Colleges enrolling the most National Merit Scholarship winners

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:First is the raw number; then adjusted for percentage of enrolled freshmen to account for undergraduate size. Some schools like Alabama and ASU offer full scholarships to winners so you will see a large number at these institutions.


1. Alabama 323 [8,279 Freshmen, 3.9%]
2. Florida 297 [6,612 Freshmen 4.4%]
3. USC 262 [3,402 Freshmen, 7.7%]
4. Purdue 260 [9,353 Freshmen, 2.7%]
5. UT Dallas 232 [4,218 Freshmen, 5.5%]
6. Texas A&M 219 [12,419 Freshmen, 1.7%]
7. Vanderbilt 185 [1,624 Freshmen, 11.3%]
8. Harvard 160 [1,644 Freshmen, 9.7%]
9. MIT 154 [1,136 Freshmen, 13.5%]
10. Penn 147 [2,415 Freshmen, 6%]
11. UMD 144 [5,821 Freshmen, 2.5%]
12. Stanford 129 [1,733 Freshmen, 7.4%]
13. Yale 127 [1,554 Freshmen, 8%]
14. Princeton 116 [1,497 Freshmen, 7.7%]
15. Northeastern 97 [2,519 Freshmen, 3.9%]
16. Duke 94 [1,744 Freshmen, 5.3%]
17. UC Berkeley 93 [6,707 Freshmen, 1.4%]
18. Georgia Tech 90 [3,646 Freshmen, 2.5%]
19. UCF 85 [7,512 Freshmen, 1.1%]
20. UT Austin 85 [9,109 Freshmen, .9%]
21. Oklahoma 84
22. Minnesota 79
23. BU 77 [3,635 Freshmen, 2.1%]
24. UCLA 77 [6,461 Freshmen, 1.2%]
25. USF 77 [6,773 Freshmen, 1.1%]
26. Michigan 76 [7,050 Freshmen, 1%]
27. Columbia 75 [1,522 Freshmen, 4.9%]
28. Northwestern 75 [2,038 Freshmen, 3.7%]
29. Brown 69 [1,717 Freshmen, 4%]
30. Emory 67 [1,424 Freshmen, 4.7%]
31. Indiana 67 [9,736 Freshmen, .7%]
32. Arizona 65 [9,069 Freshmen, .7%]
33. Tufts 63 [1,694 Freshmen, 3.7%]
34. ASU 62 [10,022 Freshmen, .6%]
35. Georgia 60 [6,250 Freshmen, 1%]
36. BYU 59 [5,567 Freshmen, 1%]
37. Georgetown 56 [1,603 Freshmen, 3.5%]
38. Case Western 55 [1,553 Freshmen, 3.5%]
39. Cornell 54 [3,491 Freshmen, 1.5%]
40. Rice 51 [1,201 Freshmen, 4.3%]
41. Dartmouth 49 [1,124 Freshmen, 4.4%]
42. Michigan State 49 [9,829 Freshmen .5%]
43. Johns Hopkins 48 [1,406 Freshmen 3.4%]
44. UChicago 48 [2,053 Freshmen, 2.3%]
45. Carnegie Mellon 47 [1,716 Freshmen, 2.7%]
46. Clemson 45 [4,588 Freshmen, .99%]
47. Missouri 45 [4,983 Freshmen, .9%]
48. NYU 44 [6,184 Freshmen, .7%]
49. Miss State 43 [3,367 Freshmen, 1.2%]
50. Rutgers 43 [7,780 Freshmen, .5%]
51. UNC 40 [4,689 Freshmen, .8%]
52. Illinois 39 [8,297 Freshmen, .5%]
53. Oklahoma State 36 [4,643 Freshmen, .7%]
54. Iowa State 35
55. UVA 35 [4,020 Freshmen, .9%]


1.

Any college buying them with merit scholarships doesn't count, kids didn't choose it, their circumstances made the decision.

Doesn't count for what? This shows that the kids who did best at that test that day, inarguably bright students, attend these colleges. There are bright kids everywhere. You do not need to go to Harvard to be in class with other really bright people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I guess this is kind of interesting, but of all the metrics people use to judge schools, I'd care about this one the least. Does it really matter that a highly regarded school has less than one full percent National Merit Scholars, as is true of several on this list?

I think you are looking at it backward.

[Anonymous]

Some surprises...UVA, Cornell, NYU seem kind of low. Not surprisingly, Harvey Mudd, Cal Tech, Harvard, Yale, Princeton kick butt and take names.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am puzzled by how few Cornell and NYU have? Is there a reason for that and not just "it's a rich person's school'?

You might be looking at their admissions % and thinking that accounts for all students. It doesn't. Many students are admitted to and attend these schools, but are not included in what they report in their admissions percentage. But the percentage here does include all freshmen.

"One critique that does carry weight is that having LSP inflates NYU’s admissions statistics. In the University’s Admitted Student Profile, which includes median SAT scores, class rank, and average grades, LSP students’ stats are left out, because “[the program has] more flexible admission standards.” That’s a slippery way out that makes the aggregate stats very misleading, considering that LSP is nearly a quarter of each year’s freshman class."

https://nyulocal.com/the-liberal-studies-program-explained-a3391d57abf9

These aren't the only schools that do this, some use Spring start, freshman year abroad, alternate campuses, other special programs; but it is one big reason why you should be skeptical of those admissions figures (and school rankings), and don't let it steer you away from applying to a school you love.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:First is the raw number; then adjusted for percentage of enrolled freshmen to account for undergraduate size. Some schools like Alabama and ASU offer full scholarships to winners so you will see a large number at these institutions.


1. Alabama 323 [8,279 Freshmen, 3.9%]
2. Florida 297 [6,612 Freshmen 4.4%]
3. USC 262 [3,402 Freshmen, 7.7%]
4. Purdue 260 [9,353 Freshmen, 2.7%]
5. UT Dallas 232 [4,218 Freshmen, 5.5%]
6. Texas A&M 219 [12,419 Freshmen, 1.7%]
7. Vanderbilt 185 [1,624 Freshmen, 11.3%]
8. Harvard 160 [1,644 Freshmen, 9.7%]
9. MIT 154 [1,136 Freshmen, 13.5%]
10. Penn 147 [2,415 Freshmen, 6%]
11. UMD 144 [5,821 Freshmen, 2.5%]
12. Stanford 129 [1,733 Freshmen, 7.4%]
13. Yale 127 [1,554 Freshmen, 8%]
14. Princeton 116 [1,497 Freshmen, 7.7%]
15. Northeastern 97 [2,519 Freshmen, 3.9%]
16. Duke 94 [1,744 Freshmen, 5.3%]
17. UC Berkeley 93 [6,707 Freshmen, 1.4%]
18. Georgia Tech 90 [3,646 Freshmen, 2.5%]
19. UCF 85 [7,512 Freshmen, 1.1%]
20. UT Austin 85 [9,109 Freshmen, .9%]
21. Oklahoma 84
22. Minnesota 79
23. BU 77 [3,635 Freshmen, 2.1%]
24. UCLA 77 [6,461 Freshmen, 1.2%]
25. USF 77 [6,773 Freshmen, 1.1%]
26. Michigan 76 [7,050 Freshmen, 1%]
27. Columbia 75 [1,522 Freshmen, 4.9%]
28. Northwestern 75 [2,038 Freshmen, 3.7%]
29. Brown 69 [1,717 Freshmen, 4%]
30. Emory 67 [1,424 Freshmen, 4.7%]
31. Indiana 67 [9,736 Freshmen, .7%]
32. Arizona 65 [9,069 Freshmen, .7%]
33. Tufts 63 [1,694 Freshmen, 3.7%]
34. ASU 62 [10,022 Freshmen, .6%]
35. Georgia 60 [6,250 Freshmen, 1%]
36. BYU 59 [5,567 Freshmen, 1%]
37. Georgetown 56 [1,603 Freshmen, 3.5%]
38. Case Western 55 [1,553 Freshmen, 3.5%]
39. Cornell 54 [3,491 Freshmen, 1.5%]
40. Rice 51 [1,201 Freshmen, 4.3%]
41. Dartmouth 49 [1,124 Freshmen, 4.4%]
42. Michigan State 49 [9,829 Freshmen .5%]
43. Johns Hopkins 48 [1,406 Freshmen 3.4%]
44. UChicago 48 [2,053 Freshmen, 2.3%]
45. Carnegie Mellon 47 [1,716 Freshmen, 2.7%]
46. Clemson 45 [4,588 Freshmen, .99%]
47. Missouri 45 [4,983 Freshmen, .9%]
48. NYU 44 [6,184 Freshmen, .7%]
49. Miss State 43 [3,367 Freshmen, 1.2%]
50. Rutgers 43 [7,780 Freshmen, .5%]
51. UNC 40 [4,689 Freshmen, .8%]
52. Illinois 39 [8,297 Freshmen, .5%]
53. Oklahoma State 36 [4,643 Freshmen, .7%]
54. Iowa State 35
55. UVA 35 [4,020 Freshmen, .9%]


1.

Without context, this doesn't mean that much. UT Dallas is one of the highest with 232, but it sponsors (pays) 202 of those. UT Austin, the flagship of the UT System, has 85 but it does not sponsor any.

It is surprising to me that Vanderbilt and Emory sponsor so many. Generally, the most selective universities do not.

[Anonymous]

"Doesn't count for what? This shows that the kids who did best at that test that day, inarguably bright students, attend these colleges. There are bright kids everywhere. You do not need to go to Harvard to be in class with other really bright people."

Not really. The odds of having classmates with high SAT scores at Stanford is much higher than at Bama. If you're using the SAT scores of freshman to assess how "bright" enrolled students are, you should use the median SAT score, not the raw number or share of people scoring at the very top. Schools like MIT will only admit applicants who are capable of doing well on standardized tests. They're selecting from among people with strong scores. You can't get in without them. In contrast, the vast majority of students at a school like Bama will not have strong SAT scores.

[Anonymous]

PP again. It's useful to look at the average SAT scores across a wide range of schools. There are lots of "second tier" LACs with much high median SAT scores than you'd find at very competitive schools, especially the big football public schools. The vibe at these LACs will be more intellectual and academic than at the big football schools.

[Anonymous]

A bit outdated, but good data:
https://www.collegeconfidential.com/lists/best-colleges-for-national-merit-finalists/

[Anonymous]

Among publics that don't sponsor, the top 5 are:

93 Berkeley
90 Georgia Tech
85 UT Austin
77 UCLA
76 Michigan

[Anonymous]

A good number of TJ grads selected Purdue for class of 2027 (I think it was 17). I believe half of those were NMSF that were sponsored. It was noted one of the TJ announcements.

[Anonymous]

My take...Purdue, Indiana. Michigan are huge schools. I did not know that Purdue has almost 40,000 undergrads.

Where is Boston College? It is missing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some surprises...UVA, Cornell, NYU seem kind of low. Not surprisingly, Harvey Mudd, Cal Tech, Harvard, Yale, Princeton kick butt and take names.

Harvey Mudd sponsors. The others do not.

Virginia Tech does not appear to have any. That is a bit surprising. No JMU either.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Among publics that don't sponsor, the top 5 are:

93 Berkeley
90 Georgia Tech
85 UT Austin
77 UCLA
76 Michigan

Pretty much follows the prestige rankings...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:SLACS and others:

Amherst 10, [Freshmen 467, 2.1%]
Bowdoin 25, [Freshmen 508, 4.9%]
Cal Tech 23 [Freshmen 224, 10.3%]
Claremont McKenna 8 [Freshmen 322, 2.5%]
Colby 13 [Freshmen 557, 2.3%]
Colgate 2 [Freshmen 812, .2%]
Denison 1 [Freshmen 683, .1%]
George Washington 4 [Freshmen 2,941, .1%]
Grinnell 15 [437 Freshmen, 3.4%]
Harvey Mudd 26 [Freshmen 237, 10.9%]
Haverford 3 [Freshmen 411, .7%]
Holy Cross 4 [Freshmen 903, .4%]
Kenyon College 11 [Freshmen 531, 2%
Lehigh 12 [Freshmen 1,511 .7%]
Macalester 19 [Freshmen 601, 3.1%]
Oberlin 22 [864 Freshmen 2.5%]
Pomona 11 [412 Freshmen 2.6%]
RPI 33 [1,322 2.5%]
Roch. Inst. Tech. 25 [Freshmen 3,202 .7%]
Smith College 3 [Freshwomen 619 .5%]
SMU 21 [Freshmen 1,639 1.2%]
Syracuse 1 [Freshmen 4,108 .02%]
Villanova 13 [Freshmen 1,778 .7%]
Washington & Lee 8 [Freshmen 476 1.7%]
Wellesley 8 [Freshmen 586 1.3%]
Wake Forest 2 [Freshmen 1,412 .1%]

This is a really random list, and not in order. My alma mater SLAC routinely has 30+ and isn't listed.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:35 at UVA seems low.

Well, there is the DCUM view of UVA vs. the non-DCUM view of UVA.