<p>will not being nmsf hurt you if you have a 2300+ sat score, high class rank, rigorous schedule etc etc.?</p>
<p>better that than my situation lol…225 psat and 2030 on the sat. getting my second batch of scores tomorrow. pretty sure I didn’t do any better. The SAT is far more important than the PSAT</p>
<p>Try U Alabama for a full ride.</p>
<p>Im referring to admission to top schools (northwestern, upenn, uchicago, cornell, etc). How does not being a nmsf affect your chances?</p>
<p>Not much, since most of the students at those top schools are NMSF or NMF, I don’t think admissions officers really mind whether you have the award or not.</p>
<p>OP, the short answer is “no.”</p>
<p>^ I agree with this if what loldanielol meant to say was “since most of the students at those top schools are <em>not</em> NMSF or NMF.” </p>
<p>You can get a feel for the number of NMF enrolled in a freshman class at your college of interest here: <a href=“http://www.nationalmerit.org/annual_report.pdf[/url]”>http://www.nationalmerit.org/annual_report.pdf</a> The numbers represent only the NMFs who were awarded some type of NM scholarship. </p>
<p>A better way to gauge your competitiveness is to Google “Common Data Set Northwestern,” for example, and look at the most recent CDS - section C re: applicant test scores, class rank, importance of curricular rigor, etc.</p>
<p>It sounds like your stats are fine. Realize thousands of applicants have the same or similar stats. It’s up to you to make your application stand out by your essays, ECs, letters of rec, etc.</p>