<p>Snowdog,
In an earlier post I noted the exact numbers from last year’s freshmen profile:</p>
<p>For the class that entered in August 2011:</p>
<p>Applicants: 37,210
Admit rate: 23% Admit rate in 2008: 22%</p>
<p>National Merit Scholars enrolled: 247</p>
<p>First generation college enrolled: 14%</p>
<p>High Schools represented: 1,449</p>
<p>Other information of general interest on SC website, but not on the profile:</p>
<p>Student faculty ratio: 9/1 Freshmen retention rate: 97%<br>
SC’s student body is one of the most diverse of all private universities in the U.S.</p>
<p>Alememom - You can say whatever you want but you are still WRONG and no matter how loudly you proclaim it, I will stand here and say you are wrong and I could not careless if you disagreed with me.</p>
<p>USC DOES control the number of NMSF students they admit in order to balance their scholarship budget. Unless you know their available budget, you would always be WRONG in stating they will admit any and all. For you to say a student should be expected to be dishonest and hide the fact they they made NMF in order to collect this half tuition and that would make your statement accurate, whatever.</p>
<p>There is a CAP and I am sticking that statement.</p>
<p>can you two take it outside please? this ****ing contest does not reflect well on either of you.
no one has the key to the admissions office “black box”.</p>
I have not made that statement at all. In fact, many NMSF will be rejected - there is NO guarantee of admission to NMSF. Their applications are judged holistically just as all the others and all the other elements are as important, if not more important, than their NMSF status.</p>
<p>I assume, with you strong feeling, that you did not mention on your application that you are a NMSF since you feel it is such a disadvantage. It would be no more dishonest ( this makes me giggle) to leave NMSF off your application than any other honor/accomplishment - most applicants to USC have so many that it is impossible to list them all.</p>
<p>I understand that some NMSF prefer to promote this particular misconception in order to save face if they are not accepted. Feel free to do so.</p>
<p>Thank you for your carefully considered, well-supported statements .</p>
Again, I am free to disagree with statements others make on this board, and I disagree with the statement that being a NMSF is a disadvantage in admissions at USC. It is fine if you do not agree with me, but that does not mean that I am not free to state my opinion or disagreement with others.</p>
<p>I feel it does not reflect well on posters who use use veiled obscenities in posts.</p>
<p>“I assume, with you strong feeling, that you did not mention on your application that you are a NMSF since you feel it is such a disadvantage.”</p>
<p>Sounds like dishonesty seems to be your central theme and I have no clue why it seems to be how you phrase it but whatever. Feel free to refer to post #32 if you want to be enlightened as to my motivations. </p>
<p>On a side note, why would someone already qualified for a half tuition due to NMF not be aiming for more, like a Trustee scholarship and hide NMSF instead? That would be a really dumb financial miscalculation.</p>
<p>On another side note, NMSFs are published and every college receives a copy so they can send out a letter. Since USC is actively recruiting NMSFs by sending them letters asking them to apply, it would be really dumb for anyone to assume USC does not know who is on the list.</p>
<p>I understand that only a very few people become finalists for scholarships, however, everyone who applied before December 1st in my school received a letter recently, telling them that they will NOT be receiving a scholarship.
I have neither received a letter rejecting my chances for a scholarship or notifying me that I am a finalist, yet. Is there a reason for this? Should I contact the admissions office?</p>
<p>Julius - Are you NMSF? If so I suspect you will get a letter like the one I mentioned today or next week stating that no decision was made on your app at this time.</p>
<p>Texaspg- To be frank, I have absolutely no idea what NMSF is. I see the term being thrown around on this board, but I have never heard about it in my school.
I’m just anxious, because I am the only one from my school who hasn’t received a letter.</p>
<p>“NMSFs are published and every college receives a copy so they can send out a letter.”</p>
<p>Incorrect. ONLY if the student chose to opt in to having colleges contact them is their name sent to colleges. And the “publication” is only in local papers. NMSF does not release the names of NMSF’s nationwide.</p>
<p>"Since USC is actively recruiting NMSFs by sending them letters asking them to apply, it would be really dumb for anyone to assume USC does not know who is on the list.</p>
<p>this is an incorrect assumption. USC does not know the names of ALL NMSF’s.
Only the names of students who wanted their names released to colleges. Some did not want that , in order to avoid the deluge of mail that always follows.</p>
<p>texaspg- No, it did not say they were admitted. It only stated that only 1000 people were picked out of 27000, but that they will be getting another letter about admissions later.</p>
<p>It sounds quite similar to what I have seen stating there is no admission yet.</p>
<p>I would say yours might be coming soon. Give it a few more days. If you met the Dec 1 deadline, they are trying to make sure they let you know where you stand on scholarship.</p>
<p>"Incorrect. ONLY if the student chose to opt in to having colleges contact them is their name sent to colleges. "</p>
<p>MPM - You are probably right. I am just not sure it would be something a student plans on while taking the test - I will not allow NMSC to notify anyone, I will ensure none of my teachers or counselors will mention that I made it to NMSF in their letters, leave it out of my application as an honor, all to ensure USC admits me and gives me the half tuition when I triumphantly show that I am an NMF and nominated them.</p>
<p>Holistic process will eliminate a bunch of NMFs from being admitted, calculations about how many will actually show up with a 40% yield will allow a lot more to be admitted than available scholarships but it is just not possible for USC to admit every qualified NMF. USC is the highest ranked school in the nation making this offer along with a 100+ full tuition scholarships. I would not be surprised if USC receives 6000 NMSF applications for that reason alone. As a parent who is expected to be full pay at any school in the nation, I am not ashamed to admit half a tuition is pretty good money.</p>
<p>texas,
NOTHING precludes a NMSF from mentioning his status on HIS application t o USC. Nothing prevents a student from telling his teachers. And as the schools are notified FIRST by NMSF in Sept of who IS a NMSF AND are required to send letters of recommendation to NMSF in order for a student to advance to NMF status, they obviously KNOW who is a NMSF! . </p>
<p>You are piling assumptions on top of your previously posted erroneous assumptions!</p>
<p>you are not a parent who’s kid has been through the entire NMSF selection/ award process at USC, so I suggest you stop making assumptions and erroneous proclamations about NMSF, and who knows what when, and how students are selected and awarded scholarships at USC.
The ONLY ones who may not AUTOMATICALLY know of a students NMSF status are colleges, and NOTHING prevents ANY NMSF from telling ANY college or the world if he chooses to do so of this honor. </p>
<p>“I assume, with you strong feeling, that you did not mention on your application that you are a NMSF since you feel it is such a disadvantage.”</p>
<p>MPM - I am only responding to the above statement.</p>
<p>I am an uncle who has seen two of my nephews go through the NMF scholarship process be awarded those, one of them a trustee. So it is not just parents who know something about it. </p>
<p>Is USC making a mistake by sending no decision letters to NMSF? The vast majority are going to get the NMS and be admitted to USC in May. No scholarship money is at risk as they will get the NMS Presidential. These students who I assume USC desires, are recieving invitations and Likely letters from other schools, but have the sour taste of a rejection letter from USC. This may influence their ultimate choice.</p>
<p>Let me get this straight: Are there actually some people arguing that you increase your admissions chances by ignoring, downplaying, obfuscating, covering-up, refuting or dismissing the fact that you are a National Merit Scholarship Semi-Finalist or better?</p>
<p>Really?</p>
<p>Talk about over-engineering a solution to a problem that isn’t there…</p>
<p>If you want to overlook your NMSF/NMF status by all means feel free, there’s doubtlessly a (slightly) statistically less-qualified applicant who will want to thank you.</p>
<p>“If you want to overlook your NMSF/NMF status by all means feel free, there’s doubtlessly a (slightly) statistically less-qualified applicant who will want to thank you.”</p>
<p>Please don’t assume students who did not make NMSF/NMF are statistically less qualified, especially in states like CA and NY where the cut off is around 220 if I am not mistaken. My S missed NMSF by a few points, but had single sittings SAT 2260/ACT 34. I don’t consider him statistically less qualified, even slightly.</p>
.</p>