<p>If you get commended or semifinalist, should you list the award as "State" or "National" on the common app? And for what grade? I took the test in 10th grade, but I didn't receive the honor until 12th grade. Should I mark 12th grade?</p>
<p>i’m pretty sure it’s national and 12th grade since that’s the year of notification, that’s what i put at least</p>
<p>National and 2012, this is one you will be able to use for many years.</p>
<p>My counselor told me to put “State” because being commended is based on the cut offs for your state?</p>
<p>Guess what? Each state has a cut-off for semi-finalist as well, so using that logic, it is all state. For example, you can make NMSF in Nebraska with a much lower score than New Jersey.</p>
<p>Commended seems to relate to the lowest qualifying score in the country. So, if you need a 202 to be a NMSF in Wyoming, and Wyoming has the lowest qualifying score,everyone scoring between 201 and the cut-off for your state is commended. It has been a while since I looked at this stuff, but that is what I remember from four years ago when my daughter went through it. Good luck.</p>
<p>Also, you should have taken the PSAT in your junior year for senior year qualifying.</p>
<p>I’m just putting national (for NMSF) for commended the cutoff is the same everywhere, so that would also be national in my opinion. Also I marked 12th grade, it doesn’t really matter since all colleges will be familiar with the national merit process.</p>
<p>We put down National (Virginia) and grade 11 since it was based on the test taken in 11th grade-guess we should have put 12</p>