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Local students in line for National Merit Scholarships

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Students from local high schools are among thousands of semifinalists in the running for prestigious National Merit Scholarships.

Out of 16,000 semifinalists, 143 students from Newport Beach, Irvine, Huntington Beach, Fountain Valley and Laguna Beach high schools made the list, which was released Wednesday.

The National Merit Scholarship Corp. is a not-for-profit organization established in 1955 to conduct the National Merit Scholarship Program.

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The organization funds scholarships with help from about 440 businesses and higher-education institutions.

About 1.4 million juniors nationwide entered the program this year by taking the 2013 PSAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test.

About 90% of all semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and more than half of the finalists will earn the Merit Scholar title, the release said.

Finalists will compete for three types of college scholarships in spring 2015. Awards include a $2,500 National Merit scholarship, a business-sponsored scholarship and a college-sponsored scholarship.

Finalists are selected based on their academic record, participation in school and community activities, leadership abilities, employment and awards they’ve received during their education.

Scholarship recipients will be announced from April to July.

For a list of the semifinalists, visit https://www.nationalmerit.org

—Hannah Fry

@HannahFryTCN

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