<p>Does anyone know of anybody who received semifinalist status but did not advance to finalist? (and why?)</p>
<p>Most semifinalists advance to finalist. Only about 10% of them don't. The main reason would be failure to send in the paperwork on time, or not taking the SAT to confirm their PSAT scores. </p>
<p>Some people intentionally do not apply to become a finalist because, for example, they may have already been offered a full scholarship based on their ACT scores, and don't want to bother with extra tests and paperwork. Low grades in school or disciplinary problems or criminal activity could prevent a few from advancing, but I'd guess very few would fall into that category. So if you are a semifinalist, just get your paperwork in on time, keep your grades up, do well on the SAT (2000+) and you're in.</p>
<p>It's more around 6-7% who don't advance...
I know one person who did not- and it was because they decided that it could not help them with money so the essay/extra paperwork wasn't worth the time.</p>
<p>Yes, I know cases in which the paperwork wasn't completed. I HEAR (but don't know personally) of cases in which the student had high test scores but low high school grades.</p>
<p>Failure to send in the application is the main reason why people don't get finalist. Of course people can have bad grades (not mostly A's and B's) or they've been suspended or something, but seriously, mere application is required.</p>
<p>would a 3.4 GPA unweighted with all honors/AP coursework be a problem?</p>
<p>Did you get many C's, a few D's or a F? If so, it might become a problem, but I strongly doubt it. Generally, I'd consider a GPA lower than 3.0 with regular courses to disqualify you.</p>