National Achievement

ishmaelsodyssey
Sun, 08 Sep 2013 16:31:31 +0000

I spoke with College Board picktails and they said the following criteria for NA Finalists apply:


confirmation SAT score (close to PSAT x10) for single sitting (e.g., they look at the highest single sitting not superscore); the cutoff will be different, possibly, as NA is done by region
endorsement by school principal to include comment on challenging courseload, discipline violations
grades As and Bs nothing lower; no GPA cutoff; I did not confirm if Cs will cut it, especially if they are in APs or Honors classes. D2 had all As and Bs in mostly Honors or AP courseload, so she’ll probably make.
I do not know when the essay is due. It is not required to make Finalist but is considered to advance to earn the $2,500 scholarship.


When in doubt, just call. The College Board staff are extremely helpful. To double check, don’t rely on CC, just check the web site at [National Merit Scholarship Corporation - NASP](http://www.nationalmerit.org/nasp.php) or call. If your S or D made NA Semi, there is an upcoming deadline in October which must be met (I believe it’s October 11). This is only for NA Semis and not for Outstanding Participants.