Coca Cola is one of the best known scholarships, at least to the college savvy. It’s highly competitive and announces well past the December college app deadlines.
NSHSS- well just look at the qualifications to get this. It has standards, but not on the order of what a “most selective” is looking for. Not a tip. Lots of kids get invited, no one is quite sure even how those folks get their names.
The most selective colleges aren’t going to swoon over most awards. Some of the higher math competitions, yes. But again, not some magic touch. These colleges want a solid holistic app, depth and breadth, done right, in and out of the high school.
The sort of awards that get a tippy top AO excited are more about rare, high performing kids who didn’t have the same opportunities as others. They’re not just “awards,” but solid mentoring opportunities, over a few years. Not a contest, but the result of vetting.
Adding, the Natl AP Scholar looks for 4s in all AP tests. A string of just 4 scores isn’t particularly competititve for a Top10.