I am so dead for the PSAT on wed ):

Pre-College Topics High School Cafe
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<p>To Millancad (et al)…re: “NM doesn’t really matter” -
think again.</p>

<p>A National Merit finalist can get an automatic full ride at MANY schools-maybe 30+ (not always the schools in which a student of this caliber has an interest, but…having these in ones back pocket creates a great foundation. </p>

<p>And…many more schools…think 40+(?)… offer full tuition (then you pay room & board). It’s an INCREDIBLE safety net. Very very nice to have letters arriving that say “hey, it’s October and you’re stressing but rest assured that we’ll admit you AND do it for free”. </p>

<p>AND…many many many more schools offer a “token” $1000-$2000. Some are one time, some pay it each year. Of course National Merit themselves also sponsor token scholarships ($1000-$2500). Or, if your parent works for a sponsoring company…still more money.</p>

<p>AND it’s a lovely “national award” for your applications. AND, for example, at my D’s state university (an EXCELLENT school, by the way), their top scholarship gives “preference to national merit finalists”…so…that ends up a full ride MOSTLY due to NM. </p>

<p>So, while you really can’t study for this…don’t blow it off either. It CAN “make things happen” for you. It MIGHT be a straw that breaks the camel’s back in an admission decision. Even at a top school if you’re teetering on the fence otherwise. </p>

<p>Luck to y’all.</p>

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<p>It’s great for the money, but it’s not a “true” national award like USAMO or something similar. </p>

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<p>The top schools get so many NM scholars that the award stops meaning as much. There are so many more important factors than NM: transcript, test scores, EC’s, essays, etc. NM would almost never be the tipping point in a decision at a top school.</p>

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<p>@R124686: You bring up a pretty good point, but I took a look at the schools that guarantee admission to NMSFs, and honestly, I’m not particularly interested in any of them - mainly looking at UCLA/UCB, HYPS and Cornell/Brown/Dartmouth/Columbia.</p>

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<p>I wish they would get rid of CR… on the practice tests I’ve done so far, I’m missing about half the sentence completions, and probably 1/3 of the long reading passage questions.</p>

<p>Math + Writing is all that should count…</p>

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<p>Roflmao. CR is very important.</p>

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<p>Technically speaking, doesn’t Writing and CR have some overlap in material?</p>

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<p>No lol…</p>

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<p>You can write essays (Writing) without knowledge of vocabulary, literary devices, etc (Critical Reading)?</p>

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<p>Mine’s on saturday, but I literally forgot that I signed up or when the date was until this test…</p>

<p>Don’t stress it? I’m just going in and taking it cold, like most people.</p>

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<p>NOOOOOOO!</p>

<p>I did awful on the PSAT. :frowning: :frowning: :(</p>

<p>I skipped: 3 on the first section, 2 on the second, 3 on the third, 1 on the fourth, and 5 on the fifth.</p>

<p>What score can I expect? Assuming I got the others right?</p>

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<p>@@R124686: I <em>am</em> NM (and NA, but of course, at this point, I’m a semi finalist in both. So I know those things. I just feel like people, especially on CC, freak out a bit much about it. The money is very nice, and I do get a lot of “You’re NM so we’ll definitely accept you and you can come here for nothing or a nominal fee” mail. But most people here seem to talk about it in terms of just the award. While it’s a highly respected award, I don’t think it’s the type of thing that can make or break anyone.</p>