<p>HeliMom:</p>
<p>Posters here who have made direct inquiries of the NMSC have reported the qualifying index to be 1960 in the past few years, although the general recommendation here is to aim for 2000+ as this threshold might change in any given year. Note that the way the index is calculated is not exactly the same as adding scores on the three sections of the SAT because the writing score used in the NM index does not include the essay. Most NMSF’s have little problem reaching this qualifying standard.</p>
<p>See the FAQ thread in this forum for more details about this and other confusions. I think it does a good job of answering most questions.</p>
<p>The qualifying score is a universal standard. There is no need to “match” a student’s PSAT score.</p>