Four San Ramon Students Nab Merit Scholarships

National Merit Scholarship Corporation on May 13 announced the 2026 winners of its one-time $2,500 scholarships, and Patch reported that four San Ramon students were among them. The local report said the four students received scholarships sponsored by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. (nationalmerit.org) The awards are one of three types of National Merit scholarships offered each year. The corporation’s 2026 schedule shows the $2,500 scholarship winners were announced on May 13, with later rounds for college-sponsored awards set for June 3 and July 13. (newsroom.pcsb.org) ### Which award did the San Ramon students receive? The four San Ramon students were named National Merit $2,500 Scholarship winners, according to Patch’s local report. (nationalmerit.org) Patch said each student received a $2,500 award sponsored by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation. National Merit Scholarship Corporation describes those awards as single-payment scholarships financed from its own funds. In 2026, the organization said 2,500 students nationwide would receive that specific award. ### How are these winners chosen? More than 15,000 students reached finalist standing in the 2026 competition, and the $2,500 winners were chosen from that group, according to National Merit Scholarship Corporation material summarized by school districts and the corporation’s own program guide. (nationalmerit.org) The competition began when high school juniors took the PSAT/NMSQT in October 2024, which served as the initial screening test. (patch.com) Less than 1% of U.S. high school seniors were named semifinalists on a state-by-state basis, according to National Merit Scholarship Corporation’s 2026 semifinalist announcement. To advance, semifinalists had to satisfy additional requirements to become finalists before they could be considered for scholarship awards. (nationalmerit.org) ### What does the San Ramon result show about the local pipeline? San Ramon had 60 National Merit semifinalists in the 2026 competition, according to an earlier Patch report. That report said San Ramon had more semifinalists than anywhere else in the Tri-Valley. (newsroom.pcsb.org) Four San Ramon students were also named candidates for the 2026 U.S. Presidential Scholars program, Patch reported in February. The local outlet identified all four of those candidates as Dougherty Valley High School students. ### Are these the only National Merit awards tied to San Ramon this year? Patch reported on April 24 that four San Ramon students had already received corporate-sponsored National Merit Scholarship awards worth $1,000 to $10,000 per year. (nationalmerit.org) Those awards are a separate National Merit category from the one-time $2,500 scholarships announced on May 13. National Merit Scholarship Corporation says the 2026 program includes about 830 corporate-sponsored awards and some 3,600 college-sponsored awards in addition to the 2,500 one-time scholarships. (patch.com) Most corporate-sponsored and college-sponsored awards are renewable, while the $2,500 award is a single payment. (patch.com) ### What comes next in the National Merit calendar? National Merit Scholarship Corporation’s press-release schedule lists June 3, 2026, for college-sponsored scholarship winners and July 13, 2026, for additional college-sponsored winners. The organization says those announcements are part of the same 2026 National Merit Scholarship Program. (patch.com) San Ramon students who were not in the May 13 group could still appear in those later rounds if they match a participating college’s sponsorship criteria. National Merit Scholarship Corporation says only semifinalists and scholarship winners are released publicly by the organization, while other honors are left to schools to announce. (nationalmerit.org) (nationalmerit.org)