Four Lovett Students Named National Merit Semifinalists

Four Lovett seniors have been named Semifinalists in the National Merit Scholarship Program, placing them among the highest-scoring high school students in the nation.

Keyuri Patel ’27, Catherine Zelnak ’27, Mary Katherine Dawson ’27, and Allison Cain ’27 earned the designation based on their performance on the 2025 PSAT/NMSQT, which they took as juniors. They join about 16,000 Semifinalists nationwide, a group that represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors.

The National Merit Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and college scholarships. Each year, more than a million juniors enter the program by taking the PSAT/NMSQT, and Semifinalists are selected state by state based on their scores.

Semifinalists now have the opportunity to advance to Finalist standing. To do so, each student must submit an application that includes a strong academic record, a recommendation from a school official, an essay, and SAT or ACT scores that confirm their earlier test performance. Applicants are also evaluated on their leadership and involvement in school and community activities.

Finalists will be announced in February, and National Merit Scholarship recipients will be named in the spring.