National Merit Program Recognizes 23 Seniors

The National Merit® Scholarship Program has recognized 23 University School seniors as Semifinalists and Commended students in the 2026 competition. These 23 Semifinalists and Commended students represent 24% of the University School Class of 2026. 

 

The nationwide group of Semifinalists represents less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors. The Semifinalist designation is the first step toward becoming a National Merit Scholarship winner. Scholarship winners are selected based on their skills, accomplishments, and potential for success in rigorous college environments.

Our University School students consistently demonstrate their academic skills and enthusiasm in their classrooms, and this national recognition of their hard work and achievements is well-deserved. These students excel in areas of school and life beyond academics. Among them are varsity athletes, award-winning speech & debate competitors, stage actors, Gold Key recipients in the Scholastic Art & Writing competition, orchestra and other music ensemble members, and accomplished science researchers who have earned statewide and national honors—and many hold more than one of these distinctions.   

All lead and serve our US community by the example they set in the classroom, on the playing field, and as heads of student clubs or activities. Their accomplishments reflect not only individual excellence, but also the collective spirit of leadership and service that defines our senior class. Well done!

 

 

Will Allen

Ian Broihier

Ethan Chen

Jack D'Cruz

Andrew Malbasa

Thomas Malbasa

Vishaan Patel

Anshul Sharma

Adonis Wazni

Michael Zhu

 

Nicholas Bricker

Colin Broholm

Charlie Christopherson

Edward Cui

Jacob Isakov

Griff Koch

Sahand Maleki

Aditya Nalla

Sebastian Perez

Travis Phillips

Tejas Rajagopalan

Travis Skinner

Jason Zhao

Congratulations to these seniors on this outstanding achievement!

 

 

Over 1.3 million juniors in about 21,000 high schools entered the 2025-26 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2024 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT®), which served as an initial screen of program entrants. The nationwide pool of Semifinalists, representing less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors, includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state. The number of Semifinalists in a state is proportional to the state’s percentage of the national total of graduating seniors.