National Merit Class of 2019 - where are you considering/visiting?

Hi all,

I have been researching the National Merit scholarships at schools for months trying to narrow down where my daughter will be applying/visiting this year. I know the actual semi-finalist list is not out yet but am pretty certain she will at least be a semi-finalist (her index of 223 is much higher than our Maine cutoff and first try at SAT was a 1520 so I am really hoping she will also be a finalist when all is said and done). Since we live in Maine and almost every school is in the south, I realized I have to do much more research online and decide in advance where we can visit. We feel like the full ride options (or at least free tuition) are such a huge benefit since we do not have any money set aside for college right now and will not receive need based aid. THANK YOU psat! I have spent countless hours researching schools in the Northeast just in case my daughter doesn’t feel she can travel so far away for college but the merit aid is pretty competitive and not that plentiful up this way.

Where are you 2019 National Merit folks (students or parents) considering? Maybe we could have a string reporting back after we visit schools? Lets share what we learn to make it easier for all? I loved reading in the 2018 thread every time someone went to a school tour.

Do any of you plan to tour any of the Florida colleges? I did learn that both UCF and USF are having events for National Merit Semi-finalists on the same weekend in November (UCF on Friday and USF on Saturday) and am planning on making the trip down for that. So far UCF is probably our top choice (due to Burnett Honors College opportunities and great dorm for honors kids!) but still searching every day. We like some other schools (University of Richmond) with competitive full ride scholarships but certainly cannot ignore the automatic full rides that are out there for National Merit kids.

I might have sounded a little more intelligent if I had correctly spelled National Merit in my subject line!

S19 is on the bubble so we are waiting for the announcements to come. But - if he makes cut he will add UF and UCF to his list. Alabama is already on the list as he qualifies for their Presidential Elite scholarship. He has two schools outside of the NMF realm that are reaches in terms of scholarships.

Do you have dates for the UCF event? We were planning to tour those schools in November if he is named NMSF. It would make sense to attend existing events.

Both my DD16 and DS18 are National Merit. DD picked OU because she wanted to major in Meteorology, she’s been very happy there and was able to get enough outside scholarships to make it into a full ride. Now that they have reduced their National Merit scholarship she couldn’t have afforded to go there. Most schools release their updated scholarship info in September so you might want to wait to make a final list of schools to consider. Scholarship packages can and do change each year and you need to make sure you have the most up to date info.

DD18 picked UT Dallas which turned out to be a full ride. He’s a comp sci major and got into the comp sci honors program. The school is a perfect fit for him! UTD is also known for it’s Neuro Science program and business program. They are generous with AP credit and DS hopes to complete his BS and Master under the National Merit scholarship progam with their Fast Track program.

They have preview days just for National Merit kids:
https://www.utdallas.edu/enroll/visit/events/national-merit-scholars-program-preview/
These are last years dates but just to give you an idea
Here’s some info about their NM program https://dox.utdallas.edu/publication1322

You might want to look at Texas Tech, it’s the only “true” full ride for NM that I know of, in addition to tuition, room, board, books, and fees, it covers transportation and a stipend for personal expenses.

The NMFs from my daughter’s class saw full rides at Texas A&M, Alabama, Iowa, Pitt, and Cincinnati. I believe others saw great merit aid, but not full rides, at Ohio State and Case Western.

November 16 is the date of the UCF event for National Merit Semifinalists and the 17th is the date for USF. I asked University of Florida if they do one but they said no. Once the official list comes out in September I imagine the kids will get invited to these but I just happened to contact both schools on my own for planning purposes to ask what the dates will be. I know UTDallas has one as well but have not heard of the date on that one. Anyone else know of others?

@FrozenMaineMom - thanks for the dates. I will maybe book UF tour around the UCF date. We won’t jinx ourselves and book airfare till we see cutoffs. S19 has a one point buffer over last year’s CO cutoff but who knows how things will play out.

@FrozenMaineMom any insight into visiting UF? Will financial aid department meet with prospective students to discuss details of NMF funding? It seems that UCF and USF are doing NMF outreach but not UF (maybe due to more competitive enrollment at UF?)

@mountainmomof3 I agree that UF does not seem to think NMF status is that big of a deal and I guess since they are Rated #1 in the Florida colleges and are more competitive that maybe they really do not care. I know, for me, it makes me not as excited to visit them. I like that the other schools (at least from what I have learned of USF and UCF) really make it seem like a big deal and I think our kids deserve that for such an accomplishment! I will probably visit UF when I do go to FL and I am sure they would meet and discuss the details when asked but so far I do not think they are trying to attract our kids so I have not been feeling “warm and fuzzy” about them (I know that may sound silly but if my daughter moves from ME to FL for college I need a little warm and fuzzy!).

Totally understand @FrozenMaineMom - S19 will be coming from CO so it is a nice when a school has special programming in place to make a big school feel smaller. But I do understand that UF is a much more competitive school and doesn’t really “have” to do anything as they have no problem attracting well qualified applicants.

S19 is still impressed with UA so if he makes NMSF he will have to decide if wants to look at the FL NMSF offerings.

@3scoutsmom You are right, UTD is amazing and Texas Tech is a great package as well. My DD16 is a Red Raider. With the Extension of Benaquisto to OOS students all of the Florida schools are Full Cost of Attendance scholarships. We have fallen in love with UCF, DD18 heads out on Friday !

@FrozenMaineMom contact Luke VanBlaricom at UCF. he will definitely make you feel welcome !

@FrozenMaineMom If you are considering visiting UT Dallas, you might want to check out other southwestern schools like ASU/Barrett Honors (not auto full ride but generous to NMF) and UNM (full ride). I know students at all three schools who have benefited from the financial support offered and are enjoying their experience.

U of Arizona in Tucson might also have NMF scholarships but not sure of the details. Gorgeous campus!

@FrozenMaineMom - you can’t get more opposite weather than ASU. My DS18 has full tuition for 4 years. He is a CS major and has the option to pursue a MS. With his AP credits, he will be able to finish an MS in 4 years

@FrozenMaineMom , If she is looking for warm and friendly, Texas A & M is a great place! NMF only get money for tuition so I call it a “half a ride” but if she has other scholarships, they will stack. What is she interested in majoring in? The school is well known for engineering.

Wow! UTD had 170 National Merit kids enroll this year, not bad for a nerdy tech school with no football;-)

https://www.utdallas.edu/news/2018/8/23-33092_University-Becomes-Popular-Destination-for-Nationa_story-wide.html?WT.mc_id=NewsEmail

I’m not a 2019er, but my S is at University of New Mexico on a full ride for NMF. The scholarship covers tuition & fees, room & board, books and several hundred left over. UNM has a great honors college, strong film, engineering and nursing / pre-med programs and the vibe is laid back and friendly. S has only been there a week and a half, but he is loving it so far!

https://scholarship.unm.edu/scholarships/non-resident.html

UNM doesn’t do special tours for NMFs like some of the other schools. You sign up for the regular walking tour in the morning, then in the afternoon, you can do a housing tour, and if you want to meet with any departments, you make those contacts yourself.

We toured UTD, OU and Texas Tech last year, and I agree with what others have said. TT has an amazing offer, and for awhile it was tied with UNM for S.

UTD Dallas is an up-and-comer with excellent facilities and opportunities. OU was my personal favorite, but the reduced award is a bummer now.

University of Kentucky has updated their scholarship page for the incoming class, Fall 2019.

http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/national-merit-scholarships/2096541-university-of-kentucky-scholarships-2019-incoming-freshmen.html#latest

My S19 will be a NMSF and should end up a NMF. He hasn’t looked at UTD at all, but I am trying to get him to look at it. We are in Oklahoma and both OU & OSU offer great scholarships for NMF’s, and TU offers a fantastic Presidential Scholarship that my S17 got, which my S19 should be in the running for. However, I think my S19 has a desire to go a little farther away and I think UTD could be a great fit. He is interested in many subjects, but Neuroscience and Comp Sci are both on his list.

He is also looking at reach schools, but even if he gets in, he would have to go in debt, so I just don’t see them as the best choices.

@liecdre My DD16 is at OU on National Merit (before they slahed scholarships) and DS18 is at UTD (we are hopeful that ds20 will be NM and also plans to attend UTD) feel free to ask any questions! My advice would be to apply early so you get an early acceptance and can apply for the summer Clark research program in the first round- this was and amazing experience for my DS and it was free plus he got a stipend!