Interviews with Class of 2026 National Merit Students Part 2

About this episode

Dr. Riley interviews Steven, a National Merit student from the class of 2026, focusing on the impact of a classical education on PSAT success.

Over the years, College App 101 podcasts have provided many tips on taking the Preliminary SAT, also known as the PSAT. Elite performance on the PSAT during junior year can result in arguably the most prestigious academic honor for high school students: National Merit status. In the present episode, Dr. Riley interviews Steven, a National Merit student from the high school class of 2026, giving special emphasis to the role of a classical, great books, liberal arts education in preparing teste...

People in this episode

Host: Dr. Riley

Guest: Steven

Topics covered

• National Merit
• PSAT preparation
• classical education
• liberal arts
• student interviews

Keywords

• National Merit
• PSAT
• classical education
• great books
• liberal arts
• student interviews
• academic honor

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: National Merit, PSAT

Books & works: College App 101

More episodes of College App 101

• Interviews with Class of 2026 National Merit Students Part 5 · June 10, 2026 · 18 min
• Interviews with Class of 2026 National Merit Students Part 4 (National Merit Finalist!) · May 20, 2026 · 22 min
• Interviews with Class of 2026 National Merit Students Part 3 · May 9, 2026 · 23 min
• Interviews with Class of 2026 National Merit Students Part 1 · April 11, 2026 · 20 min
• Developing a Love for Learning Part 3 · March 15, 2026 · 23 min
• Interview with a College Student about Major · February 14, 2026 · 17 min