That's why, despite making it to the semifinalist round in Cosmopolitan Magazine's cover model search, this Saratoga resident isn't turning in her business books or Shakespeare sonnets. Instead, the 19-year-old is balancing a threefold life as a student at Santa Clara University, an accountant for First Financial Company in San Jose, and a model.

Since her modeling career has only recently become a part-time pursuit, Stovall was shocked to be one of the 25 women selected as semifinalists in the Cosmo competition. As a semifinalist, her picture appeared in the April edition as well as online, where readers voted for their favorite model. The final four will be announced in July, with the winner on a fall cover.

"I didn't think anything would come out of it," she says. "But I was so happy when I found out. Of course it would be exciting to be in New York and be on the cover, but just to be in the magazine is exciting enough."

Stovall, who previously entered two other contests to no avail, says she was flipping through the magazine and saw the cover model ad three days before the contest deadline. After shuffling through some photos, Stovall found four that fit the strict submission criteria and mailed them off overnight. Although the effort and $13.65 in postage felt like a waste of time and money, Stovall says, now she couldn't be happier about the expenditure.

Three weeks after submitting, Cosmo called, but Stovall wasn't home. "I had to wait a full day before calling back. It was torture," she says. "I couldn't sleep. It was 10 times worse than waiting for Christmas when you're little."

A sophomore at Santa Clara University, Stovall speaks four languages and is a double major in marketing and English, with a minor in international business. This summer she will study Shakespeare in England and in the fall will be in Italy on a school program. After graduation, Stovall plans to go into law. It was only recently that she became involved with modeling, despite frequent attempts by eager agents to get her involved in the past.

She waited because of her mother, Teri Ha, who wanted to see her daughter go off to college before going down the catwalk.

"I told her that college applications were top priority and she couldn't do any modeling until that was done," Ha says. "We talked, argued and agreed that she could try when she was in college. She's in college now and did put that as her priority, so I support her. Whatever makes her happy."

Stovall says it was tough to give up modeling when she was younger, not only because it was a dream but also because the economy was much better then. However, she now believes waiting might have been the best thing for her.

"It's pretty tough," she says of the industry. "They aren't incredibly mean, but they'll tell you the truth. It's a tough thing to take rejection all the time. I'm glad my mom made me wait, because the younger you are, the harder it is to take. So many of the girls start young—it must hurt. It still hurts now, but I'm fine about it."

At 5-foot-7, Stovall is a bit on the short side for modeling. At times it has been difficult, but her agent—Agnieszka Szeluk from Muse Model Management in San Francisco—assures that regardless of her height, Stovall is a breath of fresh air in an industry that often lacks character.

"When she came to us, she was so humble and didn't see how beautiful she was," Szeluk says. "Her personality is so nice, we couldn't reject her. Height has not been a problem with Anh. We are very lucky to have her with us at Muse."

The agency is "thrilled," about her Cosmo accomplishment. "For her to get that far is not surprising. We hope she wins; she deserves it. She is such a good person," Szeluk says. "It is always nice when good things happen to good people."

If Stovall wins, she will get more than just the sought-after cover in the fall. She will also nab a Dodge Stratus Coupe, a Levi's Jeans wardrobe, a professional hair makeover and a year's supply of Maybelline and Garnier products.

An even bigger prize, however, is that she would be the first Vietnamese woman to grace a Cosmo cover.

"Being on the cover of a magazine is huge enough in itself for any girl," Stovall says. "But it would be even more huge for it to be the first time a Vietnamese model made it. I would be so proud for that."

Her mother, who came from Vietnam, says she is proud whether Stovall wins or not. "Anh knows what she wants, and I have faith in her. She always makes the best of what she believes in. She is very good at that."

Although Stovall would like to see her modeling workload increase over the next few years, she is keeping a level head about the contest and the future.

"I have no plans for if I win. I can't think that far ahead. I'm taking it however it goes," she says. "It's just for fun. I wanted to do modeling so that I could be in a magazine at least once, so I could show my kids when I'm older. Doing this has been so nice. If nothing else comes out of it, at least I've finished my goal for modeling."