more information. 

National Merit Scholarship Program

The National Merit® Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1955. Approximately 1.5 million high school students enter the program each year.

How to Enter the Competition

High School students who meet published program entry and participation requirements enter the National Merit® Scholarship Program by taking the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®) at the specified time in the high school program, usually as juniors. Each year's PSAT/NMSQT is the qualifying test designated for entry to a particular year's competition. For example, the 2020 PSAT/NMSQT is the qualifying test for entry to the competition for scholarships to be awarded in 2022.

Registration for the test is by high school rather than individual student. Interested students should see their counselor at the beginning of the school year to make arrangements to take the PSAT/NMSQT at the school in the fall. DEADLINE: Your completed National Merit Semifinalist Application is due to NMSC on October 11, 2023. 

Note: The PSAT 10 and PSAT 8/9 will not be considered for entry to the National Merit Scholarship Program. The PSAT/NMSQT is the official route of entry to the National Merit Scholarship Program.

Student Entry Requirements

On test day, students are asked some questions to determine entry to the National Merit Scholarship Program. To participate in the National Merit Scholarship Program, a student must: 

1. take the PSAT/NMSQT in the specified year of the high school program and no later than the third year in grades 9 through 12, regardless of grade classification or educational pattern;

2. be enrolled as a high school student (traditional or homeschooled), progressing normally toward graduation or completion of high school, and planning to accept admission to college no later than the fall following completion of high school; and

3. attend high school in the United States, the District of Columbia, or U.S. commonwealth and territory; or meet the citizenship requirements for students attending high school outside the United States (see below).

When to Take the PSAT/NMSQT®

• Students who plan to spend the usual four years in high school (grades 9 through 12) before entering college full time must take the PSAT/NMSQT in their third year (grade 11, junior year). They will be entering the competition that ends when awards are offered in the spring of their fourth high school year (grade 12, senior year), the same year they will leave high school and enter college. Although some schools encourage their sophomores to take the PSAT/NMSQT for guidance purposes, these students must take the test again when they are juniors to enter the National Merit Scholarship Program if they are spending the usual four years of study in grades 9 through 12.

• Students who plan to leave high school a year (or more) early to enroll in college full time usually can participate in the National Merit Scholarship Program if they take the PSAT/NMSQT before they enroll in college. Such students must take the PSAT/NMSQT in either the next-to-last year or the last year they are enrolled in high school.

• Those who take the PSAT/NMSQT in the next-to-last year of high school will be entering the competition for awards to be offered as they are finishing their final high school year.

• Those who take the PSAT/NMSQT in their last year of high school will be entering the competition for awards to be offered as they are completing their first year of college.

• Students who are dual enrolled in both high school and college must take the PSAT/NMSQT in their third year of high school (grade 11, junior year) to enter the National Merit Scholarship Program. The high school determines whether a student is dual enrolled and confirms the student’s status as a high school student.