My PSAT was cancelled two years ago; help?

This is the instruction set for this year. But you said you couldn't comply with these rules because your calculator died, then I guess you are out of luck.

Alternate Entry to the 2022 National Merit​® ​ Scholarship Program

National Merit Scholarship Corporation (NMSC) conducts the National Merit Scholarship Program, an

annual nationwide academic competition for high school students. The Preliminary SAT/National Merit

Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT​®​) is the route of entry into the National Merit Scholarship

Program. If you did not take the 2020 PSAT/NMSQT (offered in October 2020 and January 2021) due

to illness, emergency, or other extenuating circumstance (including school closures) and you meet all

other program entry requirements (given on the next page), you must follow the instructions specified

below to enter the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program. You may also use these instructions if

you took the 2020 PSAT/NMSQT but your Selection Index score cannot be considered for entry to the

National Merit Scholarship Program due to a testing irregularity or score cancellation.

Requirements:

To enter the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program based on your SAT scores in lieu of

PSAT/NMSQT scores, you must:

1) take an official administration of the SAT given from ​ August 2020 to June 2021​;

2) request that College Board SAT Program send an official report of your SAT scores to NMSC

(​code 0085​). The SAT Program will not report your scores to NMSC unless you request it.

You cannot use a photocopy of the score report sent to you or to your high school as a

substitute for the official report; and

3) visit ​ forms.nationalmerit.org/alternateentry ​ immediately to ​ complete the Alternate

Entry Form​. You cannot be considered in the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program unless

you complete this online form ​ no later than Thursday, April 1, 2021​.

Deadline:

Your Alternate Entry Form must be submitted online ​ no later than Thursday, April 1, 2021​. NMSC

will not accept Alternate Entry Form submissions after this date.

Submit your SAT scores ​ as soon as they become available​. NMSC must receive your SAT scores no

later than October 15, 2021.

Additional Notes:

• ​ Alternate Entry is ​ only ​ for students who do not take the October 2020 PSAT/NMSQT or January

2021 PSAT/NMSQT. If you are uncertain about whether you will take the January

PSAT/NMSQT, you are welcome to download and complete Alternate Entry requirements

beginning in late October; however, NMSC will not consider your SAT scores for entry to the

program if it receives an official PSAT/NMSQT Selection Index score from College Board.

• ​ In keeping with the published procedures for the 2022 National Merit Scholarship Program,

students can be considered for recognition in only one state or selection unit, based on the

high school in which the student was regularly enrolled when the PSAT/NMSQT was

administered in October 2020. Therefore, if there is/was a change in your high school after

the October 2020

administration of the PSAT/NMSQT, please contact NMSC’s Scholarship Administration

department at (847) 866-5161.

• ​ NMSC will use your Reading Test score, Writing and Language Test score, and Math Test score to

calculate your NMSC Selection Index score [2(R + WL + M)]. Your Selection Index score will

determine if you are recognized in the National Merit Scholarship Program. To account for the

differences in scale between the PSAT/NMSQT and the SAT, NMSC will cap your SAT test

scores at a maximum of 38 on each test section before calculating your Selection Index score.

• ​ Detailed information about SAT registration and score reporting is available at

sat.collegeboard.org ​ or by phone at (866) 756-7346 for Domestic and (212) 713-7789 for

International. College Board may charge a fee for their score reporting service.

AE-2022

PROGRAM ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

FOR THE 2022 NATIONAL MERIT SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

Only students who meet all the following entry requirements can participate and be considered for

program recognition and awards to be offered in 2022. To participate in the 2022 competition, you

must:

1. be enrolled as a high school student (traditional or homeschooled), progressing normally toward

graduation or completion of high school by 2022, and planning to accept admission to college no

later than the fall of 2022;

2. attend high school in the United States, District of Columbia, or U.S. commonwealths and

territories; or meet the citizenship requirements for students attending high school outside the

United States (see below); and

3. take the 2020 PSAT/NMSQT​® ​ (offered in October 2020 and January 2021) or complete Alternate

Entry requirements in the specified year of the high school program and ​ no later than ​ the third

year in grades 9 through 12, ​ regardless of grade classification or educational pattern; ​ as explained

below:

a. Students who plan to spend the usual four years in high school (grades 9 through 12) before

entering college full time must take the qualifying test in their third year of high school (grade

11, junior year).

b. Students who plan to leave high school early to enroll in college full time after spending three

years or less in grades 9 through 12 usually can participate in the National Merit Program if

they take the qualifying test before they enroll in college. To enter the competition for awards

to be offered in 2022, these students must be in either ​ the next-to-last ​ or the ​ last ​ year of

high school when they take the qualifying test.

c. Students who are dual enrolled in both high school and college must take the qualifying test in

their third year of high school (grade 11, junior year). To enter the competition that ends

when scholarships are offered in 2022, these students must be in their third year of high

school when they take the qualifying test, the same as all other students who plan to spend

four years in grades 9 through 12. The high school determines whether a student is dual

enrolled and confirms the student’s status as a high school student.

d. Students who plan to take five years to complete grades 9 through 12 can participate in the

National Merit Program if they take the PSAT/NMSQT in the third year of high school and again

in the fourth year. These students’ Selection Index scores will not be eligible for the program

until a written request for entry to the competition is approved by NMSC. The request should

include the student’s name, high school name and location, year the student began high

school, year the student will complete high school, and a brief explanation of the student’s

educational pattern.

Students attending high school outside the United States: ​ To be eligible for the 2022 National

Merit Scholarship Program, students attending high school outside the United States must be a citizen

of the United States; or be a U.S. lawful permanent resident (or have applied for permanent

residence, the application for which has not been denied) and intend to become a U.S. citizen at the

earliest opportunity allowed by law.

Note: ​ Many of NMSC’s corporate and business sponsors offer both Merit Scholarship awards and

Special Scholarships for children of their employees or other students of interest to the sponsor. To

enter such a sponsored scholarship competition, an Entry Form must be submitted directly with the

sponsor organization and meet all requirements (given above) for participation in the National Merit

Scholarship Program. To identify sponsors that require Entry Forms, see the descriptions of corporate

sponsored scholarships in the 2020 ​ PSAT/NMSQT Student Guide​, which is available at high schools

nationwide and at ​ www.nationalmerit.org​