Moreno (right) poses with the rest of the MISD National Hispanic Scholars at the MISD Board Meeting.

As one of four Mansfield ISD students who have been recognized as a National Hispanic Scholar, senior Briana Moreno placed in the top two percent of students who took the PSAT/NMSQT.

“I had no confidence taking the test,” Moreno said. “It’s such a tremendous honor to win.”

Hispanic/Latino juniors that take the PSAT/NMSQT could be invited to apply for academic recognition as part of the College Board’s National Hispanic Recognition Program (NHRP). Every year, the NHRP recognizes about 5,000 of the 250,000 Hispanic/Latino juniors who take the test.

“I never thought about the winning when I took the test,” Moreno said. “I was really surprised when I got the certificate in the mail saying that I won.”

When you take the PSAT/NMSQT, you’re automatically screened for the National Merit Scholarship Program, an academic competition for recognition and scholarships. Students who earn a cumulative 3.5 GPA, achieve the minimum required PSAT/NMSQT score and are at least a quarter Hispanic/ Latino have the chance to win. Scholarship or not, these students can list their achievement on college applications to be recognized.

“I’m definitely putting this on all my college apps,” Moreno said. “I worked really hard to make my family proud and it all paid off.”