Maelyn Kiser and Gracie Webb are two finalists from Columbus East for the National Merit Scholarship, which has more than 1500 finalists nationwide.

Seniors Kiser and Webb took the PSAT during their junior year and did not really think about it until later in the year. However, their test scores qualified them for the scholarship, so Kiser and Webb were asked to send in grades, SAT scores, a letter of recommendation and an essay.

Webb said, “People don’t really apply per se. All you have to do is take the PSAT in your junior year and mark that you’d like to be considered on the answer sheet.”

The National Merit Scholarship takes the top 1% of PSAT scores for juniors, and selects 700 students to receive scholarships. These students can either have a one time grant of $2,500 or a scholarship from a corporate sponsor. The finalists’ standings can also help them to receive other scholarships from other colleges.

As of now, Webb is studying in Turkey, but after high school she wants to study international relations while focusing on security policies. Webb would use the scholarship to go towards her tuition.

Kiser said that if she won the money, she would use it at the University of Kentucky to
pay for room and board. She plans on studying chemical engineering with a pre-med track, if she wins the scholarship.

“I didn’t know anything about it until I was a semi-finalist, so I didn’t realize how big of a deal it was,” said Kiser.