<p>I took the PSAT and got a 207. I live in Nevada and the score is currently set at 208. Is this score set in stone? Could it maybe lower one more point?</p>
<p>A guidance counselor told a student there that it is 208. So it’s just a verbal report, but assuming that there wasn’t a communication problem, that’s probably where it will stand. The <em>official</em> results come out Wednesday, and then you’ll know for sure. But even if you missed the cutoff, 207 is a great score and bodes well for your ACT/SAT, which really the important test! We’ve probably missed the cutoff here by a couple of points too, so I feel your pain .
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<p>@Procrastidad. I’ve heard of that - wasn’t that founded by the Freakonomics guys? Has anyone else heard of this? I wonder if that’s better than just putting his actual score in parenthesis?</p>
<p>I ran my son’s status on the Acadium Scholars site (he has a 212). It says he is a “22-State Acadium Scholar”.</p>
<p>And 223 is only a 48-State Acadium Scholar according to the website.</p>
<p><a href=“http://acadiumscholar.org/”>http://acadiumscholar.org/</a></p>
<p>But I think <em>maybe</em> they mean a 2013 Acadium Scholar, even though they say “test year” not “award year”. Because Nevada is 212. </p>
<p>Oh well, thanks anyways. If only I had studied…</p>
<p>It’s not perfectly accurate for any year, but I imagine it’s close.</p>
<p>Parents, I think the previous poster who is frustrated with her State’s high cutoff score did not mean any offense to the achievement of those NMSF students from those States with lower cutoff scores. It is a great accomplishment, and indeed many of the NMSF students from States with lower cutoff scores will indeed have surpassed their State’s requirements by quite a bit. Bravo to all of you, truly!</p>
<p>The previous poster meant only that their is a little frustration when your child scores only one or two points below the cutoff in a place like, for example, DC. That 222 score in DC will not make NMSF finalist this year, but would have in almost every other State. To make matters worse, since Commended Status is determined on a national basis, instead of as a state-by-state measure, that student with the 222 score in DC will be grouped together with every student who achieved 201 or higher nationally. I personally think that the National Merit organization should take the time to do an individual Commended score for each State, as they do with the NMSF cutoff. It seems like the more balanced approach here.</p>
<p>Finally, I know that we do not like to bring issues of rCe and ethnicity into the college honors discussion, it some of the jurisdictions with the highest NMSF cut offs, particularly California (Latino), DC (African American), Texas (Latino), also have a very large-percentage of under-represented and disadvantaged, college-applicant minority students. Therefore some of the students who most need the NMF scholarship money live in the very States in which it is most difficult to qualify for that scholarship. If the National Merit organization can discriminate in favor of promoting geographic diversity and balance, then they should also consider doing so to promote racial and ethnic diversity and balance. Just my two cents!</p>
<p>I meant there is frustration.</p>
<p>VA cutoff confirmation please!!! </p>
<p>Our head master told us that our son was one of the school’s semi-finalists. We are in Virginia and he scored a 219. Looks like VA cut is lower this year :-)</p>
<p>CA cutoff confirmation please?</p>
<p>@rhandco I just ran my son’s numbers through Acadium, and he is a 48-state scholar for 2013 and a 51-state scholar for 2012 (they also certify sophomore scores). Not sure how useful it is, but my son’s DC private doesn’t believe in awards for kids. No GPA, no rank, no honor society. Not sure they’ll even say publicly who made NMSF. So I guess every award (at least this is certified through verification of scores with National Merit, or you have to agree to let them check if you use the award) might help. With all my son’s years of great grades, it is horrible to see so much blank space for academic awards. But the AP award and NM Commended at least help, so maybe this will clarify where his scores fell?</p>
<p>Wow! That is a very big drop for VA, but so happy for your family, that is fantastic news!</p>
<p>@greatfallsmom, IIRC, colleges get a profile of your child’s HS, so it should be clear if they rank or not and if they give GPAs or not. That ends up putting more stress on tests and outside competitions.</p>
<p>And back to the cutoff by state thing:
Can you imagine if Ivies publicized that a 3.3 was okay if you were from one state, but you needed a 4.6 GPA from another state? That’s what I see happening here.</p>
<p>I am curious, and maybe this could be calculated, what would the cutoff be if they didn’t do regional cutoffs - if they only did one national cutoff? I’m thinking 218 or something (since several high population states have high cutoffs).</p>
<p>@Swimmom15 Congrats! Since we live in VA and drive our son across state lines to DC, I wish we could have had a 1 pt drop! But at least 3 pt is fabulous!!</p>
<p>The Acadium Scholar site, although not 100% in agreement with my data tables, does give an estimated national cut. The most recent one listed is 216.</p>
<p>@rhandco, the Acadium Scholars site estimates a national cutoff.</p>
<p>@rhandco. Great points. Colleges definitely know his school and know that is what they do - no weighted grades either, which hurts in this area where 5.0 are possible in some of the public high schools. Your point on the GPA is well taken, though I will tell you based on personal knowledge that a lot of colleges will take a lower GPA from people who live in a geographic region that they want more representation from. </p>
<p>Be grateful he’s coming from a top school. I worry about my kid coming from an unknown, even with his scores. (Granted I realize you are paying for that!)</p>
<p>@PAMom21. If it were only that easy :). Your child is now a NMSF and hopefully will be a finalist (maybe scholar?) so it sets him apart!</p>