<p>The list has been posted:</p>
<p>Wow. What an interesting way to waste time.</p>
<p>A couple random observations:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>If anyone wants a quick explanation of why the fact that Berkeley is 40% Asian doesn't mean that selective schools with 15% Asian students are discriminating against Asians, eyeball the relative number of Asian names in California vs. everywhere else (including NY and NJ). These are the top 20-30 (in the case of ties) single-test SAT (M/CR only) or ACT scores for boys and girls (separately) in each of 50 states, DC, PR, and "Abroad". Contrary to popular belief, Asians (or kids with Asian names) do NOT dominate the list anywhere but California (and Hawaii). In Pennsylvania, they are 18% of the names.</p></li>
<li><p>In some of the smaller states, a few schools really dominate. In Hawaii, over half the candidates go either to Punahou or Iolani. In Alaska, 5 schools seem to represent 80% of the list. And then there's well-known Thomas Jefferson HS in Virginia -- taking about 1/3 of the state slots. Impressive!</p></li>
<li><p>Phillips Exeter: 25 kids. That's impressive, too.</p></li>
<li><p>10 lousy points separated S from a friend who made the list. Phooey-dooey! (But, wow!, I'm impressed by both of them.)</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Not all of these kids are academic superstars. I know a few kids on the list. Some are indeed spectacular, but others are kids with ordinary GPAs and ECs who happened to get extraordinary SAT scores.</p>
<p>I've never understood why this program exists. We already have one program -- the National Merit scholarship program -- that picks kids exclusively on the basis of their test scores. This program is the same, but it sets the bar a lot higher. Why not just combine it with National Merit and simply offer the Presidential scholarship money to those NMSFs with the highest test scores?</p>
<p>What is the approx. ACT/SAT score to be considered?</p>
<p>I don't know, but it has to be MUCH higher than the National Merit PSAT cutoffs.</p>
<p>My daughter's school had 36 NMSFs but has only four kids on this list.</p>
<p>I strongly suspect that in high-scoring states (such as my state of Maryland), nothing short of a 1600 SAT or 36 ACT gets a student onto this list.</p>
<p>They don't tell you. They look at the top 30 boys and top 30 girls in each state, and then take the top 20 of each plus any ties. So it will vary a lot state by state (and state by non-state). I imagine that in California or New York the list could consist entirely of 1600s and 36s. I know that in Pennsylvania that wasn't required, and I'll bet that in Alaska, Montana or North Dakota you could be a long way from there and still make the list.</p>
<p>Re Asians:</p>
<p>The population of the state of Maryland is 4.0% Asian. (See <a href="http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0108223.html%5B/url%5D">http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0108223.html</a>.) Twenty of the 56 Maryland kids on the list (36%) have Asian last names. That's not too shabby a showing, don't you think?</p>
<p>The only students in my kids high school (in CA) who get onto this list are those that have perfect SAT scores. That is the "common wisdom" at our school anyway, and it has held true through the past 3 years. (And there are 7 students from our school on this list this year.)</p>
<p>One of the people I know on the list did not get 2400. (This is for Maryland, by the way.) Two others I also know did get 2400, though.</p>
<p>Eligibility is based on single sitting Math and Verbal/Critical Reading scores for the SAT, and English, Math, Reading and Science scores for the ACT. Writing scores are not considered.</p>
<ol>
<li><p>I didn't say Asians weren't overrepresented on the list. They are. But they are less overrepresented than I expected, and the overrepresentation is highest in just a few states. </p></li>
<li><p>They only look at CR and M, not W, so a 2400 is clearly not required. But 1600 may be in some states.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Wow, five from my son's school (three Asian, all female, if you're counting)!</p>
<p>In my home state of Washington, schools are classified by size as follows: 4A, 3A, 2A, A, B. As far as I know, not a single public HS smaller than 3A on the list. </p>
<p>I have a student on the list!!!!! Is this something she would already know about, or will the letter mailed on the 18th be the first inkling? I mean, if she hasn't seen it on the website. Do students get an email?</p>
<p>ReneeV: We found out last year by seeing a post on CC that the list was up. My son's letter didn't arrive until a few days later.</p>
<p>
In Texas our classes are from 5A down . There is not a single student from a public school smaller than 4A.</p>
<p>^^^Interesting! Does that seem to be a pattern in other states?</p>
<p>"In Hawaii, over half the candidates go either to Punahou or Iolani."</p>
<p>If you look at the list again, you will see that only 3 of the winners were from public schools. The schools are Moanalua, Kalani, and McKinley. They are all on Oahu. All the kids attended school on Oahu but one. The one girl from Hilo on the Big Island goes to Kamehameha, a private school, where only children of Hawaiian ancestry are allowed to attend. </p>
<p>Punahou and Iolani average about $15,000 per year to attend. Kamehameha, because of its endowment, can charge much less. I don't know about the other schools, but I don't think they are inexpensive. They do have scholarships, but a fair playing field it isn't.</p>
<p>"In Hawaii, over half the candidates go either to Punahou or Iolani."</p>
<p>And if they're Japanese, they go to Iolani. Period. There isn't a single Japanese name among the Punahou kids. </p>
<p>Kids whose names suggest white or Chinese ancestry are found on both the Punahou and Iolani lists, though.</p>
<p>Race really doesn't have much to do with what kind of education you get in Hawaii. Money does. I also know many people of Japanese ancestry that went to Punahou.</p>
<p>Okay, this may seem really random, but I'm on that list and I've never heard of this before! I guess I will ask my GC this Monday!! :)</p>