<p>I haven’t read the whole thread so I apologize if this has been said already --</p>
<p>Many, many colleges have guaranteed admission and merit money for National Merit Semifinalists. Off the top of my head, I remember UT Dallas and the University of Arizona.</p>
<p>Also, if a school has a guaranteed merit scholarship for certain stats, admission is probably a sure thing too, unless you have terrible recommendations or something.</p>
<p>Edit: One exception to the above is USC. National Merit Semifinalists are guaranteed a half tuition scholarship, but not all National Merit Semifinalists get in.</p>