<p>So as I understand it, you can only get one of these scholarships - Corporate Scholarship, $2,500 Scholarship, and College-sponsored scholarship.</p>
<p>Is that right?</p>
<p>Correct for official NMSC awarded scholarships, but don’t confuse with the scholarships that are independently awarded by many colleges for national merit students.</p>
<p>And you can only get any of the money if you go to the school you selected in the NM application?</p>
<p>The National Merit money ($2500) or any corporate awards are mobile; you can change your school pretty late in the year. I think that the published deadline is around May, but if someone comes off a waitlist, they can make the change. Some schools that offer great scholarships to NMF require that you name them as your first choice school to get the school’s scholarship. </p>
<p>Once the finalists are determined, the corporate award recipients are selected then the $2500 NMCorp winners are selected. The universities do their own thing and a NM or corporate award might or might not be subtracted from the university award. This makes perfect sense to me; I hope it is clear.</p>
<br>
<br>
<p>I believe that if you have a college that gives National Merit College-Sponsored scholarships listed as your first choice, you are not considered for the corporate scholarship or the $2,500 scholarship.</p>
<p>Its not that you are not considered for the NM, its that often the college folds into its offer to you your NM offer. So if college X says it will offer you $4,000 per year, AND you receive the NM scholarship ($2,500- one time offer), the first year essentially you get the $2,500 from NMC and only $1,500 from the college itself. The next 3 years your $4,000 “national merit” scholarship from college X will be funded by the school only, meaning each year you receive $4,000 total regardless of where it comes from. The true benefit to the student of the $2,500 award comes from if you attend a school that does not offer any scholarship because of your NMF status or if you change your mind from your first place school. Plus the prestige of knowing you received the scholarship.</p>
<p>Just to throw out my son’s example:
He received a corporate NMSC scholarship (one lump sum payment first year).
He will still get the school’s scholarship labeled “Academic Excellence Scholarship for National Merit Scholars” (awarded by the school not NMSC) which is a four-year all tuition/fees/$5K stipend because he named them as his first choice. A small portion of the stipend would’ve been from NMSC but since he is a corporate winner that part may go away, but everything else is guaranteed by the school.</p>
<p>As an example, in Wake County, NC they posted the winners of the corporate, $2500, and college-sponsored scholarships.</p>
<p>There was no overlap. None.</p>
<p>[WCPSS:15</a> WCPSS Seniors Earn 2010 National Merit College-Sponsored Scholarships](<a href=“http://www.wcpss.net/news/2010_may26_natmerit_college_scholars/]WCPSS:15”>http://www.wcpss.net/news/2010_may26_natmerit_college_scholars/)</p>
<p>[WCPSS:Three</a> Seniors Earn National Merit $2,500 Scholarships](<a href=“http://www.wcpss.net/news/2009_may8_natmerit_2500_scholars/]WCPSS:Three”>http://www.wcpss.net/news/2009_may8_natmerit_2500_scholars/)</p>
<p>[WCPSS:2010</a> Naitonal Merit Corproate Scholars](<a href=“http://www.wcpss.net/news/2010_april29_nat_merit_corporate/]WCPSS:2010”>http://www.wcpss.net/news/2010_april29_nat_merit_corporate/)</p>
<p>There are college scholarships that you can get BECAUSE you are a NMSF, but they don’t qualify as THE National Merit College-Sponsored scholarship.</p>
<p>“So as I understand it, you can only get one of these scholarships - Corporate Scholarship, $2,500 Scholarship, and College-sponsored scholarship.”</p>
<p>"There are college scholarships that you can get BECAUSE you are a NMSF, but they don’t qualify as THE National Merit College-Sponsored scholarship. "</p>
<p>Yes, I believe those statements are correct. Winning in one of the three categories officially moves the student from NM Finalist to NM Scholar. </p>
<p>Just fyi, when my son was awarded the corporate scholarship (the first type of scholarships to be awarded/announced) there was a needed reply to accept or decline the award. I presume someone would decline only if they were hoping for a bigger award via one of the other two types of scholarships.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>There is some sort mutual exclusivity to a limited extent. Now NMSC knows who gets the corporate scholarship as they are the ones who make the decision (based on criteria given by the corporation). They know who gets the NMSC $2500 scholarship as they are the ones who give it. </p>
<p>Now logically NMSC wants to give the most amount of scholarships and the $2500 scholarship is limited to 2500 students. So if they award the $2500 scholarship to someone who has a corporate scholarship, and student accepts the $2500 scholarship, then there is one less scholarship. So they would not give NMSC scholarships to those who got the corporate scholarship, unless the corporate scholarship is worth less than $2500 over 4 years. Most corporate scholarships are worth more than that, so they will not award the NMSC scholarship to someone who has corporate scholarship. (I may be mistaken about this but I have not come across a case of a student being awarded both).</p>
<p>With reference to college scholarships, the issue is a little different. NMSC has no idea when the college will make a decision, how they award NMSC portion of the scholarship etc. So you could get a college award and a NMSC or corporate award. Some schools will work with you to mazimize the benefits, others may go by the NMSC policy. So that is where it depends on timing and your choice of school.</p>
<p>The kids who get the corporate awards are not even considered for the NM $2500.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>That is what I figured and would assume to be case, as all corporate awards I am aware off are greater than $2500 over a 4 year period. Some college awards are less than $2500.</p>
<p>DD’s is $1000 a year.</p>
<p>*The kids who get the corporate awards are not even considered for the NM $2500. *</p>
<p>I agree. </p>
<p>It makes sense that NMCorp wouldn’t want to award a one-time NMCorp award to someone who can get a corporate one - which will likely be for more money overall.</p>