<p>I recently discovered that I became a National Merit Finalist. Is this noteworthy enough to send an update to the Ivies (and other top 20 schools) or is it so common in their applicants that it won't make a difference?</p>
<p>I read a post from a senior member a while back that gave a lengthy summary and concluded in saying “no.” He explained that all ivies pretty much expect all semifinalsts to become finalists or something of that nature.</p>
<p>They already know you’re NMSF, and I think something like 15000/16000 NMSFs become NMF, so no, it’s not necessary. Plus, colleges tend to not like it so much if you send two or more updates, so you want to save your update for if you end up achieving something even better.</p>
<p>Definitely not something to send in an update about. You’ve presumably already told them you’re a Semifinalist, which, as noted above, is basically the same thing. You’d just be spamming them and loading your file up with useless paper.</p>
<p>The other reason it’s not a worthwhile update is that National Merit is essentially all about how well you did on a practice version of a standardized test. Colleges already have your real standardized test scores, so they have all the information they need to decide how well you did in that area.</p>
<p>The only difference between NMSF and NMF is that NMFs have to have maintained a strong GPA and done well on the SAT. The colleges you applied to are already seeing that information.</p>
<p>I’m just making sure, but does the advice given (to not update ivies/top 20 colleges about national merit finalist status) also apply to state schools? I’m not sure whether or not notifying a state school could increase a possible merit scholarship offer. Then again, it does seem kind of obvious that a national merit semifinalist who has decent stats would become a finalist…</p>
<p>It applies everywhere with respect to admissions.</p>
<p>As far as money goes, you wouldn’t notify the school in an update letter. If you wanted to take advantage of a school’s National Merit scholarship (for example, at one of the schools that gives full rides and a whole slew of other things to NMFs), then you would list that school as your first choice with National Merit and go through whatever procedure it has for getting that scholarship, which can often be found online.</p>
<p>Chances are, as an NMSF/NMF, you’ll be getting spammed with all those offers, so you can use the information they give you to take advantage of them.</p>
<p>As I understand it, you’re not really going to affect how much money you get by telling them you’re an NMF beyond their National Merit (or National Merit-related, as are those that offer above and beyond the $1,000/year) scholarship.</p>