共16000 semifinalist

There are about 16,000 semifinalists, and the program expects about 15,000 of the students to advance to the finalist level, which will be announced in February.

More than half of the finalists will go on to compete for a Merit Scholar title and portion of the National Merit Scholarship worth more than $32 million.

More than 22,000 high schools nationwide and about 1.5 million juniors entered the 2013 competition, which awards the honors based on “exceptional academic ability”, and “potential for success in rigorous college studies” the organization said in a statement.