<p>Iwas going to put Northwestern down as one of my 2 semifinalist choices, but I have heard it doesn't make any difference here. Does anyone know? Northwestern is my first choce now, but I might be better off putting down a smaller school like Carleton or Claremont McKenna.</p>
<p>It makes a huge difference. Northwestern gives out college-sponsored National Merit Scholarships and will award them regardless of need (new change this year). It is their only exception for their policy of not giving out 'merit aid.' So you should definitely put Northwestern as your first choice.</p>
<p>From the Daily Northwestern (February 25, 2005):</p>
<p>The number of freshman merit scholars at Northwestern jumped from 96 scholars in 2003 to 152 in 2004. </p>
<p>This change is due in part to NU's decision to offer National Merit Scholar finalists a merit-based scholarship for the first time last year, said Rebecca Dixon, associate provost of university enrollment. Merit scholars include both National Merit Scholars and finalists.</p>
<p>Before the decision to grant merit-based scholarships, only National Merit Scholar finalists expressing financial need received the $2,000 maximum scholarship, Dixon said.</p>
<p>The Chronicle of Higher Education ranks NU 13th out of the 97 colleges listed in 2004. Last year NU placed 22nd. </p>
<p>"Students had found it offensive and understandingly so," she said. "(The merit-based scholarship) is a way for recognizing a strong applicant who may or may not have financial need."</p>
<p>Dixon said NU probably will continue awarding this merit-based scholarship because more students deemed "the best in the country" by the National Merit Scholarship Corporation came to NU in 2004.</p>
<p>Victor Roy, a Weinberg freshman, said offering more merit-based scholarships could attract a better applicant pool to NU, particularly from the middle class.</p>
<p>"A lot of people in the middle class get squeezed because they may make too much to get financial aid but not enough to cover the costs (of tuition)," Roy said....</p>
<p>...Every year the National Merit Scholarship Corporation grants 2,500 students one-time $2,500 scholarships based on their performance on the Preliminary SAT exam, said Gloria Davis, assistant director of public information of the National Merit Scholarship Corporation, which is based in Evanston. </p>
<p>The 2,500 winners are chosen from 8,258 finalists. </p>
<p>Colleges and universities can choose to award scholarships to National Merit Scholar finalists who were not winners. </p>
<p>These stipends range from $500 to $2,000 and are renewable. </p>
<p>Of the 156 freshman merit scholars at NU, 102 of them received the merit-based scholarship from NU.</p>
<p>It sounds like you just found out you're a quarterfinalist today. You should just put down whatever you think your first choice will be. I put down Yale and Brown, and I got waitlisted by both. Some people think this gives you a sort of bonus because it means you are showing interest in your 2 colleges; I tend to think that it doesn't really matter at all- just be sure to do your homework if you become a semifinalist, because you'll be able to name only one first choice school (although you can change it), and you could end up receiving a scholarship from a school you don't end up going to. I had UW-Madison as my first choice, but luckily I received a scholarship good at any college.</p>
<p>I think that a 224 in Texas should be enough for a semifinalist.</p>
<p>You can actually change your school choice later once you get the scholarship. You get a form where you can specify if you want to change your previously listed first-choice school to another qualifying school.</p>