@FLWahoo “It doesn’t seem like it will persist much into the future.”
Funny! It doesn’t seem like much, does it? However, I’ve run into so many people in my short life so far (40+ years) who didn’t make NMSF or who had a sibling/friend make it who remember & remark on how impressive it is. I’ve seen an employment decision made on the basis of a candidate listing that they were a NMF on their resume. (I thought that the candidate still listing it on his resume showed how poor of a fit he was for that particular job.)
A president of a College interrupted a meeting with his Athletic Director to greet my NMSF daughter recently. He commented to her that his two sisters were both National Merit Finalists but that he hadn’t achieved that honor.
It is surprising how much prestige there is for an award that is given to 15,000-16,000 kids per year. But those who did NOT get it have more awe of it than those who did achieve it. Or so it seems to me.