How is the National Merit Scholarship decided?

I'm curious about the National Merit Scholarship. What is the qualifying score for it? Are there any other criteria for this scholarship other than the PSAT score?

The National Merit Scholarship is mainly determined based on your score on the PSAT/NMSQT (Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test). You typically take this exam in your junior year of high school. However, it isn't just about a single "qualifying score." The score that qualifies for National Merit varies by state and by year, as it's usually based on the top 1% of students in your state.

Once you've been identified based on your PSAT/NMSQT score, you become a National Merit Semifinalist. You might be wondering, is there more to it than the score? The answer is yes. To advance to Finalist standing, you have to fulfill more requirements:

1. An outstanding academic record throughout high school. Essentially, you'll need a solid GPA.

2. Be endorsed and recommended by a high school official. This will typically be your guidance counselor or principal.

3. Write an essay that will be part of your scholarship application.

4. Take the SAT or ACT and earn scores that confirm your PSAT/NMSQT performance. The details on what these confirming scores are is not publicly available, but generally, as long as the student’s SAT or ACT scores aren’t drastically different from the PSAT/NMSQT scores, they should be fine.

5. Intend to accept a National Merit Scholarship and enroll in college no later than the fall following completion of high school.

So, while the initial cut for National Merit Scholars is based solely on PSAT/NMSQT scores, advancing in the competition involves several other factors including academic performance, a recommendation, as well as SAT or ACT scores.