Senior Garrett Busey wasn’t surprised when he was named a National Merit Semifinalist last month.

“I was kind of expecting it after I got my score, but it was nice to hear officially that I was,” Busey said.

Students who take the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT) their junior year and score in the top 0.5 percent in Kansas are semifinalists their senior year. 

“It didn’t really change my thought process. I knew I wanted to go out of state, so the real benefit of it is knocking down the price of out of state tuition,” Busey said. 

To advance as a National Merit Finalist, semifinalist recipients complete an application process that includes writing an essay and showing record of extracurricular activities. Busey is involved in cross country and tennis.

He is undecided about his college plans and is considering the University of Washington, University of Chicago and Washington University in St. Louis.

“I think my top factor is just the feel and atmosphere of the school,” Busey said.

He recently toured the University of Washington and said the environment is amazing.

“Just the weather is the perfect temperature year round and you can see the mountains from anywhere,” Busey said. “The school is huge, but the twisting paths and trees make it feel much smaller.”