Monroe-Woodbury High School senior Evan Liu is one of the few students that has qualified to be a National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist this year. As a Semifinalist, Evan is one of 16,000 students across the country that have met the rigorous requirements to enter into this contest with a chance to continue on in order to become a finalist or merit scholar. 

Being a finalist or merit scholar are both prestigious achievements for students, with there being only 15,000 finalists from the pool of 16,000 semifinalists, and only around 7,600 merit scholars that end up winning the award. 

National Merit Scholarships provide a student with $2,500 for their freshman year of college and are considered desirable to colleges. Separate merit scholarships are also offered to these students by both colleges and corporations. 

In order to enter this competition, a student must have one of the top 50,000 PSAT scores in the country. From there, semifinalists are chosen using application materials as well as an essay submitted to the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. 

Evan Liu is an active participant in extracurricular activities at Monroe-Woodbury. He is a senior member of the swim team and a member of the French Honor Society.

“One thing that I’ve learned about, not necessarily about myself, is just to be grateful of everyone around you and everything you have, and I think that has been especially the case during the pandemic,” said Liu.

As a high scorer in the PSATs, Liu has some advice for students taking the both SAT and PSATs.

“My advice for students taking the PSAT or SAT is to not put off studying for the night before the test,” said Liu. “Just make sure you start early and give yourself time to practice.”

 Liu mentioned some advisers that have helped him on his journey.

“One of my mentors in high school has been my guidance counselor, Ms. Pelsue. She has helped me navigate through all the obstacles in high school, prepared me for college, and has always been an email away to answer any questions,” said Liu.

He has had teachers that did a good job of helping him reach his goals. One of Liu’s teachers in particular, Ms. Belles, praised his achievements in her class and his work ethic.

“I pointed him in the right direction, but his success is due to his hard work, perseverance, and desire to be successful that has him being considered for the National Merit Scholarship,” said Ms. Belles. “For that, I give him a round of well earned applause in acknowledgement.”