Many students across the nation compete for the National Merit Award, and may not even know it.
To compete for this award, all students have to do is take the PSAT.
Of the more than a million students who take the PSAT each year, 1.5 percent - or 15,000 - test-takers are designated as semi-finalists. These semi-finalists are notified in the beginning of their senior year.
Flathead senior Allison Pauli scored in the top 15,000 scores this year, receiving an overall score of 217 with a high score of 240. Allison beat the cut off score by 8 points.
"I thought it would be a good practice (to take the PSAT)," said Pauli. "I didn't really know about (the National Merit Award) until it was described at the test and I didn't find out a whole lot about it until I was notified as a semi-finalist."
Each semi-finalist who lives in Montana automatically receives $1,800 that can be used in the six university system schools which include Eastern, Northern, Western, MSU, U of M, and Montana Tech.
Along with the 15,000 semi-finalists, there are 35,000 commended students whose scores are sent to colleges and universities.
Last year there were five commended students at FHS.
Pauli now plans to apply for "finalist" status, as can each semi-finalist. There are three main types of scholarships that finalists can win, and more than 8,000 awards and scholarships are given through the National Merit Scholarships Program, ranging from $250 to $10,000.
"Besides being a National Merit Scholar, she is also very talented in music," said Pauli's guidance counselor Jerry Boschee. "She has many other interests other than academics."