<p>I'm a hs junior. Alot of the kids at my hs, an elite private school in CA are studying very hard for PSAT's in October. Most of them have the goal of achieving National Merit Scholar status. I was wondering how much emphasis colleges put on PSAT scores. Obviously not as much as SAT's, but how much do you think being a National Merit Scholar helps?</p>
<p>Thanks</p>
<p>unless you get around 220/240 on the psats and make semi-finalist, its pretty much useless</p>
<p>actually its like getting a score with the top 5 percent in your state on the PSAT</p>
<p>Colleges absolutely do not care about your PSAT scores. They might take into account (though very minimally) the fact that you make National Merit Commendation/Semifinalist/Finalist, but the actual PSAT scores- they could care less.</p>
<p>It is true that colleges do not consider PSAT scores at all during the admissions process. HOWEVER, most colleges -- with the exception of the few super-elite schools like the Ivies, Stanford, MIT -- do take note of the National Merit semi-finalist/finalist designation. (And some colleges also look more favorably upon NM Commended students as well). There is a large number of schools that actively seek out NM semifinalists/finalists -- and some even give sizeable automatic scholarships to them. (There are several threads listing these schools on CC.) Schools like to boast of the number of NM Scholars attending.</p>
<p>i didn't know that the Ivies let people use scholarship money, i thought u had 2 pay the full tuition if you wanted 2 get in, even if u had $10,000 in scholarship money (i just heard from a few people so idk if its true)</p>
<p>It's just a hype. But, preparing for the PSAT prepares you for the SAT. So why not give it all you got?</p>
<p>OK let me clear up some misconceptions:</p>
<p>If you are one of 2500 people to win the $2500 National Merit Scholarship, you can use it at ANY school (Ivy or not) to pay your tuition.
If you are a finalist, some schools give you money. Ivies don't.</p>
<p>ooo...thanks for clearing that up mallomar :cool:</p>
<p>In my opinion, the only reason to study for the PSATs is to increase your score so you can make it to Finalist standing. I'll admit, I didn't study at all, but being a Finalist probably helped me a bit with getting into college. A little scholarship money doesn't hurt, either.</p>