{"id":308,"date":"2022-09-08T13:17:18","date_gmt":"2022-09-08T13:17:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/collegeaidpro.com\/?p=308"},"modified":"2022-10-27T14:09:19","modified_gmt":"2022-10-27T19:09:19","slug":"do-national-merit-finalists-get-full-ride-scholarships","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/collegeaidpro.com\/do-national-merit-finalists-get-full-ride-scholarships\/","title":{"rendered":"Do National Merit Finalists Get Full-Ride Scholarships?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Do National Merit<\/a> finalists get full-ride scholarships?<\/span><\/p>\n

In some cases, yes!<\/span><\/p>\n

Previously, we wrote about <\/span>what ACT or SAT score can earn your student a full-ride scholarship<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

In this post, we are going to focus on another source of full-ride scholarships \u2013 National Merit Finalists<\/a>. In my research regarding full-ride scholarships, I have found that there is a growing trend away from giving full-ride or even full-tuition scholarships to National Merit Finalists. However, there are still some schools that offer these. They tend to be less competitive and\/or lesser-known schools.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

However, by leveraging financial aid opportunities at lesser-known colleges and universities, your student may be able to set themselves up for long-term success. They could potentially get a full-ride scholarship (or a notable financial aid offer!) from a smaller college and still have a stellar academic experience, then go on to graduate debt-free. In today’s world where the average student loan load coming out of college is close to $28,400 after graduation<\/a>, that’s nothing to sniff at. So, let’s dive into what a National Merit Finalist is, and how you can look for schools that reward this level of merit.<\/p>\n

What Is The National Merit Scholarship Program?<\/h2>\n

Per their website:<\/a><\/p>\n

The National Merit\u00ae<\/sup>\u00a0Scholarship Program is an academic competition for recognition and scholarships that began in 1955. Approximately 1.5 million high school students enter the program each year.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

To enter, students take the PSAT\/NMSQT before their junior year of high school. They also need to be enrolled in high school (public, private, or home school all can qualify), and be expected to graduate “on time” the following year (their senior year).<\/p>\n

What is a National Merit Finalist, and How Hard Is It To Achieve?<\/h2>\n

You may be wondering, how hard is it to be a National Merit Finalist? It\u2019s very difficult! 1.5 million students take the <\/span>PSAT\/NMSQT<\/span><\/a> test every year.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

Only about 16,000 students across the country are named semi-finalists.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

About 15,000 of those students are named finalists.\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

To become a semi-finalist, a student needs to be a top scorer on the PSAT\/NMSQT test for his or her state, when taken the junior year of high school. Each state will have its own cutoff score, so a score that would make semi-finals in one state may not be high enough in another state.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here are a few of the colleges where national merit finalists get full-ride or full-tuition scholarships:<\/strong><\/p>\n