<p>I'm just wondering how big of a sway being a Semifinalist (in and of itself, apart from the fact the many NMSFs have a high GPA and ACT/SAT) has on the admissions decision.</p>
<p>Since being a NMSF is based on how well a student does on the PSAT, a student could do well enough on that test to be at NMSF, but then really bomb the ACT or SAT and not have a very good high school GPA and not have that many extracurricular activities. So in theory, a NMSF with a low test score/GPA/less than stellar EC’s could be rejected from CSE. The college could consider being a NMSF an anomaly and come to the conclusion that the student would not do very well at the university based on ACT/SAT test scores and GPA. My personal opinion is that GPA/high school class rank is a better indicator of how well a student will fare at college compared to how they do on a one time test such as the PSAT, ACT or SAT. What are the exact thresholds? I do not know, but I would guess that a student’s test scores and GPA would have to be right around the average for the typical student admitted to the program, otherwise being a NMSF does not mean anything at all just standing alone. The average test scores for a student admitted to CSE is ACT: 31 and SAT 2053. On their academic profile for admitted students, Minnesota doesn’t list GPA, but rather high school class rank. 78% of the admitted students are in the top 10% of their class and 100% are in the top 25%. I have no idea how that would translate into GPA, but just taking a guess, I think a GPA of <em>at least</em> 3.5 would be required for admittance. So in my totally amateur opinion, my guess is that a NMSF would need to have a ACT/SAT score at or near the average for CSE and a GPA of 3.5+ or risk not getting accepted to CSE.</p>