DANIEL KIM NAMED NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP SEMIFINALIST

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September 9, 2026

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here.

Honor reserved for less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors and includes the highest-scoring entrants in each state.

Notre Dame Preparatory School senior Daniel Kim has been named a semifinalist in the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program, placing him among an elite group of high school seniors recognized nationally for exceptional academic ability and potential for success in rigorous college studies.

Kim is one of only about 16,000 students nationwide who were named semifinalists in the 72nd annual National Merit Scholarship Program. The semifinalists represent less than one percent of U.S. high school seniors and include the highest-scoring entrants in each state.

The National Merit Scholarship Program began in 1955 and recognizes academically talented students while providing opportunities for scholarships to support their college education. This year, about 6,700 National Merit Scholarships worth approximately $24 million will be offered beginning next spring.

The recognition marks the first phase of a competition that will ultimately name the 2027 National Merit Scholars. About 95 percent of semifinalists are expected to advance to the finalist level.

To become a finalist, Kim must complete a detailed scholarship application with NMSC that includes his academic record, participation in school and community activities, leadership, employment, honors and awards. Semifinalists also must be endorsed and recommended by a school official, submit an essay and earn SAT or ACT scores confirming their earlier performance on the qualifying test.

More than 1.2 million juniors in approximately 20,000 high schools entered the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program by taking the 2025 Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT), which served as the initial screening mechanism.

Three types of National Merit Scholarships will be offered in 2027: 2,500 National Merit $2500 Scholarships awarded on a state-representational basis; approximately 700 corporate-sponsored scholarships; and about 3,500 college-sponsored scholarships.

National Merit Scholarship winners will be announced in four nationwide news releases beginning in April and concluding in July 2027.

Congratulations to Daniel Kim on this outstanding academic achievement and recognition!

For information on admission to Notre Dame Prep, please click here.

Comments or questions? mkelly@ndpma.org

About Notre Dame Preparatory School
"At Notre Dame Prep, we inspire our students to become the best versions of themselves. We challenge them through an experience of academic excellence, focused on active, project-based learning. We invite them to explore a world of opportunities beyond the classroom. We guide them as they grow in spirituality within a community strong in its Catholic and Marist identity."

Notre Dame Preparatory School is a private, Catholic, independent, coeducational day school located in Oakland County. Notre Dame Preparatory School's upper school enrolls students in grades nine through twelve and has been named one of the nation's best 50 Catholic high schools (Acton Institute) four times since 2005. Notre Dame Prep's middle and lower schools enroll students in pre-kindergarten through grade eight. All three schools are International Baccalaureate "World Schools." NDP is conducted by the Marist Fathers and Brothers and is accredited by the Independent Schools Association of the Central States and the National Association of Independent Schools. For more on Notre Dame Preparatory School, visit the school’s home page at www.ndpma.org.