<p>How much does being national merit semifinalist/finalist/scholar help in admissions? </p>
<p>or let me put it this way, are the majority of ivy league applicants/admits national merit scholars or not?</p>
<p>i don't understand how being NMSF helps in admissions. It doesn't make sense. All it says is that you did well on a short version of the SAT. HOW does doing good on that test help your application if your application already shows really strong SAT scores? I feel it's very redundant to list it, yet some people believe it to be impressive. If you do good on the SAT, that shows them your level of achievement, and that's the achievement that COUNTS. You're basically restating an achievement on your application ( your SAT performance) and i seriously do not understand how it's worthwhile to list. </p>
<p>I'm not saying NMSF is not an accomplishment. It's a big achievement. You're among the top .5% PSAT scorers in the nation in some states! However, getting good SAT scores is also an impressive achievement. Since you have to list your SAT scores, and because doing good on the PSAT / doing good on the SAT are basically the same achievements, it's very redundant to list NMSF when you already have good SAT scores. </p>
<p>However, i may be wrong. Most of CC here think it's a big honor for college admissions.</p>
<p>Someone I know from Notre Dame admissions says that high-ranked prestigious schools don't look at PSAT score at all.
It's a scholarship thing.</p>
<p>I think its more a college-prestige thing. To be able to say youre the college with the most Nat'l Merit Finalists is impressive, just like how colleges like citing numbers of Marshall Scholars, Rhodes Scholars, etc..</p>
<p>Personally, I don't think its that big of a deal. Equlibrium hit the nail on the head; high test scores are great but SATs are already representative of that.</p>
<p>scoring well on the PSAT just shows that your real SAT score was or wasn't a fluke.</p>
<p>i believe only semifinalist matters (somewhat) in the admissions process. by the time finalists/scholars are announced most colleges are already reviewing the applicants..</p>