Wicomico County Public Schools congratulates Peter Jin, a senior at James M. Bennett High, on being named a semifinalist in the 2027 National Merit Scholarship Program.
The National Merit Scholarship Program is a prestigious annual academic competition for recognition and college scholarships. Jin received the semifinalist recognition based on his high score (1520/1520) on the PSAT/NMSQT test taken at the start of his junior year. As one of 16,000 semifinalists (those who scored in the top 1% of test-takers), he is now in the running to be named a finalist in February. Many finalists will be awarded scholarships in the spring.
Right now Jin is busy with classes and college applications, but “in college, I hope to combine my background in health research with my passion for advocacy and community service by studying biology, public health and statistics. In the future, I plan to pursue the computational biology and public health fields as a research scientist,” said Jin, who will graduate from James M. Bennett High in June 2027 and also attended Salisbury Middle, North Salisbury Elementary and Pemberton Elementary.
This week, on the invitation of former JMB Principal Dr. Christel Savage (now Director of Curriculum and Professional Learning), Jin presented to instructional supervisors of Wicomico County Public Schools on the app he developed: “StrokePulse: An AI System for Early & Accessible Stroke Screening in the Elderly.” His impressive presentation highlighted how he truly embodies the tagline of #LearningTodayLeadingTomorrow as a student in Wicomico Schools.
Jin added the distinction of being a National Merit Scholarship semifinalist to an impressive resume that already includes being a 2026 Carson Scholar and inaugural Nancy Grasmick Presidential Carson Scholar, two-time AP Scholar with Distinction, four-time music scholarship recipient from the Salisbury Wicomico Arts Council (SWAC), current member of the Maryland Youth Advisory Council, app developer, and math champion.
"I sincerely enjoy learning, and I tend to become deeply invested in the topics that I am studying. I enjoy going beyond knowing that something is true to understanding why it is true, how it works, or what makes it significant," Jin said. "I believe I am an inquisitive person, and I can become absorbed in working through the reasoning behind a calculus problem, analyzing the rhetorical choices a poet or author makes, discussing a historical event or idea, or perfecting a difficult piece of music."
Jin is a learner and a leader at JMB, with a 4.59 weighted grade point average, college dual enrollment classes, and a score of 1600/1600 on the SAT. He earned the highest score of 5 on all 10 AP exams taken so far. He is an avid and accomplished pianist, violinist and organist. He is founder and president of the Future Health Professionals Club at his school, captain of the JMB Science Olympiad Team that advanced to the state competition, a three-year Student Government Association member (including President his freshman year), three-year Concertmaster of the JMB Orchestra, and a top achiever in math and STEM competitions.
“I am passionate about leading a culture of curiosity and STEM literacy within school,” Jin said. Having noticed as a freshman that there weren’t enough opportunities for students to explore health careers in his school, “During my sophomore year I founded the Future Health Professionals Club to help demystify the world of health. Because many students were interested in learning about the day-to-day experiences of professionals in these careers, I recruited local biomedical professors, nurses, and medical specialists as special guests to speak at our club meetings. The Future Health Professionals Club has grown to more than 70 members.”
In the community, Jin's activities have included founding and running a Bridge to STEM Summer Academy for 205 students from 22 states and eight countries, serving as Student Executive Director for SWAC's Classics for a Cause concert series, volunteering at TidalHealth Peninsula Regional over four summers, conducting research at universities, publishing and presenting research, and serving on the Maryland Youth Advisory Council since September 2025.